Desultory Imaginings (2005)
Altered book assemblage
by
Frank Turek
The inside book cover is covered with a fabric sample with three columns of floral patterns. In the center at the top is a card from a game which shows the word ‘hand’ twice, printed and in cursive, with a line drawing of a hand in the center. Below this card is an etching illustration of a Middle Eastern man on his knees holding his hands, palms out, up to the sides of his head. The frame of this altered book is covered with a fiction story page from a magazine. Inside the framed area the background is of a trilobite fossil. A cropped etching illustration of a 17th-century man’s portrait is in the center. Down below is an orange flower pod containing a faceted red plastic bead. Beside the pod is a card tile with a man, woman, and child standing looking into the sunset. Slightly above center is a double mirror shelf, upon which are the arms of a small starfish and a ceramic kitten. At the top are three orange silk flowers. The side panels show fields of yellow flowers and market baskets full of yellow flowers. The top panel features a photo of barren tree branches against a blue sky. The bottom panel is a color photo of an empty bowl. The signature and date are on the top outside left of the frame and the title is below.
Original book cover title: