Book By Its Cover

4.24.08
The Night Life of Trees
Bhajju Shyam, Durga Bai, Ram Singh Urveti

I couldn’t wait to get this book up to share since I returned from Montreal but there was the guest blog from A.J.-thanks again!- and then my “short pause.” I am just in love with this book-it could possibly have made it to the top of my all time favorites. The whole book is crafted by hand, each page is silkscreened on handmade paper in India by a commune of printers from local villages. (The India publisher Tara Publishing will be getting many orders from me in the coming weeks.) The book features a tree on every page printed on black paper- the colors almost glow- they are so intense. The intricate pattern filled drawings are made by three artists of the Gond tribe of Central India- Bhajju Shyam, Durga Bai, and Ram Singh Urveti and each is accompanied by a short paragraph of folklore. This book is more beautiful than I can ever describe- so just get yourself one- it’s an edition of 1000. (I really want to try printing on black paper now!) I got mine from Drawn & Quarterly store in Montreal but you can also order it direct from Tara Publishing here. Despite all the handmade-ness this book retails at only forty bucks- amazing!

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8 Comments
04/24/08  10:15am
sarajo wrote

what a fantastic looking book! i followed your link about the artist bhajju shyam and found this quote from him: “I never set out to be an artist. My mother painted the walls of our home, as is our tradition, and she would ask me to help her paint the parts she couldn’t reach!”
many thanks for your always inspiring blog! also, was just catching up on previous posts, and am so sorry to hear of your loss. my thoughts go out to you and your fiancee.
04/24/08  10:35am
Valentina wrote

I’ve got the other one of this publisher, “Il leone golosone”, in Italia by Ippocampo edizioni. It’s really a good sensation touch the paper, and the colors and illustrations are really good.
Here the link: http://valesulfilo.wordpress.com/2007/12/24/il-leone-golosone-by-tarabooks-and-lippocampo/
04/24/08  4:07pm
claire wrote

how bizarre! I’ve had this on my amazon wishlist for a while now having found it on another bloggers site, and then today of all days at the london print fair one of the studios had copies for sale! it’s meant to be! (mine). the illustrations are fantastic and I love the stories too.
04/24/08  8:21pm
Janet wrote

Beautiful! This looks great.
04/25/08  2:56am
Esti wrote

Thanks for doing this blog. It’s an inspirational source everyday. The book seems worth buying!
04/26/08  12:47pm
sosser wrote

another awe-inspiring find julia! this one was love at first sight, combining two of my favorite things; trees + spookiness. love!
04/27/08  4:04pm
katy wrote

Thanks so much for this post! That book looks so amazing I ordered one for myself…also they don’t charge for shipping! Amazing.
04/29/08  6:40am
Marieke wrote

That looks great. Reminds me of a book I bought in Paris, don’t know if I ever gave you the tip:
http://www.amazon.fr/%C3%A9l%C3%A9phants-noublient-jamais-Christiane-Pieper/dp/2848013095
Also handmade in India

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