Vietnam in Black & White is a collection of photographs that features vignettes of Vietnam captured by Milwaukee’s own Robert Trettin. Printed on paper that evokes the old-timey look of newsprint, this piece is a great companion to Robert’s “Hanoi in Duotone” and showcases what Risograph printing can do: bringing a mood and setting a scene that is at once familiar and dream like.
“I am the old man wandering, the old man on the road. It is the destiny and the destiny of my people — always moving… Viet originally meant to cross over — like an obstacle — to overcome. So this is the essence of the Vietnamese spirit. Now Viet just means ‘people,’ though its real meaning is ‘the people who overcome, who cross over.” — Phạm Duy
5.5 x 8.5 in
26 pages
Second edition, 2024
Handmade in USA
Risograph printed using plant-based inks, 1 color (Black) by BearBear
Unique (no two zines are exactly alike)
BearBear launched as a self-publishing Risograph studio in 2019 by two artists who desired to see their work on bookshelves on their own terms. Inspired by DIY zine culture and gig-poster screen prints, BearBear attends to the intricate details of book design with a wabi-sabi ethos. BearBear’s posters, prints, and art books act as a wholesome yet radical antidote to homogenous mass-produced volumes. The studio aspires to deliver contemporary ideas of selfhood + beauty, with a retro aesthetic, to the creative class’s bookshelves and imaginations.
