Join us at Printed Matter St Marks on July 11 at 6pm for a meet-and-greet with the artist publisher Familia Editions with light refreshments served and a diverse range of artist books from Brazilian artists.

FAMILIA EDITIONS (est. 2018) is an independent small press specialized in contemporary brazilian artists’ books. By July 2019 we published four limited editions by artists Demian Jacob (Rio de Janeiro), AVAF (São Paulo), Dalton Paula (Brasília) and Ivan Grilo (São Paulo).

Information on Familia Editions recent titles below.

AVAF

The artist works under a pseudonym, assume vivid astro focus (avaf). Since many years he has been playing with the avaf initials and creating new avafs (which are used as email signatures, titles of exhibitions and works). Friends and other people that interact with the artist often send him new avafs creating a “word bank”.

For the typographical representation of these phrases, the choice was AVAF’s font, inspired by Jenny Holzer’s “Truisms” that were displayed on large public electronic signs in the 1980’s, specially her insertions on Times Square LED signs. A political statement translated through a visual language that always inspired the artist’s work.

The book is the avaf manifesto and an homage to brazilian concrete poetry, playing with words as images and representing the meanings through visual games.

Devaneios

Demian Jacob’s Devaneios (Daydreams) photobook is a visual diary inspired by the simple beauty of the world around. “A photography that, rather than putting technology on a pedestal, makes it a tool for creation and the freedom to look around: what you see is already beautiful and/or strange enough to stir a sensitive soul.”

Demian is a photographer and visual artist born in Rio de Janeiro (1983) where he’s developing his visual research and creative practice. His work has an emphasis on the perception of a new landscape and relation of the man with the geographic space. Always using the resources of photography revealing its own negatives, using Polaroid and the super8 film. The book was selected by ZUM Photography Magazine (Brazil) Photobook Festival and it was officialy launched at Paris Photo 2018.

Visual Notes

Visual Notes by Dalton Paula is facsímile of the artist’s sketchbook with his creative process throughout more than two years. Drawings, watercolors, japanese ink and handwritting represent Dalton’s ideas for some of his most relevant works such as the series “Tobacco Route” and studies for big scale paintings comissioned by the New Museum of NYC for the 2018 Triennial “Songs for Sabotage”.

Limited edition of 500 copies, of each 100 copies of the special edition inside a handmade box and an etching from original drawing made for the edition.

I cannot recall well

Ivan Grilo’s artist book I cannot recall well is an endulgement of the artist’s poetical work on public x private/politics x love, where words are read through embossed letterpress printing on handmade paper and images are “hidden” inside french folded transluscent paper creating a misterious narrative as a way to translate the “forgotten” subjects of matter Grilo treats in his body of work.

The book was fully handmade in Brazil with local materials. 150 copies signed and numbered.