Rough Cookie

Sometimes it is the little things that make all the difference... Screenprinting instead of offset printing. The fact that a book is clearly handmade by an artist and not an overseas factory. Small editions that are hand numbered. Getting a handwritten "thank you" or some free stickers in your order. These are some of the small things an artist with little money can offer that big-time publishers simply won't find cost effective. I have nothing but love for art books of all types (even the ones I hate), but there are certain books you treat with extra care. Some books provide information (or, with most art books, images) and some books take the extra step towards becoming -for lack of a better term- a collectible, or a trophy. Some books are reproductions of art work, and some are artwork. Mel Kadel's Rough Cookie is one of those latter books that you hold dear.

Rough Cookie is 40 pages of Mel Kadel's delicate artwork, all printed in full color. 5.5" x 8.5" in size, 3 color screenprinted cover on printmaking paper, hand numbered and signed by Mook herself, an edition of 100. Most of the artwork is presented as 2-page spreads. The really topper for this book is that not only are the original works of art made on coffee-stained paper, the entire book is printed on coffee-stained paper. This gives the artwork (and publication altogether) an earthy, worn-in feeling. It even smells a just a tiny bit like coffee, which is about as comforting an aroma as I can think of.

The artwork itself is fragile and bold, decorative and narrative, colorful without being bright and glaring. The coffee-soaked paper pages bring the negative space tones down a notch and gives the color of the artwork a subtle impact. The imagery is often of women struggling within a decorative, sometimes textile, environment. The figures portray a strength and defiance, never submitting to the will of their environments, never accepting the label of victim. What could easily be dismissed as pretty patterns and line work is made dynamic and powerful by the figures interaction.

Rough Cookie stands out from other work I've seen of Mel Kadel's (mostly in collaborative zines) as a genuine voice. With her drawing skills and choice of subjects it would be easy for her work to become sarcastic, humorous, or pure illustration. But The art is feminine and strong, and in an art community that is all but dominated by men, this is no small accomplishment.

So, here is the deal. I only have a few copies of Rough Cookie available. I suggest you waste not a moment. Like I said, each book is full color, printed on coffee-soaked paper, screenprinted covers, hand signed and numbered (2nd edition of 100) by the artist. They cost only $20 (plus shipping) so get it now or regret it for the rest of your days.

For those who tried to order in the recent past only to find us sold out: we got a limited number of copies back in stock. Act now!

Ulysses: Andrew Schoultz

Let's face it, there are a lot of Andrew Schoultz imitators out there these days. And while Andrew Schoultz may be the original Andrew Schoultz, his legacy is still damaged by the plethora of similar young visual artists, both legitimate and otherwise. The imagery he uses and, more importantly, his detailed line work style and mural techniques have almost become a common language nowadays. It takes a solid document like Ulysses: Departures, Journey, & Returns. The Artwork of Andrew Schoultz to clarify that we are, indeed, witnessing a master.

The book itself is impressive. It is 10.5 inches tall and 180 pages deep, full color, hard cover, and even has a double gatefold (where the pages are twice as large and can be unfolded. It has got everything you could want in an art book: large works, details, installations, murals, drawings, gallery exhibitions, collaborations, sketches, and photographs. It gets even better; there are no less than four essays about the work and the artists. All for only $30! I'd say my only complaints are that a few of the photos are slightly off-focus (one printed as a two-page spread), and the hardcover is white and can get grungy pretty quickly if you manhandle your books like I (and our customers) do.

Schoultz's work draws from a lexicon of images and icons that are used and reimagined in endless combinations. Pirate ships, tree stumps and branches, birdhouses, elephants, pyramids, eyeballs, Trojan horses, telephone poles, birds, bottles, and shacks are rendered in stylized textures of wood, brick, magma, ocean waves, clouds, and cyclones. The overall effect on some larger pieces can be visual overwhelming in its crowds of details, but the scope of the work is often breathtaking beyond the impressiveness of the massively repetitive detail renderings.

The book covers the past 10 years of Schoultz's artistic output, not including his graffiti persona, which he keeps completely separate from this work. While the large murals and seriously epic artworks are great, I find some of smaller, simpler works (that are often parts of larger installations) the most appealing and approachable. There is plenty of details to pour over, and many pages of black and white sketches which show even further exploration into the imagery. As cohesive as this large body of work is, the murals and the gallery installations and the works on paper and the sketches do stand apart from one another.

Alas, Schoultz's work does not often lend itself easily to 10x7" reproductions. I really don't think a better job could have been done trying to encapsulate works of this scale in a document like this, but the scope and size of some of the art simply does not come across as loud as it would in person. Still, without a book like this, how many of us would have seen his murals in Indonesia.

All in all, Ulysses is one fantastic art book. Andrew Schoultz's art is really fun to look at and the quality of the publication is just phenomenal. It was published in 2006 by Paper Museum Press in San Francisco. It is currently distributed by Ginko and Last Gasp, so it should be available at most quality artist's bookstores. Only 3000 copies of the 1st edition were printed so, for only $30, you would be a fool to not get yourself a copy.


Ulysses: Departures, Journeys, & Returns. The Artwork of Andrew Schoultz is available right now in the Rowan Morrison online fine art bookstore. Priority shipping with tracking is only $5.50 in the US.


Links:

Andrew Schoultz website - Andrew Schoultz interview

ANP Quarterly #8

A few months ago, a buddy of mine was complaining how he had just recently had to pay for a subscription to the quarterly art publication, ANP Quarterly, because, like most popular free magazines, it was nearly impossible to find. "Maybe you guys could carry it," he said. I did a little research and found that no spots in Oakland currently distributed the magazine so I shot them an email inquiring what I needed to do to get the hook-up. I got no immediate response so I went into "resend" mode and kept shooting the same email request a few more times. Then, one day, I got a simple reply: "I'll send you a box." it said.

For months I didn't get anything and I just figured I'd gotten the brush-off. This happens a lot, and since the publication cost me nothing I really felt I shouldn't complain. I had just about forgotten about the whole affair when Fed Ex showed-up and dropped a fat package of ANP on me. So, without further ado, I present to you ANP Quarterly issue #8, available while supplies last at Rowan Morrison, the only distributor of ANP Quarterly in Oakland (although I notice we aren't listed in the dealer directory). One per customer.

Unlike other free magazines like Vice or Frank 151, ANP is completely advertising free. In fact, I am totally puzzled as to how they can print and ship (via Fed Ex, no less) this full color, oversized magazine with no basis for direct income. The publishers, RVCA (a clothing company or something - you probably know a lot more about it than I do) must be doing pretty well to fund this. I hear they opened a store on Haight & Ashbury in SF with a mural by Twist McGee that got buffed and they petitioned the city to fund a repaint.

Anyways, I gotta admit I was immediately impressed by the quality of the production of the magazine as well as the depth of the interviews and subjects covered. Aaron Rose (who concieved on of my favorite all time art books, Dysfunctional), "He-Man" Ed Templeton, and Bredan Fowler do it right. It's got a huge interview with classic 1970s performance artist (and currently working in freaky-huge sculpture) Chris "Breathe Water" Burden. Tons of full-page artwork from Rita Akerman (not my cup of tea but not a bad article), profiles of Scoops Ice Cream in LA, Comptior De L'Image Bookstore in Paris, and Workshop Houston in Texas, and then another huge interview, this time from Ian Svenonius of Nation of Ulysses fame.

There's more... an interview with Photography publisher Sophie Morner (featuring lots of great photographs featured in her magazine, Capricious), and article about the 1980s punk magazine No Mag, plus a photo-montage from Josh "Amaze" Lazcano. And some other bits I don't remember right now.

All in all, I am blown away by the quality of this magazine. I really expected a lot less thought and certainly lower quality paper and printing and now I totally understand why it is so hard to find. Thanks to all the RVCA and ANP guys who have figured out how to make this thing work.

Here are some links:
Official ANP website - ANP blog - myspace page

Oh yeah, ANP stands for Artist Network Program. Get issue #8 right now at that amazing fine arts bookstore in the East Bay, Rowan Morrison.