Tara O'Brien

a still dawn

To create a still dawn, artist Tara O’Brien photographed images with a Canon PowerShot G6 digital camera on Highway 395 and on a hike over Mammoth Crest. The images were hand-bound and hand-cut in this extended accordion fold structure, which resembles a mountain range. The images on the reverse side are from a map of the area.

Artist Tara O’Brien said: “This book was inspired by many summer vacations in Mammoth Lakes, California. Mammoth is located approximately six hours north of Los Angeles by car, and just directly south of Yosemite National Park. When I moved to Philadelphia I didn’t realize how homesick I was for California landscape until I went home for a visit and went to Mammoth. This book is my way of keeping me from missing it too much.”

Press: Ink Fish Press
Date: 2004
Number and Edition: 29 of 100
Size: 4.75” x 8.25”

Walls

In Walls, seven porcelain half-vases acting as pages contain one word each: “walls,” “fence,” “armor,” “shell,” “cloak,” “screen” and “skin.” The material and words combine to allude to both the durability and fragility of the human psyche. Porcelain, one of the most durable yet fragile substances on the planet, was used to visually comment on the deeper meanings of each word.

The project resembles the ancient jars found in the ruins of ancient Greek burial sites that contained oils and other precious objects. The book is housed in a clamshell box with fitted cushions to protect it from damage and the elements.

Press: Ink Fish Press
Date: 2005
Number and Edition: 2 of 5
Size: 13.75” x 7.5” x 5”