The Eriskay Connection

18/12/2024

EDITION
Book + print

 “Ghost Face” and “Pool Creature”
(13x18 cm)

Creatures Found (Adam Thorman) is a series based on finding the animate in the inanimate. The world comes alive through the lens of pareidolia – the human tendency to see familiar shapes and patterns in the structures of inanimate things, such as seeing faces in clouds and monsters in shadows. (US) has always been sensitive to this phenomenon, often spotting anthropomorphic beings in objects such as rocks, tree stumps, and fences. This books is a collection of the creatures he has encountered over the past 18 years. They belong to the viewer as much as they do to him, because in each image everyone will recognise their own creature, something familiar, something animal, something human, something real.

Design:

16/12/2024

CROWDFUNDING
Floating Signifiers (Daan Paans)

We are pleased to announce that we are working on Daan's latest book. In 2013, we published his first book Letters from Utopia, one of the first books we published as a publisher 📚

You can now pre-order Daan's upcoming book 'Floating Signifiers – Case studies on image, origin and representation' to help him finance the production of the book. Special editions are also available through our website.

‘Panta Rhei’ is an old philosophical saying by Heraclitus that can be interpreted as ‘all that is observable flows continuously’. In the spirit of this reflection, Daan Paans attempts with Floating Signifiers to provide insight into the constant transformation that things and phenomena undergo under the influence of a complex set of factors. In a broader sense, he investigates how changeability is expressed in the visual culture of the past, present and future.

Over the past ten years, Paans has analysed the genesis of a wide range of subjects that come together in this publication. This has resulted in case studies, ranging from the extinct aurochs, the pre-human paradise, the future life of an oak tree, meteorites from sci-fi films, variations on the lion-man or Indiana Jones’ Golden Idol.

The case studies in this book attempt to provide insight into how archetypal primal forms in their ‘transmuted’ form continue to have an effect on our contemporary (visual) culture. With the ambiguous nature of his work, Paans aims on the one hand to indicate the deeply cherished bond that we have with ‘ecology’, but on the other hand also to offer the insight that this ecology is subject to an evolutionary transformation process.

Paans’ research methodology relies heavily on the photographic medium, but in its development he usually expresses himself in the form of multimedia installations, in which he uses video, 3D renders, sculpture and documentary archive material – depending on the nature and meaning of his choice of subject.

Design:
Release: Spring 2025

15/12/2024

This looks better irl – Exploring Cosplay Cons (Xiaoxiao Xu)

'This looks better irl' follows young people in this contemporary subculture, largely influenced by various Asian media and pop culture, full of community spirit, individuality and personal challenges, as they prepare for and attend cosplay conventions in Western Europe.

The work of (CN/NL) focuses on people who relate to traditions and social conventions, but are still driven by individuality and personal desires. For years, her camera has focused on China, but she is now investigating the influence of Asian culture on Western society. In this case, cosplay, a form of performance art in which participants use costumes and accessories to portray a particular character. These are drawn from the world of comics, pop culture, anime, manga, video games, and films.

Over the past few years, Xu has attended various cosplay conventions and met many cosplayers. Their self-made costumes range from endearingly amateurish to lifelike, giving a personal interpretation to the characters they portray.

The cosplay community is very diverse. There is a great deal of mutual acceptance and therefore a large proportion of neurodivergent people. Is there perhaps an overlap with the social and emotional problems that young people are struggling with today? Are there deeper emotions hidden beneath these costumes? To investigate, Xu collected hundreds of screenshots from the cosplayers’ social media accounts. These screenshots form a recurring element in the publication, revealing much of their underlying feelings.

This looks better irl shows a timely subculture in which the interplay between the online and offline worlds, the astonishing costumes, and the youthful vulnerabilities are so delicately portrayed by Xu.

Design:
Lithography:
Production:
Print and binding:

Order your regular or signed copy now 📚

14/12/2024

Ending the year with a bang 💥 We have created a number of special editions around the book The Wizard of Awe (Kevin Cooley).

— Limited edition with signed book, and signed C-print (60×40 cm)
— Limited edition box with signed book, C-print (24×30 cm), custom T-shirt (M, L or XL) and model rocket “The Wizard” construction kit 🚀

The Wizard of Awe ( )is an ode to pyrotechnicst Ken Miller, focusing on his life’s work that has been marked by both brilliance and misfortune.

Design:

You can find all special editions on our website.

13/12/2024

Today from 16:30 to 22:00 you can find us at the BON VIVANT christmas/art market at in Breda. Organized by . We will bring our latest books and some beautiful prints 📚🎄🎁

12/12/2024

NEW RELEASE
This looks better irl – Exploring Cosplay Cons (Xiaoxiao Xu)

'This looks better irl' follows young people in this contemporary subculture, largely influenced by various Asian media and pop culture, full of community spirit, individuality and personal challenges, as they prepare for and attend cosplay conventions in Western Europe.

The work of Xiaoxiao Xu (CN/NL) focuses on people who relate to traditions and social conventions, but are still driven by individuality and personal desires. For years, her camera has focused on China, but she is now investigating the influence of Asian culture on Western society. In this case, cosplay, a form of performance art in which participants use costumes and accessories to portray a particular character. These are drawn from the world of comics, pop culture, anime, manga, video games, and films.

Over the past few years, Xu has attended various cosplay conventions and met many cosplayers. Their self-made costumes range from endearingly amateurish to lifelike, giving a personal interpretation to the characters they portray.

The cosplay community is very diverse. There is a great deal of mutual acceptance and therefore a large proportion of neurodivergent people. Is there perhaps an overlap with the social and emotional problems that young people are struggling with today? Are there deeper emotions hidden beneath these costumes? To investigate, Xu collected hundreds of screenshots from the cosplayers’ social media accounts. These screenshots form a recurring element in the publication, revealing much of their underlying feelings.

This looks better irl shows a timely subculture in which the interplay between the online and offline worlds, the astonishing costumes, and the youthful vulnerabilities are so delicately portrayed by Xu.

Design:
Lithography: Marc Gijzen
Production: Jos Morree (Fine Books)
Print and binding: Wilco Art Books (NL)

Order your regular or signed copy now 📚

11/12/2024

Happy to share that both Control Refresh by Toma Gerzha and Lebensborn by Angeniet Berkers are among the 10 best Dutch photobooks from 2024 selected by Dutch Newspaper De Volkskrant! ✨📚✨ congratulations to Angeniet and Toma!

10/12/2024

BOOK + PRINT
Edition Sense of Presence (Rogier Maaskant) with C-print of choice.

Signed book + signed and numbered C-print (21×29.7)
You can choose 1 print or both (“Scorched Carpet” & “White Plume Moth”)
Limited edition (25 each)
Printed by

(NL) enchanting images unveil a diverse array of insects in flight during twilight and nighttime – in forests and above fields, ditches, and ponds around Rotterdam. By using strobe light, his single exposures provide a unique view of the flight of caddisflies, moths, lacewings, dragonflies, gnats, and various other species that illustrate the rich biodiversity.

For Sense of Presence, Maaskant collaborated with scientists and butterfly experts. His work is in line with the current era of renewed interest in nature and a widespread awareness of the need to protect it.

With an essay by Auke-Florian Hiemstra, science communicator at Naturalis, Leiden.

08/12/2024

06/12/2024

Two new books arrived today. Jejudo and The Tumen River (Hyung-Geun Park).

Jejudo, South Korea’s largest island, is marked by the tragic April 3 Incident (1948–1949), a period of extreme violence when the Korean government forces massacred innocent civilians in a brutal suppression of a local uprising. This dark chapter in Jeju’s history made a deep impression on Hyung-Geun Park (KR), who learned that many of today’s tourist sites were once scenes of mass killings. His fascination with the landscape takes us from rugged natural scenes to abandoned buildings that serve as reminders of the island’s often unacknowledged histories and its ongoing transformation. His photographs reveal spaces that were once populated, prompting the viewer to reflect on the countless people who vanished. With essays by Elisa Medde and Nayun Jang. 

The Tumen River (두만강, Doomangang), immortalised in many Korean songs and historical narratives, is as a crossing point for North Korean defectors risking their lives to seek freedom. Hyung-Geun Park (KR) retraced the defection routes of these refugees. This journey is documented through photographs of views and places associated with the defectors’ stories. The Tumen River Project begins from two perspectives: from the Unification Observatory in South Korea, which offers a seemingly peaceful but artificial view of North Korea, and from the Chinese border, where the harsh realities of the North Korean regime become more apparent. These contrasting views highlight the dichotomy between the idealised image of North Korea and its harsh reality.

The Tumen River Project is part of the series Layers of Memories, together with Jejudo. Both titles are designed by and co-published with Vostok Press.

05/12/2024

FORTHCOMING
Aluk To Dolo

Pre-order your (signed) copy now, release next week 📚

Aluk To Dolo ( ) shows how a family history became intertwined with the colonial history of the former Dutch East Indies. The spread of Christianity as a new faith was received with mixed feelings on Sulawesi, home of the Toraja people. Traditional feasts and rites were banned in return for education, churches, and medical care. Almost a century later, Ringel Goslinga (NL) meets the Toraja of today and learns about the local customs and objects that still play a role in their culture. What began as a photographic research into the interface between ancestor worship and missionary work, gradually deepened into a study of almost extinct animistic patterns and traditional weaving forms. In the process, Goslinga learned the ‘language’ of weaving and sought to record these customs and traditions before they fall into oblivion.

Design:

03/12/2024

NEW RELEASE
You don't need soil to grow (Benedetta Ristori)

Berlin is a city characterised by its international population and gentrification. b.ristori (IT) examines how contemporary society is defined by change and uncertainty, and shows how individuals, particularly expatriate women, find their identity and sense of belonging in a pre-existing urban fabric. Through intimate portraits taken in rigid urban spaces, Ristori captures the tension between these women’s freedom to reinvent themselves and their fleeting connection to the city. In parallel, Ristori’s project also focuses on the German Kleingärten (small gardens), which provide a refuge within the urban world. With You don’t need soil to grow, Ristori questions what it means to belong in an age where the only constant is change.

Design:
Production: Wilco Art Books (NL)
Order your regular or signed copy now 📚

03/12/2024

BOOK TALK

This Wednesday, Toma Gerzha will be part of FOTODOK Book Talks #40 at TivoliVredenburg where she will talk about her book 'Control Refresh'.

Control Refresh documents the lives of young people in Russia, strongly influenced by tradition, social media, and politics. A Russian passport gave (RU/NL) access to (remote) cities in Russia over the past three years. She captured her peers living, dreaming, and enjoying themselves while surrounded by war propaganda. These are difficult times for Russian Gen Z’s. They are afraid to speak out against the war. They see the military propaganda around them and fear being drafted to fight in Ukraine. Control Refresh features a variety of photographs, captions, and a timeline of events from Russia’s recent history to provide context for the youth’s well-being.

Design:

02/12/2024

NEW RELEASE
Isle of Seven Cities – Île des sept villes (Stéphanie Roland)

A phantom island is an island whose existence has been accepted for a certain period of time (sometimes centuries) and has been mentioned on maps, but which has subsequently been removed because it has been proven not to be real. There are many possible explanations for these geographical fictions: geopolitical and economic interests, cartographic copyrights, rumours, memes, hoaxes, legends, and more. These phantom islands have never physically existed, but they have had a real impact on the Western world, some even triggering conflicts or civil wars.

Six years ago, Stéphanie Roland (BE) began researching these islands during her travels and visits to geographical institutes. Over time, she has collected a great deal of material, and produced a series of experiments and works exploring this ghostly world, made up of images and videos that reflect the visual paradoxes of these entities.

Isle of Seven Cities contains the stories of Eon Island, Hy-Brasil Island, Aurora Island, Antilia, Isle of Demons, Island of California, and Podesta Island. The book is not a monograph, but rather an artist’s book – a hybrid edition that combines the visual and textual narratives of these seven ghost islands. Fictional and real archives meet in a non-linear, fragmented logic, as a meta-island emerges from the whole, questioning the complex perception of reality in a post-truth era.

Design:
Lithography: Sebastiaan Hanekroot (Colour&Books)
Production: Jos Morree (Fine Books)
Print and binding: Wilco Art Books (NL)

Regular and signed copies available 💙

01/12/2024

Last day at Tokyo Art Book Fair! is there to help you, please drop by and say hi to her! 😊📚🇯🇵

30/11/2024

FORTHCOMING
Jejudo (Hyung-Geun Park)

Jejudo, South Korea’s largest island, is marked by the tragic April 3 Incident (1948–1949), a period of extreme violence when the Korean government forces massacred innocent civilians in a brutal suppression of a local uprising. This dark chapter in Jeju’s history made a deep impression on Hyung-Geun Park (KR), who learned that many of today’s tourist sites were once scenes of mass killings. His fascination with the landscape takes us from rugged natural scenes to abandoned buildings that serve as reminders of the island’s often unacknowledged histories and its ongoing transformation. His photographs reveal spaces that were once populated, prompting the viewer to reflect on the countless people who vanished.

With essays by Elisa Medde and Nayun Jang. Jejudo is co-published with Vostok Press, and part of Layers of Memories.

Design: @carelfransen
Pre-order now available.

29/11/2024

NEW RELEASE
The Wizard of Awe (Kevin Cooley)

Ken Miller is often referred to on the internet as ‘the smoke guru’. His expertise in manufacturing smoke generators for air shows and other industries has made him a respected pyrotechnicst. However, his journey has been marked by both brilliance and misfortune. Guided by Ken’s knowledge, (US) extensively documented his visits to the rural farm, offering a surreal glimpse into Ken’s pyrotechnic world. The story was eventually published as a photo essay in Popular Science. But the publicity proved to be Ken’s undoing, as the article led to an investigation from federal authorities. In the end, Ken was arrested and sentenced to nearly two years in federal prison. The Wizard of Awe is an ode to Ken Miller – a powerful testament to his life’s work as a pyrotechnicst and his subsequent redemption.

Design:
Lithography: 
Print: 

Special edition available through our webshop 💥

29/11/2024

Books, books, books at the 📚
We brought our latest titles: The Wizard of Awe (), Creatures Found (), Monumental Moments (Erik Lieber), Niemandsland (), Control Refresh (), Micheldorf Micheldorf Micheldorf Micheldorf (.holzknecht ), Sense of Presence ( ), You Don't Need Soil to Grow (.ristori ), Isles of Seven Cities ( ), This Looks Better IRL ( )