© Julia Borissova, artist book “Nautilus”

Work of Julia Borissova has been a source of inspiration and wonder since the inception of my personal journey into the world of handmade artist books. I remember Julia’s books were the first few opening door to the concept of “photobook as an object” for me. I was intrigued how the concept of memory or home, or historical events had been integrated in a whimsical way in her book art and how she continues expanding it by incorporating mixed media art. In her work I find the discreteness of material existence and the impermanency of life bridged into the vast presence of our consciousness. Our feelings and imagination are interweaved into the world around us, releasing them from their confinement, taking us through extraordinary journeys that transcends particularity of time and space. I have learnt immensely from Julia’s work and am very happy to present an interview with her.

Tell us about your growing up. What made you choose photography as a medium to express yourself and books as a form to represent it?

I was born in Estonia and spent a lot of my childhood and youth there with my grandmother. Then together with my parents I moved to St. Petersburg. I learned to read very early and spent a lot of time in the library. I got my very first impressions from books. Reading, I liked to dream and traveled to different places in my imagination. Photography has become for me a tool through which I materialize my thoughts, emotions, and abstract concepts such as memory, the experience of the present and passing time. I love that a photographic image can contain many layers and try to use this layering in my work. And the book is the medium that allows me to reveal my ideas most freely and clearly.

Initially photography played a major role in my books. My first book The Farther Shore was published in 2013 and consisted of a lot of photographs and a short accompanying text. But the further I went on, the more I began to use other technics such as collage, drawings, models, all of which were necessary to strengthen my statement.

What drew you to artist books? How important is it to make your books by hand as opposed to mass production?

I’m keen on the format of artist book because I can experiment with form, with materials, I hope that this medium has not yet been exhausted and that it is still possible to expand its borders.

Through the tactile interaction with a book, I create a relationship with the subject matter of my research, so handwork is important to me. With my own hands I can create a unique piece of work. All my recent books have been handmade, which means slow and painstaking work, so I can only do a small print run of 25-100 copies.

© Julia Borissova, artist book “Nautilus”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “Nautilus”

The ‘artist photo book’ is often called out as ‘book objects’ or sculptures. In your process, when does your work take a specific form? What informs your choices of design, form and layout for specific work.

My first photo books were designed in the usual way (The Farther Shore, Running to the Edge, Address), but from the very beginning I attached great importance to the choice of material, thinking about what kind of paper should be used, what the cover should be made of, what kind of binding would be suitable for this or that book. Then I started to experiment with the form, to look at the book as an exhibition object, or a sculpture.

My approach depends on the subject I’m working on and what I want to see as a result. When I have a project in mind, I try to imagine what the book could be. I think about how the form, the body of the book can strengthen my statement.

Related to the above question, how do you balance between the contents of the book and the form of the book? How does the alignment between the metaphorical and the physical form happen?

First, I ask myself the question, “What would I like to say?” and then I try to find an individual, original language for each work. I think of design not as decoration of a book, but as construction – a book is architecture, where all parts should be harmonious and interconnected. A book doesn’t always require a complex form, sometimes on the contrary, a very concise solution is needed to emphasize the strength of the visual material you are working with.

I am also interested in pushing the boundaries of understanding the medium of the photobook or artist’s book, I look for ways in which I can invite viewers to interact, sometimes even suggesting the creation of some new forms based on an existing book. What interests me most right now is finding contact with my audience through the photobook and the opportunity to create together.

© Julia Borissova, artist book “J. B. about men floating in the air”

You often reach out to historical characters, philosophically analyse the theme, and artistically create a parallel world in a book. I am talking about ‘J. B. about men floating in the air’, ‘Let me fall again’, ‘Nautilus’ or ‘Nomad’.  It would be interesting to know how you pick historical themes and conceptualize the same in your books?

In my artistic practice, I often turn to stories about people who, for one reason or another, have left their homes and have not been able to return. On some subconscious level, I am very concerned and interested in this subject.

As a starting point for J.B. about men floating in the air, I chose a few lines from Joseph Brodsky’s poem “Lithuanian Nocturne,” which mentions two pilots and their attempt to make an inter-Atlantic flight.

I created the book thinking that in dreams anyone can break the laws of earth gravity, get off the ground and fly anywhere, be free, not paying attention to any borders and obstacles.

The project is built on a series of mockumentary photographs, a few collages, and drawings necessary to widen the gap between the documentary and imaginary world. I immediately conceived the book in Leporello format, providing it with several flaps so that it could be installed as an imaginary airplane in the exhibition. It’s a small book, so it’s easy to take it with you and set up your own installation anywhere.

My book project, Nautilus, was born during my stay at the National Center for Contemporary Art in Kronshtadt, Russia, in September 2018.

Kronshtadt (translated from the German Krone for “crown” and Stadt for “city”) is located on an island. This city was founded as a military fortress and was closed to outsiders for a long time. It reminded me of a shell, which is both an instrument of calling and a labyrinth of hearing. That’s why the book has such a title – “Nautilus”. I wanted to hide and show at the same time, so I made round holes on the pages – they allow you to focus your eyes on certain details. The idea came from Captain Nemo’s Nautilus from Jules Verne’s book, which was a kind of museum and allowed you to admire the ruins of Atlantis through the portholes.

I made small collages directly on the walls of houses, turning the streets of Kronshtadt into an open-air museum. I then photographed these interventions into urban space to preserve them in the book.

My goal is to find a connection with the viewer through this artist’s book that encourages interaction, the book can be taken apart and using the pages to build an imaginary city that I envision as a museum open to all.

The Nomad project was born in the ISSP residence in Riga, which gave me the opportunity to work there for one month on the book. I was inspired by the idea of imagining myself as a nomad who has to live far away from home, so he creates an imaginary museum of those things and images that are especially dear to him. This imaginary museum became a book and I dedicated it to the famous contemporary artist Vija Celmins, who was born in Latvia but, due to circumstances beyond her control, left home, and to all other people who lead a nomadic life but keep their home in their hearts.

As for my book “Let Me Fall Again,” it has many layers, hidden texts, and origami inserts. This design refers to the shape of the parachute, as the book was conceived as a kind of reconstruction of the journey of the once famous but now forgotten airman Charles Leroux, who was one of the first to parachute from a balloon basket. My book became a “documentation” of his performances, but from an artistic point of view, I viewed his jumps as falls, comparing them with the works of artists such as Yves Klein, Bas Jan Ader, John Baldessari. I thought that a fall, a failure in everyday life, is not the same as a failure in artistic practice, I wanted to encode in my book a message to all artists – do not be afraid of falls, mistakes, because they can serve as an impetus to development and lead to success and unexpected victories.

What’s next for you?

I will continue to develop my work in the artist’s book space. I am currently finishing a series of books based on a found archive of photographic film shot by a teenager in the 1980s and this work is like an artifact of that time. The title is Photo Library n1.
I also have several other unfinished projects that intertwine past and present. I’m still thinking about how to develop them to push the boundaries of the book, because I think the standard exhibition formats for books are a bit outdated and I’d like to find new ways of presenting books.

© Julia Borissova, artist book “J. B. about men floating in the air”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “J. B. about men floating in the air”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “J. B. about men floating in the air”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “J. B. about men floating in the air”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “Nomad”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “Nomad”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “Nomad”

© Julia Borissova, artist book “Nomad”

Artist books by Julia Borissova (website for complete list)

J.B. about men floating in the air (2017)

“J.B. about men floating in the air” was inspired by the story of two Lithuanian-American pilots who tried to set a new world record by flying over the Atlantic into Eastern Europe in the early 1930s. I found a reference to the attempt in a Joseph Brodsky poem and decided to create my own ‘parallel world’ in black-and-white images. My story is about any person’s dream to break free of the vicious circle of all kinds of constraints and to fly away to a distant unknown in search of unlimited freedom, to find a true motherland and real home.

Let Me Fall Again (2018)

Let Me Fall Again is my reflection on the concept of falling through the story of one of the first balloonist Charles Leroux, who was born in America and died at the age 32 while performing a parachute jump in Tallinn.My intention was to create an imaginary journey in the footsteps of his performances. This book was born at the intersection of real story of this balloonist and my reflection about the concept of falling.

Nautilus (2018)

The Nautilus project was meant to be an imaginary museum, whose exhibits were dispersed in the urban area. Whereas the showcase of the museum protects an object and isolates it from the audience, I placed my pieces of work right in the streets of Kronshtadt. Being fully aware of the impermanence of the paper collages, I chose for them such walls that kept the traces of time. I was obsessed by a desire to feel them and to know the town by touch.

Nomad (2019)

I have a passion for museums. When I was invited for a month to work in the ISSP residence in Riga, I decided to explore the museums and create an artist book, inspired by Le Muse Imaginaire by Andre Malraux. According to the concept outlined by Malraux, the Imaginary Museum does not submit to space and time. It exists in consciousness and does not store the works themselves, but the memory of them — images processed and reinterpreted by imagination. Referring to the idea of a nomad and using photography as a visual research method, I consider image production as the engagement and embodiment of memory. I explore the nomadic thinking through a reflexive photographic process, which seems to me an echo of the surrounding space that creates a connection with it both distant and close.

Libretto (2020)

This book reflects my interest in the relationship between photography and theatre as a space for representation. Bringing together my own images and photos from an unknown archive I created LIBRETTO as a construct of several pieces of real and imaginary life, of someone through the imitation of the theatrical stage. The combination of different layouts in the book can be understood as various miseen- scenès where multiple reference points— the history of a country, private archive,

theatre and ballet — intersect. I offer everyone the opportunity to take on the role of spectator to establish an intimate link with the images and immerse themselves into their own experience.

Home is … (2020)

The theme of “home” is one of the first in my artistic practice. I have always been interested in the question of whether our attitude towards home changes over time and whether it depends on the place in which we live. 2020 was a very difficult year. We were all shackled by our fears and worries. But despite the isolation, the creative energy doesn’t stop! I’m very happy that this book gave me the opportunity to unite people from all over the world and feel that we are together, not alone.

AlchemistTarot (2021)

I started working on the AlchemistTarot project in March 2020 when the pandemic was announced. During isolation, for many days, I came up with collages, and then stitched them. And, at the same time, I thought that when you do something with your own hands, it gives a feeling of security, you feel more protected. And I wanted to put (sew) into my works this magical element of safeness, which can help get rid of uncertainty in the future.

Poste Restante (2024)

14 copies of the special edition contains hand embroidery and other three dimensional details that add tactility to the book. Each copy is unique. Several additional randomly selected vintage stamps are included. This work is an ongoing exploration of the concept of home and how this notion is changing today. Twenty artists participated in the project by creating their statements in the form of envelopes.

Julia Borissova is an Estonia-born, St Petersburg-based artist who melded photography with sewing, collage, installation and book making. The book is her natural medium to contemplate real stories and blend documentary elements with imaginary things. Her work has been frequently exhibited around the world in group and solo shows.

Follow Julia Borissova:

Website http://www.juliaborissova.art/ boosty.to/artistbook

Instagram: borissovajulia

How to purchase (if still available): 

Contact at giuliaborissova@gmail.com or info@juliaborissova.art