Audrey Niffenegger - Illustrator, Printmaker

[.francesca]

i just finished reading the novel "the time traveler's wife" and started doing some research on it, discovering that the author,
audrey niffenegger, is a very talented artist.

from www.printworkschicago.com

AUDREY NIFFENEGGER (b. South Haven, Michigan, 1963)
Received a B.F.A. from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1985 and an M.F.A. from
Northwestern University in 1991. Talented writer and printmaker, awards include an Artist Grant
from the Vogelstein Foundation, a Union League Art Scholarship from the Union League Civic Arts
Foundation and a George D. and Isabella A. Brown Travelling Fellowship from the School of the
Art Institute of Chicago. Exhibitions include group exhibitions at the Art Institute of Chicago,
Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago), Chicago Cultural Center and the Spertus Museum.

(all these images are from a series she did called "the three incestuous sisters")

"the three incestuous sisters" was also made into a book of the same name, here

 

[MulletProof]

love!. there's something very eerie but quite frenetic about them..
..in a more shallow aspect, they remind me a little of those dancing character illustrated on Hermès skirts from the FW06 collection.

thanks for bringing them in, f. !

 

[princess_wendy]

i've actually read that book, its absolutely GORGEOUS!!

i think its a form of lithography? something about drawing on copper plates and dipping it in chemicals..explained at the back of the book.

the story itself is basically a picture book, but telling a very dark fairytale

 

[Tinuviel]

I have this, it's beautifully & very lovingly made.

 

[eternitygoddess]

Her book was amazing. Loved it.

 

[.francesca]

yes - i looked at it at the book store many months ago (the 3 sisters) and didn't realise it was the same person until i finished the time traveler's wife. i loved it and couldn't afford it; i still can't but MUST own it!

the printworks gallery states that the images are handcoloured etchings with aquatint. i believe that they're just wetpoint etchings, not lithographs...if i remember the etching process correctly.

you're all welcome! if anyone finds any other examples of her work, please post them!

 

[Whitelinen]

These remind me of the style of children's books - very lovely

 

[ChrissyM]

thanks so much for the thread fran!

i knew the name sounded familiar.. it's nice to see this other side of her
i loved the time traveler's wife

 

[.francesca]

did you! i can't stop thinking about it, i might have to read it again right away!

here's some of her other stuff, also from printworksgallery.com

 

[ChrissyM]

^i was actually looking at the book a few hours ago because i was rearranging the bookshelves in my house... it's definitely a book i want to read again...

i think that seeing her illustrations might give the book a different sort of feel when i reread it.. maybe a bit more sinister than the first time

 

[Alejandro]

her last name is fukn funny

 

[Estella*]

.francesca! i'm really excited about her work and it does take a lot to get me excited these days

i love the sinister mood and the telling in her pictures...

thank you

 

[Estella*]

an interview with some more pictures

 

[.francesca]

her last name is fukn funny

i was wondering who would bring that up...i'm glad it was you



chrissy, are you talking about the time traveler's wife? i realised that we have 2 books in this discussion, and now i'm confused

and estella! thank you for the interview. read the time traveler's wife; i know you'd absolutely adore it.

 

[ChrissyM]

chrissy, are you talking about the time traveler's wife? i realised that we have 2 books in this discussion, and now i'm confused

yes i am
i might have to check out her other book now though

 

[marcy248]

I *love* that book. LOVE IT. Everyone should read Time Traveler's Wife.

 

[drifter-sister]

I remember listening to an appearance she did with Neil Gaiman on podcast and she talked about how initially this book only had ten copies and they were all hand printed which just blew me away. Obviously this book was a labour of love for her to expend so much energy and time and effort into distributing her story and her art to an admittedly tiny and insignificant audience. Thank God Time Traveller's Wife was such a success, otherwise the publishing houses might not have taken hold of this gorgeous book and printed for wide distribution.

 

[gius]

^was just reading it today... It does say this also at the back of the book. She was referring to something someone said also, about choosing between doing 1 work in 1 week or 6 works in 6 weeks, upon which the answer was 6 works in 6 weeks because then you'd have all this time to grow and change while working and she says this is how it was for her--that her work was changing through the long time she took to complete the book.

Anyway I love how she illustrates each page. The way the characters act, etc. It's more like theatre to me
Didn't anyone think in one of the pages, it seems as if it's the FISH that is the father of the son That's how I pictured it at first somehow...

 

[kmccormi]

I am one of those people who can't tell you what their favorite anything is. I don't have a single favorite movie, television show, color, et cetera. But I do have a favorite book. And that's The Time Traveler's Wife. by a longshot. A masterpiece. And Niffenegger's mind is just briliant, as both her fine art and writing prove.

 

[.francesca]

i'm so excited - i went to a bookstore here that used to have it, but doesn't anymore - and told me it would be about $50US to have it ordered. then i went to another shop that does have it, right now, but it was about $40CDN. so i checked ebay, and found a new copy for like 4 bucks - not including about 14 for shipping. i can't wait to get it!

i hope she does more illustrated novels - i can fast see myself becoming lost in her work.