Ines von Ketelhodt, “The Better Half”

Jan 1

Artist Statement

The book contains portrait photographs of Ines v. Ketelhodt’s maternal and paternal ancestors. They were taken from paintings, drawings, etchings and epitaphs or out of the photo-albums of the v. Stosch and v. Ketelhodt families. Beginning with the 13th century portrait of Peterico Count Stos the following pages show his descendents together with their wives, leading in direct line to Ines v. Ketelhodt. The following pages show, beginning with Ines’s father, his ancestors with their wives in direct line. The book ends in the 13th century with Knight Vredebern Ketelhot.

The individual portraits were divided in the centre and set together with their spouse to let the “better halves” form a “new person”. If a portrait is missing, the personal information ghosts through in reverse, as the respective names and dates of birth and death are printed in letterpress on the back of the portraits, digitally printed on transparent paper. Forming a further layer, historic dates from the 13th to the 21st century are set in relation to this data. The historic dates from all over the world are vertically printed in a smaller font.

Design, hand composition and letterpress printing of the texts, bookbinding process: Ines von Ketelhodt. The photographs were image edited on the computer and digitally printed on transparent paper.

Ines von Ketelhodt

Flörsheim am Main, Germany
http://www.vampandtramp.com/finepress/k/Ines-von-Ketelhodt.html

Die bessere Hälfte (The Better Half)
2010

Printed paperboard

Edition size of 50
112 pages
8 x 11.7″

The image shows the frontside of the cover, which is letterpress printed (cyan, magenta, yellow) over and over again with the different spellings of the paternal ancestor names “Ketelhot Kiädelhut Kytelhoth Ketelhut Ketelhude Ketelhuedt Ketelhuet Ketelhoden Ketelhutt Ketelhudt Ketelhodt” and of the maternal ancestor names “Stos Stosso Stoschowitz Stochowitz Stoschwitz Stosch”. The title “Die bessere Hälfte” is negative printed in black upon all three colors. The black printed label is translucent, so that the letters underneath are still visible.

The image shows three ancestors of Ines’ mother. The individual portraits were divided in the centre and set together with their spouse to let the “better halves” form a “new person”. If a portrait is missing, the personal information ghosts through in reverse, as the respective names and dates of birth and death are printed in letterpress on the back of the portraits, digitally printed on transparent paper. The photographs were image edited on the computer. The cyan, magenta, yellow and black part of the photographs were separately manipulated.

The book begins with the 13th century portrait of Peterico Count Stos (maternal ancestor). The following pages show his descendents
together with their wives, leading in direct line to Ines v. Ketelhodt together with her husband Peter Malutzki, her “better half”. Because this is the center of the book, the couple is shown on a double-page spread. Turning the right page the ancestors of her father begin.

The following pages show, beginning with Ines’s father, his ancestors with their wives in direct line. The book ends in the 13th century with Knight Vredebern Ketelhot. This image shows on the left page
Johann-Friedrich v. Ketelhodt with Luise v. Humbracht and on the right page his parents Christian-Ulrich v. Ketelhodt (1701) and Marie v. Beulwitz.

The image shows on the left-hand side Eva v. Barold (1638). The portrait photographs were taken from paintings, drawings, etchings and epitaphs or out of the photo-albums of the v. Stosch and v. Ketelhodt families. The book begins and ends without portraits, only their names and dates of birth and death are printed in letterpress on transparent paper. Forming a further layer, historic dates from the 13th to the 21st century are set in relation to this data. The historic dates from all over the world are vertically printed in letterpress in a smaller font.