New River Breakdown

New River Breakdown Project: Five artists interpret the same collection of poems by author Terry Kennedy in book-cover form. Each cover design was produced as part of a set of hand-bound, limited edition books by Andrew Saulters of Unicorn Press.

Woodie Anderson designed and hand-printed the hardcover edition of the book using her unique layered printing and dyeing process on thirteen yards of fine linen to build up a patina of textured organic/natural imagery and hand-drawn lines. The colorful fabric was then cut into bookcover-sized pieces and overprinted a final image and title on each. Each finished cover is a truly original design reflecting the themes of memory and time passing in Terry’s writing and the ever-present, ever-changing Southern river that his book’s title honors.

Listen to a great interview NPR about the project: Bethany Chafin talks to poet Terry Kennedy, editor Andrew Saulters, and artists Tristin Miller and Woodie Anderson.

Purchase a book: New River Breakdown was released in September, 2013 by Unicorn Press, Greensboro, NC. After the initial release, Anderson also designed a second special-edition cover of the book which serves as the signed edition.

Read more about Anderson’s process on the blog: New River Breakdown project in progress part 1part 2part 3