'Art Models' Encounters Religious and Political Resistance
When Live Model Books, a micro-publisher in rural Southern New Hampshire, embarked upon their photographic project “Art Models Life Nudes” they had no idea it would soon bring them into conflict with conservative religion and the cultural policies of the Chinese Government.
(PRWEB) May 5, 2006 -- “Art Models” is a full color book with photographs that illustrate 100 mostly nude artistic poses. The book recently won a nationwide distribution deal with Independent Publishers Group but during the summer of 2005, when the book was being prepared for printing, this outcome seemed anything but likely.
Publishers often choose overseas facilities for printing full color books, with China being a common location. So, when Live Model Books decided to seek a non-U.S. printer, they looked first to China for a solution. After several months of discussions with brokers, they settled on a company and began the process of preparing digital files. All seemed well until the summer of 2005 when, as press time drew near, the broker informed them that the Chinese government would no longer allow printing of anything containing nudes. The entire country of China suddenly became off limits. Left without a way to print books, the fate of the Art Models project looked grim.
Live Model Books began another lengthy printer search. Again, they met resistance. A printer in Tennessee told them, “We do not feel comfortable printing due to being a high volume plant in printing bibles.” A printer in Canada rejected the book with the explanation “We are Mennonites.”
This all came as a surprise to the photographer for Live Model Books, Douglas Johnson, who describes himself as “a little bit shy around the subject of nudes.” Mr. Johnson said, “There is full nudity in the book—just as you would expect to see in any anatomy book. You wouldn’t train doctors with censored photos and we don’t think it would be appropriate for artists either.”
Several months late, Live Model Books finally located a printer, surprisingly, back in China. This time, however, the printing would be done off the mainland in Hong Kong. A few frantic weeks later with assurances that books would be allowed out of the country, the project went ahead. Pallets of hardcover and soft cover “Art Models” books finally arrived at their Salem, NH office in late December. A distribution offer soon followed.
“After all the difficulty we had in printing the books, the acceptance by such a well regarded company as IPG was particularly satisfying. We felt that the Art Models project had been vindicated” Mr. Johnson said. “Art Models Life Nudes” is currently available online and will be available to bookstores nationwide in September of 2006.
About Independent Publishers Group
IPG was founded in 1971 and is located in Chicago. It represents a variety small and medium size publishers to the book trade. http://www.ipgbook.com
About Live Model Books
Live Model Books was founded in 2005 to publish Photographic Art books. http://www.livemodelbooks.com
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