Artist book from Venice

I was lucky enough to study printmaking at Scuola Internazionale di Grafica in Venice this summer, and "Altarpiece" was the first print I produced there.



I began sketching this piece thinking about the relationship between nature and the city in Venice. Neighborhoods are organized in a literally organic manner, following the shape of the marsh they were built upon. Buildings were kept shorter and lighter to cope with the unsteady soil. Many of the campaniles in town prove that this was a good idea.

That being said, there's only so much space on an island and Venetians also often had to build on top of previous structures. Along the Grand Canal, floors of a palazzo can be dated by the style of windows on them.

Taken from a waterbus, which is another really interesting Venetian adaptation to the environment. This is turning into Venice 101. I'm sorry. I'm a little nerdy.


Is it apparent that I took these photos on my stove?

I decided to throw around the idea of habitats, combining human habitats, animal habitats, and habitats for animals created by humans. Birdhouses are shaped like miniature human houses, and Venetian neighborhoods shaped like marshes. I used an artist book to communicate this idea of construction and interaction, and I just really like artist books.