The Quickening: A memoir on matrescence
Book launch in Melbourne, Australia, on World Maternal Mental Health Day, May 5th, 2021.
8pm - 9pm at Le Space
1 Mater St
Collingwood 3066
Special Edition + “Veil” print
SOLD OUT
US$180 // *150 Euros // *AU$230 inc. postage
Signed and numbered book 1 - 15
8 x 10 inch signed and numbered Collector’s Print, titled “Veil”, in edition 1 - 15
Special Edition + “Cake” print
BUY NOW
US$180 // *150 Euros // *AU$230 inc. postage
Signed and numbered book 16 - 30
8 x 10 inch signed and numbered Collector’s Print, titled “Cake”, in edition 1 - 15
*indicative exchange rate
First Edition
BUY NOW
US$120 // *100 Euros // *AU$155 inc. postage
Signed and numbered book 31 - 280
*indicative exchange rate
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90 pages with 116 images
Various paper stock, french fold and section-sewn
Softcover with linen sleeve
8.6 x 11 inches
First Edition of 280 + 20 AP
Self Published
Shortlisted for the 2020 Lucie Foundation Prototype Book Prize, the Perimeter x PHOTO2021 International Book Prize and awarded with the silver award for the 2020 BIFA Documentary Photo Book Prize, an Honorable Mention for the Tokyo International Foto Awards, Official Selection for the London International Creative Competition 2020 and a winner of the Belfast Photo Festival 2021, The Quickening details the claustrophobia, myopia, paradoxical loneliness and luminance of new motherhood and the postpartum period.
Riso and offset printed, this uniquely crafted book was published in a limited first edition of 250 copies, redolent of the number of days of gestation before the premature birth of the author’s son. Additionally, 30 copies from a special edition each come with a choice of one of two prints. This number is indicative of the number of days left until the child’s due date. Created as an editioned art book, each copy is signed and numbered. A variety of papers were used to reflect a complexity of perception and a soft french fold feels full and fleshy in the hands. A chaotic and varying bind with red string is a nod to the stitches used during the emergency caesarean birth of the child and no book is precisely the same.
Prior to publishing, the project has won multiple recognitions, including Honorable Mention in the Julia Margaret Cameron Award, a finalist place in the Vevey Images Grand Prix, participation in the celebrated group show titled, “Birth,” at TJ Boulting Gallery in London and a solo show at Rencontres d’Arles in France in 2019.
SEE THE PROJECT
"Ang’s images are carefully composed and meticulously photographed, showing a mastery and deft use of photographic technique. She uses a wide range of tonality, lighting, contrast, and printing methods to produce different textures and moods, as well as many unexpected transitions from page to page. Many images burst at the seams with symbolism and layers of meaning, resulting in work that rewards repeat viewing and contemplation."
- Paper Journal
"The pictures in The Quickening are a gorgeous cacophony of tender and tension-filled scenes interwoven with moments of luminosity which show how easily the lightest moments of motherhood can slip into the difficult ones (and back again). There’s a softness to the pictures, too – a dreaminess that feels like the first moments of waking up, where everything is a little blurry and sleep images linger."
- Refinery29
"Ang’s depiction of matrescence is layered and complex. Her images blend the gentle and soft, with a strain and rawness that becomes all-consuming. Velvety skin is enveloped in warm, delicate light. But, motifs of that tenderness behind misted glass at once suggest fullness and a claustrophobic repetition. The narrative is textured and sensual; it mirrors the intensity of Ang’s lived experience."
- British Journal of Photography
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Photos & text
© 2021 Ying Ang
Design
Heijdens Karwei, Amsterdam
ISBN: 978-0-646-83323-1
Printed in the Netherlands