Artist in Residence Program
Each year the artist in residence program at the San Francisco Center for the Book offers an established Bay Area artist technical and studio support to create an editioned artist's book. The residency begins in January and ends in the fall with publication of the book through the Imprint of the SFCB, a publishing arm of the Center. The program is made possible through sale of the books and the support of individual sponsors and volunteers in the SFCB community.

The mission of the artist in residence program is to raise the profile of the artist's book as a genre in contemporary art by offering an established artist the opportunity to produce an edition of books. By encouraging talented artists new to this medium, the program hopes to bring fresh perspectives to the field and at the same time to raise awareness of the genre in the wider art community.

Program Committee
Mary Austin
Michael Bartalos
Katherine Case
Michael Carabetta
Marie Dern
Richard Lang
Penny Nii
Anne Smith
Colleen Stockmann
Steve Woodall

Meet Ala Ebtekar, our 2008 artist-in-residence. Born in the United States to Iranian parents, Ebtekar was raised in both Iran and the U.S. As a young teenager, he joined the K.O.S. (Kids of Survival), working with artist Tim Rollins in collaborative artworks involving groups of urban youth. In the late 1990's, he traveled to Iran and lived there for many months while studying the rich traditions of Persian miniatures and Iranian coffee house paintings. Iranian coffeehouse and hip-hop sets are not so incongruous. The coffeehouse congregate was a working class that valued the practices of painting, oration, and honing the body through physical activity. Analogous is hip-hop's commitment to graffiti, DJ, rap, and breakdance. The function of the traditional Iranian coffee-house was not so much to serve coffee, but rather to champion the creative expression of their patrons. His experiences have allowed him to reach across decades and continents and continues to strike a parallel chord which is evident in much of his work over the past five years. You can see more of Ebtekar's work on his website. Imprint Publications These publications of the Imprint of the San Francisco Center for the Book are available for purchase. Shipping for each book is $7.50, and California residents add 8.5% tax. Inquiries: (415) 565-0545 / imprint@sfcb.org The Relative Value of Things (2007) Nigel Poor Edition of 120 $350 The Relative Value of Things consists of three projects that investigate the joys, follies and contradictions of collecting, desire and valorization. The first project is the books' front covers, each uniquely embellished with encapsulated hair or lint donated by a multitude of individuals. The second is the books' contents, comprised of color images and letterpress-printed lists documenting personal possessions discarded by the artist over time. The third project comprises the back covers, featuring meticulously drawn text that addresses the struggle to find reassurance and meaning amidst life's mysteries and uncertainties. The Artist Nigel Poor's work has been shown in various national venues and can be found in the collections of the SFMOMA, the M. H. de Young Museum, The San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art and the Corcoran Gallery of Art. She has received several nationally recognized awards, including a SF Arts Council Grant and a Polaroid Artist Support Grant. She received her BA from Bennington College in Vermont and her MFA from Massachusetts College of Art in Boston. Nigel Poor is represented by Haines Gallery in San Francisco and is an Assistant Professor of Photography at California State University, Sacramento. De Rekening (2006) Nora Pauwels and John DeMerritt Edition of 50 $350 De Rekening is a work built upon an artist-created system of "fake writing" used to mark the passing of time. Inspired by the anonymous entries in 19th Century ledgers and account books, De Rekening borrows its form and repetitive structure from those utilitarian yet evocative receptacles of time. The ruled lines in the book were mechanically drawn using a pen ruling machine at Golden Business Forms in West Burlington, Iowa, especially for this edition. Pen ruling was widely used in the 19th and early 20th Century in the ledger and account book trade; Golden Business Forms is one of the last purveyors of this technology. Bound in Japanese buckram with stamped title, the book was letterpress printed by the artists at the Center for the Book. The Artists John DeMerritt operates a bindery in Emeryville specializing in small editions and boxmaking. His client list includes many well-known artists, photographers and galleries. He has taught at the San Francisco Center for the Book, the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley and currently teaches bookmaking at the San Francisco Art Institute. He is married to printmaker Nora Pauwels, with whom he collaborated on De Rekening. Nora Pauwels is an internationally recognized printmaker. Originally from Belgium, where she was educated in fine arts and fine art restoration, Pauwels is notable for her exploration of unusual means of creating intaglio prints, such as using the Dremel tool with various plexigravure processes. Pauwels has been actively involved with the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, where she has created several portfolios of prints that have been collected both nationally and internationally. 29 Degrees North (2005) Michael Bartalos Edition of 29 $450 (sold out) Letterpress trade edition, unboxed, 3" x 4": $25 The title of our first publication refers to a degree of latitude shared by six destinations depicted in this artist's travelogue. From west to east, the poem and images progress from Mexico to Morocco, through India on to China, and over to Japan before terminating in Hawaii. Two-color iconic images, printed by Nat Swope at Bloom Screen Printing, Oakland, CA, extend over an accordion-fold structure which can be unfolded in an attractive display. The binding was designed by John DeMerritt in collaboration with the artist and features a deluxe clamshell box covered in Japanese silk with foil-stamped title and illustration. The Artist Michael Bartalos attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and Pratt Institute. Best known as an illustrator, Bartalos works extensively in the graphic arts in the U.S., Europe and Japan. His fine art work includes limited print editions, artist's books and sculptural assemblages. Bartalos has created limited book editions with New York's Purgatory Pie Press, the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, where he served as an artist in residence, and the Maryland Institute College of Art. He lives and works in San Francisco.

Small Plates We've invited selected artists and writers to create books of a specific size and cohesive theme. For 2008, the books are four inches square and devoted to the theme "How-To." The artists are John Hersey, Kay Ryan with Tucker Nichols, William Wiley with Michael Hannon, and Nanette Wylde. The books are available for purchase individually or as a subscription to the series. Subscription for the series: $170 (plus shipping, California residents add sales tax of 8.5%). For sales contact us by email or call (415)565-0545 To view the books, visit the Center during business hours. Thumb War by John Hersey ($40) Gray Matter Gardening by Nanette Wylde ($40) How Birds Sing by Kay Ryan & Tucker Nichols ($40) [June 30 release] Lyrica by Michael Hannon & William T. Wiley ($70) [September 26 release]