To say that Nicholas Gottlund’s work is multifaceted is a bit of an understatement. From one angle we see a publisher of artist books and limited-edition multiples; from another we see a photographer of beautiful, quiet images of nature and still objects; and from yet another vantage point we see a talented printmaker and dextrous bookbinder. He writes too. His upcoming exhibitions include a group show in Amsterdam and a solo of his photography at the Baltimore Contemporary Museum. Many of his photographs capture images of nature, or of objects and moments that usually go by unnoticed. A close up of yellow flowers becomes almost abstract, and his nature images in particular possess a serene, meditative quality that is difficult to ignore. His black and white images also have a distinct aesthetic that draws our attention to the photograph itself; one of his first books, Wild Prayer, presents an investigation of the bleaching effects of light on photographs over time, and was printed on newsprint paper.
Located in rural Pennsylvania, Gottlund’s publishing house, Gottlund Verlag, was founded in 2007, and specializes in artbooks by contemporary artists who work in the medium of photography. Gottlund Verlag‘s publications rely on very traditional methods of by-hand bookbinding, which comes as little surprise given his family history in publishing (six generations – no big deal), but the content and collaborative nature of each book places it in the vanguard of progressive publishing. Indeed, Gottlund’s work – in all of its manifestations – reflects an innovative and contemporary dialogue that recognizes the plurality of art today. His is an art form that combines many mediums and artistic practices that are both traditional and progressive, one-of-a-kind and democratic – a Gottlund Verlag publication is both a collection of photographs as well as a work of art unto itself.
In the short documentary The Library, author Duncan Fallowell explains the importance of the physical book in an age dominated by digital texts: “…one does need grounding in the physical world … a book is a physical object too, and writing to me is a physical act. It’s a sculptural act as well as an intellectual act – the two come together.” The two come together in Gottlund’s publishing work as well. Here we find an artist whose craft combines the sculptural and the intellectual into something physical, and beautiful. — Text by Eugenie Dalland. Interview after the jump.
Instead of a straightforward biographical blurb, Los Angeles-based artist 
