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A T E L I E R  B A B A N
 

2013 - 2017

Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here

2016

2014

2013

2014

A traveling exhibit curated by Beau Beausoleil, San Francisco, California, with co-curator

Sarah Bodman, University of the West of England, Bristol, United Kingdom.

On March 5, 2007, a car bomb exploded on Al-Mutanabbi Street in Baghdad destroying

the heart of the city’s centuries-old literary district. Dozens were killed and wounded in

the attack on the area famous for its booksellers, printers, and literary cafés. San Francisco

bookseller Beau Beausoleil read about the incident and sent out an international call to artists

and writers to respond solidarity. The project, called “Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here,”

began with a show of 133 letterpress-printed broadsides that continues to tour the world,

and has evolved over nine years to include 262 artists’ books, a literary anthology published

in August 2012, and a subsequent call to printmakers.

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Artist’s book: The Street of the Poet has been exhibited in Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts

Here shows at the following venues:

      •  George Mason University, School of Art & Fenwick Library, Washington, D.C.

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      •  The American University in Cairo, Rare Books & Special Collections Library, Cairo, Egypt

      •  The Hague Public Library, The Netherlands

      •  Herron School of Art and Design, The Herron Art Library of IUPUI-Indiana University-

         Purdue University, Indianapolis, Indiana

      •  The Cambridge Arts Council, Cambridge, Massachusetts

      •  The Center for Fine Print Research, University of Western England, Bristol,

         United Kingdom

      •  Columbia University, Butler Library, New York, New York

      •  The John Rylands Library, Manchester, United Kingdom

      •  San Francisco Center for the Book, San Francisco, California

      •  The Powell Library Rotunda, University of California, Los Angeles, California

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2013

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Sacred / Profane

Sandy Gallery, Portland, Oregon. Curated by Jim Carmin and Laura Russell.

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Beyond Borders Art Exhibition ••

House of Lebanon, Los Angeles, California. Curated and judged by Reem Hammad

and Carole Choucair Oueijan.

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Superstition 13

San Francisco Center for the Book, San Francisco, California. Curated by

Laura Russell. Jurors: Rich Spelker, Timothy Elly, and Gredl Löfkvist.

Beyond Borders Art Exhibition ••

House of Lebanon, Los Angeles, California. Curated and juried by Reem Hammad

and Carole Choucair Oueijan.

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Art of the Book 4

Artists’ Union Gallery, Ventura, California. Juror: Elena Mary Siff.

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Show and Bestow: The Ruth Hughes Collection of Artists’ Books at:

      •  The Free Library of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

      •  Oberlin College Library, Oberlin, Ohio

Book Arts Exhibit

Yavapai College Library, Prescott, Arizona

Sedona Art Show

Sedona Arts Center, Sedona, Arizona

Black/White [and Read]

Curated by Gloria Helfgott, Los Angeles, USA; co-curated by Sarah Bodman,

Bristol, United Kingdom and exhibited at the following venues:

      •  The New York Center For The Book, New York, New York

       •   The San Francisco Center for the Book, San Francisco, California

      •  The Cerritos Library, Cerritos, California

      •  University of Western England, Bristol, United Kingdom

      •  The Center for Book Arts, Minneapolis, Minnesota

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Cutting Edge Books

Pacific Center for the Book Arts, California State University East Bay Gallery,

Hayward, California. Jurors Michael Henninger, Tanya Wilkinson, and Priscilla Otani.

6th Biennial Artists’ Book Juried Exhibition

The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, La Jolla, California. Juror: Victoria Steele.