On 6pm 24th of March, Serge Onnen will give a lecture in our IFP studio about the books he made.
He started a book sequel on drawing in 2002. 4 books have be published so far. All designed by the artist and published by J&L books in US. Each book has a very defined theme and a absolute minimum of text. The idea for this ongoing project is based on the idea that drawings can be found anywhere; From science books to toilet walls. Each book brings together a wide range of drawings around a very specific drawing related them.
In this lecture, Serge will talk about all these books and will focus on 'drawings on writing' in particularly.
'Of all the words one uses in a day, the handwritten ones are the most rare. Written with a pen on a small piece of paper or carved with a knife in a tree. Physically made words. Most words are made with a machine such as a laptop or a phone -- words you've never really touched. One learns to make the words by hand as a child, but very soon after that, one starts using a machine. The handwriting years come more or less to an end with the first keyboard, and like drawing it becomes an ancient act. You draw it when you can't find a photo or camera, and you handwrite it when you can't find a keyboard. When it's unreadable to the other, it becomes some kind of drawing. Readability depends on codes and conventions -- just for one person or for billions, like Chinese. This book is a silent space where the signs and words have come to a rest. Where they don't have to act by what they mean.' - Serge Onnen
link for more:
www.jandlbooks.org