Kosmos

“I once ruled the worlds. Not just one, but many. I ruled them with mirrors and lenses. I ruled them with light and shadow and time. Sometimes I ruled with a trick of the eye. Through my camera, an entire kosmos took shape, and each world within it seemed to operate by a certain unfamiliar logic.” – Jan von Holleben Jan von Holleben has constructed a kosmos of six planets with little more than a box of props, a team of willing humans, some clippings from the garden, and his camera. Click, click, click and strange things happen, right before the camera, with no digital manipulation: Ghosts flash through the Berlin cityscape. Plants cast shadows on the sky. Many places gather in the same place at once. The monsters imitate the flowers (or is it the other way around?). Each planet is an optical riddle. The only clues are visual. No answers are provided. This is a book for intrepid discoverers. Artist book / an original work for print Six variably-sized softcover books housed in a printed and folded portfolio box Planeta Symmatrius: 15 x 21cm (6 x 8 in.) trimmed page; 30 x 21cm (12 x 8 in.) open 48 pages; 30 color images Planeta Visumbra: 27.5 x 18cm (10 x 7 in.) trimmed page; 55 x 18cm (20 x 7 in.) open 16 pages; 7 double-page color images Planeta Microidi: 27.5 x 36cm (10 x 14 in.) trimmed page; 55 x 36cm (20 x 14 in.) open 28 pages; 13 double-page color images Planeta Florala: 21 x 28cm (8 x 11 in.) trimmed page; 42 x 28cm (16 x 11 in.) open 24 pages; 11 double-page color images Planeta Phantafulgeo: 23.5 x 31cm (9 x 12 in.) trimmed page; 47 x 31cm (18 x 12 in.) open 16 pages; 7 double-page color images Planeta Isolametro: 27.5 x 18cm (10 x 7 in.) trimmed page; 55 x 18cm (20 x 7 in.) open 12 pages; 5 double-page color images First edition: 1,500 copies Materials: book paper is ProfiBulk 1,3 115 gsm, a wood-free, coated paper with pH >7 measured according to ISO 6588; cover paper is Gmund No Bleach 300gsm, a pH neutral paper; portfolio box is pH neutral KöhlerBox S Color (brown) with a linen band closure. Printing: books and covers are printed on Little Steidl’s Roland 200 offset-lithographic press using a four-color process for the books and a graphite grey ink for the book covers. Stitching: books are stitched by hand using a modified double-running stitch; stitch lengths are customized to the centerfold image and thread color varies by book. Concept and work: Jan von Holleben Project development: Nina Holland and Jerry Sohn/Little Steidl Book design: Nina Holland and Jan von Holleben Texts: Jan von Holleben and Nina Holland Scans, color correction, and separations: Nina Holland/Little Steidl, Göttingen Production, pre-press, printing, and binding: Nina Holland/Little Steidl, Göttingen