Last pages delivered, final binding being done

Yes, what you see is the magazine in bits, waiting for the amended pages. The printer lost site of our deadlines and then did the reprints on the wrong stock. But all is now correct, and as of last Thursday (13th), we got the final pages and started binding.

My aim is to get the artists' copies out first, then the sold copies, then wider distribution. The response has been great. There are some interesting ideas floating around about how we can promote the publication and future projects.

Slowly...VOL2 Issue 1

Magazine is done, after a fashion. VOL (little) 2, Issue 1. The printer finally got the machine working and has slowly fed us with editions...we have to bind the magazine, so please be patient (we made a judgement error on the width of our spine). I am really happy, can't quite believe we have done it. I must take my hat off to Michael and Erwin. They carried on binding even when I was upstairs at the curators talk taking the credit. The magazine is getting a lot of oohs and aahs.

Next job is to finish the binding and get the publication out. I have already started thinking of the next project...the gallery show is over now so the binding will probably move to my studio.

A strange thing happened in the gallery yesterday at the evening event, we had the one copy of the finished magazine on display, a queue slowly formed to look at it, and before you knew it people wanted a copy each! So we created a mailing list...

Close...but alas, no cigar

The day started with a list of jobs that had to happen. We had a slot with the printers, they were expecting us at 3pm. The editorial was completed, proofing and the final adjustments to the pages where done. After 6 hours straight we got the files ready for the printer. Bizarrely it was also the day the visitors to the gallery all wanted to talk to us after 2 days of walking on by to the tango dancing upstairs.
We got to the printers, PDFs inhand, all was cool, we stood in front of the digital press and... it stopped working. Cursed or blessed I am not sure, but the printers, Rowe, were so on the ball they promised to get the job out for us, so tomorrow another go to print, and if their engineer can't get the printer to work (Xerox 6060), then we go litho.....

2nd Draft - Day 2 - We have a cover!

Today was full on with a feeling of pressure to get the editing process more robust and the work in the magazine talking to each other. We had until 2pm to get the shape right for the 'editorial' meeting, which was less challenging then I thought it would be. It was good for me to speak out about my rational and how I have gone about putting things next to each other. Michael, Erwin and Myself kept the pace up. As the deadline approaches, things are slightly easier to focus on, as there is no time to procrastinate. We got our cover and back page. Tomorrow its starts first thing with proofs from the printer, then a final dummy, then last edit, then to the printers. The day ends with news of the last few bits of work on their way.

1st Draft - Day one in the Gallery

Occurrences:
All the work we have is laid out on the walls to be seen together and nudged toward a dialogue with each other.
The audience where intrigued and ambivalent in equal measure at the show. Not a bad thing, as it meant we got some work done.
It was a case of slow, fast, slow, seeing the form of the magazine slowly take shape. The main issue is the layout, the relationship the work has with its neighbor and how the pages will be accessed. So the job shifts between curating and editing then back to curating, and then editing again. Slightly mind blowing. Also the approach has been to let the work slowly shift into place, rather than over engineering it at this stage.

One day to go

Everything is set up and running and we found the free coffee supply.
Tomorrow we start proper with the public wondering in, seeing what we are doing.

To bind or not to bind

Today Erwin, Michael and Steven had a drawn out debate about how the edition could be bound.

Every method was discussed at length, weighing up the pro and cons, but all awaits the arrival of the art from the participating artists before any final decision can be made.

We have come down on saddle stitched (stapled) but depending on cost and time, wire binding was discussed.

We also might have found a local printer who might be able to turn around the job within our time restraints.....