Bound by name but boundless in creativity, the annual Bound Art Book Fair returns to Manchester’s Whitworth Art Gallery today (November 28). This year’s edition focuses on the culture and politics of food and dining in its series of talks, panels and workshops, exploring the intersection of digital and print media in contemporary discourses around cooking, eating, appetite and hunger.

As ever, at its heart (or, should we say, its stomach) are the dozens of local and international artist presses, publishers and collectives pushing the art book world forward. Below, we highlight six of our favourites from this year’s proceedings. 

CRAIC MAGAZINE

Now in its third edition, James Robinson’s Craic Magazine centres on culture, identity and heritage in Northern Ireland. This latest issue, titled Coming & Going, explores a particularly personal puzzle for founder Robinson, following his own coming-of-age story as he relocates to London to distance himself from his past. Incorporating archive family images from an expired roll of film found in the garage of his family home in Ballymoney, the zine’s third instalment takes place in the fleeting moments before catching flights and the irreversible feelings of love and loss that come with them. 

SKY DAIR

Launching Dream Baby pt. 2 at her Bound table this year, the book is a highly personal endeavour for multidisciplinary artist and writer Sky Dair, compiling 200 images of her work from 2012 to the present. In contrast between archival collages and original photography, and bubblegum colours against bleak backgrounds, the new edition explores collective joy, art therapy, serendipity and much more. “Putting together the book was an act of reclaiming my own practice,” says Dair. “The publishing and sharing of it is a celebration of what has come of all of these moments and images, a record of my life so far!

CALLUM LEO HUGHES

UK-born, Berlin-based visual artist Callum Leo Hughes combines his own photography and text with found material to push the boundaries of the visual medium. Self-published and unorthodox in his approach to printing, Hughes’ work draws on both on and offline subcultures, image archives and queer voices. 

BOOT MAG

A photography, art and culture magazine founded by Sam Hutchinson, BOOT Mag takes a starkly anachronistic approach to contemporary topics, with its globetrotting collection of contributors exploring everything from sexual politics to reckless youth. This year’s Bound table coincides with the release of its second issue, titled “Reality Paradox”, followed by an afterparty at Manchester’s Village Books. 

MADLY AWAKE

madly awake is an imprint by artist and writer Molly Maltman, comprising poetry, photography, curation, writing and archival research to explore artistic practice as a form of memory holding. On display this year is madly awake’s inaugural publication, Collecting Memory. Initially starting out with a focus on the relationship between object and memory through the personal archives of six artists, the project gave rise to poetry zine offshoot tender stains – the latest of which takes the form of delicately crafted postcards. 

Also showcased this year is a preview of madly awake’s second publication, Shapeshifting, which, in partnership with photographer Evan Purdy, highlights the inner transformation that takes place through dance. 

SAM BATLEY

A long-time visitor and first-time exhibitor at Bound, Sam Batley is a multidisciplinary artist, photographer and writer based between Liverpool and Barnsley. In his own words, Batley “responds to life’s dualities – fear and faith, from isolation to the interconnectedness of community”, and “navigating the eternal dance between them”. 

His table this year features four of his books: Everyday Bastard, a collection of writing and photos straddling the boundary between addiction and recovery; God Loves a Fretter, a photographic exploration of fear and faith; Standing in the Same River Twice, focusing on Batley’s relationship with the landscape and communities of Barnsley and Liverpool; and, Point of Non-Existence, a book inspired by the transition, traditions and acts of masculinity that take place as a teen.

Check out the galleries above for a sneak peek into each of these artist’s works. Bound Art Book Fair is running at Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, from November 30 to December 1, 2024.