An Elegy for a Small Giraffe - An Artist's Book About a Small Giraffe

c.1991. Unique artist's book. Three double sided, hand written sheets of paper in the artist's scrawl. (1) Referring to the Arabic origin of the word "giraffe" and its common root with the word "elegance" in the Arabic language. (2) About the giraffe given to a Medici by the Sultan of Egypt in 1487 and (3) about Fynes Moryson who went to Constantinople in 1597 and encountered the strange beast. Concertina fold with six panels illustrated in pencil. Enclosed is an original invoice for the book, made out to the South African poet Patrick Cullinan in 1991. Giraffe hoof and horn to the front covers. Binding: plywood, card, and felt. Some light wear, general condition very good. "I paint in order to make sense of my life, to manipulate various chaotic fragments of information and impulse into some sort of order, through which I can glimpse a hint of meaning. I am an agnostic humanist possessed of religious curiosity who regards making artworks as akin to alchemy. To use inert matter on an inert surface to convey real energy and presence seems to me a magical and privileged way of living out my days". Judith Mason, 2004 Size: 275 x 340cm folded, 275 x 1715cm unfolded.