Hardcover issued without a DJ, with a folded poster.
ISBN:
9781943146086
A Dozen Failures operates as both a standalone body of work and a profound meta-commentary on John Gossage's own distinguished career as a bookmaker. The project explores the concept of the "failed" photograph, images that may be technically flawless yet fall short as representational documents. Rather than discarding these missteps, Gossage elevates them, investigating how these confounding, unresolved pictures often reveal deeper truths about the medium, the self, and the impossibility of perfect visual communication.
Rendered in exquisite tritone plates, Gossage's imagery embraces the muted, gray, peripheral romanticism that has long defined his practice. The compositions consistently focus on mundane, overlooked details or minor events, deliberately subverting the expectation of a decisive, heroic moment. By presenting these quiet, lingering scenes, Gossage creates a delicate interplay between the physical perfection of the print and the elusive, unfinished nature of the subject matter, encouraging the viewer to contemplate the margins of the everyday rather than its center.
For the Bushwick Sur Seine archive, it holds unique value by directly interrogating the mechanics and expectations of the photobook itself. It also proves that the physical sequencing, pacing, and printing of a bound edition can transform perceived aesthetic missteps into a cohesive, poetic masterpiece.
A Dozen Failures operates as both a standalone body of work and a profound meta-commentary on John Gossage's own distinguished career as a bookmaker. The project explores the concept of the "failed" photograph, images that may be technically flawless yet fall short as representational documents. Rather than discarding these missteps, Gossage elevates them, investigating how these confounding, unresolved pictures often reveal deeper truths about the medium, the self, and the impossibility of perfect visual communication.
Rendered in exquisite tritone plates, Gossage's imagery embraces the muted, gray, peripheral romanticism that has long defined his practice. The compositions consistently focus on mundane, overlooked details or minor events, deliberately subverting the expectation of a decisive, heroic moment. By presenting these quiet, lingering scenes, Gossage creates a delicate interplay between the physical perfection of the print and the elusive, unfinished nature of the subject matter, encouraging the viewer to contemplate the margins of the everyday rather than its center.
For the Bushwick Sur Seine archive, it holds unique value by directly interrogating the mechanics and expectations of the photobook itself. It also proves that the physical sequencing, pacing, and printing of a bound edition can transform perceived aesthetic missteps into a cohesive, poetic masterpiece.