Title | Skid Row |
Artist | Désirée van Hoek |
Designer | Mevis & Van Deursen |
Colour Grading | Colour & Books |
Separations | Colour & Books |
Press Checks | Colour & Books |
Production | Mevis & Van Deursen |
Publisher | Désirée van Hoek |
Printer | UNICUM|Gianotten Printed Media |
Binder | Patist |
Pages | 108 + 8 single sheets |
Papertype | Fluweel & Profibulk |
Binding | PATA-bind, double cover |
Reproduction | cmyk |
ISBN | 978-90-824149-0-5 |
Year | 2015 |
The Book
Skid Row is a very poor neighbourhood in LA. She accidentally discovered it when she was on a holiday and someone took her there. Skid Row is a dangerous neighbourhood so to really go in there and take pictures was not the most obvious thing to do. However, since she quit fashion photography, human living conditions had peeked her main interest. With someone who knew the neighbourhood well she went in and gradually fell in love with the people and the neighbourhood. Over the course of six years she took photo's there. All the time she kept asking herself if it was morally correct to make a book or do an exhibition on this work. In the end after receiving much advise she ended up making this book.
The Book
The concept behind the book was to give it an air of something being put together by the people who live in Skid Row themselves. I was asked to create an atmosphere in postproduction of the images that would line up with that atmosphere. An exciting thing to be asked and so I went on a journey to find a fitting tone for the images. I did all of this of course in close collaboration with Désirée. We ended up with this beautiful hot pink book.
The book ended up being nominated for best Dutch book 2015