I Saw It Artist's Book by Harriet Bart
This piece was featured in the February 2024 issue of The Fore Edge, a quarterly newsletter from MCBA that highlights new artist’s books and zines for collections, universities, and libraries. If you are interested in receiving this newsletter, there is a sign up available here. Past featured pieces can be viewed here.
“I Saw It presents the poem of that same title written by the famous Jewish-Russian poet Ilya Selvinsky (1899-1968), translated into English by the award-winning bilingual author, Boston College professor, Maxim D. Shrayer. Selvinsky was the first Jewish-Russian poet to depict the Holocaust (Shoah) in the occupied Soviet territories.
In January 1942, while serving as a
military journalist, Selvinsky witnessed the immediate aftermath of the massacre of thousands of Jews outside the Crimean city of Kerch, and thereafter composed and published this poem about it. Partnering with noted typographer and fine-press printer Philip Gallo, Bart designed the book, clamshell box, and created the artwork.
This project was of special interest to Bart, as her maternal grandmother was from Ukraine. In the book, she has written a remembrance of her grandmother. Artwork and Design by Harriet Bart. English Translation by Maxim D. Shrayer. Typography and Printing by Philip Gallo at The Hermetic Press. Printed on Rives BFK 180 gsm. Binding by Sherelyn Ogden.” - Harriet Bart
10” x 6.5” x 1”
*Consignment item. Not eligible for 10% membership discount. All consignment purchases are final and non-refundable once shipped.
Harriet Bart (she/her) creates evocative content through the narrative power of objects, the theater of installation, and the intimacy of artists books. She has a deep and abiding interest in the personal and cultural expression of memory; it is at the core of her work. Using bronze and stone, wood and paper, books and words, everyday and found objects, Bart’s work signifies a site, marks an event, and draws attention to imprints of the past as they live in the present.
