Tragic Book Project Description

Started in 1993 The Tragic Book series has grown in stature and complexity in the 12 years of it’s making. Over one hundred different artists and writers from Holland, Germany, Japan, Canada, Spain and the U.S. have contributed to TB in it’s nine incarnations. The stated subject matter has been since it’s inception "Things that are so tragic that they are funny or beautiful or poignant". Sort of a reformulation of the classic Mel Brooks line "Tragedy+Distance=Humor". First conceived as the opposite of a comic book, a compendium of tragedies large and small. Using the Trojan horse cloak of a comic book style magazine format to present the weird and disgusting, the hilarious and wince inducing all in one cheap to make magazine. These were the heady days of the D.I.Y. ‘Zine revolution in the U.S., so alternative media was a watch word of youth culture. People started their own record labels, publishing houses, and distribution services that were independent of the extant structures. So to put together a magazine and give it away or trade it with your pals was not all that strange an act for the time. As the issues progressed so too did the number of people who wanted to contribute. The fortuitous introduction to the world of Book Arts led to more complex productions and methods of reproduction. Machines were pushed past their tolerances, bindings from the 13th century were updated and utilized to construct heretical texts. In general, it was catch as catch can, with stolen copies and bumped books and counters, hasty and energetic rather than planned and focused, but appropriate for the people who were the recipients. In some cases the artists chose to edition their work for the Tragic Books; in other cases the design work and printing was done by conscripts and mercenaries. The series always was made for the artists and writers, as a nexus of communication. Many of the artists and writers published in the Tragic Book are internationally recognized in their respective fields. Pieces first published in the TB’s have found their way to larger audiences through the auspicious of N.P.R., McSweenys, World War Three, and many others.

Issue one- edition of 10 - cover by publisher

Issue two- edition of 15 - cover by J. Dostal

Issue three- edition of 20 - cover by K. Allerslev

Issue four- edition of 25 - cover by M.Wagner

Issue five- edition of 25 - cover by D.Lundahl, M. Weisbrod, M.Hayward

Issue six- edition of 30 - cover by S.Schooler

Issue seven- edition of 35 - cover by D.Graham

Issue eight- edition of 45 - cover by S.Teplin, R.A.Munn, S.Cook

Issue nine- edition of 55 - cover by M.Weber, K.Gritt, R.A.Munn, S.Cook

Issue ten- edition of 2500 - cover by publisher

Materials:

wood, copper, carbon, poly vinyl acetate, cotton, leather, canvas, plastic, latex, paper, tarlatan, cheese cloth, paint, ink, blood, sweat, tears, excrement, ejaculate, urine, roplex, bamboo, herbs, stickers, thread, string, compact disk, parking ticket, plastic magnifying glass, keys, wax, Mylar, shroud, fiber glass, figurines, matches, binders board, davey board, wheat, bhodi leaf, gold, silver, aluminum, steel.

Processes:

Rubber stamp, ink jet, black and white and four color electrostatic transfer, offset lithography, silkscreen, letterpress, stencil, frottage, aspiration, decollage, collage, sewing, lamination, gilding, dot matrix, cancellation, grometting, riveting, copper patina, etching, chine colle, photography, Photoshop, google, four track, mini disk, reason, protools, scanning, fiery, gocco, perforation, punched, folded, lenticular interlacing, painting, calligraphy, lettered, numbered, signed, singed, burned, drilled, bitten, walked on, dusted, boxed, wrapped, sealed, spray mounted, drawn, cut, threatening, cajoling, commanding, begging, weeping, gnashing of teeth, pacing, sequencing, telephoning, emailing, visiting, writing, researching, chasing down leads, tapping, smoking, stealing, subverting, comodifying, codifying, ordering, recontextualizing, designing, looking, seeing, feeling, breaking, healing, breaking rules, circuit bending, lateral thinking, kung fu, Jedi mind tricks, rocking out, measuring, judging, copying, inventing, inverting, distillation, theorizing, pontificating, ranting, railing, hollering, thanking, honoring.

Bindings:

Closed spine Coptic, saddle staple, bi-furcated pamphlet stitch, quarter bound with linen tapes, exposed French cord.

Contributing artists and issue number they contributed to:

1) Kurt Allerslev, 3-9

2) Gamini Aquinas,7

3) Carey Acenzo,9

4) Dan Barry, 6

5) Jon Barwise,3

6) Eric Bohrer,2

7) Kimberly Zawislak Borsa, 7

8) John Born, 5-6

9) Pumpkin Boy, 8-9

10) Alison Brashaw, 9

11) Joyce Burstein, 8

12) Anna Chiara, 6

13) Rob Roy Chalmers, 9

14) Sara Cook, 8-9

15) George Cramer, 5

16) Calvin Custen, 5

17) Haig Demarjan, 5

18) Jim Demotropolis, 4-5

19) Joeseph Dostal, 1-8

20) Henrik Drescher, 9

21) Micheal Duffy, 9

22) Chrysse Everheart, 9

23) Andy Ewin, 3

24) FLY, 8

25) Patrick Flynn, 7-9

26) Amber Gayle,8

27) Jake Goeller, 5-6

28) Dylan Graham, 5-9

29) Kathryn Gritt, 7-9

30) Jeff Guiland,1-3

31) Erica Harris, 7

32) Rob Harless, 2-3

33) Mark Hayward, 3-7

34) David Last Heagle,3-9

35) Caren Heft,8

36) Adrienne Herman,8

37) E.F. Higgins III, 7

38) Studebaker Livingstone Hoche,1-9

39) Samantha Hunt, 8-9

40) Jordan Isip, 9

41) Shelly Jackson, 9

42) Yanthe Jackson, 8-9

43) Adam Januz, 8-9

44) Eric Jensen, 3-8

45) M.T.Karthik, 9

46) Dave Kelly,2-3

47) Lewis Koch, 7-8

48) Blue Lamia, 9

49) Felice Tebbe Lau, 7

50) Jane LeCroy, 7

51) Dorian LeCroy, 7

52) Mara Lethem, 8

53) David Lundahl, 5-7

54) Rolf Lund, 6

55) April Manning, 2,5,9

56) David McClimans, 8-9

57) Alison McDaniel, 7

58) Amy Mees, 8-9

59) Jeff Meth, 2

60) Dutze Miller,8

61) Nick Miller, 5-8

62) Jeffry Morin, 8

63) R. Anthony Munn, 8-9

64) Arron Noble, 8

65) Phong Nyguen, 5-6

66) Reverend Bronwyn Pandemonium, 8-9

67) Sara Parkel, 7-9

68) Laure Parsons, 9

69) Nels Pederson, 4-5

70) Eliana Perez, 9

71) Alain Pilon,9

72) Joanna Poehlman, 7

73) Kevin Pyle, 8

74) Matthew Rentchler, 3

75) Lisa Beth Robinson, 6

76) Jan Rolletchek, 8-9

77) Jonathan Rosen, 8

78) Holton Rower, 7

79) Matt Rudy, 1-5

80) Shon S. Schooler,4-7

81) Keith Serchio, 9

82) Stan Shellabarger, 8

83) Fiona Smyth, 8

84) Peter Spagnuolo,7-9

85) Eric Spitz-Nagle, 2-4

86) Joe Stauber, 8

87) Katherine Streeter, 9

88) Karen Switzer, 8

89) Robert The, 9

90) Steve Timm, 6-9

91) Lenore Thomas, 7

92) Lt.Red Thomas, 9

93) Steve Wenger, 4

94) Amanda Park Taylor, 7,9

95) Scott Teplin, 7-9

96) Matt Tracy, 4

97) Mark Wagner, 3-9

98) Stacey Wakefield, 8

99) Kay Ward, 7

100) Uwe Warnke,9

101) Sean Star Wars,9

102) Marshall Weber, 5-9

103) Margaret Weisbrod, 3-5

104) Lawrie Wenner, 7-9

105) Christopher K. Wilde,1-9

106) Gavin Wilson, 6

107) Kento Winkler,3-9

108) Nugent J. Vitallo, 4-9

109) Elena Zabatalongo,9