Friday, February 11, 2011

An "artobiography" for your consideration

As someone who knows a little something about what it takes to get a book to print, I can tell you it's not an easy process.  Recently I was asked to participate in a virtual book tour for Storm of the i: An Artobiography by Tina Collen.  Strictly from a design standpoint, this book blew me away.  Some pages unfold, others are cut out; there's much for the reader to do other than simply turn the page. The book itself is truly a work of art, and is something that certainly doesn't lend itself to the electronic reader frenzy; you'll never find this one on Kindle. 


As you might infer from the word "artobiography," the work is part art, part autobiography; part memoir, part coffee table book. Collen is an artist now living in Boulder and the artwork displayed in the book frames her life story, specifically, how her relationship with a toxic, and often horribly cruel, father impacted her throughout her life.  The level of detail she imparts is impressive, as if someone were recording her early memories as they happened.

If I have one problem with the book (you know me), I feel that her break-up with her husband deserved a little more explanation.  It seems at one moment she was thrilled to be with the love of her life, and the next she was leaving him because she felt suffocated.  Huh?  That's it?

If you'd like to see a bit more about how Artobiography came into existence click here, and if you'd like to purchase a personally autographed copy, you can go to http://www.tinacollen.com/.  In the comment box include how you'd like it signed. Books are also available at Barnes & Noble, Borders and Amazon.  As with most all books, if your favorite bookstore doesn't have it on the shelf they can order it for you.
This is Tina’s final stop of her blog tour.  She's giving an autographed book away in a contest, asking people to leave a comment answering this question:

Oftentimes the objects we hold onto contain cryptic clues that point towards something deeper about ourselves. Take a look around your house (or your room) at the things with which you have surrounded yourself. Is there anything you are still hanging onto that seems to contain a hidden message for you? What do you think it is?
Best of luck to you, Tina!  This is a beautiful piece of work--you should be proud!

1 comment:

Jim Ament said...

Re: the husband, I would love to read his version of the whole saga. He sounds like a pretty neat guy. However, my guess is that for Tina to explain it all about Barry would have been a distraction from the main theme. Nonetheless, a little more would have been a nice addition.