Octon, France: Editions Verdigris, 2017. Softcover. Number 21 of 30 copies signed by the renowned mezzotint artist, Judith Rothchild, and the typographer and printer Mark Lintott. From the press website describing this prolific and important press: "With their well equipped workshop in the south of France enabling them to be completely independent, Judith Rothchild and Mark Lintott imagine and produce artist’s books from start to finish. Concerned by the rhythm between text and image, the visual and literary relationship between the blocks of print, the mezzotints and the white page, the artist’s book becomes a spatial adventure. The book as art, a singular typographical, visual, boxed object. At the helm of this creative process, Mark Lintott, passionate about letterpress on antique presses, paper and serigraphy. Each project taken on by Verdigris is a new technical and visual challenge. The ideas often start with Judith’s mezzotints or with a text of a contemporary author they wish to work with : Marie Rouanet, Claude Ber, Ruth Fainlight, James Sacré, Frédéric Jacques Temple… or a classical author they feel a connection to: Charles Baudelaire, Pablo Neruda, Paul Valéry. The first surprise, the wide variety of formats (nothing is forbidden, everything is possible), the mezzotints by Judith, the centre of this sensual ritual and not simple illustration, the precision letterpress of Mark and finally the boxed object. The book is finely finished, reflecting the love of work perfectly done. The chosen texts are in French, English, bilingual, and recently in Portuguese, always printed with the desire to communicate and for the artists to reinvent themselves."
The book quotes poetry from Walt Whitman to address the state of democracy in the United States when the 45th president took office. The three poems are "To the States," "Long Too Long America" and "For You O Democracy." With two stunning mezzotint illustrations by Rothchild printed on Hahnemühle paper. The book is bound in dark blue paper as a leporello, with the title debossed on the cover.. The handset Vemdôme type used was letterpress printed on a Vandercook No. 4 by Lintott, who also made the slipcases covered with blue and gray patterned paper screened by the artist. In fine condition. Measures 7.5 x 10 inches. Unpaginated. PRI/030724. Fine. More