Michael Rytz - RUNNING THROUGH THE WOODS IN A VELCRO SUIT
Publisher: Limited Works Publications Design: Spine Studio Photos: Jon Nordstrøm Hard cover Apx 230 pages 230 x 290 mm 4 color off set print Paper: 150 gr. Sora Matt 1.2 ABOUT THE BOOK People close to the Danish artist Michael Rytz know him as dedicated and very productive. But much of his time is spent making works that were never intended for the public eye. Since 2009 Rytz has devoted himself to the creation and elaboration of a series of private books incorporating many hundreds of intricately decorated and painted pages. To call them sketchbooks would be insufficient - in form they are more like the illuminated manuscripts of the medieval era. In content they are a richly bejewelled cavalcade of comic figures, scenes and profane geometries. I heard about the mystical sketchbooks many years before I got a chance to see them with my own eyes. when I did I couldn’t believe what I had stumbled upon. A universe all of its own, so crazy, so detailed and personal. After that day I couldn’t stop thinking about Rytz’ books and I knew I was lucky to be amongst the few who had actually seen them close hand. I wanted the world to see what I had seen. It couldn’t be some sort of trivial presentation - art like this deserves to be presented in the best possible way. Therefore, I joined forces with award winning book designer Jacob Birch and award winning photographer and publisher Jon Nordstrøm. My goal was to document every page of the books in the most exacting way, to give the viewer the very next best thing to holding them in their own hands. I also asked fellow artists, collectors and people close Rytz to contribute with essays about him and his art. These short texts accompany the drawings to give the reader a deeper understanding of Rytz and his complex and fascinating universe. Text by Morten Halborg-Møller, Limited Works