BALLA DORA | BUDAPEST | CRETIO
-
PHOTOBOOK | ARTIST BOOK
Photographer / Graphic Designer: Balla Dora
-
Typeface: Pivot Deco
Paper: Favini Refit Black
Copies: 300
Printer: EPC Printing House
Cover: open spine, hot foil on canvas
Book: Silver offset
-
"The traces and marks of the eras following one after the other, the layers of Budapest can be observed in every corner of the city: both on its buildings and the tiny details of the cityscape. The same way as these layers keep piling on each other, the citizens’ relationship with their environment also keeps changing over time, creating a context not only for their daily routines but also shaping their identity. Dóra Balla’s Budapest is an artist book exceptional both in its content and form about catching time, about the city full of life even in its lifelessness and the personal memories of the author.
“Cretio, Creatio, Recreatio” (acceptance of an inheritance, creation, recreation) – these Latin words hallmark Dóra Balla’s creative attitude as well as her visual approach to the Hungarian capital, its identity-shaping power and her personal memories in the course of creating her book Budapest. Her latest artist book is not a “quarantine project”: she had already conceived the idea of the book a few years back, yet the majority of the work took place in 2020 and thus the radical change of the world also influenced the material. The quarantine ousted life from Budapest: not a single human figure appears on the pages of the book— instead, it shows how time leaves a mark on the city. Fragmented ornamentations, the buildings of the city in light reflections, worn-out signs and buildings covered in veils appear on the pages.
In the course of making her unique books, Dóra Balla has already experimented with creative materials and new printing methods, and the publication titled Budapest does not disappoint in terms of exciting visual and printing solutions either. The photos were silver-printed on the black paper of Italian brand Favini developed in 2020, which is not only special due to its strong tactile character, but also because of its manufacturing solution: the completely eco-friendly and recyclable material is made of industrial textile waste, wool and household waste. Thus the paper also accentuates the book’s content as a metaphor of change and transformation, in addition to providing an exciting and memorable experience with its “hairy” texture. The special pages are protected by a canvas board, on which the title written in the organic, cell-like font was hot foil stamped." hypeandhyper.com
