The Athens Art Book Fair returns for a second time at AthFest | Athfest

Dozens of artfully decorated tables lined the interior of The Athenaeum. The air was buzzing with patrons and artists appreciating the art.

The second Athens Art Book Fair took place at The Athenaeum on June 22 from 11am to 4pm. The free event featured 72 exhibitors ranging from printers to cartoonists. The event is funded by the University of Georgia’s Lamar Dodd School of the Arts. and exhibitors pay a fee to have a table at the event. The event allows patrons to appreciate local artists and purchase their work.

Lindsey Reynolds, an art librarian at the Lamar Dodd School of Art and a co-organizer of the Athens Art Book Fair, said she wants exhibitors to make money at the event and gain entrepreneurial experience. She also hopes that people and artists get more than just art from the event.

“I hope people meet an artist whose work they really fall in love with and get to take it home and experience in their personal lives,” said Reynolds. “The relationships that artists can create with each other can lead to collaborations, future publications[and] studio activities.â€

Other co-hosts for the event include Jon Swindler, Christee Henry and Kathryn Manis.

This year, each exhibitor got half a table to allow for more exhibitors and a better flow. To be part of the event, exhibitors fill out a form that is then approved by the event staff.

An exhibitor, Dyanne Horgan is a part-time printer and full-time graphic designer. She graduated from UGA in 2019 with a degree in printmaking. Her table had graphic prints made using an offset printing process. In this method, the colors are all printed separately and layered. According to Horgan, she bought her own printing press in 2021 and taught herself.

“It was slow at first and then once I got it, it was really fast,” Horgan said. There is a lot of background information to learn, learning how to prepare your files for printing. It’s not just like putting colors together, it’s a little more precise than that.

Horgan said she is inspired by music and other arts, and is fascinated with New York City in the 70s.

Another exhibitor, Josh Nickerson, is a full-time graphic designer and part-time cartoonist. He was active last year and has lived in Athens for more than 20 years. He started making comics when he was in high school inspired by Peanuts.

“I hope they laugh [my comics]Nickerson said.

Nickerson does mini comics and has an ongoing comic series called “Melankoly,” which currently has three volumes and will have a fourth in the future. He posts videos of the process on his YouTube.

Exhibitor Amari Mitnaul, a full-time substitute teacher and freelance illustrator, graduated from UGA in 2022 with a degree in studio art. She makes original and digital art prints using watercolors and digital tools. Her artwork is themed around whimsical storybook illustrations of women as princesses. She is inspired by her family and her work in libraries surrounded by books. It is addressed to the artist Annette Marnat, a French illustrator.

Joseph Mazzola, a comparative literature major and senior at UGA, has friends in the art space, some of whom were at the table at the fair. They came to the event last year and appreciated it this year. Mazzola wants Athens to maintain its unique charm with the help of events like these along with artists and their artwork.

“I want to keep Athens weird,” Mazzola said.

The event also had a creative space for people to create their own artwork, which replaced the art workshops they had last year. The event will return next year for the third annual Athens Art Book Fair.