This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/28/2021
[DON WIDMER PAPER ARTS]. Darkness and Light: Words of Etty Hillesum. Chicago: printed at the Spudnik Press, 2020. Skinny 4to (311 x 171 mm). A sculptural flag book laser cut on French Speckletone paper with flags that criss–cross and overlap, creating an interplay of shadow and light. Publisher’s letterpress French Speckletone paper over archival board, accordion spine letterpress on Mohawk Super–fine paper; custom folding box covered and lined in Asahi book cloth . LIMITED EDITION, number 4 of 5 copies SIGNED by the artist, Don Widmer (friend of the Caxton Club). When opened, the image fragments combine into a panoramic spread including a collection of quotes by Hillesum who was a Dutch intellectual, mystic and writer, who documented her life during the German occupation of Amsterdam and her experiences at Westerbork concentration camp. She revealed the capacity of the human spirit to embrace life with compassion in the midst of dire circumstances. She died at Auschwitz. The imagery is inspired by the paintings of Julian Stanczak (1929–2017) with his precise measurements, geometric patterns and color manipulation that produced startling effects.