True as Earth, Strong as Water.
Portland, OR: Relay Replay Press, 2011. Oblong 32mo. (16)pp., accordion-fold, with each recto panel expanding in a foldout. One of twenty-six copies, signed by the artist. Wang's book unfolds through layers of memory in a most literal way, containing within its small self a multitude of images and textures to mimic the scrapbook recollections of a human mind. This particular mind is that of Arnie Metz, one of five seniors suffering from memory loss with whom Wang worked after receiving a 2008 Regional Arts and Culture Council Grant. Wang's attention to detail in her artwork here highlights her clear attention to Arnie while she interacted with him. Throughout the pages are Arnie's handwritten notes, drawings, letters, and wedding vows, and photographs supplied by family and friends in the forms of silkscreen prints and Solarplate etchings. The etchings appear on custom papers made by Helen Heibert containing soil from Arnie's farms in South Dakota and on Sauvie Island and water from the Pacific Ocean (Arnie served in the Pacific Theater in World War II), the Columbia River, and the Willamette River. The design on the back of the accordion is based on the melody of "San Antonio Rose," which Arnie played on the harmonica. The result is a tender, noble tribute to humanity, and one human in particular, and the devastation of lost memories. Bound in two-tone blue paper over boards. Fine. Item #31071
Price: $1,000.00