From Here to There: Alec Soth’s America

By Walker Art Center

The Idea

This catalogue accompanies the exhibition “Alec Soth: From Here to There,” the first career retrospective of photographer Alec Soth. Known for offbeat portraits of the American fringes, the artist asked for something different than the typical photobook or the typical contemporary art catalogue, specifically something friendly, honest, and accessible, emphasizing his humor and quirkiness.

During our typographic research we came across a DIY, simple-living magazine called “The Mother Earth News” which we referenced for the general layout of the cover. Filling in the magazine’s DIY how-to ads with Soth related content, we created a cover that also acts as a cryptic table of contents, introducing the reader to the variety of Soth’s subject matter, and giving an immediate impression of his perspective on America. In another attempt at making the book accessible, and a nod to the fact that Soth is both a fine artist and a freelance commercial photographer, we printed the artist’s studio address, email address, and phone number on the cover, for better or worse. The cover is cloth bound, featuring four colors of foil stamps. The interior of the book features excerpts from Soth’s popular blog, screen-printed on red paper, and an artist’s book embedded in the inside back cover.

Delivery of Work

In this particular case, the "masses" might represent a book buying audience. I think what we were most successful at was subverting the typical photography book cover, which for a photographer as influential as Soth, made a big deal. Our cover design hopefully jumps off the shelf, and serves as something of an index to the content in his photos. It has also received significant press in photography circles, with most of the commentary focusing on the aggressive design, and how it accurately reflects Soth's ever-changing relationship with the form of the book, while the content provides new insights into his early work and his process.

The Results

One reason we consider it successful at the Walker is because it strikes an interesting balance between humor and sincerity, which can be tricky when dealing with contemporary art.

Credits

Graphic Designers
- Emmet Byrne

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