Of kith and kin
By: Karen L. Chew
Contributors: Al-Mutanabbi Street Coalition; Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here Artists' Books Collection (Columbia University. Rare Book and Manuscript Library)
Publisher: [publisher not identified]
Published: 2013
Place of publication: Redwood City, California?]
Language: eng
Subjects: Violence; Pictorial works; Booksellers and bookselling; Bombings; Iraq War, 2003-2011; Protest movements; Books and reading in art; Intellectual life; Social conditions; Censorship; Terrorism in art; In art; War and civilization; Vehicle bombs; Visual literature; Specimens; Artists' books; Al-Mutanabbi Street Coalition
Description: This collection supports and promotes awareness to the important mission and framework of the Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here Coalition's focus on the lasting power of the written word and the arts in support of the free expression of ideas, the preservation of shared cultural spaces, and the importance of responding to attacks, both overt and subtle, on artists, writers, and academics working under oppressive regimes or in zones of conflict, despite the destruction of that literary/cultural content.

"Of kith and kin speaks to the musings of daily life, the innocent and random thoughts of those days and weeks that preceded 5 March 2007. Whether an accomplished writer contemplating her next poem, a mindful bookseller sharing the influence of words, or a young man with a secret, these seemingly unrelated thoughts and people were to connect through this life-changing event and tragedy. The flagbook presents a map of the Al-Mutanabbi area, whose pages flex and contract like the influx of sellers, booklovers, writers and students"--The Book Arts at the Centre for Fine Print Research, UK website.

Karen Chew is a San Francisco Bay Area building designer and artist. Her paintings, mixed media work, and book arts have been exhibited and sold through local and domestic galleries and private collections in California, Florida, and Italy. Karen also serves as an Arts Commissioner for San Mateo County, 4th District. You can see more of her work on her Facebook page, Karen Chew Designs and Studio.
Notes: Medium: Accordion and flag book structures, with "found poems" and mixed media work.

On March 5th, 2007, a car bomb exploded on al-Mutanabbi Street in Baghdad. Al-Mutanabbi Street is located in a mixed Shia-Sunni area. More than 30 people were killed and more than 100 wounded. Al-Mutanabbi Street, the historic center of Baghdad bookselling, holds bookstores and outdoor bookstalls, cafes, stationery shops, and even tea and tobacco shops. It has been the longstanding heart and soul of the Baghdad literary and intellectual community for centuries. In response to the attack, a San Francisco poet and bookseller, Beau Beausoleil, rallied a community of international artists and writers to produce a collection of letterpress-printed broadsides (poster-like works on paper), artists' books (unique works of art in book form), and an anthology of writing, all focused on expressing solidarity with Iraqi booksellers, writers and readers. The coalition of contributing artists calls itself Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here Coalition.

Gift; Beau Beausoleil; 2019-2020.