Into Your Solar Plexus
A catalogue from the Kunsthalle Bern compellingly transposes a group exhibition conceived as a work in progress into the medium of the book. Bracketing the volume thematically at its beginning and end is an image section comprising a photographer's travel slides from the 1970s, in various formats and set within a strict pattern but with each composition of images filling an entire page. The middle section, printed on light-grey paper, contains a highly condensed presentation of the exhibition activities in chronological order: murals, performances, lectures, workshops, guided tours and so on. A timescale running across the top of the page divides each double page into six days or columns, and the images and texts are fitted into this frame as full-page spreads. Long entries extending over a number of columns combine with variable image and font sizes to create a diverse array of layouts. Arrangements comprising different types of images relating to an event often enable individual readings independent of the text. The design both unites the heterogeneous material and explores new connections and contexts.
