Pages Between Spaces: Houda Ben Azzouz on the HUP effect
As an information designer and curator, Houda Ben Azzouz has long been fascinated by artists’ books. She is interested in the diverse forms they can take and the way in which they give visibility to an artistic practice.
‘During the HUP workshops and meetings, I noticed that other participants shared my interest in artists’ books,’ says Houda. ‘Why are so many artists drawn to this format? How do they link it to their own practice? Are there connections to be made between the books we were working on? We explored these questions together throughout the project, and they will be beautifully explored further in the exhibition we will soon be presenting together.’
In ‘Pages Between Spaces’, which opens on 3 November at Kunstenbibliotheek Gent, you can discover the artist’s books by Tato Greve, Lucrecia Wang Jaramago, Miranda Pastor, Kaat Van Kerckhoven and Houda Ben Azzouz. Each artist demonstrates, in their own way, how an artist’s book relates to the creator’s practice. How can paper, design, materials and the sequence of pages contribute to the meaning of a work?
‘An artist’s book is about more than just words or images,’ explains Houda. ‘The design, the paper and the way you move through the pages also play an important role. There are many spatial and sensory aspects involved.’
For her, therefore, a book is much more than a sequence of pages. ‘The way a book is bound, the materials and the design all carry meaning,’ she says. ‘When you read an ordinary book, you are a reader. With an artist’s book, you move through the pages and enter a new space with every turn.’
In her own work, too, Houda seeks that connection between publication and visual art. Her artist’s book stems from her research into the pigment Ivory Black. The photographs she took of the pigment appear in the publication as white images on black paper. In this way, the book becomes a sort of negative of the work she presented during the HUP02 exhibition. The publication and the visual artwork engage in a dialogue with one another.
HUP: a space for your work
The exhibition is also a fine follow-up to HUP02. Not only does it showcase the work of five participants, but it also demonstrates what collaboration and guidance can mean for an artist.
For Houda, the significance lies not only in the end result, but above all in the exchange that the process facilitated. Previously, she saw herself primarily as a graphic designer and curator. Through the discussions and feedback during HUP02, she began to view her practice in a different light. The guidance provided by artist Barbara Mydlak played a key role in this. ‘I discovered that the beauty of an artistic practice is that it can take whatever form you give it,’ says Houda. ‘My exploratory way of working and my focus on space can also take their rightful place within my artistic practice.’
Barbara’s advice also helped her to think more consciously about the way she exhibits her work. ‘I always found it difficult to translate the relationship between space, paper, graphic design and photography into how I create and exhibit my work,’ says Houda. ‘What role do light and presentation play? How do you engage with the space in which you present your work? During HUP02, I was encouraged to think more consciously about these things.’
For Houda, it was important to actively make the most of the opportunities offered by the programme: by engaging in conversations, sharing ideas and taking the initiative herself. In this way, an interest in artists’ books grew into an exhibition that was continued even after the programme had ended.
Her experience shows that a development programme does not have to mean the same thing to everyone. ‘It can be an opportunity to create new work, to look at your practice in a different light, or to set something up together with other artists,’ concludes Houda. ‘What you get out of it also depends on what you put into it yourself.’
