Title: Aeronautics In the Backyard
Photographer/s: Xiaoxiao Xu
Place of publication: Breda, Netherlands
Year of publication: 2016
Publisher: The Eriskay Connection
Dimensions of book : 300mm x 210 mm
Edition size: 500
Binding, paper & printing details: Soft cover, patist binding, colour and b&w offset prints on uncoated paper.
Number of pages: 160
Number of pictures: 94 pictures and illustrations
Designer: Rob van Hoesel & Carel Fransen
Editor: Rosie Heinrich
Printer: NPN Printers
ISBN: 978-94-92051-19-6
Retail price: €35
Where to buy: ‘The Eriskay Connection’, ‘Idea Books’, ‘Kinokuniya Bookshop’, ‘Perimeter Books’, ‘Metropolis’, ‘Queensland Art Gallery’
Link/s to existing book reviews: ‘Conscientious Photo Magazine’ & ‘Urbanautica- Vienna photobook Festival’
Summary of project (150 wds):
Aeronautics in the Backyard is a mythical, fairytale-like photo series about the dream of flying, freedom and creativity.
All over the country in China, in the most unexpected of places, farmers rise up to build their own aircrafts. They don’t work in fancy hangars with all the equipment one could wish for, they simply play around in their backyards, recycling scrap metal and using household tools. They are self-educated, self-employed and penniless.
Some of these aeronauts have worked for decades but never achieved to get airborne. Although that might sound like a waste of time, they see it differently. For them, the game is not about how far or high they can fly, it’s about pushing their boundaries in order to achieve the impossible. They call it real-life science-fiction.
The Eriskay Connection
