Inaugural Athens Art Book Fair hopes to expand the Athens art book community

By: Francis Oliver

The inaugural Athens Art Book Fair (also Athens ABF) showcases a variety of works on paper produced by dozens of artists and presses from primarily Athens, Georgia and the Southeast. This event is free to the public and will take place on Saturday, June 24th at the Athenaeum in downtown Athens from 10 am to 6 pm.

This year, the Athens ABF boasts over 60 exhibitors, including Athens-based publisher The Bitter Southerner, Sweet Wreath — an artist-run experimental music collective from Birmingham, Alabama, Atlanta-based photo book publishers Fall Line Press, and Radius Books from New Mexico. In addition, the fair will host beloved local zinesters and the University of Georgia (UGA) Printmaking Students Association.

Join us to explore a wide variety of techniques and subject matter on display, connect with artists and publishers, and pull your own screenprint or create a zine via on-site workshops!

Please note that this event is affiliated with the annual arts and music festival AthFest, which will attract considerable traffic in the area. Plan your visit and parking accordingly.

WORKSHOPS

11 am – noon // Screenprinting

12:30 pm – 1:30 pm // Zine Making

2 pm – 3 pm // Screenprinting

3:30 pm – 4:30 pm // Zine Making

Athens ABF organizers Lindsey Reynolds, librarian of the UGA Art Library, and UGA Printmaking Professor Jon Swindler established the fair to spotlight the critical relationship between contemporary art and publishing with a regional focus on the Southeast.

“There’s so much interesting and innovative work being made in the space of book arts and printmaking in our area, we simply want to increase awareness. Art books and prints offer an affordable path to collecting (art). All of the work on display will be for sale with proceeds going directly to the individual artists. I always think back to the thrill of having a little money to spend at the book fair in elementary school — the Athens Art Book Fair will be like that except the work is all unique and predominantly handmade!”

-University of Georgia Printmaking Professor Jon Swindler

The Athens Art Book Fair is presented by the University of Georgia Art Library, the Lamar Dodd School of Art, and the UGA Printmaking Students Association.

Find us on Instagram @AthensABF and a full list of exhibitors here. See you this summer at the Athenaeum!