SEATTLE

Sandoval , A lmendra, ed . A Book About Death Seatt le . Seatt le : Quetzalcoat l , 2012 . Pr int . Sandoval , A lmendra. A Book About Death . Seatt le : Quetzalcoat l Ga l lery, 2012 . Pr int .Foreword by Matthew Rose

DESIGNED & EDITED A L M E N D R A S A N D O V A LCURATED K A T H L E E N M C H U G H & H E R B S U N D V A L LI M A G E J E N N A L E S K E L A

A B A D S E A T T L E . B L O G S P O T . C O M

B Y K A T H L E E N M C H U G H

S E A T T L EC O N T E N T S

I N T R O D U C T I O N By Matthew Rose 7A NOTE ABOUT A BOOK ABOUT DEATH

A R T I S T I N D E X 12

Introduction BY Rae Jones 14

1 2 S P I R I T S 1 7

Mwanzo Proud Farmers 1 9 9

Before I moved to Paris in September, 1992

Ray Johnson said to me, “Matthew, you should

start The Paris Correspondence School . ”

What that meant exactly wasn’t c lear , but

when I arrived in France one of the f irst

th ings I d id was to have a rubber stamp made

( in French and Engl ish) announcing just that .

Ray ’s New York Correspondence School was

of course celebrated in the art world ; as a

“school” i t was a h igh ly unusual one , a loose

“Buddha University” co l lect ion of students led

by a Zen- l ike teacher who taught “nothing ,”

usual ly through the mai l , but sometimes with

happenings that inc luded a cocktai l of people ,

dogs, ladders, boxes, be lts , and sometimes

nothing at a l l . Ray would famously cal l people

in the phone book named Ray Johnson (or Ger-

trude Stein) , or write them. He was a lways

working , i t seemed, even when he was s leep-

ing . People wondered what he ate . “Air?”

someone suggested.

When Ray d ied on Fr iday, January 13 , 1995

from an apparent su ic ide drowning in Sag

Harbor, New York, I had , a long with many oth-

ers, qu ite a b it to unpack –lessons to learn or

relearn. It was terrib ly puzzl ing : Was Ray’s

death an act of art? Desperat ion? Or just

a mystery, a lesson in itself , and one about

l i fe .

In January 2009 when I f lew into a fr ig id New

York C ity , I soon found myself considering

Ray Johnson and h is “school” again . Walking

through an off ice bu i ld ing-turned exhib it ion

space with art ist and fr iend Christ ian Xatrec

we ta lked about how unusual spaces with

their o ld te lephone banks and g lassed wal ls

seemed to f it wel l with p i les of br icks or

sand or g lass or mounds of crumpled paper;

th is was an effort to redef ine not on ly sculp-

ture but the idea of making and showing art .

Christ ian , the d irector of the Emi ly Harvey

Foundat ion Gal lery in New York, suspected I

wanted to propose an exhib it ion in the space

he d irected on 537 Broadway. Before I could

get it out he to ld me, “Matthew, we don ’t s im-

ply want art ists to come and hang their work

and wait for people to come in and buy it , but

to create something un ique at the crossroads

of art , something about community…situat ion-

ist .” Indeed that was the sp ir it of Emi ly Har-

vey’s space – a home for F luxus art ists of a l l

str ipes and f lavors who chal lenged the g ivens

of the art world and remade it .

“G ive me a minute ,” I sa id , walking away to

reconf igure my idea . A moment later I tugged

on h is s leeve: “How about th is : I inv ite 1000

art ists to send me 500 smal l works – or

post cards of their works – on the subject

of death , A Book About Death – after Ray

Johnson ’s p iece . I t would serve as an hom-

age ( in mai l art) to Ray, as wel l as to Emi ly ,

who d ied in 2004, and many others. I ’d d is-

p lay the cards/works in the gal lery and g ive

Matthew Rose poster for The RNG Gal lery Omaha, Nebraska

A NOTEBy Matthew Rose

6

them away for free . A l imited ed it ion book.

Everyone benef its in th is equat ion , and the

exhib it ion touches upon a very open, a very

deep and very wide subject – death . The en-

t ire exhib it ion would be free – you walk in ,

experience it , and leave with a l imited ed it ion

of the exhib it ion .” That was my s imple idea . I

watched Christ ian ’s face . He smi led . “Do it . ”

I spent the next 10 days in New York, walk-

ing about in sub-zero winds and snow f lurries

armed with hot coffees th inking about the

mechanics . I ’d had large exhib it ions before

– wal l -to-wal l -to-cei l ing-to-f loor instal la-

t ions of my col lage work. Certain ly , I would

mai l people , leverage the Internet and every

contact I ever had . Years ago I produced a

g lobal mai l event Greene Summer ’90 – that

encouraged people to send mai l to my fr iend ,

the actor Marvin Greene.

He received over the course of a summer

about 500 p ieces of mai l from al l over Europe,

South America and the US. Th is would be d if -

ferent , of course.

Ray Johnson ’s A Book About Death , a co l lec-

t ion of photocopied drawings he sent out to

people as part of h is NYCS “work,” would

serve as the ph i losophical and aesthet ic po int

of departure. I would create a co l laborat ive

unbound book on the subject of death . G lob-

a l ly , we would explore, as art ists and sons,

daughters, parents , fr iends, observers the

wide subject of death .

When I returned to Paris , I wrote and wrote.

The cal l , or ig ina l ly in Engl ish , would a lso

have to be in Spanish , I ta l ian , German and

Japanese, Ch inese. I needed col laborators.

I ca l led my c lose fr iend , the Berl in-based

art ist , G lor ia Ze in . She would come to Paris

soon. When she arrived, we reworked my

draft and the various aspects of the cal l , the

log ist ics , and the exhib it ion concept .

I sent the text around to a few people in

New York and Europe for thoughts and

translat ions ; soon I had several languages of

the art cal l posted on a server and avai lab le

for download. I made phone cal ls to various

art ists asking them if they would be inter-

ested in such a project , would they speak,

perform, advise?

I ca l led pr inters a l l over the US to see i f they

would offer a specia l d iscount to our art ists?

(None would) . I created the web s ite – abook-

aboutdeath .b logspot .com – then launched it .

Would art ists contribute 500 post cards, art

works to become part of an unbound book on

the subject of death?

Cr it ica l was putt ing the information on Face-

Book, creat ing a group and asking one art ist

to ask two art ists i f she or he would par-

t ic ipate . I t would have to go v iral for it to be

successful . Other socia l networks l ike Twit-

Mary Bogdan poster for MOMA Wales

ter and L inkedIn , and art s ites where cre-

at ives congregated were targeted and mes-

sages posted. Others began to promote the

show. I personal ly asked dozens of art ists to

produce works (and personal ly wrote Emi ly ’s

fr iend Yoko Ono – yes, she contributed) .

The concept was pretty s imple : Art ists would

design their cards, add the phrase “A BOOK

ABOUT DEATH” in any language; the art ists

would send me the images of their works and

their websites which I would post on the s ite .

The art ists would be responsib le to pr int or

produce the 500 works and mai l them d irect ly

to the gal lery. To say it took off is an un-

derstatement . Art ists responded in a huge

way and messages came in from China , Japan,

Indonesia , South America and Europe, and of

course a l l over the US and Canada.

I asked a handful of art ists to s ign up to

perform, g ive a lecture, a s l ide show. I was

looking for brain surgeons, pr iests , rabbis

and poets . I got music ians , Dadaists , Ray

Johnson archiv ists , ph i losophers and more

poets . I asked art ists and designers to pro-

duce a poster for the exhib it ion that would

be turned into a h igh resolut ion PDF that

anyone could download. Great works came

in and they were astonish ing . The idea that

the exhib it ion would be total ly free in a l l i ts

manifestat ions – and the website would be an

exhib it ion on a s ite (or in a box) free as an

archive for future shows – was in many ways

its ethos. A major exhib it ion in the middle

of New York that would be free for the tak-

ing – a l imited ed it ion book – was unheard of .

A lthough other art ists have g iven away their

works as part of an exhib it ion , to my mind ,

was an ent ire show ever offered for free?

What became evident was the not ion of death

as a focal po int was a powerful motivator for

art ists to produce and share their works.

The content , which ranged from personal to

ph i losophical , to a d irect homage to Ray John-

Joan Harrison poster for

The Emi ly Harvey

Foundat ion Gal lery NYC

son, or the late art dealer Emi ly Harvey, or

as it turned out to hundreds of mothers, fa-

thers, sons and daughters, and fr iends, was

overwhelming . Ch i ldren, f irst-t ime art ists ,

cartoonists , pa inters, text art ists , concep-

tual art ists , photographers and poets sent in

their works d irect ly to 537 Broadway. The

boxes began to p i le up and the gal lery was

beginn ing to look l ike a warehouse. As art-

ist works came in and the posters were de-

s igned, the l ine up of art ists and performers

a lso came together…but I had another idea :

Broadcast the exhib it ion l ive on the Internet .

One of the art ists Jeanne Jo cal led me from

an a irport in Seatt le (whi le I was in F lor ida)

and sa id that she could put the opening per-

formances on the net so anyone tuning in to

dedicated website would be able to watch.

Other detai ls came together: A f lash “wal l”

website designed by Caterina Verde, a pro-

gram of events , the press release and a net-

work of donors who offered to pay for a case

of wine , tape, paper towels , cups and the

hundreds of detai ls needed to accommodate

the art ists their guests , and a very inter-

ested publ ic . As the exhib it ion approached ( it

opened on September 9 , 2009) art ists from al l

over the US and Europe descended upon New

York; in the three days pr ior to the opening ,

these art ists helped open the boxes, catalog

the works, and put my design of the exhib i -

t ion into p lay . That idea – p lac ing the boxes in

rows on the f loor , effect ively forcing v is itors

to co l lect the cards on their hands and knees,

or at the very least bent over – as i f in a cem-

etery, as i f in some form of prayer, p lac ing

f lowers, reading more c losely the headstones

– would be taxing , perhaps extremely tax-

ing . I ts form came from a conversat ion with

Christ ian Xatrec. I qu ickly agreed. The v is i -

tors would perform; i f the exhib it ion ’s works

were to be g iven away for free, i t would a lso

be earned.

Many hours and many boxes later , the exhib i -

t ion came together. I l ived in the gal lery and

in between responding to hundreds of e-mai ls

about the show, whether works had arrived,

I was recovering personal ly from the loss of

my mother and the near death of my father.

My mother, Doris Rose, passed away on July

25, 2009, a day before she d ied , I drove my

father to the emergency room in Boca Raton,

F lor ida to have two stents p laced in h is chest .

I hes itant ly left my father but whi le I was

in New York I spoke to h im about three to

four t imes a day. ( I ’d a lready lost my middle

brother Jon in Ju ly 2001 and would lose my

o ldest brother Scott about two weeks before

my father in January 2010) .

The exhib it ion , whi le never an explorat ion of

my mother ’s death , in fact became that ; a pa ir

of the the cards I designed – my mother in

her wedding dress – were kept in my father ’s

da i ly agenda and calendar.

And as the f ina l p ieces came together – I

narrated the ent ire event to my father. He

kept asking i f I was gett ing pa id for it , and

i f not , why do it? I t was a lmost impossib le

to expla in , but I to ld h im that sometimes peo-

p le make art because they have to , and that

th is was such an instance. What struck me,

I to ld h im, was the generosity of hundreds

of people ; th is was not l ike any other group

show ever produced. There were works from

grandmothers who had never shown their

work anywhere, and 10-year-o ld boys who

were more interested in c l imbing trees than

drawing them, but we had those works, too .

I t was astonish ing to see the show al l set up

– 7 long rows of boxes, four across, l ined up

and down the gal lery in lanes . Indeed it was

l ike a garden, or a cemetery depending upon

your po int of v iew.

I had the sense there would be many people ,

and at 6 pm when the exhib it ion opened you

could feel the space warm up. Art ists and

v is itors from Europe, Los Angeles , Texas,

Mexico , Canada and a l l over New York f looded

the space and began col lect ing the works.

One last art ist , Stephanie Sakson handed me

her hand-made works – a To Do l ist . I t was a

great p iece and I was very happy to have it

in the show.

The te levis ion camera was set up and the

images of the th ickening crowd streamed

out over the net ; I pu l led fo lks who spoke

French, German, Spanish and Ita l ian in front

of the camera and asked them to narrate to

the world . Soon the exhib it ion space was

too crowded and we had to manage the door;

a l ine formed that went up the b lock from

Spring to Prince . There were more than 600

people wait ing to get in . I walked the l ine and

apolog ized for the wait , but no one – not one

person – was upset . “We love th is ,” they

said . “Th is is a great l ine .”

Ins ide the gal lery, the crowd pushed the box-

es to the edges of the space and cont inued

working away at the boxes of cards, p icking

them up, and taking them home…l ike vultures

pecking at carrion , or relat ives f ight ing over

the jewelry of the deceased. It was s imply hu-

man nature and wi ld ly fascinat ing . Hundreds

of photos documented the act iv ity .

When my father d ied not more than s ix months

later in a Miami Hospita l intensive care un it

on January 22, 2010 , I found myself s itt ing

a lone in h is house in Boca Raton, staring at

the portrait of my mother. There was now no

one left a l ive in my immediate fami ly . I was

a lone and left to consider not on ly my own

l i fe , but theirs as wel l .

J u l i a H o f f m a n n p o s t e r f o r E m i l y H a r v e y F o u n d a t i o n G a l l e r y N Y C

Since the A Book About Death project launched, there have

been many exhib it ions , v ideos, posters, essays, letters and

v is its . The experience has been a deep and r ich one for me per-

sonal ly and one that has resonated with many of the more than

5000 art ists who have thus far part ic ipated in the project .

Each art ist/curator and space owner/curator, has organized

a specif ic art ist cal l , launched a s ite , l inked to other s ites and

created a fascinat ing echo of a project that began s imply on a

co ld January n ight . Each art ist/curator has pul led together

art ists , music ians and v isuals and produced a local manifesta-

t ion of a g lobal phenomenon.

What occurred to me then was that the project had created

a very large community , and that community it turned out

would end up sett ing the stage for exhib it ions and re-stagings

of A Book About Death in more than 25 c it ies over the next

few years across the p lanet – from Cal i fornia to São Paulo ,

to Wales and Croat ia to Ita ly to Nebraska to Louis iana and

e lsewhere. Sets of the New York C ity exhib it ion are now in

the col lect ions of MoMA New York, LACMA, MoMA Wales and

other publ ic inst itut ions . A v ideo of the New York show with

each art ist and instal lat ion , performance and st i l l photos cre-

ated by Brazi l ian art ist Angela Ferrara sets to the wonderful

music of Praan by composer Garry Schyman, is running up h its

on YouTube. Co l lectors have generously lent their works to

exhib it ions in Brazi l , South Carol ina and Croat ia . And it goes

on and on .

(Those detai ls , a long with photos and essays on the instal la-

t ions and the ongoing thoughts about the project from a wide

range of people is a l l archived on the s ite : abookaboutdeath-

archive .b logspot .com)

For the last fu l l on exhib it ion , the show in Seatt le curated

by Kathleen McHugh at Almendra Sandoval ’s Quetzalcoat l Ga l -

lery, I contributed l ike I have in many of the other exhib it ions

– by offering to speak to Kathleen and offering up a handful

of ideas she might be able to use . One idea was to inc lude a

musical set by a fr iend Jacques Migeon whose band is local to

Seatt le and whose repertoire could inc lude a dozen Grateful

Dead songs.

The second was to offer a sculptural work as my art contri-

but ion (most of the exhib it ions add a new cal l for works to

be mai led into the venues) . Mine was a p iece I produced in

Paris and exhib ited at my show GOD & COUNTRY. The work con-

s isted of a 1960s French te lephone h idden in a pa inted white

cardboard box. I pu l led the mouth and earpiece out and let it

dangle . Then I wrote on the box: Ta lk to God . I t would be my

publ ic phone p iece su itable for a l l locat ions re l ig ious , publ ic

and pr ivate .

Hung on the wal l at STORIE in Paris where I debuted my new

col lage works, Ta lk To God was a huge h it ; everyone had their

photos taken ta lk ing to God .

I offered Talk To God to the Seatt le exhib it ion , th inking th is

might touch upon a lot of d ifference issues concerning prayer,

nonsense, dada, death and of course l i fe .

Maybe, for the next project I could do A Phone Book About

Death . Or maybe just f in ish with the world ’s largest mai l art

exhib it ion in Paris , London or Tokyo. Write or cal l for de-

ta i ls .

– Matthew Rose,

Paris , France.

R o b W h i t e p o s t e r f o r M U B E B r a z i l

Tiajuana Exhibition Poster Ben Elmer Brown Poster

TIAJUANA, MEXICO. BEN IS 11 YEARS OLD.

Matthew Rose poster for The Queens Museum of Art , New York

9

Adriana Harman, Seattle, Washington 41

Anouk Rawkson, Seattle, Washington 191

Angela Ferrara, São Paulo, Brazil 43

Amarildo Correa Sao Caetano Do Sul, Sp - Brazil 45

Andre Pace, Phoenix, Arizona 46

Annie Zeybekoglu, Boston, Massachusetts 47

Ania Gilmore, Boston, Massachusetts 47

Bibiana Padilla Maltos, California, USA/Mexico 53

Brett “Flip” Austin, Seattle, Washington 64

C.T. Chew, Seattle, Washington 54

Carolina Tedesco, Key West, Florida 58

CHOROLOCO / MUSICIANS 59

Chris Day, Jeremiah, Kentucky 60

Christelle Montus, Swiss Federation 62

Claire Lewis Evans, Tuscaloosa, Alabama 65

BERRY BREMER / MUSICIAN Seattle WA 58

COLM McCARTHY, Wisconsin 66

David Welch, Boston, Massachusetts 68

Dan McCormack, Poughkeepsie, New York 70

Deborah Goldman, Key West, Florida 72

Donna Merry, Brentwood, California 74

Eleanor I Bennett 76

Erin Kobe, Rochester, NY 78

Eva Brunner, Berlin, Germany 80

Gary A. Bibb, Denver, Colorado 82

Grace Graupe-Pillard, Keyport, New Jersey 84

Greg Drake, Schaumburg , Illinois 89

Gregory Martens, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin 86

Fran Gallo, Seattle WA 88

Heather Matthew, NSW Australia 90

Herb Sundvall, Seattle, Washington 94

Horacio Luís Carrena, Buenos Aires, Argentina 94

Jadranka Carluccio Grbic, Croatian born/ Italian 96

James Hathaway, Schaumburg, Illinois 98

Jamie Newton, Oregon 100

jana l bussanich, Colorado Springs, Colorado 101

Jane Hsiaoching Wang, Boston, Massachusetts 105

Jennifer Gray, Jacksonville, Florida 107

Jeremy Waltman, Philadelphia Pennsylvania 109

Jo Olive, Uki, Northern NSW, Australia 111

Jack Cymber, Tel Aviv, Israel 113

Karen Alekyan, Gyumri, Armenia 115

Kathleen McHugh, Seattle, Washington 118

Kit Boyce, California USA 122

Krist ina Moravec, Seatt le , Washington 123

Lawrence Charles Mi l ler , Be l lefonte , Pennsylvania 125

Lee Goldberg, Be l l Canyon, Ca l i fornia 126

Lee Marie C . USA 127

L i l iana Parra, Argent ina 129

L isa Davidson, Be lford, New Jersey 131

Lorenzo Basi le , Sarno, Ita ly 133

LuAnn Palazzo, New York, New York 134

Lynn Skordal, Mercer Island, Washington 136

Mailarta, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada 138

Mara Thompson, Santa Monica, California 140

Margaret Balderama, Seattle, Washington 141

Matthew Rose, Paris, France 143

Melanie Harrington, Northern California 144

Michael Harford North Manchester, Indiana 147

Michael Hubbard, Pullman, Washington 146

Michele Principato Trosso, Capizzi, Italy 148

Miriam Brumer, NY, NY 150

Mitsu Sundvall, Seattle WA 151

Nikki Soppelsa, Berea, Ohio 152

Noemi Silvera Garcia, Montevideo, Uruguay 154

Patricia Kranenberg, East Setauket, New York 156

Paula Franca, São Paulo, Brazil 158

Paula Shaughnessy, Wayne, New Jersey 161

Ranjan Engti, Guwahati, India 162

I N D E X

A n n C u m m i n g s , pianist, artist 57

Renee Creager O’Brien, Hadley, New York 165

Ria Vanden Eynde, Belgium 167

Rich Fought, Seattle, Washington 171

Rick Clark, Seattle Wa 168

Sarah C. Ritchey, Seattle, Washington 173

Seeking Kali: “Seeking Kali is three artists:

William Evertson (USA), Ria Vanden Eynde (Belgium)

and Susan Shulman (Canada) 174

Shelly M Stewart, Albion, Washington 177

Shirley Hathaway, Schaumburg, Illinois 179

Snappy, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada 180

SIN FRONTERAS / MISICIANS Seattle WA 181

Sonja Benskin Mesher RCA, Dolgellau, Wales 183

Steve Dalachinsky, NYC 187

Stewart Edwards, Caergwrle, Wales 185

Susan Shulman, Montreal, Quebec, Canada 189

Tonia S. Areheart , Seattle WA 175

Virginia Paula Cappabianca, Italy 190

William Evertson, East Hampton, Connecticut 193

Willie Marlowe, Albany, New York 194

Xiomáro, New York 197

Mwanzo Proud Farmers 199

TANGLETOWN STRING BAND / MISICIANS 198

Lawrence Charles Mi l ler , Be l lefonte , Pennsylvania 125

Lee Goldberg, Be l l Canyon, Ca l i fornia 126

Lee Marie C . USA 127

L i l iana Parra, Argent ina 129

L isa Davidson, Be lford, New Jersey 131

Lorenzo Basi le , Sarno, Ita ly 133

LuAnn Palazzo, New York, New York 134

Lynn Skordal, Mercer Island, Washington 136

Mailarta, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada 138

Mara Thompson, Santa Monica, California 140

Margaret Balderama, Seattle, Washington 141

Matthew Rose, Paris, France 143

Melanie Harrington, Northern California 144

Michael Harford North Manchester, Indiana 147

Michael Hubbard, Pullman, Washington 146

Michele Principato Trosso, Capizzi, Italy 148

Miriam Brumer, NY, NY 150

Mitsu Sundvall, Seattle WA 151

Nikki Soppelsa, Berea, Ohio 152

Noemi Silvera Garcia, Montevideo, Uruguay 154

Patricia Kranenberg, East Setauket, New York 156

Paula Franca, São Paulo, Brazil 158

Paula Shaughnessy, Wayne, New Jersey 161

Ranjan Engti, Guwahati, India 162 11

A Conversation with Death. ìThere is only one God...

. . and his name is Death.

.. . and there is only one thing we say to Death.

.. . Not Today.î

I have been called many names throughout time.

From the dawn of light itself, I have existed.

I am the shadow, the killer, the mercenary and

the merciful. I am Male and Female, Santa Muerte

and Lilith herself.

I am Death.

I am loved, hated, celebrated and cursed.

I am the Mistress and the Guardian, God and the

essence of the Universe.

You have these grand ideas of me, from very

beautiful and seductive to red scales and horns.

But, let the record show, I am magnificently

adorned in your lies. Loathed,

Feared and embraced, I am the only thing which

exists even after everything else ceases.

I teach you about life, love, appreciation, grati-

tude and humility. I reflect to you, your fragile

state, impermanence and ignorance. I celebrate

the moment you are born,

knowing that eventually you will end up in my

embrace.

I touch everyone. And, every

Thing.

I am infectious and seductive, celebrated and

seeked. I take from you your most

beloved and give you respite from suffering. And

yet, my most powerful weapon is my

ability to seduce you to do my bidding. I am a

Magician, Master and Artist. I create with

your diseased, discarded and bone-ridden beau-

ty.

And yet, I ask you:

ìWhat is your price?

ìWhat is more precious than life? Presuming a

persons life is worth living?î

ìWhat do you value the most? What if I took ev-

erything away, what would you be left with?

That is what I want. If it was your wife? gone.

Your money and retirement?

vanished. Peace and love? I took that too. What

is left? What is that secret thing?

There, yes that.

That is what I want. That is my price.î

ìWould you rather forget?

No?

Then I will make you forget again and again

and again.î

ìSo then, I ask you good Sir, What is your

price?î

ìIs that it?î

ìThat dusty abandoned thing over there in the

corner?î

ìThen why the hell arenít you living like it

is?î

In the Pulitzer Prize winning book, The Denial

of Death, Ernest Becker speaks of me

when he says:

“ .. .the idea of death, the fear of it, haunts the

human animal like nothing else; it is a main-

spring of human activity--activity designed

largely to avoid the fatality of death, to

overcome it by denying in some way that it is

the final destiny for man.”

But, my dear little human, I am so much more.

I am Le Petite Mort, Enlightenment, and

Ecstasy. Deep and wide, baby, deep and wide.

You love me baby, and you hate yourself for

that.

.. . and oh, I love you too! I love you enough to

do my bidding for me. To hold me in your hands

and squeeze, squeeze hard, harder than any-

thing you have every squeezed in your life.

Squeeze until your hands bleed.

Then, take comfort. Comfort in the belief that

I am a warm blanket. A blanket stitched

with gilded ìHail Marysî and platinum seams of

ìYou are Healedî.

but, sometimes, you crack...

Crack like the ìI regret nothing Iíve done, of

the lives Iíve taken. It wasnít by some spiri-

tual awakening, or by religious rebirth. It

was by my knowing, intimately knowing,

life is too short. Like in some strange way, it

is as if the lives Iíve saved more than make up

for the losses.î and yet you have guilt gorilla’s

smashing around on your insides.

Talk about a bull in the China shop, pfffft.

I mean, I understand, it is very difficult to

deal with that God over there, That god of

War.

He is so horrifically brutal sometimes. The

blood, misery and utter stupidity of it all. It’s

always the same, you know; the screams, the

pain, the illness that follows, the

starvation. And it’s always the innocents who

suffer the most. Most of these souls are grate-

ful for my arrival. I am the end to the pain and

the suffering.

After all, I am their relief.

They call for me. You see, I canít stop. Like a

bloodlust vampire, they call to me, from their

soul, to mine.

I am the emotion of a steel driven snowflake.

What do I mean to you?

I am a large collection of individual pieces. Like

a trapped growing organism. Individual ideas as-

similated into a larger scope of beautiful deadly

work.

Look for the beauty in death. The growth, accep-

tance and surrender to the divinely inevitable.

Live the legacy, it is only through death could He

be more a person, in more relationships, deeper

and stronger relationships.

It has been said that we are not truly prepared

to live until we are prepared to die. Life

assumes a greater meaning and purpose when

we fully appreciate the fact we are going to die.

Our death is real and will be marked by a spe-

cific day on the calendar. All the days leading up

to that one assume a special significance. Time

passes so quickly.

When we prepare to live with the full knowledge

that we will die, we stop taking life and the peo-

ple we love for granted. Our own lives, and our

significant relationships, become

authentic.

I lead you wandering blind towards a cliff. None

of us know which step it will be that will cause

us to fall, we only are certain of one thing -that

we are getting closer to the edge.

Once we are over the edge, we can never get

back. Such is life, and such is the fact that we

will meet one day.

You can do it, I believe in you.

Everyone can learn something, and not necessar-

ily anything; from the phenomenon of birth; but

from death we can learn everything. It is that

little transition in between which means the

most.

ìThere is only one God...

. . . . and his name is Death.

.. . and there is only one thing we say to Death.

–––

R A E J O N E S

Armed with a MBA, Rae spent 14 long years in the stress-f i l led environment of corporate America .S ince 2004, she has been featured as a speak-er at many businesses, cont inu ing educat ion gatherings and internat ional ly recognized col leges on Stress and F inancia l Management .Ed itor and publ isher of a quarterly magazine , she is an author, an accompl ished ghostwrit-er , and has a passion for adventures.P lease check her website for the latest information .

b e g i n a n a d v e n t u r e . c o m

I was given this task...

. . . to introduce a book. Not just any book, but

The Book About Death . A book which has been

a travel ing art exhib it , and is now in pr int .

Th is book you are now reading .

Th is book about death .

But , how does one introduce a book about

death? A book about everything a l iv ing hu-

man knows nothing about , without f irst s it -

t ing down to speak with Death itself?

But yet , there in l ies the rub .

Humans are strange, d istract ing ourselves

from the important with the profane and dra-

matic . Prancing about in l i fe , us ing their t ime

l ike a $2 hooker. Cheap. Yet , when

Death comes cal l ing , we r ide her hard, most-

ly trying to get our money’s worth that we

wasted. It is those int imate ind iv idual mo-

ments, a grandness of the total ity of th is

work

which is captured in th is stunning book.

Here, through these eyes, through these art-

ists , is the scope of human h istory, those

s ites where our laws were made, our ph i loso-

phies honed, our batt les won. The read cant

read the very stone our ancestors walked or

gawk at the bed where the hero s lept and the

desk where he wrote. A l l through the eyes

of death .

I t is a co l lect ion of stunning tapestry of the

many threads of humanity . The tr ia ls and

tr ibu lat ions and our success in overcoming

them to become the sh in ing example of human

achievement in def iance of Death itself . I t is in

the inspirat ion of those grandscenes, few of

us dedicate the t ime to pursue the rainbow’s

trai l to th is cont inent ’s d istant horizons. The

contemplat ion of death . A meditat ion of g lor i -

ous Death . A handshake in an art ist ’s search

for the beauty of the natural into the a lmost

rel ig ious fervor of a p i lgr image.

And yet , after a l l of i t , how does write an

introduct ion for The Book About Death?

You cannot converse with death , no . . .

Death only speaks, and you shal l on ly l isten .

The beauty of the col lect ion is that each of

these art ists l istened. They contemplated,

touched, meditated and l ived with Death .

Take a moment , s it down, and l isten with your

eyes in appreciat ion to th is conversat ion

with Death .

13

P a u l D a l h q u i s t

J e n n a L e s k e l a

E r i c T o d d

D a i s h a K i s s e l

J e n n i f f e r Y a t e s

C e c i l i a C o n c e p c i o n A l v a r e z

E d u a r d o T i l l m a n

I i k k a K e r a n e n

R o s e K e r a n e n

J e n i f f e r E t s i t t y

S i e n n a

A l m e n d r a S a n d o v a l

1 7

1 9

2 1

2 3

2 5

2 7

2 9

3 1

3 3

3 5

3 7

3 9

1 2 S P I R I T SS E A T T L E U S A

The project has been exhib ited at MoMA

Wales , MUBE Brazi l , The Ot is Co l lege of

Art and Design , The Queens Museum (NY) ,

among many other venues from smal l

churches to un iversit ies ,arts fest ivals

and art spaces across Europe and the

United States.

For more information about the scope

and h istory of the project , p lease v is it

the archive

In the sp ir it of the NYC exhib it ion , art-

ists were asked to create a “page” for

the unbound book about death .

The art exhib ited in Seatt le wi l l be ar-

chived in the permanent gal lery col lec-

t ion .

The art wi l l be avai lab le for future

exhib it ion opportunit ies to share the

Seatt le pages from the g lobal unbound

book about death .

S ince the or ig inal show iNYC, A BOOK

ABOUT DEATH has become a g lobal phe-

nomenon, as wel l as becoming part of

the permanent col lect ions of the Mu-

seum of Modern Art and the LA County

Museum of Art Rsearch L ibrary.

PHOTO BY KRISTINA MORAVEC

a b o o k a b o u t d e a t h a r c h i v e . b l o g s p o t . c o m

A B A D S E A T T L E . B L O G S P O T . C O M

Q U E T Z A L C O A T L G A L L E R Y

15

D e a t h i s d i f f e r e n t t h a n a n y o n e s u p p o s e s …

E v e n a s u d d e n v i o l e n t d e a t h m u s t h a v e

a n i n s t a n t o f r e l e a s e a n d f r e e d o m .

P A U L D A L H Q U I S T

Art has been a part of my life. Painting and draw-

ing were my media and my identity as an artist

trough the 1960’s, my thirties. T he opportunity

to teach photography classes provoked some

serious study and work in this medium, wich

quickly become my real form of expression.

How natural to show what I see, and how vul-

nerable. Working in 35mm format with Ilford

HP5 film shot at 1600ASA using a Canon EOS 300

with a 28-80 zoom lens, I care to celebrate the

miracle we all are. These images may help people

accept themselves and each other, and make this

world safer, saner and more just.

17

D I G T H I S U P !

S T I R T H I S U P !

T H I S B L A C K N E S S D E N S E Y E T U N T O U C H A B L E

Y O U R P E R F E C T S W E E T M Y S T E R YG I V I N G L I F E T H R O U G H T H E C U R S E S O F O T H E R ST H E M O U R N I N G O F O T H E R S

E V E R G I V I N GR E G E N E R A T I N G E X I S T E N C E

B A S K I N T H I S D A R K L I G H T

I T ’ S O P E N P A L E F A C E G L O W I N GA N DI N V I T I N G Y O U

Y O U A R E A L W A Y S W E L C O M EA S Y O U H A V E B E E N H E R E B E F O R E

P I E C E S O F Y O UH A V E B E E N H E R E B E F O R EI G N O R E D , M O S T L Y

S O D I G I T U P !T U R N I T O V E R !

A B S O R B Y O U R L I F E A S Y O U R A N C E S T O R S H A V E G I V E N I T T O Y O U I N D E A T H

Y O U B E A U T I F U L A N G E L

Y O U B E A U T I F U L B E I N G .

An explorer and embracer of l i fe ,

a lways open to the experience of fo l lowing her dreams,

passion and love .

Forever looking for ways to present

the beauty of the world . . . even through death .

J E N N A L E S K E L A

19

‘Life does not cease to be funny when people die. Any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh.”

-- George Bernard Shaw

E R I C T O D D

e r i c t o d d s t u d i o s @ g m a i l . c o m

Iconoclast ic Art ist

Er ic Todd

Born 1961Bachelor of f ine arts in Pa int ing University of Oregon 1980’s watercolor landscapes of cem-eteries ,Began a l i fet ime study of gravestone rub-b ings

ThemesIconoclast ic Art ist Er ic Todd

Christ enthroned Dead last supperDead Buddha Dead Mary

“Al l great truths begin as b lasphemies .”

“ God is Dead.” Nietzsche

I am under the influence

Of dead artists….

And all of the dead metaphors.

A book about death is

The artist’s voice.

Questioning Authority.

Questioning Religion.

Questioning Holy Relics.

Questioning The Blood Sacrifice.

William S. Burroughs shot

Bullet holes in literature,

I shoot Bibles.

I Crucify the Pope,

My sacrilegious war

Is creating Altarpieces

After Francis Bacon,

Howling wild dogs screaming in oil paint.

.

‘Life does not cease to be funny when people die. Any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh.”

-- George Bernard Shaw

21

l i f e l o v e r o r g a n i z e r

h o m e h e a l e r s p a c e s h i f t e r

c o n n e c t o r s e e r

f e n g s h u i d e c o r a t o r s p i r i t l i f t e r

i n t e n t i o n a l e n v i r o n m e n t m a k e r d e e p t a l k e r

v i s i o n c r e a t o r f u n t i m e r

b e i n g

O u r s p i r i t s d o o r w a y t o t h e n e x t . . .

D A I S H A K I S S E L

A BOOK ABOUT DEATH

E L E M E N T S O F E V O L U T I O N . C O M23

J E N N I F E R Y A T E S

y a t e s f i n e a r t s @ h o t m a i l . c o my a t e s f i n e a r t s . c o m

C e r a m i c a n d m e t a lf o r m s w i t h f u n c t i o n

Jennifer A. Yates is an art ist and educa-

tor l iv ing in Washington . She currently

teaches fu l l -t ime f ine arts , instructs

pr ivately and manages Yates F ine Arts .

Yates is publ ished in 500 Bowls , The Best

of Ceramics , and shows her organic por-

cela in and precious metal forms in local

ga l ler ies . She received her BFA in studio

arts and BS in art educat ion from the

University of Wisconsin-Stout where she

a lso was an art ist in residence.

Death is the sp iral of l i fe and dr ift wood is symbol ic to death . Dr iftwood begins

with the l i fe of a tree, breaks with the wind and sp irals into the forest with

water washing it away, l i fe less sh ift ing into form. Rebirth is f ir ing a wood ki ln

as part of the creat ive process of my art work. During an Anagama f ir ing c lay

becomes a l ive with f ive cords of wood and 2400 degrees Fahrenheit morphing

when f lu id in f lames that are dancing and l icking each pot as the red hot r iver

runs through the ki ln and last ly dances out the ch imney. The death of wood set-

t l ing as ash onto the porcela in body creates various microscopic surfaces show-

ing the endless sp iral .

25

Ceci l ia Concepción Alvarez was born in Na-

t ional C ity , CA. Her mother is Mexicana and

her father is Cubano.

Th is p iece is one in a series of works at-

tempting to create d iscourse on how we/so-

c iety reward/glor ify the ent it led predator.

These predatory norms are exempl if ied in

popular c inema, media news coverage, te levi -

s ion programming, the behavior of our f inan-

c ia l inst itut ions , cu ltural/rel ig ious/pol it ica l

norms and the war machine . Brutal power is

g lor if ied as excel lent and ever present .

Modern societ ies have normal ized and just i -

f ied v io lent predatory behavior as acts of

a superior evolved inte l l igence/a symbol of

power/excel lence, which is ent it led to what-

ever they desire .

In th is brutal vernacular of power, persons

or ent it ies who do not seek power through

brutal ity , who abide by a more d ip lomatic

and humane mode of behavior are expendable ,

weak and; are an acceptable sacrif ice to bru-

ta l ity .

I use the image of women, not to exempl ify

just the gender, but those aspects of our-

selves that we negate or deny in order to

survive in a comodify ing , mass consumption

world v iew. I use the female f igure to exem-

pl i fy cultures and ent it ies whose ideals are

to l ive in harmony with the natural world ,

which l ive a sustainable l i festyle and support

a just society .

I hope my art beckons the v iewer to ref lect

on what and who they have sacrif iced to l ive

as we a l l do .

C E C I L I A C O N C E P C I O N A L V A R E Z

c e c i l i a a l v a r e z . c o mc h i c a n a a r t i s t @ a o l . c o m

27

E D U A R D O T I L L M A N

29

Is a Finnish-born designer and artist living in Seattle, Washington.

His distinct pen & ink technique draws inspiration from his experi-

ence as a photographer and often uses his own photography as a

starting point. For ABAD, he chose as the subject a grave monu-

ment located in the Montmartre Cemetery in Paris, France.

A young man lies as he died, a reminder of his tragic end per-

manently carved in stone and carrying the strength of emotion

across the centuries.

I ikka Keränen

31

Seattle based experimental digital artist and model. Rose started working with Almendra Sandoval as a figure model before involving herself more seriously with ABAD. Having lost a dear friend to a violent crime Rose found ABAD to be a cathartic and healing project. She is in-terested in participating in more artist collaborations especially pro-female ac-tivist projects or nearly anything involv-ing the dark arts

(particularly deca and Gothic Fashion).

R o s e K e r ä n e n

33

I am Jennifer Ets itty , born the from

Dziłtł ’ahni i , Mountain Recess People c lan

and from Tábłłhá, the Edge Water c lan .

I am half Navajo and half anglo . My dad

is fu l l Navajo from the Navajo Reserva-

t ion , Arizona. My mom is anglo and from

upstate New York. I was born and grew

up on the Navajo Reservat ion . At the age

of 15 , I had the opportunity to go to h igh

school in Boston MA, where I fe l l in love

with photography. Learned how to pr int

and process my own f i lm and pr int in

darkroom; where I admire street docu-

mentary and c ity l i fe . I went to co l lege

at University of Arizona, Tucson Arizona,

graduated with a Bachelor of F ine Arts in

Photography. Currently l iv ing in Seatt le ,

Washington, cont inu ing my interest in

photography.

My photographic image is about my moth-

er ’s parents , R ichard and E l izabeth Cole ;

My Grandparent ’s Love.

I created th is co l lage of my grandpar-

ents to honor their l i fe and love for each

other. They met in 1941 on a b l ind date

at a dance at the Meredith Hotel , New

York. They loved to dance. Betty was in

her second year of co l lege . R ichard was

working at GE as a tool d ie maker, before

he went to war, World War I I . He was in

the Navy. They got married a year later

on the same date they met , June 26, 1942.

Married at the Presbyterian Church of

Andes, New York. On June 26, 1992 they

celebrated their un ity of 50th An-

n iversary. Their ce lebrat ion was a

joyus occasion . They were born in the

same year, 1920. They d ied with in 10

years of each other. Every summer

my fami ly and I would go v is it Gram-

mie and Papa at their farm house. I

cherished every moment with my

grandparents . I love and miss you

Grammie and Papa.

j e n e t s i t t y @ h o t m a i l . c o m

J E N N I F E R E T S I T T Y

35

Take the trip... one by one the pieces

of the crustacean appear... dancing

crunching among the rocks and weeds

of the sea. Collecting in one hand... now

two are full. Place it within the jew-

elry box under the drivers seat. One

beach two beach ... sand and shells.

For where there’s one, there’s all. And

nothing. A trip to the healing springs

... the water of the gods ... Soak your

wire, rethread your light flare. A trip

In & Under the drivers seat will do you

well.

SIENNA is a graphic designer, painter

and assistant event producer living in

Seattle WA. Musing on the supposed

ordinary vs the out-ofthe-ordinary in-

teractions between what technology

brings to the human perspective and

what naturally lies within. Enjoying,

reflecting and connecting the dots.

A R T B Y S I E N N A . C O M

S I E N N A

37

Introduction

Rae Jones Introduction

Rae Jones

With love, with sp ir itual inte l l igence, Heroic ef-

forts are be ing made everywhere to ra ise the

a larm and bear witness to ecolog ical destruct ion ,

d isease, poverty, genocide , v io lent conf l ict , and

host i le aggression .

An awakened consciousness is radical ly open to

transformation at a l l levels , from you the ind iv idu-

a l to the col lect ive . We know that transformation

is a lso more than mental formulas and good ideas.

It touches something very deep, something so es-

sent ia l that it affects both heart and mind .

More than anything , transformation requires cour-

age, the courage to face the truth that your own

being has great depth .

I be l ieve you must a lso have the courage to face

that in the midst of d is i l lus ion , dysfunct ional h i -

erarchies , dying powers, wars over bel iefs and

resources in the midst of systemic breakdown and

the col lapse of

unsustainable behaviors and world v iews.

There is something st irr ing that offers hope, that

offers the possib i l i ty of personal , socia l , and even

g lobal transformation .

Th is is true in the health of an ind iv idual as it is in

a fami ly , as it is so for a society, and as we now

A complex adapt ive system in which g lobal aware-

ness is appl ied to local concerns.

Here we need models of a possib le society, one in

which mascul ine and femin ine , sc ience and sp ir i -

tual ity , economics and ecology, c iv ic part ic ipat ion

and personal growth come together in an integral

and independent matrix for the benef it of a l l .

And what with the inevitable cross-fert i l izat ion

of the wisdom and pract ices of world sp ir itual

tradit ions , more and more people are gain ing em-

power access to our be ing and becoming . As a new

story begins , the mythopoet ic understandings of

many cultures r ise and converge. Archetypal ideas

and symbols spring into consciousness or are con-

sciously sought in the popular culture.

A L M E N D R A S A N D O V A L E N R I Q U E Z , M e x i c a n A r t i s tG r a p h i c d e s i g n e r , p a i n t e r , p h o t o g r a p h e r , c u r a t o r , Q u e t z a l c o a l t g a l l e r y o w n e r .

see, for the Earth in its ent irety. Ho l ist ic

health inevitably addresses whole systems.

We see a new breed of economists , psy-

cholog ists , sc ient ists , and sp ir itual act iv-

ists , have begun to embody it in a heal ing , a

new of interdependence, in a movement that

lays out the v is ion and pract ice of economic

and ecolog ical sustainabi l i ty . We see that

consciousness itself is an a lmost l imit less

resource of creat iv ity and compassion .

I t is a movement that seeks to protect b iod i -

versity and that honors human d iversity and

cultural p lural ity . I t takes courage to heal .

I t takes courage to speak on behalf of the

whole , to be a vo ice , a fu l l expression for

the Earth and for its d iverse species , for a l l

human l i fe , for a consciousness that knows

that peace is our inheritance and that our

responsib i l i ty is to reveal our interdepen-

dence.

It takes courage for sc ience and sp ir itual ity

to d ia logue and i l luminate new possib i l i t ies

for humankind .

I t takes courage to reach towards the

manifestat ion of a v is ion that transforms

enemies into a l l ies and d is i l lus ionment into

sustenabi l i ty .

a l m e n d r a @ A L M E N D R A S A N D O V A L . C O M

Introduction

Rae Jones Introduction

Rae Jones

A L M E N D R A S A N D O V A L E N R I Q U E Z , M e x i c a n A r t i s tG r a p h i c d e s i g n e r , p a i n t e r , p h o t o g r a p h e r , c u r a t o r , Q u e t z a l c o a l t g a l l e r y o w n e r .

a l m e n d r a @ A L M E N D R A S A N D O V A L . C O M

39

My piece for A Book About Death, Se-attle gave me truly an extraordinary experience. It became this cathartic way for me to relate to the deaths that have happened in my life, in such a short span of time. I don’t know that I will re-ally ever come to terms with any of the deaths - to those that meant so much to me. But I feel it allowed me to gain a new understanding of something familiar to us all. This project became a way to honor those I love, it became a process through which in the end gave me some

of the solace I had lost within myself.

Adriana Harman

Lives in Seattle, WA

a d r i a n a h e a r t @ y a h o o . c o m

A D R I A N A H A R M A NS E A T T L E U S A

41

Born in Sao Paulo , pa inter , architect , designer and curator. Graduate in architecture and urban de-s ign in 2001 and postgraduate in Com-municat ion and Arts with emphasis in interior design in 2006 in Sao Paulo . In paral le l to her work she ’s a lso dedi -cated to v isual poetry and performance grounded in F luxus phi losophie . Angela Ferrara is part of a generat ion of art-ists who seek to return to the con-ceptual aspect of 1960s, to search for new techniques in a extensive research ofornamental patterns. Her work makes references to brazi l -ian art ists Aldemir Martins ( 1822-2006) and Burle Marx (1909-1994) . The art istpart ic ipates in exhib it ions and col lec-t ions in Un ited Estates, Europe, Brazi l . Angela Ferrara works in a decorat ive patterning , inf luenced by the fauna and f lora of Brazi l , to create a work psy-chedel ic and geometric , but at the same t ime is organized and rhythmic .

angelaferrara.com

A N G E L A F E R R A R AB R A Z I L

43

I am 46 years o ld and a self -taught photog-rapher l iv ing in Brazi l , s ince my adolescence I began to become interested in photography.

I jo ined two p leasures in my l i fe , travel and photography, both has led me to be in won-derful p laces, meet people and enjoy every moment , my object ive is a lways to show what surrounds us and goes unnot iced , i t can be a landscape, a tree, a person or anything that

catches my attent ion .

My artwork for the exhib it ion A BOOK ABOUT DEATH, is the f igure of an angel ho ld ing the symbol of penance, th is angel is in the Church of St . Francis of Penance in São João del Rey - State of Minas Gerais - Brazi l .

Th is angel was carved by the famous Brazi l -ian art ist named Ale i jad inho , he was a sculp-tor and architect who l ived in Co lon ia l age , h is artworks are in many churches of Brazi l .

A M A R I L D O C O R R E AB R A Z I L

45

Or ignal from New York C ity Self taught by street arts & some local ga l ler ies ,as an art-ist I have sat in for l ibary readind ta lks c lass on interpertat ion of c lassical usage of co lors & drawings , both in Abstract & Contemporary works ,than looked at a smal l c lass in New York For Drawing & st i l l f igure avarage stud-ies I fee l 6 months was my t ime . A statement I use for my work is “ A retrospect ive re in-forced by the remains of the verbal images. . . in indent ify ing these e lements they are seen afresh leaving v is ib le traces of Contemporary or Modern Art . My works Viewed In New York C ity T ime Square Art Al l iance Art Exhi -b it ion & Art Program , New York C ity Cultural Affa ires (DCLA) Image Registry, New York C ity Post Cards From The Edge <si lent Auct ion V isuale Aids Event> , A ir Anmorphouse Image Race 2010<selected art ist works Archived> , Oh io State University Art Auct ion & Art Al l i -ance <alzhmer event> , Oh io State University Mai l art co l lect ion < l ibrary>, E lon University Smal l Works Exhib it ion <archived Image> , Mass University Art Auct ion Cataloge < Art ist registry> , Mase University colorado mai l Art exhbit ion < l ibary Archive> , Southern Ind iana University Art & Storage <archive>, East Geo-g ia co l lege/color coded exhib it , Mi l lk in Uni -versity mai l art Exhibt & s i le int art auct ion <archive>, Albertus Maganus col lege mai l art Exhib it , Act Art 8 censored {London} <art ist registry>, Def/media {germany} sound c loud .com , e lmur .net {voice v isuale event} , Art On Track Survey .

A R T R E V I E W . c o m

I S S U U . c o m

C o l l e c t o r s W e e k l y . c o m

A N D R E P E A C EA Z U S A

47

Bio for Annie ZeybekogluInspired by her New York roots , Annie Zey-bekoglu works in a variety of media , rang-ing from book arts to mixed media pa int ing and drawing. She received her undergraduate train ing at Smith Col lege , and completed her masters degree at Harvard University . She has taught drawing,pa int ing , text i le design and book design for more than twenty years,and has worked extensively as a free- lance i l lustrator and graphicdesigner for numerous gal ler ies , educat ional , architectural , andcommunity service c l ients . She has been de-s ign ing and making Art ist Books for over 30 years.Annie works from her Boston studio , where she is a member of the United South End Art-ists (USEA) , Her work has received recogni -t ion both in the US and abroad, and is featured in pr ivate col lect ions in Istanbul , Turin , San

Francisco , Boston, New York, and Baghdad.

a n n i e z e y . c o m a n n i e z e y @ g m a i l . c o m

Evidence Vol. 537, 2011Collaborative work by

Medium: Al -Mutanabbi poems, found Arabic text , Found text , ash , wax, graphite , b lack thread,bookboard, image transfer, waxed l inen D i -mensions : 6 .5W x 9 .5H x 2 .5D in . Ev idence Vol . 537 is the echo of the senseless bombing on March 5 , 2007 of Al -Mutanabbi Street in Bagh-dad, the h istoric center of the Baghdad l i ter-ary, cu ltural , and inte l lectual community . One pat ient ly gathered up pages that survived the b last , and then brought them back to l i fe bound together, as i f someday they could be used not to just br ing the bombers to just ice , but a lso to account for their attempt to k i l l books and the culture thatsurrounds them. The thread harkens back to human hair , as the

resonance of l ives lost in that t imeless mo-ment after the b last , one moment of s i lence before the f irst scream was heard, before the f irst b its of f lesh and pagesbegan to ra in down from the sky.

B io for Ania G i lmore

Born in Warsaw, Poland Ania G i lmore is a

graphic designer, pa inter and a mixed media

art ist .

She works in her studio in Lexington, MA cre-

at ing one-of-a-kind art ist ’s books, pr ints and

paints Japanese Sumi-e .

Ania received a BFA with honors from Mas-

sachusetts Col lege of Art and Design , a lso

studied pr intmaking and book arts

at Rhode Is land School of Design , the School

of The Museum of F ine Arts in Boston and at

the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in

Maine .

She is a member of New York Center for Book

Arts , the Concord Art Associat ion and the De-

Cordova Museum and Sculpture Park.

Ania received recognit ion and awards

throughout the United States and interna-

t ional ly .

Her work is in pr ivate ¬col lect ions in Poland,

Romania , UK, Iraq and USA.

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Ania Gilmore AND Annie Zeybekoglu

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A N N C U M M I N G S

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Ann Cummings, pianist, artistAnn Cummings is a pianist known for

her visual interpretations of classical mu-sic, and her connection to the visual arts

sang itself onto canvas beginning in 1992. Cummings’ paintings derive from the har-monic relationships of music both disso-

nant and consonant. Her works on canvas frequently explore the structural interplay of light, form, and color in the same man-

ner that music explores the domains of friction, structure, and movement. Ulti-

mately her paintings are a journey into the reality of infinite creativity, the state of be-ing separate and connected simultaneous-ly, and the incredible freedom and variety

of expression(s) that enables.As a painter, Cummings is an award win-ning artist and has exhibited her work in

“Conversing with God on the te lephone is my percept ion of creat ive , extroverted prayer. God , is part ia l ly my own mind , and part ia l ly something that is unknown to me.Yet , l ike a phone, I can travel d istance with communicat ion…communicat ion that addresses the serious d istances of T IME, l imitat ion , and death . Death is the absolute unknown that can-not be accessed even by God, because a conscious mind cannot know death .So , death is that d istance between eterni -ty and mortal ity , the awareness that l i fe could end , accompanied by the knowledge of ind iv idual deaths, and with the knowl-edge that l i fe itself hasn ’t ended yet .Th is awareness of l imitat ion is not death , but rather the b irth of feel ings…the awareness of mortal ity accompanied with the desire to l ive .Th is zone of fr ict ion is my conversat ion with God, a d istance that avai ls itself to unending conversat ions .”1 1 - 1 1 - 1 1

Ann Cummings, p ian ist , art ist

Ann Cummings is a p ian ist known for her v isual interpretat ions of c lassical music , and her connect ion to the v isual arts sang itself onto canvas beginn ing in 1992. Cummings ’ pa int ings derive from the har-monic relat ionships of music both d isso-nant and consonant . Her works on canvas frequently explore the structural inter-p lay of l ight , form, and color in the same manner that music explores the domains of fr ict ion , structure, and movement . U lt imately her paint ings are a journey into the real ity of inf in ite creat iv ity , the state of be ing separate and connected s imultaneously , and the incredib le free-dom and variety of expression(s) that enables .As a pa inter , Cummings is an award win-n ing art ist and has exhib ited her work in gal ler ies on the East and West coast of the United States.

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Writer and conceptual artist closely tied to

the Fluxus movement. She has published “Equi-

librios”, 1992, “Intrucciones para cocinar”,2001,

“Los Demonios de la Casa Mayor”, 2002, “Los Im-

personales”, 2002, “25 ScoreS 25”, 2009, “Mini

Poemas”, 2009, “MCA-Chicago Scores”,2011; has

curated, exhibited, performed, done residen-

cies, as well as interventions and collaborated

in several anthologies, magazines and newspa-

pers across the world.

Cofounder of AVTEXTFEST and AVTEXTPRESS

experimental literature projects, Padilla Mal-

tos holds a degree in International Affairs,

and a Masters in Marketing. Has coordinated

creative writing and experimental literature

workshops.

Her work is extremely wide ranging and goes

from collage and the reinvention of perfor-

mances and classic metadramas, to the explo-

ration of visual narratives parallel to literary

and political texts, as well as the explorations

of the body’s sense in contemporary societies.

As a k id I was a lways cold . My hands and nose would get so cold that when I compla ined , my dad used to te l l me “only those who are about to d ie feel co ld” to cheer me up , I ’m sure, k inda saying there is no way you are cold . . . I a lways look at the meaning h idden on ev-erything , how could th is be about cheering me up? th is is WAY deep WAY beyond the cheer.

For the s laughter house p iece , I ’ve a lways en-joy working with the games of aff irmations and negat ions , in th is case, a double secret aff irmation was the way to go .

Be ing mexican and our fun relat ionship with the Death , ABAD was an enjoyable g ift .

B I B I A N A P A D I L L A M A L T O SUSA/MEXICO

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C A R L T . C H E Www.ctchew.com

USA, Born 1948

The work “Día de los Artistamperos Muer-tos” commemorates artists who made “artistamps” during their lifetimes--Ray Johnson, Dick Higgins, Joki, Buster Cleve-land, and G. A. Cavellini among others. It was first issued on El Día de los Muertos in 1998. The sheet has additional gold ink in later versions.

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S E A T T L E U S A

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I t is human to seek val idat ion of our emo-

t ions – to know that others have a lso

experienced depths of feel ing that we

cannot , or wi l l not , convey in words. It

un ites us more deeply and meaningful ly to

one another.

Quixot ical ly , I have a lways been drawn to

cemetery monuments. Love expressed in

stone; hopeful expressions of our dreams

of immortal ity . They a l low us to demon-

strate to the world our capacity for deep

love and reverence for another – as wel l

as our sometimes less noble human vani -

t ies .

As a f ine art photographer, my intent ion

is to convey, with the a id of l ight , shadow

and perspect ive , not on ly the technical

ski l l of the art ist who crafted the monu-

ment , but a lso that art ists deep internal

g ift – the ab i l i ty to infuse the witness

with the sense of penetrat ing , evocat ive

st i l lness ; the peace; the pa in ; the hope;

the love ; the sensual ity ; the ‘knees that

crumble beneath you ’ anguish , that con-

nects the l iv ing to those who have passed

into the inv is ib le world .

www.Kismet-KeyWest.com

C A R O L I N A T E D E S C OFL USA

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B A R R Y B R E M E R J A Z Z E X P E R I M E N TS E A T T L E U S A

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C H O R O L O C O S E A T T L E

ChoroLoco also can be seen at art walks and openings as wel l as theaters such as The R ia lto in Tacoma and The Chapel at the GoodShepherds Center. Their music lends itself wel l to a variety of environments, from fes-t ivals such as NW Folk l i fe and Jam Fest in Seatt le , F irst Night in Tacoma and the Ethnic Fest ival in Lacey to more relaxed events such as the Art in Nature Fest ival at Camp Long. In addit ion , ChoroLoco a ims to bu i ld and pre-serve community by host ing rodas do choro, jam sessions where music ians of a l l levels can p lay together and share musical ideas.Rosalynn de Roos (c lar inet , f lute , melod ica) , founding member of ChoroLoco, can be heard p laying Gypsy jazz , free jazz , musical theater, and col laborat ing with poets , dancers, and

mult i -media art ists . Amy Rubin (accordion) Is a composer, p ian ist , and accordion p layer who has written and performed music in a l l genres – for the concert stage, jazz ensem-ble , f i lm, te levis ion , and theater, both in the U .S . and abroad. Stuart Zobel (7 str ing gu itar) is a gu itarist , band leader, educator, and com-poser. Stuart can be seen/heard every spring in Seatt le ’s Moisture Fest ival . Marc Smason (trombone) , horn p layer in de-mand, is a lso a band leader,composer, and an act ive performing jazz mu-s ic ian in the Northwest .

Louversia Taylor (panderio , tr iangle , tambou-r ine) , is apercussion ist and vocal ist , performs through-out the Puget Sound

region .

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C H R I S D A YK Y U S A

I am the child that

paints outside the

lines!

What distinguishes me from other artists is my exploration of all (Mixed Media) mediums, incorporat-ing them into my design concepts which are personalized into some-times humorous, childlike visuals of brilliant purple skies, mystic realms, personal spiritual beliefs and a forgotten object that’s found in the most peculiar of places.

Chris Day earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from The University of Kentucky in 1981, but thinks of him-self as an Outsider/Folk Artist. A native and resident of Letcher County, KY, his artwork has been exhibited not only locally, but also in New York City, The Art Institute of Chicago, National Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul, Korea and Museum of Contemporary Art,

Sydney, Australia.

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C H R I S T E L L E M O N T U S

Christel le Montus l ives and works in Geneva, where she was born in 1973 with French and Swiss c it izenship . During her studies , she developed her true passion : pa int ing . Se lf taught , she turned th is passion into the cen-tral theme of her l i fe . She began exhib it ing in 2002. Christel le Montus has developed from the beginn ing an abstract pa int ing style . Her large o i ls on canvas express a quest for meaning . Her paint ings are essays about the future. In contemporary art , thought and message p lay a decis ive role . Her ref lect ions cannot be separated from her works, they come through c learly from the concept ion and appl icat ion of her techniques and methods, with a force impl ic it in the physical real iza-t ions . Christel le Montus transforms her work into an ongoing search, g iv ing herself the means to develop a repertory in keeping with her v is ions , her

expectat ions and her own requirements.

Swiss Federation

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B R E T T ” F L I P ” A U S T I N

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An invitat ion to feaston other incarnat ions ,

The recol lect ion of past l ives resurrected from the void .

F leet ing moments arc, d ive , swoop,

scatter and reassembleSharing secrets , stories , names

What is yours?

Shadows in the mirror, shades of a l l hueThe messenger is in the off ing

C L A I R E L E W I S E V A N S A L U S A

The moment formsThe wave is breaking—

Bri l l iant darkness, s i lent roar.

In the inner chambera c lear l ight sh ines . Dream on, and you miss it .

P iercing radiance awaits opening

to take root at the core.

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C O L M M C C A R T H Y W I U S A

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D A V I D W E L C HM A U S A

David Welch is a f ine art photographer based on the

is land of Martha ’s V ineyard. H is work explores so-

c ia l issues, us ing large-format photography steeped

in conceptual inf luences from art h istory and eco-

nomic theory. H is work has been widely publ ished

and exhib ited both nat ional ly and abroad. David was

recent ly awarded an Honorable Mention in the 2011

Hey Hot Shot ! competit ion and in 2011 he was se-

lected as one of Photoluc ida ’s Cr it ica l Mass top 50

photographers. David is a recent graduate of the Sa-

vannah Col lege of Art and Design , where he earned

h is MFA in photography. He l ives on the is land with

h is partner Tr ina and daughter, Camden.

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I began photographing the nude with Wendy, my wife , at the School of the Art Inst itute of Ch icago in 1967 whi le working on my MFA degree in Photography. Then for over forty years I explored various techniques and processes whi le photographing the nude as a central theme. I won a NYSCA-CAPS fe l lowship in Photogra-phy in 1982. I began to explore p inhole photography around 1998. I won the U lt imate Eye Foundat ion ’s grant for F igurat ive Photography in 2009. I cur-rent ly head the Photography program at Marist Col lege in Poughkeepsie , New York where I teach photography c lasses.Th is image, Carl ing _D_4-30-11 - - 10AB, was made at the Barrett Art Center in Poughkeepsie , New York on World-wide P inhole Photography Day 2011 , .

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D A N M c C O R M A C KNY USA

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EDUCATION1969 BA University of Rochester, NY

1975 MFA Cranbrook Academy of Art , MIAWARDS 2011

South F lor ida Cultural Consort ium Fel -lowship for V isual & Media Art ists

2006Accepted as art ist at The Studios Key

WestEXHIBIT IONS 2011

PRESENCELucky Street Gal lery, Key West , F lor ida

A BOOK ABOUT DEATH, Quetzalcoat l Ga l -lery, Seatt le , Washington

SOUTH FLORIDA CULTURAL CONSORTIUM EXHIBIT ,

Art and Culture Center of Hol lywood, F lor ida

BOUNDLESS AMBITION - Part Curios ity Part V is ion

The Thompson Gal lery, The Cambridge School of Weston, Weston, Massachu-

setts 2010REJOICE

Lucky Street Gal lery, Key West , F lor idaA BOOK ABOUT DEATH,

C . W. Post Col lege , Greenvale , New YorkSPHERIS GALLERY, Hanover, New Hamp-

shireTEXAS NATIONAL 2010

Stephen F . Aust in State University , Na-cogdoches, Texas

LUCKY AGAIN

The rosy l iqu id co lor of the pomegran-ate seeds suggests a l l that is luscious , abundant and v ita l . The branches and the dr ied seedpods from the Cassia tree are br itt le , dark and dead. Juxtaposing these images, combined with the repet i -t ion of the words A Book About Death is intended to suggest the ever-repeat-ing cycle in l i fe from vibrancy to decay. Rather than leading to despair , i t is my hope that v iewing th is image reveals the inherent strength and beauty in l i fe ’s cont inuum.

D E B O R A G O L D M A N F L U S A

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Hi! I am Donna Merry, an artist/writer living and working in a rural area of Northern Cali-fornia. I learned about the open call for artists to participate in the Quetzalcoatl Gallery exhi-bition showing of ‘A Book About Death Seattle’ through an artist friend of mine who lives in Washington. Being that Halloween is my favor-ite time of the year and the call was brought to my attention around the end of October 2011, the time was right to pull out my pencils, paints, and imagination and to go to work! My pencils worked hard through revision after revision to get the sketch of the skull propor-tion correctly rendered. When layer after lay-er of the graphite revealed the grinning skull with the white eyes and glaring teeth, I was finally satisfied with my work. The image of ‘Boneita’, my rendition of a Day of the Dead image, came naturally and freely. Her image is one that had resided in the back of my head for quite a while (she was glad to be put to canvas) and this acrylic painting was completed very quickly.I have participated in international mail art ex-hibitions/installations throughout Spain, Italy, Columbia and Uruguay, but this is the first time my art has been exhibited in the states.

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D O N N A M E R R YC A U S A

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E L E A N O R L E O N N E B E N N E T TEleanor Leonne Bennett is a 16 year o ld internat ional ly award winning photographer and art ist who has won f irst p laces with Nat ional Geographic , The World Photogra-phy Organisat ion , Nature ’s Best Photography, Papworth Trust , Mencap, The Woodland trust and Postal Heritage. Her photography has been publ ished in the Tele-graph, The Guardian , BBC News Website and on the cover of books and magazines in the United states and Canada.

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e r i n k o b i e . c o m

Erin Kobie is a fine artist and illustra-tor living in Western New York. She does not believe that people go to either a Very Good or Very Bad place when they die. She is reasonably afraid of the uncertainty of death, and tries to remind herself that as far as she knows, this is the only life she gets and that she needs to take advantage of it. Erin thinks Cerberus, the three-head-ed dog guarding the underworld in Greek mythology, is misunderstood. He is gen-erally grumpy and talks to himself, but in general, he is a sweet creature with good intentions who forgets that he shouldn’t hold loud conversations with himself

in the presence of others.

E R I N K O B I EN Y U S A

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E v a B r u n n e rB e r l i n G e r m a n ym a i l @ e v a b r u n n e r . c o me v a b r u n n e r . c o m

E V A B R U N N E RB e r l i n , G e r m a n y

“Eva Brunner’s photographs present us urban land-scapes that radiate an intense humanity, beyond any aestheticism or mere reproduction. Men and women are always present, physically, in fleeting or defin-ing attendance – appropriating the landscape. Eva practices a haunting and moving „poetry of deterio-ration“ that describes an intensive urban existence. This poetic technique, paradoxically, avails itself of a cold and objective language, dissecting what bestows a rare and compelling intensity upon her declaration.” (Jaume Fabrega - AICA) The photograph presented was taken at the Spre-epark Berlin, a former entertainment park of the GDR-controlled East Berlin, closed for the last decade. This picture is dedicated to the great German master Arno Fischer (1927-2011) whose student she has been since 2007.

Born in Lucerne (Switzerland), Eva studied Communi-cations (Film & Photography) at the American College of Rome, Italy. In the early 80s, she began to write plays that were premiered in Rome. 1985 she became a Resident Writer at the Municipal Theater of Lucerne. 1987 winning a residency at the LCB, granted by the Cultural Senate, she moved to Berlin where she has lived ever since, working as an author (of prize-win-ning radio drama) and translator. Since 2005, she is dedicated to photography, studying with Arno Fischer (Berlin) and Anders Petersen (Copenhagen). Eva is a co-founder and a member of exp12, Gallery for contem-porary photography in Berlin.Since 2005, her work has been presented in several Solo Shows in Switzerland, Spain, Germany and France (Festival Voies Off, Arles 2011) and in numerous group exhibitions in the United States, in South America and

throughout Europe.

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G A R Y A. B I B BCO USA

Gary A. Bibb was born in Wichita, Kansas and studied architecture at Kansas State University but discovered art to be more compelling. He re-ceived his BFA in Visual Art from Emporia State University (Kansas). Most of his artistic career has been lived in Colorado and Southern Califor-nia. He currently resides in Denver, Colorado.

The artist has exhibited both nationally and internationally. Furthermore, his art is repre-sented in private and corporate collections along with being archived in the following museums and institutions:

Longview Museum of Fine Art - Longview, TX; Museum of Modern Art – NY, NY; Los Angeles County Museum of Art - LA, CA; The Fluxmuseum – Ft. Worth, TX; Museu Brasileiro da Escultura - Sao Paulo, Brazil; Museum of Modern Art: UK - Machylleth, Wales; The International Museum of Collage, Assemblage and Construction - Ft. Worth, TX; The Hoffberg Archive - University of California, Santa Barbara, CA; Ohio State Univer-sity - Columbus, OH; The National Institute of Art - Buenos Aires, Argentina; Long Island Univer-sity - Brookville, NY; The Black Mountain College Museum - Asheville, NC; The A. S. Popov Museum (Communication Art Collection) - St. Petersburg, Russia.

Gary A. Bibb conceived and co-curated the 2010 international art project - Fluxface in Space. Ex-hibitions of the project have been featured at Fluxfest Chicago - Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, IL and the Ft. Worth Community Art Cen-ter, Ft Worth, TX with additional exhibits being scheduled. The Fluxface in Space project websites: fluxfaceinspace.blogspot.com and wix.com/flux-faceinspace/exhibit

The image exhibited at A Book About Death Se-attle is related to the 500 original artworks submitted to the NYC exhibit in 2009.

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85

Originally, this etching was titled The Mourners, and was inspired by the work of printmaker Rico LeB-run. It is a funerary scene where the onlookers pay their respects to a skeleton calmly reading a book in his coffin. The Catholic reliquary is referenced here because, for the Pilgrim, resurrection is first contingent on death, and then swallows it up. As a survivor of devastating Bone Marrow Cancer, I faced death on my own death bed. I was over-whelmed by all the things I would miss if I died at age 46; the weddings of my children, grandchildren, and the joy of growing old with my wife. But, I was spared; somehow I have survived for six extra years and now live in remission. My Oncologist never fails to warns me, “It will come back, you will relapse.” So, I live in defiance of death until it is again swallowed up in life. It is a great honor to be part of A Book About Death because each page is real and powerful and full of life.

Gregory Martens was born in Milwaukee Wiscon-sin, and earned his MFA in printmaking at the Uni-versity of Wisconsin–Milwaukee where he now teaches printmaking. He maintains a busy exhibition schedule, and his prints and artists books are col-lected internationally. Martens works under the monogram Hip Joint Press, and resides with his wife and collaborator Sharon in Wauwatosa Wisconsin, they are blessed with three grown children and one

granddaughter.

G R E G O R Y M A R T E N SW I U S A

W a u w a t o s a W I , U S A

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In My Dreams

In my dreams, I help her up out of bed.

In my dreams, she stands on two steady feet

and she walks.

She walks away from her bed, from her

wheelchair, from the nursing home, out into

the world.

She sheds catheter and all medications.

She casts away MS, the disease that has

left her paralyzed and has all but stripped

her of her dignity.

She walks

in my dreams.

When I am not dreaming, I feed her, hold a

glass of water to her lips, brush her teeth.

I cut her nails, dress the bed sores on her

heels.

I comb her hair.

I tell her how much I love her.

I listen patiently to the same conversations

we have gone over again and again.

Jeanie: How’s Rick? Is he still good-lookin’

as ever?

Me: He’s fine. He’s doing fine.

Jeanie: Well, is he?

Me: Yeah, he’s fine.

Jeanie: No! Is he still good-lookin?

Me: Yeah, he sure is!

Jeanie: Well, Franny, you got yourself a good

man. Now don’t go doing anything to screw

things up!

Where does she come up with this? She can

still crack me up!

I change the subject to Ava and Brynlee, her

precious granddaughters, the little girls

Jeanie always wanted.

We talk about them for who knows how

long.

The conversation is all over the place. We

go from Ava to the boys to her ex to mom

and dad to bingo to the details of the nurses’

lives to the subjects of God and spirit.

Jeanie lives in the world of spirits. She tells

me Mom and Dad and my brother John, who

died at birth, “visit her” regularly and they

chat. She tells me that our brother John is

an adult now and is very handsome and kind.

Jeanie knows everything before you have

had a chance to tell her. She often slips into

Italian as we talk. In fact, she prefers to

speak in Italian.

A nurse’s aid enters the room.

Jeanie says to me: Did you meet “my girl”?

At first I think she is referring to one of

her granddaughters. But then I realize she

means the woman who has just walked into

the room. I am embarrassed by her words

which seem to indicate an “ownership” of

the people who tend to her physical needs,

but I realize her intention is not to appear

superior. It is simply her manner of expres-

sion. Perhaps this is her way of belonging to

this nursing home.

F R A N G A L L O

Jeanie as a little girl, Gary, Indiana

f r a n g a l l o . w o r d p r e s s . c o m / 2 0 1 1 / 0 5 / 0 8 / i n - m y - d r e a m s

I am a History major, Biblical scholar, and writer. My study of history and the Bible have influenced and inspired me to be an art-ist. more later…….

G R E G D R A K EIL USA

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Heather Matthew is an Austral ian art ist and poet who l ives in the caldera region of northern New South Wales . She works primari ly in paper incorporat ing found ephemera and papers in her col lages, pr ints and handmade paper.

These paper works are used as the basis for constructed art ist books which have been ex-h ib ited in Austral ia , USA and Great Brita in . Her artwork is layered and often st itched with im-ages and text sourced from old books, stamp col lect ions and the detritus of everyday l i fe .

Heather part ic ipated in the f irst ABAD in New York as wel l as in ABAD Sao Paulo . The image ‘Those who’ve been before ’ is a d ig ita l manipula-t ion of a photographic pr int screenprinted onto wal lpaper and overla id with text . I t is about connect ion to the past , to our ancestors, a l l those who have been before.

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Is a Seattle poet who has participated in several ABAD exhibits from Sao Paulo, Brazil to Seattle, Washington. Submitting poems on death and dying has enabled him to memorialize friends and family who have passed on and to cope with grieving. He has found comfort in becoming part of the community of artists and writers who share their vision in A Book About Death. Herb also participated in a poets and writ-ers reading that took place at the Quet-zalcoatl Gallery during the Seattle ABAD exhibit. Fran Gallo and Mitsu Sundvall read from memoirs on the loss of a sister and a father. Rick Clark, Doug Cole, and Herb read from a series of their poems.

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H E R B S U N D V A L LSEATTLE

Dead Talk Our dead loved ones speak to us .We murmur answers soft lyAs lovers in bed waking from dreams.They eavesdrop on our dai ly rounds.We seek advice without hope of answer,feel ing a need to ask.Comfort ing responses, l ike warm breezes, move over us :A father, a s ister , a lost pet nuzzl ing our ear .So we l ive without our dead ones,Suffer loss but ho ld some part in trust .

I have been contribut ing poems and i l lustrat ions to A Book About Death for two years now. When Kathleen McHugh asked me to co-curate the Seatt le ABAD exhib it , I was eager to help . ABAD is for me about facing and deal ing with the fact of death in our l ives . Some people don ’t want to ta lk about it , p lan for it , accept it for themselves or loved ones. For me, writ ing poetry about death and dy-ing is my way of deal ing with death ’s presence as an everyday possib i l i ty . Two poems that best express how I do th is are inc luded here. I read these at our ABAD Reading g iven one afternoon during the exhib it . I was jo ined by my wife , Mitsu Sundval l , my former yoga teacher Fran Gal lo , and fe l low poets R ick C lark and Doug Cole . Port ions from their readings are inc luded here a lso .

A Ho le in the L ife

A hole in the l i fe of the l iv ing

left when a loved one leaves

sometimes takes days,

months, forever

to f i l l in

as we cont inue

to th ink about

talk to

write letters in our heads

look for e-mai l

f ind books to send

remember th ings to say

mark the passing on calendars

ignoring a l l advice

to move a long with the l iv ing

because no one enters our l ives

and leaves at death .

We are jo ined together forever.

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H O R A C I O C A R R E N AA r g e n t i n a

My work is based on the development of p last ic-v isual s ignograf ía by the nat ive peoples of our country, espe-c ia l ly in the area of Patagonia and the North . More than 15 years, I ’m looking and looking at these s igns , extract ing those most interested me from the standpoint of v isual and expressive . So I made several series of pa int ings and drawings where there is a new landscape emerged as a result of the free combinat ion of these languages. The idea is to cont inue develop ing new works demonstrat ing the expressive r ichness of these symbols , though o ld , have much potent ia l to develop and experiment . Whi le the works are ab-stract , refer to a natural environment that was very important to Aborig inal people as would be for the man today. Also , these images are combined with d ifferent shapes, textures and colors taken from the various e lements of nature, g iv ing them virtual rhythms and movements to each work.

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Croatian artist, Medical Doctor by pro-fession and assiduous traveler, Jadran-ka has received a huge cultural heritage enriching her artistic soul emerged as from a childhood.

One impression, one emotion or a mem-ory of a special moments, inspire me to paint. Anytime and anywhere. No matter what techniques or by what means. Accordingly with a situation and a site can be the pencil on a paper, oil on canvas or “fine art digital painting”. What matters is to capture and express with shapes and colors emotions nestled in my globetrotter soul.

My need is to communicate my feelings and emotions to the audience. Could be simply my deep love for the beautiful world in existence, regret when destroyed by carelessness, or re-search of our origins, spirituality and

meaning of life .

JADRANKA CARLUCCIO GARBICITALY

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He studied a The School of The Art Institute of

Chicago, Illinois, USA (1959-60).

After an assessment of whether making a liv-

ing at art seemed reasonable, he studied Engi-

neering at Purdue University, worked for Ford

Motor Company for thirty-five years and

retired in 2002.

As Art has always been his passion, he returned

to Art, drawing, painting, and photography and

founded “Hathaway Studios”..

His first piece for the Seattle “A Book About

Death Show” was a card taken from a

20” X 30” pastel drawing called “Cup of The Car-

penter”. This represents the wine cup used by

Jesus at “The Last Supper”.

It depicts the modest cup that a carpenter may

have used at the time in contrast to the elabo-

rate representations used in churches called a

“Chalice” for serving “Communion”. Yes, it is a

book about death.

His second piece for the show was taken from

a 20” X 30” photograph of a Drake Mallard Duck

swimming in the shadows of a marsh pond, per-

haps looking for a lost mate. … and yes, it is a

book about death.

James E. Hathaway,

Hathaway Studios

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J a m i e N e w t o nc o n c r e t e w h e e l s . c o mj n e w t o n @ c o n c r e t e w h e e l s . c o m

I p icked th is image for ABAD Seatt le pr imari ly because it leaves itself open to several meta-phorical readings when used in th is context . The obvious ones of trying to ho ld onto something , of making a stand, of lay ing c la im to a specif ic territory but a lso the (maybe) less obvious sem-blance of comfort or c lass , through color and materia l , that tr ies to mask what is actual ly st i l l a pretty uncomfortable real ity ( in th is case a straight-backed, no-arm chair) . There is a lso the d irectness of the empty accommodation , l ike a roadside memoria l or reference to a person no longer in th is p lace . And, beyond any of that , the photo was taken on a street in Paris just a few blocks from where Matthew Rose l ives and works and developed the idea for th is latest round of ABAD exchange.

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B u s s a n i c h A r tC o l o r a d o S p r i n g s , C O U S Aj a n a . l . b u s s a n i c h @ g m a i l . c o m f a c e b o o k . c o m / j a n a l b u s s a n i c h a r t s t u d i o

Artist jana l bussanich [ed it ing note : intent ional lowercase in jana l bussanich ] works primari ly in watercolor and charcoal f igure. She began paint ing with watercolor in 2008 and studying l i fe drawing and the human f igure in 2010 . These have become an essent ia l part of Jana ’s se lf -d iscovery as an art-ist , and have taught her what it means to express meaningful ly upon paper in any subject or medium.

Jana bel ieves that be ing an art ist is best learned through b iography, as wel l as in community with other art ists . She values the Apprent ice / Master model of educat ion , and considers herself as both ; a lways the Apprent ice , yet a lso the Master of that which she currently possesses and in learning to work at the edge of her ab i l i ty .

Cont inual ly seeking new information about her work and what she needs for ongoing personal growth and development , Jana esteems the col leagues and mentors who speak into her creat ive process. She is encouraged and inspired by those such as na-t ional ly known art ist and painter Chris Alvarez of Co lorado Springs ; co l league Karen Burnett Hamer, Art ist ic D irector and P laywright , for whom Jana produces l ive theatre in Co lorado Springs ; and the writ ings of American painter , Robert Henri through h is book, The Art Spir it .

Jana makes her home in Co lorado Springs , CO . with her husband. They have 4 chi ldren and 2 grand-chi ldren. With grat itude, she says of her husband James, “he makes me - be ing an art ist - possib le” .

Jana is g lad for the opportunity to share her work and take up the conversat ion with a wider commu-nity about the quest ion of l i fe and death , and every-th ing in between. “Art is , after a l l , on ly a trace – l ike a footprint which shows that one has walked bravely and in great happiness.”

Robert Henri

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Jane Wang is a composer/multi-instrumental and a member of the Mobius Artists Group (www.mobius.org).Her non-music related work includes installation art, fluxus, performance art, phone photography, videotaping with her ultra-flip cameras and cu-rating group shows. She is proud to have been part of the original A Book About Death in NYC curated by Matthew Rose (NYC) and is grateful for the opportunity to be one of the artists in the ABAD Seattle show.Not being talented in the area of drawing or painting, she decided to knit a pillow for the show using fair isle technique - the final rest-ing place - inspired by Sonja Benskin Mesher’s “The Empty Chair” (http://www.sonja-benskin-mesher.com/) which Ms. Mesher submitted for

the original ABAD exhibition.

Mobius Artists Group: www.mobius.orgCompositions: http://www.myspace.com/janewangcomposer

International calls for work in Ongoing blog form inspired in part by ABAD:Signs of Our Times: http://mobius-signsofourtimes.blogspot.com/

The Prostitution of Art: http://theprostitutionofart.blogspot.com/

J A N E H S I A O C H I N G W A N G M A U S A

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Jennifer Grey is a nat ive of Jacksonvi l le , FL , and has a B .A . in Photography from The University of North F lor ida . She spent several years freelancing as a writer and photographer for The F lor ida T imes-Union before moving on to a career as a not-so-mi ld-mannered booksel ler .

After several years away from her cam-era, she returned to the art ist ic fo ld with exhib it ions at F lor ida State Col lege of Jack-sonvi l le , the Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonvi l le , and various other venues on the F irst Coast . Photography is how Jen-n ifer just if ies her tendency to be easi ly d istracted by sh iny objects .

Jennifer ’s co l lage work is a natural off -shoot of her general fascinat ion with im-ages, and gets done the o ld fashioned way: with sc issors, g lue , and a lot of cursing when her f ingers st ick to the paper. She part icularly enjoys subvert ing images and copy from advert isements to make state-ments about l i fe , death , and the human con-d it ion . GATEKEEPER was made immediately after September 11 , 2001 .

F L , U S AJ E N N I F E R G R E Y

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Jeremy is an American art ist .

H is work inc ludes drawing,

pa int ing , sculpture, f i lm con-

cept art , graphic novel , and new

media . He received h is B .F .A . at

Penn State University and h is

M.F .A . at F lor ida State Univer-

s ity . He has taught at F lor ida

State University , Ursinus , and

La Sal le Un iversity . H is work

has been shown internat ional ly .

Drawings, drawn paint ings , or

new media of s ingular f igures

in open landscapes.

He is d irector on an in post-

product ion independent feature

f i lm, Locomotive .

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As a printmaker and a maker of books, the ob-ject as a vessel for memoryis a theme that underpins a majority of my work. By employing the processes of ghost-printing and drypoint, layering and monoprint, I’m able to speak of passing, the fragility of life, shadow and echo. By using heirloom linens and lace, I am able to honour the family members and makers who have passed. In this work, the textures, the craft and the do-mesticity of such pieces are celebrated and the everyday hand-crafts of female family members are held up as relics, as potent reminders of time spent, of the intentions, thoughts and love that is a part of each thread, every detail formed and every stitch completed.

A box of fami ly he ir looms h itched a r ide with us .A fami ly tree, heavy with hand-made fruits .L inen , embroidery, crochet , st itchings , knots , mendings and do i l ies .

Lots of do i l ies .

Amongst our new possessions there were t iny treasures that were not objects but people . At least they were people to me.

Not a teacup but a great-grandmother.Not a penny but a grandfather.Not a do i ly but a mother.

Vessels for memory.

J O O L I V EA U S T R A L I A

J O O L I V EA U S T R A L I A

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J A C K C Y M B E RI S R A E L

Mult i -d isc ip l inary Contemporary Visual Art ist , h is mixed media works inc lude : Pa int ings , Photography, D ig ita l work, Instal -lat ions and F lux . Cymber has exhib ited worldwide in Solo and Group exhib it ions in Paris , Barcelona, F lorence, London, Sof ia , Te l Aviv , Shanghai , New York, Miami , San Francisco , Las Vegas, Seatt le , Boston, Phoenix and Caracas. Cymber has part ic ipated in the ABAD project from its or ig ins at the Emi ly Harvey Foun-dat ion Gal lery, NY in 2009 and a committed part ic ipant in its s ister exhib it ions .The abstract images of Jack Cymber have been described as reaching beyond the parameters of v isual expression ism to ac-cess something of the subl ime. At the center of h is art ist ic approach l ies Cymber’s Universal ist be l ief in “a reconci l iat ion between humanity and the d iv ine .” H is art explores the bor-derlands between the earthly and celest ia l realms, unpacking layers of meaning embedded in these mystical landscapes, a l l of which po int to the same inevitable conclus ion , that “everything is part of one whole world , and everything is connected.”Cymber chooses h is media with care, ensuring that h is art re-f lects the contemporary era of d ig ita l technology. H is works g ive a c lean , sharp impression which is appeal ing in i tself , but , a lso serves to br ing the message of each p iece to the fore-

ground.

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K A R E N A L E K Y A NA r m e n i a

Was born in 1975 in Gyumri , Armenia . After graduat ing from the Yerevan Academy of F ine Arts in 2004 Karenhas shown h is artworks in Armenia and worldwide and has curated some exhib it ions in Gyumri , Armenia . , ,B iennia l progressive…, , V I I Internat ional B i -ennia l , Gyumri , Armenia (2010) , , , Femin ism, , Aslamazyan s ister `s hous- museum, Gyumri and Gal lery, ,One , , Yerevan, Armenia (2008) . H is personal exhib it ions have been exhib it -ed in Montevideo , ,So lo exhib it ions 2011 -2012 , , Laboratorio de Arte Postmoderno, Uruguay (2011) , , ,The future which has passed, , AC-CEA, Yerevan, Armenia (2007) . Among the group exhib it ions he has exhib ited with in and outside Armenia .

, ,Ambiguous Boundaries , , Ga l lery ArtPoint , KulturKontakt , V ienna, Austria (2012) , , ,A Book About Death , , Quetzalcoat l Feather-snake Gal lery. Seatt le Washington, USA (2011) , ,Women in Art 3 , , Museo h istoric de Santa Lucia , Uruguay (2011) , ,A Book About Death , , F irehouse Gal lery, MoMA. New York. USA (2011) , , ,C ITY IN USE , , d iscussions , presentat ions , art exhib it ions , act ions , Yerevan, Armenia (2011) , , ,Women in Art , , La B iennale de Montevideo , resto-pud Sorocabana Palace . Uruguay (2011) , , ,Me among my fr iends-open personal it ies , , Omsk, Russia (2011) , , ,Body, New f igurat ive art in Armenia , , Art ists Union of Armenia , Yerevan (2010) , ,V I Internat ional B iennia l , , Gyum-ri , Armenia (2008) , , ,Armenian landscapes in Contemporary Art , , Zurich , Switzerland (2007) .

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Film by Karen Alekyanhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBVBATkfRas&feature=player_embedded

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F i l m b y K a r e n A l e k y a n

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Fi lm by Karen Alekyan

http ://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBVBATkfRas&feature=player_embedded

Fi lm by Eddy Bergman

http ://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EO6lxhS4_Eg&feature=player_embedded

Fi lm by SIN FRONTERAS

http ://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tBSCbTggBy4

K A R E N A L E K Y A N

K A T H L E E N M c H U G H

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L a D a n s e M a c a b r e , “ M i s s G e n o c i d e ”

Artist pic credit: Paul Dahlquist

K a t h l e e n M c H u g hCuratorA Book About DeathHe said that i f he d ied in V iet Nam, he would d ie an atheist . In fact , the dog tags he wore in V iet Nam bore the imprint “Atheist” . A de-c is ion . A posture. N ih i l ism. God is death . H is sp ir it d ied in V iet Nam, and h is physical death decades later was determined to be con-nected to h is service in V iet Nam. H is loyal fr iends from h is co l lege and Veterans Against the War days kept h im company whi le he d ied . One sat and read to h im te l l ing me, “he was d ifferent before the war” . He was buried in an Orthodox church. After the l i turgy, each person kissed h is corpse. At the cemetery, everyone shoveled d irt on h is coff in . Later I learned that some were both unprepared for and overwhelmed by the physical ity of the experience. They were accustomed to memo-ria l services with or without ashes present , s l ide shows, music and remin iscent stories . They came to the church expect ing to attend a memoria l service .

That was my f irst inkl ing of how we have a lmost succeeded in removing the dead from our cultural experience of death . The dead aren ’t even inv ited to their own party any-more! Maybe due to fear masked as ind iffer-ence or avoidance? I don ’t know. Al l I know is that there is a b ig wal l between those who l ive with death and those who act as i f i t ’s contagious , or that i f they don ’t ta lk about it , i t won’t happen. When I saw the art cal l for A Book About Death at the Emi ly Harvey Foundat ion Gal lery in NYC I fe lt excited to th ink that art ists – meaning makers – were go ing to share art inspired by death . What would art ists say? Having been l iv ing a lone in the world of ind ifference for awhi le , I had my f irst sensat ion that art ists weren’t go ing to let death reduce the world to ind ifference, to s i lence. Art ists would have the last word. I thought , “th is is why there is art and art ists : to g ive a vo ice to the unspeakable . “I fe lt g iddy imagin ing the postcards that would be sent to the gal lery. Art would leave

phi losophy and psychology in the dust . I thought , “ I need to see th is art .” I sent an image on 500 postcards that ref lected how I fe lt at the moment : in between, with no r iver shore banks in s ight . Seeing that image in the context of a l l the other images has been a comfort . For me, A Book About Death is about art ist ic expression creat ing a canon of hu-man experience. Both my husband and father d ied the same summer. Whenever I see Susan Shulman’s work, I th ink of my dad too . Her art says th ings I am unable to say. Much of the art in A Book About Death says th ings I am unable to say. My daughter, Br idg id Roney, who majored in jazz vocals at Cornish , part ic ipated in A Book About Death with her composit ion Cof-fee Stains in Um L ivro Sobre A Morte at MUBE in São Paulo , Brazi l , curated by Angela Fer-rara. Her lyr ics about not wanting to c lean the remain ing sta ins from the coffee her father sp i l led as they ta lked before he d ied again i l luminated something about death for me: erasing the f ina l traces of a person ’s l i fe before be ing ready to say goodbye is a very lonely experience. A Book About Death has a lso served as an uncanny road map in uncharted territory.One n ight I changed into street c lothes and drove to a hospita l to keep my fr iend and her brother company when they took h im off l i fe support . Su ic ide . D ifferent images came to

mind , inc lud ing the “to do” l ist . Angela Fer-rara ’s v ideo kept me company on the eeri ly qu iet dr ive home. A Book About Death has become a home for my thoughts . A cosmic f i le drawer. I am a lways putt ing a book, an o ld letter , a memory, a tes-t imony, a quest ion , an encounter with a sur-v ivor of genocide , a tragic accident , a natural d isaster, a wicked experience hysterical ly fu l l of such dark humor that I would never dare share it with anyone, with a p iece of art from A Book About Death . When Almendra Sandoval to ld me she was going to exhib it art about missing and murdered women in C iudad Juarez and Chihuahua, I to ld her about A Book About Death .

She looked at the ABAD websites and said , “Let ’s do it ! ” I to ld my fr iend Herb Sundval l about the opportunity for an exhib it ion in Se-att le at the Quetzalcoat l Ga l lery and he im-mediately offered to help . The music , readings and wal l of art created a moment of transi -tory beauty. An expression . A decis ion . A pos-ture. A commitment . I t was a l l there at once: the anguish , n ih i l ism, betrayal , decay, ra i l ing against empty symbols of fa lse rel ig ion , hu-mor, love , innocence, separat ion , sp ir itual -ity , camaraderie in the abyss, and . . . the wi ld card. “Talk To God” was on the wal l ! Everyone was inv ited to p ick up the phone. I was afraid to , but Herb d id .

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K I T B O Y C EC A U S A

Kit Boyce is a painter, sculptor and printmaker, born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He received his MFA in Painting from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and his BFA in Art from Carnegie-Mellon University. He is currently resid-ing in Southern California. He is unaffiliated.

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I have a lways found b irds to be

un iquely d iv ine in their balance

of de l icacy and strength . That be-

ing sa id , the physical ity of their

deaths never ceases to stun me.

Although often beaut ifu l , I f ind

their vacant forms devastat ing .

Their remains evoke a sense of

loss from something so present ,

echoing the fragi l i ty of a l l l i fe .

In an attempt to f ind peace, I ac-

knowledge and honor what is left

behind .

K R I S T I N A C O V I N O M O R A V E CS E A T T L E U S A

Krist ina Moravec is a Seatt le-based photographer or ig inal ly from Eugene, Oregon. She recent ly com-pleted her Bachelor of F ine Art Photography through Seatt le University . Her thesis , There Are St i l l Good Th ings , explores the search for peace stemming from an intense period of fear and gr ief and the struggle to

careful ly rebui ld a stable world .

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L A W R E N C E C H A R L E S M I L L E RP A , U S A

A sadness in the cel lar of my soul The mother weeping beside a brother, And a s ister twined with v ines So white so cold Ah, the button, co lor of P ickled eggs A f ight and out on the street To walk home in the coat , raven hair , b lood red l ips Rectangle houses. World War Two at our Backs in its o l ive tee-shirt and thunder. So sad Th is and other marches past the markers and monuments. And now the b londe she conquered has fa l len . The waves Pul led h im away th is t ime and sand f i l led her mind . Th ieves steal machines in her machines, the ident ity in The shredder. Sunl ight on the leaf of love . Bo ld ch i ld . Backward chi ld . Last ch i ld to leave. The words dry as we write them. And the canal freezes for skat ing legs and my

cold , co ld heart .

Lawrence Charles Miller Bellefonte, PA

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L E E G O L D B E R G

L E E M A R I E CU S A

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L I L I A N A P A R R AA R G E N T I N A

M U J E R E S C O L G A D A S , E N C E R R A D A S Y A H O G A D A S E N S U P R O P I O S U S P I R O L A T R A T A

Liliana Parra was born in Buenos AiresShe got a scholarship at the Hispanic Culture Institute (Madrid, 1965) and the Photographic Creation Scholar-ship at the National Art Fund in 1995. Personal exhibitions

2009 Photographs, Photography month in Bariloche, Patagonia Museum.

2008 Random Materialism, National Art Fund.

2006 The credibility of the Fantastic, Art and Memory Museum, La Plata.

2005 Liliana Parra Photographs, Nation-al Art Museum.

2002 Photographs of plants, Praxis Gal-lery.

2000 Liliana Parra, One eye, different looks, Cecilia Caballero Gallery.

1997 Photographs, Argentine School of photography.

1992 Photographs, Andy Goldstein Foun-dation.

Participated in several collective exhi-bitions:

Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Japan, Venezu-ela and Guatemala. Publications

Photography in Argentina, from 1840 to our days. Sara Facio. La Azotea Publish-ing House, 2009.Present Argentine photography 2. Sara Facio’s selection. La Azotea Publishing House, 1996.

Her works are in the Photographic Col-lection at National Art Museum, Art and Memory Museum in La Plata and private collections in Argentina and abroad.

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P A R A S E R V I C T I M A S D E M E R C A D O

L A T R A T A

P a r a n o s o t r o s

l a d e s a p a r i c i o n e s l a m u e r t e .

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L isa Davidson received her BFA from the School of V isual Arts in NYC. Whi le there, she studied with Mary Hei lman. L isa has exhib ited her work in the U .S . and Europe. In 1995 the art ist earned a Masters degree in Art Thera-py. Her specia lty is working with adults that have psychiatr ic i l lnesses. L isa ’s art work recently changed dramatical ly . “ I began us ing stenci ls and mixed media . A series of Skul ls evolved out of th is pattern paint ing style . When you look at a skul l , there is no b lack or white , o ld or young - the p laying f ie ld has been leveled - a l l are equal . ”

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L I S A D A V I D S O NNJ USA

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Lorenzo Basi le nasce a Sarno in provinc ia d i Sa lerno dove attualmente v ive e lavora. E ’ un art ista po-l iedrico e introspett ivo , un p ittore del l ’an ima. F in da l la p iù tenera età è affascinato dal l ’arte del d isegno e del la p ittura in cu i c imenta i l suo estro creat ivo . Una passione che lo sp inge a studiare la storia del l ’arte e le varie tecniche p ittoriche . Comincia a d ip ingere in g iovaniss ima età seguendo i canoni de l l ’arte f igurat iva . Dopo un lungo periodo d i prat ica p ittorica in cu i apprende i rudimenti de l “ mest iere del p ittore” , in iz ia un percorso d i r icerca e sperimentazione isp irandosi a l le p iù moderne “ten-denze art ist iche” ed infatt i le sue opere r isentono del l ’ inf lusso del l ’espression ismo, de l l ’astratt ismo e del l ’ informale .Nel corso del l ’u lt imo ventennio par-tecipa a cent ina ia d i mostre col lett ive , a concorsi ed espone in personal i in Ita l ia e a l l ’estero ( USA, FRANCIA, BRASILE , URUGUAY, INGHILTERRA, PORTO-GALLO) , raccogl iendo consensi d i pubbl ico e cr it ica e r icevendo premi e attestazion i d i merito . Le sue opere pubbl icate in cataloghi e r iv iste sono present i in co l lez ion i pubbl iche e pr ivate in Ita l ia e a l l ’estero.S i d i letta a scrivere poesie da appassionato del la parola e de l la sua forza evocat iva . Predi l ige d ip in-gere ad o l io ma mi c imenta anche con l ’acri l ico e le tecniche miste .E ’ stato c itato ed hanno pubbl icato art ico l i e recen-s ion i su l suo lavoro i seguent i g iornal i e r iv iste :Cronache del Mezzogiorno, I l Matt ino , A lbatros, Eu-roarte , Boè , Event i , Roma, La C ittà , Metropol is , Mu-rales , Gazzetta d i Aversa, L ’Osservatore del l ’Agro, I l Sa lernitano, Salernonot iz ie , Eco d i Sa lerno, Napol i .Repubbl ica . it , Ins ieme, Co lonnarotta . it , Po l it icado-mani , Positanonew. it , Ephemerides, “Ok Arte” d i Mi lano , “Fo lha de SÃO PAULO,” Gu ia Da Fo lha” , Den-troSalerno. it . , “Androposin the world” , La Voce del la carità , Napol i .com, Segni de i Tempi , Le Radic i

de l Futuro; CasertaNews. it .

L O R E N Z O B A S I L EITALY

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The two biggest things on mind at the time of the

ABAD Seattle call were the ten year anniversary

of 9/11 and the passing of Steven Jobs.

After all this time, 9/11 is still very much an open

wound for many. I found it surreal to acknowl-

edge that ten years had indeed passed. My hus-

band was there, and I hope never again to live

through a day like that–not knowing where he

was or if I would even see him again. It was 8

hours of the deepest, most visceral fear, and by

sheer force of will I kept it together in front of

my young children while inside I was screaming

non-stop. This piece is meant to illustrate the

cold sweep of death that still reaches across

the past ten years.

The second piece is my tribute to Steve Jobs, to

his genius and his artistry. It is his entry into

the hallowed ABAD halls from me, with love.

Steve Jobs thought of himself as an artist and

his goal was never to beat the competition, or to

make a lot of money; it was to do the greatest

thing possible, or even a little greater. I adored

him for that.

I had one of the very first MacIntosh computers

in 1984 and it literally changed the course of my

life. He made it possible for me to conduct a suc-

cessful career in art and design from my home

studio while simultaneously raising my children.

It is strange to consider that my family and I

owe quite a bit to someone I’d never met, and I

actually felt a very personal sadness on the oc-

casion of his passing.

L A U N N T P A L A Z ON Y U S A

135

l y n n s k o r d a l . p a s p a r t o u t . c o m

Lynn Skordal (aka paperworker)I was born last century in a smal l v i l lage on the west coast of Ice land (or maybe it was the south of France, I forget…) , but was soon abducted by an it inerant band of corporate lawyers who raised me on pr inc ip les of res jud icata . Not knowing any better, I pract iced law for many years, foreclos ing on a daycare center the week before Christmas, staring down the Posse Comitatus over bogus bank accounts , and draft ing the const itut ional gov-erning document for a smal l Po lynesian nat ion (one of those is actual ly not true) . Four or f ive years ago I left the law and began making art . These days, I make col lages and other paper and book arts projects on an is land in the middle of a lake in the middle of a c ity in the beaut ifu l Pacif ic Northwest . Usual ly , I have no idea what I ’m do ing .

It was a p leasure to part ic ipate in “A Book About Death” for Seatt le . My p iece observes the agony, the r itual and the ecstasy of Death…the th ing we fear the most and know

the least .

My now-and-then personal co l lage

b log :

regularpaper.b logspot .com

L Y N N S K O R D A LW A U S A

137

MFA ‘95 State University of New York;

Purchase, New York

BFA ‘92 , S ir Wi lfred Grenfel l Co l lege ;

School of F ine Arts , Memoria l Un iver-

s ity of Newfoundland, Corner Brook,

Newfoundland .

Somewhere in the foggy mists of New-

foundland, I came to d iscover there

was a very colorful world beyond its

shores. In the land of postal routes and

mai l carriers I would learn to make

contact with th is greater world . Mak-

ing art that travel led through the mai l

seemed a natural extension of the art-

ist with in who craved to f ind others of

l ike mind .

MailartaStudio J ArtSpace

Victoria, BC,CANADA

D A M E M A I L A R T AC A N A D A

m a i l a r t a . b l o g s p o t . c o m

m a i l a r t a @ g m a i l . c o m

139

M A R A T H O M P S O NC A , U S A

Margaret Balderama is a socia l worker in Seatt le , WA. Who values the transformative power of art in ind iv iduals and communit ies . She has secured funding and organized art projects in Seatt le Publ ic Schools . For many years she volunteered with the Creat ive Expressions Project at the Washington State Reformatory, working on a variety of ind iv idual and group projects with the incarcerated men.

M A R G A R E T B A L D E R A M AS E A T T L E U S A

141

M A T T H E W R O S EF R A N C E

PHOTO BY ARI ROSSNER PARIS :Ari Rossner - PhotographyTel . +33 1 4671 1212 • Mob. +33 6 800 32 781.ar irossner.com

arirossner.b logspot .com

143

m e l a n i e h a r r i n g t o n . c o m . m e l l o h a r r i n g t o n @ g m a i l . c o m

Der, God of T ime: The God of T ime is a brutal and unthinking ape, the most powerful of a l l the Gods. He carries a large knife , with which he cuts a l l away. He h ides h im-self in the b lackness of n ight but carries a candle for use when he wishes to be seen: in those som-ber, fra i l , and ag ing moments, Der is revealed in h is act of steal ing away precious t ime. Der even-tual ly wi l l take everything , and some are taken too early , some too late , some stolen whi le they are fat with promise and others when they have gone f lat and dry. It has been said that Der ’s power is beaut ifu l for the way it imbues mortal l i fe with po ignancy and fu l lness, but others say that the random, cal lous , utterly imper-sonal aspect of it is obviously the design of an id iot .As a worshipper of sc ience and reason, I was the last person ex-pect ing a revelat ion from the God of T ime. But such is the psycho-log ical fra i lty of human animals , th is pr imal craving for someone to p lead with and to b lame for the forces that push us around. We c l ing to bel iefs as i f they were l i fe itself . My current work in Mytholog ical Subject iv ism ex-

p lores these irrat ional longings .

CA USAM E L A N I E H A R R I N G T O N

145

My paint ing for th is exhib i -t ion features a b lurry double image of an unmade bed . The bed is an object r ich with meaning . I t is a p lace of b irth and death , a l ived- in p lace and a p lace of love . Here the bed is empty, but s igns of its oc-cupant are left behind , and the quest ion of where that occupant has gone is left un-answered. Th is is not neces-sari ly a pa int ing of a l i teral death , but it represents an assortment of smal l deaths: the passage from waking to dreaming and back, the end of a love affa ir , and the death impl ic it in human absence.

M i c h a e l h u b b a r d a r t . c o m

M I C H A E L H U B B A R DWA USA

Michael Harford was born and raised in San Francisco , where he studied

drawing and photography at the Academy of Art . As a co l lage art ist ,

h is work addresses h is interests in ph i losophical and pol it ica l issues

through poet ic use of post modern images and concepts . H is work has

been inc luded in nat ional and internat ional exhib its .

t h e w o r l d i s a t o w n . b l o g s p o t . c o m

c o f f e e m e s s i a h . b l o g s p o t . c o m

M I C H A E L H A R F O R DIN USA

147

Si segnala a l l ’attenzione del la cr it ica nazio-nale e internazionale per pecul iar ita del le sue opere, che co lp iscono per i l forte impatto espressivo . Pr inc ipato e un ’art ista che, co l -locandosi sempre e comunque a l le “front iere” d i qualcosa d i certo g ia ne l t ito lo , sfugge a l la comprensione e non lascia mai che le parole cessino d i s ign if icare qualcosa d i loro . Ha es-posto in tutto i l g lobo terrestre ecco a lcuni luoghi dove ha esposto Agrigento , Catania , Desio , Enna, F irenze, Foggia , Messina , Mi lano , Napol i , Pa lermo, Perugia , Ragusa, Roma, To-r ino , Tr ieste , Berl ino , Londra, Madrid , Miami , Montevideo , Monaco, New York, Oporto , Va-

lencia , V igo , Ta ichung C ity .

P r i n c i p a t o T r o s s o M i c h e l e N a z i o n a l i t a i t a l i a n a D a t a d i n a s c i t a 0 2 a p r i l e 1 9 7 4 p r i n c i p a t o m i c h e l e @ t i s c a l i . i t , m i c h e l e p r i n c i p a t o . s y n t h a s i t e . c o m

MICHELE PRINCIPATO TROSSOI T A L Y

149

M I R I A M B R U M E R

Mitsu Sundvall is a

writer from Berke-

ley , New York C ity ,

and Seatt le who is

writ ing a memoir of

three generat ions of

her fami ly of Japa-

nese ancestry.

Beth 1937–2011by Mitsu Akiyama Sundvall

Mits i . I have never thought of you as Jap-

anese. On ly as the best fr iend I have ever

known, s ince the th ird grade when your mom

and dad asked the LeConte school pr inc ipal to

f ind you a fr iend . I t was just after the war

and they thought you would be lonely without

a fr iend .

“ I ’ l l do it , ” I sa id . “ I ’ l l be Mits i ’s fr iend .” So

ever s ince we were about ten we were best

fr iends. A funny th ing—at f irst my mother

had to ld me that I shouldn ’t ask you over

whi le my father was home. I couldn ’t f igure

out why, but we had to introduce you s lowly.

We got to be about 13 years o ld and we were

go ing to spend the summer together. So my

mom thought that it would be a good idea for

your parents to meet her and my dad because

we were go ing to take you to our Turlock

apricot ranch in the val ley .

“Yes,” your mom said . “ I wi l l come over to

your house and cook a Ch inese d inner.”

So I he lped Mom get ready. I t id ied up and set

the table for four (you and I , Mits i , would eat

upstairs in the sun porch) . My dad had just

got off work at the naval sh ipyard and was

hovering around.

“Oh , so we’re having company for d inner?” he

asked.

“Yes. Mits i ’s mother and father are coming

over for d inner.”

My father ’s face turned dark, just l ike it d id

when he was a World War I I b lock captain and

there was an a ir ra id dr i l l to prepare for a

Japanese invasion .

“ I am not s itt ing down to d inner with any

Japs,” he declared. [World War I I had ended

f ive years earl ier , but Japs were apparently

st i l l around in Berkeley. ]

D ing dong. I ran to the front door before my

father could . There was your mother and

father, arms fu l l of bags of food for d inner.

Wel l , you and I took our d inners upstairs to

eat whi le the grown-ups ate in the d in ing

room. I was so nervous and s ick to my stom-

ach about how my father was going to spoi l

the whole th ing and ru in our fr iendship .

Then after you went home that n ight , my fa-

ther came to me and said : I have never met

such f ine people in my l i fe .

Last week, more than s ixty years after that

home-cooked Chinese d inner, my fr iend Beth

Hal l Johnson heard someone at the front door.

She could not run to answer it because she

was ly ing in bed s ick with rectal cancer and

groggy with morphine .

D ing dong. Death had come to the door, arms

overf lowing with bags of memories—two gan-

g ly mismatched g ir ls go ing round and round

the Oakland rol ler r ink to the tune of the

Tennessee Waltz , movies at the United Art-

ists theatre on Shattuck with its sweeping

sta ircase to the balcony, the hot summers at

the Turlock apricot ranch swimming in the ir -

r igat ion canals , waving at the boys dr iv ing by

in their tractors.

I had made a specia l tr ip to Cal i fornia to see

her and she wordlessly held my hand t ight ly .

Just f ive days after I left , death walked in

the front door and took her away.

I have never met a f iner fr iend than Beth in

my l i fe .

M I T S U S U N D V A L LS E A T T L E U S A

151

Nikki Soppelsa (Berea, OH USA) is a co l lage and mai l art ist . A frequent part ic ipant/ contrib-utor to ABAD (A Book About Death) exhib its worldwide draws upon her love of co l lect ing late 1800s cabinet cards/carte de v iste and her own photographs of the sky and of cem-eteries . These components come together to g ive a face to a name, br ing the past into the present with ‘new l i fe ’ . Her ABAD col lages are usual ly of the ‘ l i tt le lambs’ , the ch i ldren, a long with a story and a sprinkl ing of darkly humor. Papers o ld , new and found, cut/paste , beeswax are the materia ls used in her favored 4”x6” format.

“Th is p iece ‘Dealt . . . P layed ’ was so inspired by the headstone. I could p lay with th is Card a l l day! However, in th is instance, we are a l l dealt a hand in th is l i fe and to a certain de-gree, have a hand in how it ’s p layed out unt i l that last card is dealt . My favorite crow is ever present as a s ign of change, transit ion , and as a lways, at least one smal l d imensional ‘gu ide ’ Book About Death is present .”

She is a frequent part ic ipant and contributor to Art House Co-op projects , has part ic ipated in F luxFace in Space, The Altered Art postcard exhib it in Stockholm and has recent ly g ifted a co l lage to The Ontolog ical Museum for An Exhib it ion from the Internat ional Museum of Col lage , Assemblage and Construct ion for the Col lage Centennia l 1912-2012 . She is a lso a member and award winner in The Nat ional Co l lage Society . More of her work can be seen at

N i k k i S o p p e l s a . b l o g s p o t . c o m

N I K K I S O P P E L S AO H U S A

153

Noemi S i lvera is an uruguayan self -taught art ist and curator born in September, 1968 in MontevideoCurrent residence: Uruguay e-mai l : info .smal lart@gmai l .com

Universitary studies of : Ph i losophy 1987-1990 (O lden , Middle age and rennaisance) in the Professors Inst itute , Faculty of Ps ichologhy 1995-98 and Anthropology in 1998

Private school of Arts in Montevideo , 1993-1996

School of theatral act ion Alambique, 1993-1997

Residence in Portugal 1999-2001 Resi -dence in Al icante , Spain 2004-2006

Si lvera is founder in a new concept of mu-seums how publ ic and popular “spaces” in contemporary art . As an art ist she explore neo expression-isms and postmodern tendences. Use o i l , co l lage and mixed medias in pa int ing ; in sculpture is working in raku and soft sculpture. Her art is raw, inf luenced by act ion art and arte povera with ethnical esthet ic .And as a curator; she a lso is do ing a b ig archiv ium with more than 1500 artworks from around the world and good quant ity of mai larts , ATC, ATB, etc . During the lasts years th is archiv ium was becoming so b ig , archiv ium web address is : archiv i -

umelyseo.b logspot .com

N O E M I S I L V E R AURUGUAY

155

P A T R I C I A K R A N E N B E R GNY USA

Patric ia earned an undergraduate de-gree in Art and H istory Educat ion with an emphasis in Photography from the University of New Mexico . She achieved a Master ’s degree in Photography, Graphic Communicat ions and H istory from SUNY at Stony Brook.

She has experience with tradit ional b lack & white and color photography inc lud ing C ibachrome print ing . She a lso has extensive knowledge and experi -ence with a lternat ive photographic pro-cesses of Cyanotype, Vandyke Brown print ing , Gum Bromide pr int ing and SX-70 Manipulated Polaroid .

In her current techniques, Patric ia combines DSLR photography and Adobe Photoshop to manipulate the images. Her ABAD submission combines photos of textures and images, which are fur-ther enhanced and manipulated with Photoshop. The images themselves have a personal s ign if icance; they represent the ext inct ion of youth and how l i fe morphs itself through of t ime. Of par-t icu lar s ign if icance is how the manipu-lated image creates a fa lse scenario , removing from the subject a l l recol lec-t ion of their presence in the or ig inal scene. The photograph f i l ls the gaps in memory that may exist in the minds of the subjects of the or ig inal imagery, or , i t e l ic its a feel ing of memory loss .

f l i c k r i v e r . c o m / p h o t o s / p a t r i c i a k r a n e n b e r g

p c k 7 8 8 7 @ g m a i l . c o m

157

P a u l a F r a n ç aBrazil

I am Paula França , a brazi l ian art ist who l ives at São Paulo .My paint ings have a intense research about co lors . Another part of my work is d ig ita l photographs and graphic design .The work that part ic ipated of a Book About Death exhib it ion is d ig ita l graphic e laborat ion on detai ls of two of my paint ings . Theses images ap-peared on canvas without any personal intent ion , as a psychic manifesta-t ion , when I saw them I just intesif ied the colors .It seemed a good idea put them togheter for a exhib it ion named A Book about Death .

w w w . m p a u l a f r a n c a . c o m

159

P A U L A S H A U G H N E S S YN J U S A

161

“Naked Truth for Covered L ife - Save SUBANSIR, STOP BIG

DAMS ! ! ” ( The subansir i r iver . .means the golden r iver . C iv i l izat ions have grown and ended in its lap , on its bank. The sparkle of the golden r iver, where once gold was pres-ent in i ts bed , has been stopped, dyked. . i ts f low control led forever. . .The golden r iver f lows now with the permission of concrete gates-DAMS. The people on its bank waits and stares. .th inking i f i t would regain its go lden sparkle . The

r iver, SUBANSIRI , a real ity , has turned into a myth ! )

DOLLAR DIPLOMACY

– GOD of the Mighty AMERICANS ! ! “

( Who says Dol lar (soft power) is

SOFT?

Who says D ip lomacy is just a r ight

for internat ional existence?

Dol lar and US D ip lomacy

– MAKE A LETHAL MIX )

R A N J A N E N G T II N D I A

163

Renee Creager O ’Br ien is an art-ist , photographer, and educator. Her photographic images address issues of transience, the se-quence of t ime passing , imperma-nence. She uses f i lm, p inhole , and d ig ita l cameras, and focuses (or perhaps defocuses) with in the genres of documentary, portrait and experimental photography. The image for A Book About Death Seatt le was generated from a d ig ita l zone p late portrait se-r ies . Dr . O ’Br ien completed her Ph .D . in Art Educat ion with a d issertat ion on photography and aesthet ics , The Post-Romantic V is ion of Contemporary P inhole Photographers. She is Associ -ate Professor of Photography at SUNY Adirondack in Queensbury, NY and a mentor for SUNY Empire State Col lege , Center for D istance Learning in Saratoga Springs , NY. She l ives in Hadley, NY with her husband, Tom O ’Br ien , a renowned sculptor and pastel pa inter .

o b r i e n r @ s u n y a c c . e d u

R E N E E C R E A G E R O ’ B R I E N NY USA

165

Artist and Cancer Act iv ist R ia Vanden Eynde has a Ph .D . in Mathematics , a Gestalt Therapy Train ing Cert if icate , a MA in Ap-p l ied Eth ics and attended SLAC Art School . Her body of work str ives to external ize in -ner psycholog ical processes and express-es the body as l imited and f in ite vessel , a Buddhist idea . Her i l lness inspired the b log project pa int ing2cancers. An under-ly ing ph i losophical interest draws her to the art ist ic explorat ion of transcultural re l ig ious/phi losophical subjects . Together with Susan Shulman and Wi l l iam Evertson, she created the Art ist Col lect ive Seeking Kal i . Th is cooperat ion has led to a l imited ed it ion art ist book of art ist ic interpreta-t ions of Kal i , part ic ipat ion in The B i l lboard Project in several c it ies across the US, part ic ipat ion in shows in Ind ia ; in Treviso , I ta ly , Montreal ; in Berl in , Germany and in the US. She has part ic ipated in the in it ia l project “A Book About Death ,” and con-t inues to make p ieces for the subsequent shows, showing in more than 23 countries around the world . Her current project ex-p lores art ist ic expressions of the Buddhist pr inc ip les of Emptiness and Impermanence.

(about my abad Seatt le card) Th is image was made for my 5th ancerversary. In the photo , where the tree branches are get-t ing entangled and you can ’t see which is which anymore, where the darkness is most intense, that ’s where the br ightest l ight is .

R I A V A N D E N E Y N D EB E L G I U M

167

Rick C lark is an Engl ish instructor at Seatt le Central Community Col lege , a freelance writer and poet , and ed itor of CORRelat ions , News-letter of COR Northwest Fami ly Development Center. The documentary Beauty of the F ight , whose script he wrote, has been selected by 29 f i lm fest ivals and won two prizes . Several of R ick ’s poems can be found in Rose Al ley Press ’s Northwest poets anthology Many Trai ls to the Summit . Several poems are due to come out in several venues th is year. R ick is author of many death poems.

R I C K C L A R KS E A T T L E U S A

Fo lk ’s G loveHigher and h igher,

bel l by g lor ious bel l ,

the fo lk ’s g love tr i l ls

its v io lets skyward.

O ld be l ls fa l l

that earl ier rang,

muted now by so i l ,

sweet and dank.

Can ’t keep up for long

such heavenly song,

grown heady with l ight

and pul led by gravity ’s might .

Heavy-headed s lender tower

slowly toppl ing over, you s ing

how the world , l ike a f lower,

wi l l a lso have its hour.

R ick C lark

Post-Modern Appearance

Reading in the coffee shop,

I look up as I hear a stranger,

standing in l ine for coffee , say,

“ It just dr ives me psychot ic !”

and for a moment I ’m r iveted

by the man’s face, a skul l stretched

t ight

with p last ic skin , the g leaming b lack

marbles

of h is eyes rol l ing around in their

sockets

as they cast about in my d irect ion ,

on h is head a st iff new

bright red bal l cap , i ts b i l l askew,

evidence he ’s on the team

in the land of the l iv ing .

I look quickly back down

at my book. Letters wriggle l ike

worms

on the darkening page.

R ick C lark

Fal len Leaves in a T ime of War

So beaut ifu l where you l ie

dead and dying on the ground,

decorat ing our landscape, our

mounds,

for the posterity of our eyes.

B lond and chocolate brown,

gold , copper, s i lver , and bronze,

b lood red and adolescent green,

or bel ly-up-white with fear—

how lovely you are in your profusion ,

your s low death-throes,

as you turn br itt le , then to mush

under winter ’s endless rain .

What excel lent rat ions you ’ l l make

for our worms and moles—

those relent less armored bugs!

Oh fa l len leaves, I fee l th is much love!

R ick C lark

Museum of AngersAngers f lare l ike waxen f igures

on great Teutonic pedestals

or , red-faced and bel l icose,

fume in frames on broken wal ls .

Some hands gr ip choppers,

others guns. Tongues extrude,

ears f lap and eyes f lame—lashed

by geothermic gusts of rage.

Str ings of burning muscles

knot into a seething bust .

Frustrat ions lay deranged

and tagged on endless d isp lay .

B lood f lows in g l istening sheets

l ike red wet paint across the f loor ;

stones remain imbedded in every

door;

every window’s broken beyond re-

pair .

The curator doesn ’t dust ;

by now the b loody belt buckles rust .

In the Museum of Angers, t ime stands

st i l l ;

outs ide , the dead and browbeaten

mi l l .

R ick C lark

169

Death is a very natural part of life. For the ABAD Seattle project I wanted to contribute some-

thing that represented a deeper, more insidious death. Hu-

man compassion seems to be in short supply these days; it

is my opinion that compassion is a basic human trait which

is necessary for our long-term survival. Being a street pho-

tographer first and foremost, I am witness to both the pros-

perous and the downtrodden - walking the same sidewalks

and breathing the same air - but worlds apart. The image

of a homeless person sleeping in a breezeway is powerful;

seeing that same breezeway gated off to prevent the use

of those few precious square feet for shelter - for survival

- is small, but staggering. Many people may not even notice

or question why those bars are there. I wanted to demon-

strate with this piece one of the many little deaths that go

on around us day to day. The Death of Compassion.

R i c h a r d F o u g h t F i n e A r t P h o t o g r a p h y

p h o t o . k n o t t e d t w i g . n e t

p h o t o @ k n o t t e d t w i g . n e t

R I C H A R D F O U G H TSEATTLE USA

171

S A R A C . R I T C H E YS E A T T L E U S A

173

“Seeking Kal i is three art ists :

Wi l l iam Evertson (USA) , R ia

Vanden Eynde (Belg ium) and

Susan Shulman (Canada) who

in 2010 explored connect ing

their ind iv idual creat ive pro-

cesses through socia l media

p latforms to create bodies

of work involv ing tradit ional

and non-tradit ional art forms.

These socia l media p latforms

quickly became virtual studio

Seeking Ka l i Artist Col lect ive

Wil l iam Evertson (USA) R ia Vanden Eynde (Belg ium) Susan Shulman (Canada)

during the in it ia l A Book About Death

Exhib it ion . They have submitted to

a l l subsequent exhib its of ABAD with

col laborat ive work. They cont inue to

focus on the use of socia l media tools

such as Facebook, Skype and Google

+ to create a body of work that in -

c ludes pr int ed it ions , v ideo , perfor-

mance art , art ist books and graphic

novels .

s e e k i n g k a l i . c o m

spaces that the three art ists use to

inv ite other art ists to come into and

col laborate . As h ip and revolut ion-

ary as Warhol ’s Factory, the ir studio

b logs attract art ists from around the

g lobe , housing such projects as Seek-

ing Kal i and The Medusa Gaze as wel l

as generat ing and l inking l ive art ex-

h ib its in dozens of c it ies around the

world .

Seeking Kal i was establ ished from the

fr iendship formed by the three art ists

T O N I A S . A R E H A R TS E A T T L E U S A

175

Shir ley Hathaway was born in War-saw, Ind iana, USA and now l ives in Schaumburg, I l l ino is , USA (twenty-f ive mi les from Chicago, IL , USA) . She has worked fu l l -t ime for the same Law F irm in “The F inancia l D istr ict” of Ch icago, I l l ino is . She has worked there for th irty years and loves her job . She loves the arts and supports them as often as possib le . She is a F ine Art o i l pa inter , photo- journal ist , assemblage art ist , and sometimes does interior design . She studied art at Manchester Col lege , North Manchester, Ind iana ( 1973-75) . She cont inued her educat ion receiv ing a BA in Psychology at Purdue University ( IUPUI) , Ft . Wayne, Ind iana , 1982. She received an MS Degree in Psychology from Domin ican University , R iver For-est , I l l ino is , 1989.

Sh ir ley ’s card for the Seatt le show is from a 20” X 30” photograph she d id as a “Remembrance of the Destruc-t ion of The Twin Towers” in New York C ity on September 11 , 2001 . Her art is inspired by Andy Warhol and Ray Johnson, and other art ists from “The Factory” , NYC. She loves paint ing in large scale and transforms her art into post cards for the purpose of “Mai l Art” and exhib its . Her degree in Psychology helps her de-velop art themes in her own work and helps in the understanding the work of other art ists . She is married to James E . Hathaway; the other part of “Hathaway Studios” , Schaumburg, IL 60193 USA.

S H I R L E Y H A T H A W A YI L U S A

177

s m s t e w a r t . t u m b l r . c o m

S H E L L Y M S T E W A R TW A U S A

When I set out with my camera that sunny day, I had no part icular ar-t ist ic intent ion in mind . I t was s imply a beaut ifu l day and I wanted to go for a h ike . A long the way, I decided to explore the rural cemetery that l ies on top of a nearby h i l l . The markers, dat ing from the 1800’s to pres-ent day, were a documentat ion of the l ives of ind iv iduals who had, at one t ime, made th is smal l town their home. The gravestones were varied . Some were primit ive , a name or s ing le word such as “Baby” hand chiseled into rough stone. Others were pol ished marble and engraved with formal fonts . A l l were worn from the e lements and covered with encroaching , f luorescent l ichen. I gathered images. Many images.

Later, as I reviewed what I had col lected, the series came together. The worn, l ichen-covered markers stood less a monument to the ind iv idual and more a testament to our inescapable absorpt ion back into nature.

“Resorpt ion” , the image I submitted to the exhib it ion “A Book About Death Seatt le” , is from th is series .

179

C A N A D A

S I N F R O N T E R A SPerforms Latin American traditional and nueva cancion

music throughout Seattle and the Pacific Northwest.

Immerse yourself in vibrant rhythms, soulful melodies,

breathtaking harmonies and, weaving throughout, the un-

common poetry of Latin America’s common people. Songs

of life, humanity, equality, justice, hope.

Every performance is unique. In the spirit of a Chilean pe-

nya, Sin Fronteras regularly collaborates with guest art-

ists to create a multimedia experience for our listeners:

music, color, poetry, spoken word, dance, art, cuisine...

At the heart of each event is the sharing between musi-

cians, artists, and audience.

s i n f r o n t e r a s e a t t l e . c o m

181

Sonja Benskin MesherBorn in Bournemouth, EnglandL ives and works in Wales .

I have worked fu l l t ime as a v isual art ist s ince 1999, and have spent those years explor ing ways to com-municate thoughts and concerns with my paint ings and drawings

Its not a l l you see on the surface, i t goes deeper than that . The work goes back many years, what I have seen, experienced, touched and col lected .

I am a pa inter who writes , a writer that pa ints , a drawer on l i fe , and landscape. .

. . Watch me make th ings .

Am quite pat ient , ho ld my tongue, but can ’t say mult i d isc ip l inary. Easi ly

I l ive here, in Wales Easi ly

The Chair .

I have an empty chair . So I draw it .

People have come to s it in i t .

Grandson, fr iend , art ist .

Who wi l l be next?

“Don ’t be scared of the empty chair .

S it on it .

Don ’t be scared of the empty chair .

Stand on it .

Don ’t be scared of the empty chair .

Draw it” .

S O N J A B E N S K I N M E S H E RWales

The Chair

You may know that the Chair project has been very wel l received, a l l major pa int ings are sold , and some now in Publ ic Co l lect ions . -

‘The Empty Chair ’ is in the MOMA, New York, Co l lec-t ion ’ ’LA County Museum of Art Research L ibrary,& & F luxes Museum, Mount Vernon, Oh ioothers with pr ivate buyers. A f i lm has been made about the project and can be v iewed in the Culture Colony members space.

culturecolony.com/home

The b lack book of sketches was in exhib it ion , ’ Inter-nal Documents ’ @ The Writers P lace, Kansas C ity , th is year.

Prints of the f irst pa int ing are be ing shown in the art phenomena ‘ A Book about Death ’ which is ongoing world wide . I curated the Wale ’s ABAD show 2010, where the actual chair was exhib ited

sonja-benskin-mesher.co.uk/abookaboutdeath-wales/

extras/index.htm

a b o o k a b o u t d e a t h . b l o g s p o t . c o m

183

S T E W A R T E D W A R D S

PHOTOGRAPHER. WALESFl intshireNorth Wales

s.f .edwards@glyndwr.ac .uk

f l ickr.com/photos/stew-edwards/

Slate , beginn ing to end .

P laces in Wales

UK

185

S t e v e D a l a c h i n s k y

Is a legendary New York downtown poet . He

is act ive in the free jazz scene. He was born

in Brooklyn, New York. He has been writ ing

poetry for many years and has worked with

such music ians as Wi l l iam Parker, Susie Ibar-

ra , Matthew Shipp , Roy Campbel l , Danie l Cart-

er , Sabir Mateen, Mat Maneri , Federico Ughi ,

Loren Mazzacane Connors, Rob Brown, T im

Barnes, and J im O ’Rourke. He has appeared at

most of the Vis ion Fest ivals , an Avant-Jazz

fest ival involv ing many of these music ians . He

a lso appears often at the Knitt ing Factory, a

un ique l ive music c lub in Tr ibeca. He currently

l ives in Manhattan with h is wife , pa inter and

poet Yuko Otomo. H is most recent book is

“The F ina l N ite & Other Poems:Complete Notes

From A Charles Gayle Notebook 1987-2006”

(Ugly Duckl ing Press, 2006) , a compendium of

poetry written whi le watching saxophonist

Charles Gayle perform throughout New York

C ity in that t ime period . Other publ icat ions

inc lude “Tr ia l and Error in Paris” from Loud-

mouth Col lect ive Press and “Quicksand” from

Is is Press. H is spoken word a lbums inc lude In-

complete D irect ions , I thought it was the end

of the world and then the end of the world

happened again with Federico Ughi , Phenom-

ena of Interference with Matthew Shipp , and

Th in Air with Loren Connors

Member S ince :

February 19 , 2008

Members: Steve Dalachinsky

m y s p a c e . c o m / s t e v e d a l a c h i n s k y / m u s i c

S T E V E D A L A C H I N S K YN Y U S A

187

BORN IN MONTREAL, SUSAN SHULMAN SPENT MANY YEARS

PAINTING AND DRAWING. SHE STUDIED AT THE MUSÉE DE

BEAUX ARTS AND THE SAIDYE BRONFMAN AND IN 1996, SHE

RECEIVED HER BFA WITH DISTINCTION FROM CONCORDIA UNI -

VERSITY. TO DATE, SHE HAS HAD E IGHT SOLO SHOWS AND EX-

HIBITED WORKS IN OVER 25 SHOWS INTERNATIONALLY. SHE

HAS ALSO PUBLISHED “MINISCAPES” AND “ IN OUR MEMORIES

FOREVER” AS WELL AS THE SEEKING KALI ARTIST ’S BOOK

WHICH IS IN THE State L ibrary of V ictoria COLLECTION IN

AUSTRALIA.

I HAVE BEEN AN ACTIVE PARTICIPANT IN “A BOOK ABOUT

DEATH” GLOBAL EXHIBIT IONS. S INCE THE 2009 DEBUT, THE

ABAD PROJECT HAS TAKEN ON A REMARKABLE L IFE . MANY OF

MY ARTWORKS CONTINUE TO TOUR THE WORLD, APPEARING IN

MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES ACROSS THE US, BRAZIL , BELGIUM,

CROATIA, SARAJEVO, ITALY AND THE UNITED KINGDOM.

WHEN I THINK ABOUT A BOOK ABOUT DEATH, I IMMEDIATELY

VISUALIZE THE INVISIBLE MAGIC THAT THREADS ME TO SO

MANY OUTSTANDING ARTISTS THAT I MET AT AND FROM THIS

INIT IAL EXHIBIT ION IN NEW YORK CITY, SEPTEMBER 2009.

I WAS REBORN. AN UMBIL ICAL CORD GREW AND ATTACHED

ITSELF FROM MY CORE TO MANY OTHER ARTISTS WHO I AM

NOW COLLABORATING WITH GLOBALLY, SEAMLESSLY CREAT-

ING MAGICAL BONDS OF CREATIVITY AND SHARING.

HTTP ://BL IP .TV/CONCORDIA-UNIVERSITY-TELEV IS ION/ARTS-

C U L T U R E - I N T E R V I E W - W I T H - M I X E D - M E D I A - A R T I S T - S U S A N -

SHULMAN-5428708

MY PALETTE IS BRIGHT AND BOLD CREATING TENSION AND

CONFLICT BETWEEN IMAGE AND FEEL ING. THEY CONTAIN

PORTRAITS DEALING WITH RELATIONSHIPS, REBIRTHS AND

METAMORPHOSIS . THESE NARRATIVES ARE A CONTINUOUS

INTROSPECTIVE SEARCH FULL OF EXCIT ING AND REVEALING

INSIGHTS WITH ELEMENTS OF MY PERSONAL HERITAGE RE-

FLECTING THE PASSION OF MY SOUL . IN ALL MY VISUALS, I

ATTEMPT TO MAINTAIN THE RICHNESS OF COLOR, STILL EMIT-

T ING A STRANGENESS OF IMAGES. MY PERSONAL MYTHS

EVOLVED FROM THE IMAGINATION OF MY SUB CONSCIENCE.

MY MAGIC SYMBOLS OF F ISH ARE A CONTINUOUS L INK IN ALL

MY WORKS.

THE IMAGES I CREATE WITH AN INTIMATE VISUAL ALPHABET

THAT HAS EMERGED THROUGH MY PASSION. MY STORIES CELE-

BRATED IN O IL . THE SUBJECT MATTER IN SOME PIECES CREATE

AMBIGUIT IES TO THE VIEWER, WEAVING CONFLICTING MAGI-

CAL TALES THAT I HOPE WILL TOUCH THE INNER CORE OF A

SOULFUL PERSON. MY WORKS REPRESENT INNER STRUGGLES,

GROWTH, AND THE CONTINUING SEARCH FOR MY OWN CONVIC-

T IONS THROUGH MY ART. I THINK THROUGH MY CREATIVITY.

FRONT COVER: F ISH TREE , 2001 , O IL ON CANVAS, 24” X 36” .

THIS IS THE F INAL PAINTING “ IN OUR MEMORIES FOREVER” SERIES OF

NINE PAINTINGS.

THIS NUMBER IS SYMBOLIC OF COMPLETION AND ACHIEVEMENT. I HAVE

GONE FULL C IRCLE , AND CAN GO NO FURTHER IN THESE WORKS. NINE

REPRESENTS THE COMPLETE CYCLE OF GESTATION AND I HAVE GIVEN

BIRTH TO MY GLORIOUS AND HISTORICALLY RICH FAMILY. I AM SATIS-

F IED AND ELATED.

I CHOSE TO DEPICT MY FAMILY TREE IN THE FORM OF T INY F ISH SYM-

BOLIC OF SCALES ON MY GREAT F ISH OF L IFE . SCALES PROTECTING THE

INNER CORE OF MY LEGACY REPRESENTING MY DIRECT

ANCESTRY L INE OF GENERATIONS. THE OVERSHADOWING INFLUENCE AS

I WAS PAINTING THIS WORK WAS THE EVENTS OF SEPTEMBER 11 , 2001 .

THESE TRAGEDIES AFFECTED MY CREATIVE FLOW AND IN ORDER TO CON-

TINUE I HAD TO INCORPORATE THAT IMPORTANT MOMENT IN T IME. AS I

AM CONCERNED WITH THE PAST, I AM ALSO AWARE OF THE IMPACT OF

THE FUTURE OF MANY GENERATIONS. THIS EVENT FROZE MY CREATIVE

OUTLOOK AND I WAS TORMENTED WHETHER TO INCLUDE THIS INCIDENT

INTO MY PAINTING. I DECIDED IT HAD TO BE EMBEDDED IN MY WORK

SINCE MEMORY PLAYS AN INTRINSIC ASPECT IN ALL MY VISUALS. IN

THIS NARRATIVE THE TWIN TOWERS SHADOW MY MAJESTIC RUSSIAN

F ISH THAT IS NOW DECORATED IN ARMY

FATIGUE CAMOUFLAGE COLOURS GUARDING THE HARBOURS OF NEW

YORK AND MONTREAL. NEW YORK IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF MY HIS-

TORY SINCE MY FATHER’S TWO SISTERS HAVE RAISED THEIR FAMILIES

THERE. A PLACE I HAVE FREQUENTED MY WHOLE L IFE , NEW YORK CITY

IS PART OF MY EMOTIONAL HERITAGE AND WHILE THIS TERROR WAS

HAPPENING, BOTH MY AUNTS WERE HOSPITALIZED.

AS I WAS PAINTING MY FAMILY TREE , I WAS LOSING ONE OF MY F ISH

AUNTS TO T IME.

THE MUSICAL SCALES OF ALL MY EXPERIENCES IN NEW YORK CITY & A

BOOK ABOUT DEATH RESONATE LOUDLY IN MY SOUL .

IT IS NOT NOTHING.

I MET KATHLEEN MCHUGH, THE CURATOR OF THE SEATTLE ABAD EXHIBI-

T ION AS A RESULT OF THE INIT IAL SHOW IN NEW YORK CITY IN 2009.

ONE OF MANY GIFTED ARTISTS I AM HONOURED TO KNOW.

S U S A N S H U L M A NC A N A D A

189

v i r g i n i a c a p p a b i a n c a @ h o t m a i l . c o mF a c e b o o k : B i n a C a p a d i a

c a u s a l i d a d e s - p a r c i a l i d a d e s .b l o g s p o t . c o m

t r a z o l i m i t e . b l o g s p o t . c o mp o l i f o r m e - p r o t o t i p o . b l o g s p o t . c o m

ACTIVIDADES LABORALESENSEÑANZA COMÚN2009 Escuela Almafuerte , Castelar . Docente de P lást ica V isual . (01/03-30/12)

N iños y adolescentes (EPB y Secundaria)

COLECCIÓN PERMANENTE 2011 Mobius Org. An onl ine d iscourse and mult i -media exhib it ion : “The prost itut ion of Art”t h e p r o s t i t u t i o n o f a r t . b l o g s p o t .com/2011/09/causa l idades- i i -v ir -g in ia- cappabianca-64.html

2012 Centro cultural Borges. c e n t r o c u l t u r a l b o r g e s . b l o g s p o t .com

Se lección B logs :c a u s a l i d a d e s - p a r c i a l i d a d e s .b logspot .comtrazol imite .b logspot .compol i forme-protot ipo .b logspot .com

2013 Se lección b log : “Seeking Kal i ” . Or-ganizada por R ia Vanden Eynde, Wi l l iam Evertson, Susan Shulman seekingkal i .b logspot .com

V I R G I N I A P A U L A C A P P A B I A N C ABuenos Aires, Argentina

W - J K E R S T E NA N O U K R A W K S O N

191

Wil l iam Evertson is an intermedia art-ist who l ives and works in Connect icut , USA. Wi l l iam has contributed to a l l ABAD projects to date inc lud ing the inaugural exhib it at the Emi ly Harvey Foundat ion Gal lery in 2009. H is art inc ludes work in art ist books, pr intmaking , instal la-t ion , performance and v ideo art . Much of Wi l l iam’s work focuses on myth and archetype and common threads found in d ifferent cultures. Often themes are translated from one media to another as aspects are examined. H is interest in co l laborat ion and mai l art led to h is in it ia l involvement with the A Book About Death project . S ince then Wi l l iam has formed the Seek-ing Kal i Co l lect ive with art ists R ia Van-den Eynde of Belg ium and Susan Shulman of Canada. Together they have been explor ing the concepts of long d istance col laborat ive works using socia l media both as a tool and as source materia l Wi l l iam has a BFA, Ithaca Col lege , Sculp-ture concentrat ion ( 1975) , MFA, Un iver-s ity of Delaware, Sculpture and Video concentrat ion ( 1978) and a MALS from Wesleyan University ; the later with a concentrat ion in v ideo and computer

arts .

w i l l i a m e v e r t s o n . n e t

b i l l e v e r t s o n . b l o g s p o t . c o m

W I L L I A M E V E R T S O N CT USA

193

Wil l ie Marlowe has shown paint ings in so lo and inv itat ional exhib it ions in the U .S . and abroad. Her work is inc luded in museum, un i -versity , corporate and pr ivate col lect ions and has been supported by grants from Art-ists Space, NYC, the New York State Counci l on the Arts and Strategic Opportunity St ipend awards from the New York Foundat ion on the Arts and the Art Center of the Capita l Region . She has been a v is it ing art ist in Tu la , Russia , Barbados, West Ind ies , Cortona, Ita ly , and in Wexford, Ire land , where she had a ten year retrospect ive exhib it ion at the Wexford Arts Center. Other notable so lo shows have been at the Nat ional Associat ion of Wom-en Art ists , Inc . in New York C ity , and at the Mint Museum of Art , Charlotte , NC, and most recent ly at Opalka Gal lery, Sage Col lege of Albany, Hal lSpace, Boston, Ma. and Gal lery C , Rale igh , NC . She has had art ist ’s residencies at the Mi l lay Colony for the Arts , Austerl itz , NY, the C i l l R ia la ig Project , Ba l l inskel l igs , Ire land , and The Emi ly Harvey Foundat ion in Venice , I ta ly . She received an MFA from the University of Idaho, a BS from East Carol ina University and studied for a summer at The Pennsylvania Academy of the F ine Arts . She taught pa int-ing and drawing in the Department of V isual Arts , The Sage Col lege of Albany, served as chair of the Department for a two year term, and taught in two of The Sage Col leges ’ inter-nat ional studies programs, Sage at Oxford, Somervi l le Co l lege , Oxford University , and Celt ic Connect ions in Scot land and Ire land . She is now Professor Emerita , The Sage Col leges.

W I L L I E M A R L O W EN Y U S A

w w w . w i l l i e m a r l o w e . c o m

195

Xiomáro is a v isual art ist and music ian based

in New York. Of Cuban and Puerto R ican

descent , he is acutely aware of despot ic

regimes l ike that of F ide l Castro . Against a

backdrop

of human skul ls , the d ig ita l co l lage , Un L ibro

Sobre La Muerte, juxtaposes the forgiveness

offered by a benevolent monarch with the

merci less brutal ity of some of h istory’s

worst d ictators.

The K ing of K ings wi l l ing ly accepted a tor-

tured death on the cross to save souls . In

contrast , the self -appointed kings tortured

and ki l led the bodies of those they ruled over.

Paradoxical ly , the Messiah ’s sacrif ic ia l death

is suff ic ient to forgive the s ins of the d icta-

tors. But , on earth , these murderers wi l l not

be humbled , they wi l l not repent , they wi l l not

accept forgiveness. So they mock the Savior

just as h is Roman tormenters d id . X iomáro’s

image appears amongst the d ictators because

the B ib le - a book about death as much as it

is about l i fe - warns that we wi l l a l l stand

before the judgment seat . And on that day,

every knee shal l bow and every tongue shal l

confess to God .

X i o m á r oNY USA

w w w . x i o m a r o . c o m

197

T A N G L E T O W N S T R I N G B A N D

M w a n z o P r o u d F a r m e r s

Mission Statement : To expand and d iversify Kenyan cash and food crop farming as environmental ly and economi-cal ly sustainable business in rural communit ies .Mwanzo Proud Farmers (MPF) is a US based non-prof it organizat ion establ ished in January 2011 . MPF is dedi -cated to creat ing a network of economical ly sustain-able Mwanzo Proud Farmers Cooperat ives (MPFC) in the Nyanza and Western Provinces of Kenya whose econo-mies are impacted by HIV/AIDS. MPF wi l l provide organizat ional support and socia l busi -ness investment capita l through grants and loans.Loyce Ong ’ud i , Founder and D irector of Mwanzo Proud Farmers, works to create sustainable rural development co-operat ives in her home v i l lage in Nyanza Province and other ne ighboring rural v i l lages in Kenya. Loyce Mbewa Ong ’ud i is a US c it izen and Nyanza Province nat ive . She uses her internat ional business experiences in the devel-opment of partnerships with internat ional socia l busi -ness investors and agricultural communit ies . Loyce ’s v is ion is to combat poverty through the development of sustainable co-operat ive businesses informed by com-munity-based solut ions and the ingenuity and strengths of local peoples .

Contact InformationLoyce Ong ’ud i , Founder and Execut ive D irectorloyceongudi@comcast .netL ine Nya-Ngatchou, Development D irectorl inekewe@hotmai l .comhttp ://awish.net1813 19th Avenue #410Seatt le , WA 98122206-799-1571

M A T R I A O ’ H O R A A N D L O Y C E O N G ’ U D I

199

Q U E T Z A L C O A T L G A L L E R Y . C O M

T h E E x h i b i t i o n , b r i n g s t o g e t h e r

1 4 4 A r t i s t s , S E A T T L E a n d I n t e R R n a t i O a l

A r t i s t s . . .

A g l O b a l C O L L E C T I O N