American Readers at Home
NEW CUT
AUTHOR
“American Readers at Home—New Cut” is the new edition of “American Readers at Home.” The New Cut is not simply a new edition but rather an entirely new production of the content in the previous issue; a new focus on this memorable turn in American History and Democracy.—Read it! Our times are once again changing.
The “American Readers at Home—New Cut” version is released on the day of the presidential elections, November 3, 2020;
3 years after the first edition. 2020 is a very important number, a pivotal year. 2020 is marked by a new divide,
one that is not political but rather medical. This socio-medical divide affects all segments of the population in
a global way. We have inescapably switched to a digital world. In this forced isolation, what we read and watch through small shiny screens,
screens that operate as the inevitable extension of our social interactions, as the inevitable extension of our body, have and will
continue to have a major impact on our lives and the way we think about society. We are compelled to reexamine our private and intimate
relationships, reexamine our professional trades as well as our position towards politics and power. This process of reexamination
will not only allow us to bear witness to this new reality,
but hopefully allow us to play the role of an actor—one with an active voice.
The reason and the need to re-read the first edition of American Readers at Home is to give us the opportunity
to immerse and listen to the voice of a society in the midst of a political, socio-medical and economic divide.
Reading these voices, three years later, allows us to understand even more acutely to what extent the media isolates and
forgets its audience, to what extent the digital space will become a new space that we must all actively consider. It is vital to
focus on the reader and not just on the news. I hope that true stories will soon replace fake news.
Ludovic Balland is a bookmaker, photographer and author. He was born 1973 in Basel and graduated from the Basel School of Design. In 2006, he founded Ludovic Balland Typography Cabinet in Basel, an established design studio specialized in editorial projects. Since 2003 Ludovic has taught at several design schools in Switzerland, and has held both lectures and workshops in Europe and the USA. He designed and elaborated the Reader for the contemporary art exhibition documenta 14. He was awarded the Jan Tschichold Prize in 2016 for his outstanding achievements in book design. Since January 2018 he is the professor of typography and design editorial at HGB (Academy of Fine Arts) in Leipzig, Germany.
Ludovic Balland during his road trip across the United States, 2016
A special limited edition that includes a signed copy of American Readers at Home as well as a printout of one of the photographs he took during his road trip in 2016. This special edition will be available while stocks last. Blindtext. A special limited edition that includes a signed copy of American Readers at Home as well as a printout of one of the photographs he took during his road trip in 2016.
American Readers at Home—New Cut
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American Readers at Home—New Cut signed by Ludovic Balland
Fine Art Print of the photograph Reader on Rear Window, New Orleans, LA, December 2016
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