"Fragments-A Hardback book of Melancholy Fantasy Poems and Illustrations" by Jon Turner
An art book of 35 intricately illustrated poems depicting a melancholy fantasy world.
During October 2020, as part of a month-long drawing challenge on instagram, Jon created a series of ink drawings, each with an accompanying quatrain (four-line poem). His goal was to build a world, geographically and temporally ambiguous, populated by a cast of ghosts and spirits and mysterious creatures (also frogs), alive with magic and curiosity but bathed in the soft, sad glow of autumnal melancholy. This book is the culmination of that project; a collection of dreamlike visions that seem like fragments of some forgotten story. Having spent most of 2020 in some form of lockdown, stuck in a sleeping city, these pieces were also a form of escapism, channelling his yearning for far-off adventures as well as his feelings of isolation and solitude.
A 21 cm (just over 8 inches) square, 76 page hardback book with a gold-foil stamped matt finish cover (due to the foiling process, there may be some small marks in the foil), black endpapers, a custom bookplate, and a stitched spine for extra durability.
About the Artist- “Forged in the fires of a distant moon, abandoned by his creator, and forced to wander a lonely path through the infinite, desolate vacuum of space, Jon draws on these relatable "life" experiences to bring you an exciting cabinet of curiosities.”
Jon Turner is an artist, illustrator, and fully-functioning human man based in Manchester, UK. He is probably not a robot. His work is inspired by strange stories, meandering adventures, retro gaming, literature, mental health, and broken hearts. He is a graduate of Balliol College, Oxford University.
Jon is available for select commissioned illustration work; previous clients include BBC Books, No Sleep Records, Threadless and Palgrave Macmillan Publishing.