Susan Angebranndt

Haiku

This hand-bound book of haiku has a surprise at the end; a shadowbox with contents that illustrate the final haiku. Original Japanese calligraphy by June Holland complements the poems. The poems and calligraphy are printed on handmade paper and enclosed in a portfolio covered in Japanese papers.

Artist Susan Angebranndt said: “Many of my books use poems as a starting point; they inspire me with their vivid writing, word play and provocative ideas. As an illustrator, letterpress printer and binder, I strive to evoke and honor the magic of the words through a combination of visual and structural elements – typography, page layout, original illustrations, binding structure and papers.”

Press: Green Chair Press
Date: 2003
Number and Edition: 60 of 200
Size: 5.5” x 7.5”

Monet Refuses the Operation

Pulitzer prize-winning poet Lisel Mueller wrote the poem featured in this work. The cataract condition Monet’s doctor interprets as an affliction presents an opportunity for the poet/artist to explore the way that people see rather than just the mechanics of the eye.

The book is a gate-fold structure, using two spines to create interplay between words and image. Text printed on thin Japanese paper obscures yet hints at the painting beneath. Turning each page to the left reveals color details of one of six Monet paintings, while turning the image to the right presents further poem text.

Press: Green Chair Press
Date: 2003
Number and Edition: 34 of 65
Size: 4” x 6.5”

“3” Poems

Three poems by Wislawa Szymborska are contained in separate book structures that are identical in size, but bound in different styles. All three books were printed letterpress on a hand-fed press using Somerset paper, while the dots in A Word on Statistics were printed using offset lithography. 

Artist Susan Angebranndt said: “The Nobel prize-winning poet Wislawa Szymborska often uses numeric or mathematical images in her work. Through these poems, she speaks to the vastness, the abstractness, the unknowns of the world, but with a wry, humorous touch. These volumes offer a visual interpretation of three mathematically inspired poems, seeking to enhance the poetic imagery with inventive typography and original illustrations.”

Press: Green Chair Press
Date: 2003
Number and Edition: 27 of 100
Size: 4” x 5”