"Words, Don't come easy"
That's the essence of F.R.David. In an exceedingly verbal world with very little discernible point to all the talk, the journal adds its own distinctive, (un)welcome? take on the written word as dual companion and servant to the visual. Composed primarily of found texts but original contextualization, it turns words on a flat plane into a kind of trompe l'oeil. Who is in service to whom? What is writing now in contemporary art practice? Its sense of humor and nose for the absurd disguises but very much enhances its ultimately critical analysis of a vital format.
Designed by Will Holder, published 2x per year by de Appel Arts Centre (NL). Edition of 1000. And it comes with a bookmark.
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Not yet pictured: Iditorial, Winter 2009. Eds. Will Holder, Ann Demeester, Dieter Roelstraete. The following is placeholder text direct from de Appel: “The bizarre order in which the seven days of the week appear in the current issue of F.R.DAVID is modelled after the sequence of KarlHeinz Stockhausen’s opera cycle 'Licht', starting with “Donnerstag am Licht” (work on which began in 1977) and ending with “Sonntag am Licht”, the part with which the composer finally concluded the series in 2003. In Stockhausen’s cycle, the subject matter of each opera mirrors (however opaquely at times) the traditional mythological attributes ascribed to the various days of the week—not a concern that exerted any influence on F.R.DAVID’s appropriation of this structure, which is no more than a homage in passing. Each editorial was conceived and written, however, within the space of a day, with various elements recurring, echo-like, throughout the week that was. So far, 'Licht' has never been staged in its entirety, and it is not known whether Stockhausen ever meant it to be.” 7.5" x 5", 238 pages. $17. Add to cart
Keep it to Yourself, Spring 2009. With Agency, Jesse Ash, Pierre Bal-Blanc, Pierre Bismuth & Claire Fontaine, Italo Calvino, Donald L. Cleland, Dexter Sinister, Kodwo Eshun, Jos de Gruyter & Harald Thys, Hadley & Maxwell, Christine Kenneally, Kaisa Lassinaro, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Stephen Miller, J.H. Prynne, Thomas Pynchon, Dieter Roelstraete, Monika Szewczyk, Mungo Thomson, Mark Twain, Matthew Welton. 7.5" x 5", 238 pages. $17.
