Sustainable Book / Art Fair Ffotogallery Cardiff 13.7.24

The book/art fair will be focused on similar themes to their current exhibition (Sustainable Vision: Arts and Culture Confronting Climate Change), They invited book makers, book publishers, writers, artists, photographers and crafters influenced by the climate emergency, environmental issues and sustainability.

I visited looking for:

• Further in-depth knowledge of a publishing and how the role fits into the broader economy and/or arts community.
• Self publishing V publishing.
• Inspiration/angles on an essay on publishing: are there any publishers working with students at an affordable level? Current developments in publishing?).
• Ideas on how to publish myself
• Ideas for photo books and zines

Exhibitors I spoke with:

• Offline Journal, #: https://www.offline.wales/
• 2TenBooks: https://www.2tenbooks.com/ books zines
• Michal Iwanowski: Go Home Polish project and book production.
• Yellow Back books: https://arcade-campfa.org/yellow-back-books  ArcadeCampfa, Braeval Street Studios, 11 – 13 Braeval Street, Cardiff, Wales CF24 4SJ  Digital residencies I’ve subscribed to the newsletter
• Shelf Life Books & Zines: https://www.shelflifebookshop.com/ A not-for-profit radical bookshop in Cardiff working with independent publishers and DIY zine-makers to make space for marginalised and under-represented voices.

I also networked with other photographers visiting and exhibiting at the fair:

• Had a long conversation with David Mayne a self publishing photographer and contributor/writer for offline journal  He said ask yourself why you’re publishing? Who’s it for? He suggested self-publishing gives you control.
• Walter Waygood: Art lecturer and self publishing photographer. We had a long and interesting discussion about publishing versus self- publishing, and how he funds his many projects/photo books. He works with various grant issuers and arts councils. Prefers to self-publish, not just from a cost perspective but also to retain control and enjoys having the creative design input, in fact the whole book making process. He said of publishers “you do all the work and they take all the profits”. Said I could email him. https://walterwaygood.com/
• Brian Carroll- Offline Journal a bi annual self published journal (1 issue contains an essay and one an exhibition booklet. Offline Journal documents the development of contemporary photography in, from and of Wales – a country rich in photographic history and talent. Established in 2018, Offline Journal exists in parallel but away from the distraction and noise of online platforms and, instead, is printed as limited edition issues published April & October each year. Offline Journal is edited and published in Wales by Brian Carroll. He likes the control of self-publishing.I asked him where he gets his inspiration for his journals, he replied mainly from exhibitions. He mentioned that funding for arts has been cut and this has driven more photgraphers into self publishing. He publishes only welsh based photographers. It made me think that I could focus my work on Welsh photographers trying to publish, and welsh independent publishers.Offline journal free newsletter is at: https://www.offline.wales/substack.com . I purchased some of his journals and published essays by photographers as a stimulus for my writing/publishing.
• Shaun Lowde a post graduate photographer now teaching at Carmarthen University, an old friend offered help with printing/publishing if I needed, and is starting up a photography magazine in the Autumn. I was heartend that my work had been accepted in some places that his work hadn’t been!

Photographer talk: Michal Iwanowski (https://www.michaliwanowski.com/) talked about his book ‘Go Home Polish’ with designer Olga Lacna. I was interested to hear about as a freelance photographer with no money, he brought his book to the published stage. Sadly, the sound quality was almost unintelligible and I was unable to glean much from it. He did say that the designer made him change his ideas and use more practically achievable formats. He talked about the anxiety it caused publishing essentially parts of himself.

I discovered an Open call to apply to: https://ffotogallery.org/channel/open-call-what-you-see-is-what-you-get https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeXEeJ5zAHJFamzjETJfDr-4MqHZHx4NX42SDCW9bo1NdA5ug/viewform 3 images 2mb by 30th July

It was a useful networking and fact-finding visit. It consolidated what I knew about how to self publish and clarified its benefits. It was a very useful professional network building afternoon.

For me to follow up:

• Use adobe Idesign or Affinity (USA software) also recommended by OCA student have used there is a free trial) as software.
• Publishers for self publishing, Mixam or Youloveprint.co.uk (they put how to do in a PDF). Exwhyzed have also been recommended.
• Issuu -Can make a book or  zine and if set to PDF can create a dummy
• I could print A2 posters and put on trees?
• iPigeon: IPigeon are a small independent publisher: http://www.i-pigeon.co.uk

For A3 I will may investigate Arts/photography funding issues in Wales and why self publishing artists choose this route.

• Books council of Wales – ask about publishers- how they fund projects- has funding changed?
• Arts council of Wales
• Princes trust? For young photographers