TitleBe Polite
ArtistGordon Bennett
DesignerŽiga Testen
Colour gradingColour & Books
SeparationsColour & Books
Press checksColour & Books
ProductionŽiga Testen
PublisherInstitute of Modern Art, Brisbane
PrinterWilco Art Books
BinderWilco Art Books
PaperLessebo Design White Smooth
Bindinghard cover, sewn
ReproductionCMYK (conventional offset)
ISBN978-3-95679-214-4
Year2016

 

The Book

Gordon Bennett: Be Polite follows the exhibition of largely unseen works on paper by one of Australia’s most visionary and critical artists, Gordon Bennett (1955–2014). The exhibition and publication are the first to present the work of Bennett since his death. Though rarely seen in exhibition contexts, Bennett’s drawing and writing formed the foundation of his practice.
This publication brings together three newly commissioned essays by art historian Ian McLean and curators and arts writers Helen Hughes and Julie Nagam.

 

 

The Process

In this book, one sees images from the exhibition rooms with the works on the walls as well as reproductions of the individual works. Ideally the exhibition rooms should look neutrally toned (no colour casts or strong light flares) and the works seen hanging on the walls should resemble the individual reproductions. Plus, of course, the reproductions should resemble the original works. That was what I had to bring to this publication. And it was challenging enough. It all has to look like one cohesive, clean object in order to become a nice book. The images have to have the same sort of look to them and similar tones in colour. This process turned out to be a very rewarding process for me as I was satisfied with the end result. It all contributed so much to the wonderful experience holding this book and browsing through it.