A CATALOGUE OF A YOUNG COUNTRY LADIES LIBRARY

Louis Porter compiles here a collection of photographic postcards depicting women engaged in the act of reading, juxtaposed with a list written by Anne Baker in 1712 of recommended items to be included in a “Ladies” library.

Most of the postcards, which were collected by Louis Porter between 2019-2023, are from the early 20th century, when the photographic postcard was a new invention. They are images in motion that simultaneously present a personal experience within a technically mediated cultural framework.

Both the images and text attest to the complex relationship between the book and social identity. As the academic Melanie Bigold states in her essay for the publication, "the formation of a library is a creative and cultural act, and collections of books—whether read or not—are conduits for self-definition."

A CATALOGUE OF A YOUNG COUNTRY LADIES LIBRARY
Louis Porter, 2023

110 x 180 mm, 72 pages
Full Colour Offset
Section sewn with Swiss binding

Edition of 300
ISBN 978-1-7394968-0-7