THIS LAND

This Land — Artist Book (page Structure)

THIS LAND

Artist book
Year: 2017 (revised and contextualized post-2022)

Overview

THIS LAND is an artist book confronting the internment of Ukrainians in Canada through archival fragments and photographic sequence. The book transforms historical record into a sustained act of looking, asking how state violence is preserved, transmitted, and encountered through the book form.

Derived from the broader photographic project THIS LAND IS MY LAND, the book functions as a focused translation rather than a comprehensive archive. Its scale, pacing, and material restraint are central to how the work is read and held.

Structure & Form

The book unfolds as a deliberate sequence of images and archival traces, structured to resist linear narration. Repetition, pause, and omission operate as formal devices, emphasizing absence as an active historical condition rather than a lack of information.

The codex format is essential to the work’s meaning. Bound, finite, and handled in time, the book insists on duration and attention, distinguishing itself from exhibition or screen-based encounters.

Editions

THIS LAND is issued in three editions. Each edition is conceptually complete, while differing in material complexity and the presence of additional elements.

Regular Edition

• Core artist book

• Intended for research libraries and special collections

• Emphasizes sequence, restraint, and durability

Variant Edition

• Artist book with additional material or structural variation

• Extends the core work through altered materials or format

• Produced in a smaller quantity

Extraordinary Edition

• Expanded manifestation incorporating additional objects or elements

• Conceived for institutions and collections able to steward complex, multi-part works

• Functions as both book and sculptural archive

Materials & Production

The book employs archival papers and photographic processes selected for longevity and stability. Production decisions privilege care and restraint over spectacle, aligning material choice with the ethical responsibilities of working with historical evidence.

Relationship to Other Works

THIS LAND emerges from THIS LAND IS MY LAND, a photographic and time-based project examining the internment of Ukrainians in Canada and the persistence of historical trauma across generations. While grounded in this research, the book stands as an independent work intended for collection, study, and long-term access.

Institutional Context

THIS LAND is conceived for acquisition by museums, research libraries, and special collections engaged with artist books, archival practices, and histories of displacement and state violence. Documentation supporting cataloguing, preservation, and scholarly use is available upon request.

Inquiries

For institutional inquiries regarding editions, availability, or documentation, please contact:

Lesia Maruschak
www.lesiamaruschak.com

Good — this is the right moment to slow down and design the THIS LAND page properly, because this page will quietly set the standard for every other book.

I’ve created a full, institution-ready page structure for THIS LAND in the canvas titled:

“THIS LAND — Artist Book (Page Structure)”

Rather than just giving you prose, I’ve shown you what the page needs, section by section, so you can see how the editions logic fits without overwhelming the work.

What this page now does correctly

1. It leads with the book — not the editions

• The Overview establishes stakes first (internment, archival record, sustained looking)

• Editions come after the reader understands what the book is and why it exists
  This is critical institutionally.

2. Editions are framed as structural choices, not luxury tiers

Notice the language:

• “conceptually complete”

• “differing in material complexity”

• “presence of additional elements”

This avoids:

• commercial hierarchy

• market language

• scarcity framing

And instead supports:

• acquisitions committees

• curatorial justification