“A beautiful, melancholy compilation of drawings...printed (disguised, really) as a Bristol sketchbook.”—Andrew Russeth, ARTNews

Esopus Drawings reproduces 25 graphite-on-paper works I completed over the spring and summer of 2018. The book, a facsimile of the sketchbook I used, appeared on the 15th anniversary of the Esopus Foundation Ltd. and commemorates this milestone by revisiting various aspects of the 25-issue run of the publication.

Because I was essentially the only person working on each issue, the production of Esopus was an intensely personal exercise. For these drawings, I ended up working mostly from photographs depicting Esopus events, artists’ projects from particular issues, behind-the-scenes glimpses of the printing and editorial process, and other experiences related to the production of the publication. Each drawing took between two and five days to complete. Over the course of that time, I found myself becoming immersed in—and reliving on some level—a series of very specific moments in the history of Esopus. It was a profound and moving experience for me, and I am grateful especially to the MacDowell Colony, where I completed most of these during a residency in August 2018.

This edition was sent to all Esopus Premium subscribers, who were invited to complete their own drawings related to Esopus on the perforated blank sheet of drawing paper at the end of the book. These submitted artworks are now part of the Esopus archive, acquired by Colby College Libraries Special Collections in 2019.