JACKSON, Tenn. — Aug. 13, 2020 — A fine art book of photography entitled 鈥淭he 13th Spring鈥� by Aaron Hardin, assistant professor of visual communication, is set to be published by Fall Line Press this winter. Though Hardin has previously self-published several books, this will be his first traditionally published book.
鈥淭he 13th Spring鈥� is about Hardin becoming a father, he said, although there are only a handful of images of his daughter in the piece.
鈥淲e found out that we were going to have our first child, that was very unexpected, and that had a big impact on the way that I was thinking about the world that we live in and the environment that we live in, in Jackson,鈥� Hardin said. 鈥淗er birth became a catalyst to reimagine the world that she was going to walk into.鈥�
Hardin said the 鈥淭he 13th Spring鈥� is an art book, meaning the actual published book is part of the art piece as an archival, high-quality book. The book鈥檚 format has very little writing, just a few poems that Hardin wrote. Hardin said the book is mostly image-based narrative and is an allegorical work more than anything else.
This body of work has been shown around the world and received numerous awards and recognitions, including winning the Magnum Photograph Fine Art Award in 2016, being featured in a writeup last year in the British Journal of Photography and making it into the New York Portfolio Review.
His work is supposed to be seen as a book, Hardin said. He made a small run of 50 handmade artist books of this body of work in 2017, but the goal was to publish it with a publisher. He is working with the Atlanta-based Fall Line Press, which does art book publishing 鈥� primarily photography by Southern photographers.
Hardin鈥檚 goal was to raise production funds through grants, but the COVID-19 pandemic affected their funding and original summer release date. Hardin considered delaying publication for another year, but in talking with his publisher they agreed that this work needed to come out in this season of heaviness.
鈥淎t this time in history and through the pandemic, there are so many people who are wrestling with fear and despair and the hope that鈥檚 intermingled in those things,鈥� Hardin said. 鈥淎 lot of my work is in-between, it鈥檚 both of those things coexisting of fear and hope and sadness and joy. 鈥� Because of who I am and the way that I photograph, there is this bigger narrative in all my work typically. There鈥檚 always an end fusion of biblical narratives in some way.鈥�
Hardin said it was encouraging to see that his secular publisher saw the value in releasing this book with a message of hope in these times, even though that means he will now raise funds through a Kickstarter campaign.
鈥淚鈥檓 just hoping that this is going to be the thing that people need to see,鈥� he said.
Once the fundraising goal is reached, Hardin hopes to tour the book and do installations and shows at different places and institutions. Making contemporary art accessible to people is important to Hardin 鈥� especially in the South, where there is not much access to it.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 grow up having access to the arts, I didn鈥檛 even know that I was interested in art until I was 30,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 like the idea of trying to pay that forward for some other person who is like me, or was like me.鈥�
beginning Aug. 13. Patrons can also pledge different amounts and receive different additional items from Hardin, such as photography prints and a special edition book set, to help cover production costs.