Wendy Fernstrum's Book Art: Patholog of Promises Broken

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This book – a sequel to "Promises Kept" – further explores the question, What happens to a promise when it's broken? As you can see from images of the book, I'm still obsessed with circles. The circular theme in "Pathology of Promises Broken" explores the tension between our desire for integrity and our failure to uphold it.

Pathology of Promises Broken

Discs, sometimes with a single letter on it, appear among the pages in three ways. Strings of discs are letterpress printed in layers using photopolymer plates made from digitized photographs. Individual discs are also letterpress printed on top of and around text. In addition, I've sewn discs onto the page, leaving loose ends of string. One could interpret these strings literally, as being "at loose ends" as the result of a broken promise, or metaphorically. The sewn discs also hint at attempts to heal brokenness.

All 20 pages of the book were letterpress printed by Wendy Fernstrum on a Vandercook 219 at Minnesota Center for Book Arts. Monoprints were made using Regula Russelle's nomadic etching press (Thank you, Regula!!) The paper is Rives Johannot, bound using a drum leaf structure.

	Click on images to view larger
This book – a sequel to "Promises Kept" – further explores the question, What happens to a promise when it's broken? As you can see from images of the book, I'm still obsessed with circles. The circular theme in "Pathology of Promises Broken" explores the tension between our desire for integrity and our failure to uphold it.	Pathology of Promises Broken	Discs, sometimes with a single letter on it, appear among the pages in three ways. Strings of discs are letterpress printed in layers using photopolymer plates made from digitized photographs. Individual discs are also letterpress printed on top of and around text. In addition, I've sewn discs onto the page, leaving loose ends of string. One could interpret these strings literally, as being "at loose ends" as the result of a broken promise, or metaphorically. The sewn discs also hint at attempts to heal brokenness.
	6.33" x 8.25" x .5" (closed) 12.75" x 8.25" x .25" (open) Limited edition size: 25 $295
The book also incorporates monoprints of layered circles resembling cell structures and implying a microscopic view of a broken promise. With "Pathology of Promises Broken" I wanted to go deeper in my exploration of broken promises, and one way I achieve this is through a pseudoscientific perspective.	where to purchase Pathology of Promises Broken return to book art main page	All 20 pages of the book were letterpress printed by Wendy Fernstrum on a Vandercook 219 at Minnesota Center for Book Arts. Monoprints were made using Regula Russelle's nomadic etching press (Thank you, Regula!!) The paper is Rives Johannot, bound using a drum leaf structure.