Theseus Chan: STEIDL-WERK No.31 - GHOSTS IN THE MACHINE

Using printed by-products as base materials questions what holds merit in art and design in bookmaking. This situationist process of accidents, working with a blind and bold spirit, results in incredible images not conceivable initially and a book that provides a sense of meaning while encouraging risk in creativity. - Theseus Chan

STEIDL-WERK No.31: GHOSTS IN THE MACHINE is Theseus Chan and Gerhard Steidl's latest adventure in redefining what constitutes a book. The normal starting-point for any book is blank sheets of paper, yet for STEIDL-WERK No.31 that is not the case. Instead, Chan and Steidl have taken already printed "makeready" sheets from a recent Steidl book-the sheets produced on press while the printing plates build up the right levels of ink to deliver optimal results. Each make-ready sheet shows a different collection of inks and they are normally discarded; here they are the very heart of the book. On top of these sheets (fed into the press in a random order) is printed a new series of Chan's ink drawings-shifting, bleeding, abstract forms or "ghosts," which interact with the underlying images and texts in unpredictable ways. The result is an experiment with technical and optical accidents; each book in the edition, like Chan's drawings, is unique. Presented in a cardboard box with ten posters, ten postcards and a zine, as well as a copy of Steidl Magazine No.7 edited by Chan, TEIDL-WERK No.31 is a treasure trove of offset innovation.