Bookland

 Tee Hodges may have printed the Bookland passports prominently displayed in Typewronger, an independent bookstore in Edinburgh, but they do not govern Bookland. “Nobody has ever met the ambassador. In fact, the ambassador's identity must be kept a secret to prevent diplomatic incidents. I am fortunate to be secretary to the ambassador and just organize the paperwork.,” said Hodges. 

The newly printed passports, emblazoned with the motto, ‘libri sign termino’ can only be found at select indie bookstores in the UK and Europe. “Bookland, the utopian country of Bookland, its motto is libri sign termino, which means books without end, but it can also mean books without borders. The idea with these (passports) is that all indie bookshops are unofficial embassies of Bookland,” said Hodges. 

What the passport represents is a real fictitious country that is over 40 years old. 

In the 1980’s the International Standard Book Number (ISBN) was given a unique country code to match the standard barcode system. The result was a three-digit prefix now used by book publishers that refers to Bookland, a fictional country created for cataloguing and purchasing. 

Despite Bookland’s consumer cataloging origins, the passport can’t be found online. Those wishing to be issued a Bookland passport need to visit an embassy. With an expanding band of participating independent bookstores and the popularity of the initial risograph printed passports has given way to a second edition. 

 The work here is small proof of concept for a visual approach to a Bookland, photographic essay depicting an embassy that represents the printed word. By photographing physical spaces like the Petrivka Book market in Kyiv, the Boekhandel Dominicanen in the Netherlands and other famous libraries with a conceptual and amorphous in-camera approach, I plan to create images that celebrate the history of books and universal grandeur that centuries of storytelling have given us.