Let’s Make a Book! Part One: The Concept
In this three-part series, we’ll trace all the meandering steps we take towards completing our latest zine, Fireworks. Whether you’re an artist wondering where to begin with your own project, or a curious reader wondering how we approach our work, we hope there’ll be something in it for everyone. First, let’s talk about the spark of inspiration, and how collaboration at the earliest stages can produce unexpected outcomes.
Where do ideas come from?
There are countless resources that explore this question. Many have tried to demystify inspiration and establish a step-by-step process for generating ideas. Following such a process can be helpful, especially for someone who’s just starting to find their creative voice. But it’s also important to learn to rely on your instincts above all else, and to believe they will lead you into interesting territory.
For us, ideas often come from bringing our private preoccupations to the table and finding out if and how they might be in conversation with one another. This allows us to create something that neither of us could have accomplished alone. Our process is a little different each time, but our latest zine, Fireworks, is a prime example of how we like to find synergy between our two points of view.
When it was time to begin a new project, Kyle had been thinking about artists who focus on a single subject, partly because this is how he approached our previous zine, Tuesday in Mobile, in which the southern live oak tree functions not merely as an element of our story’s landscape, but as a main character in its own right. Drawing inspiration from Mark Steimenz’s Tuscan Trees and Ed Ruscha’s Twentysix Gasoline Stations and Some Los Angeles Apartments, Kyle had decided he wanted our next project to be a meditation on a specific element of our southern surroundings. He liked the way repetition alone could elevate a subject, even if (or perhaps especially if) it’s a subject that’s often overlooked and taken for granted. With this in mind, he realized he could focus on the fireworks stands that pop up along our highways with their signature flamboyance. He’d been photographing these stands for some time without knowing if or how the theme might lend itself to one of our projects.
When he approached me with the idea, I knew instantly how it would compliment one of my recent preoccupations: the meet-cutes of our family history. Initially, I envisioned telling several stories in the same zine, focusing on that one vignette in each couple’s history. In other words, just showing the sparks. But during our research, we listened to a tape recording of our grandfather telling the story of how he met our grandmother, and we knew our project had found its ultimate shape. After all, this particular meet-cute was the most cinematic and dramatic of them all. It was love at first sight. It was fireworks.
Our research also led to the realization that Cattywampus had published a book called Various Small Fireworks Stands, a survey of fireworks stands in Central Texas cleverly designed to look like a matchbook. While there’s plenty of room for books that explore similar themes, this discovery made us appreciate the nature of our collaboration. By combining our points of view, we were able to produce something that’s uniquely ours, something emblematic of what Memory Vistas is all about.
Coming up
In part two of this series, we’ll talk about our approach to book design. It’s always important to us that the concepts in our text are not only mirrored, but also further explored by our visual elements. We believe thoughtful layout and sequencing allows a project to be more deeply felt. In our final installment, we’ll discuss construction and that exciting moment when it all comes together into something we can share with you.
Fireworks is now available in limited quantities. Please visit our Memory Vistas bookstore to learn more.
I’m beyond excited to see how you both put it all together. You are both fireworks in your own rights and together, you are magnificent. It’s going to be great!