9/11 Flipbook by Scott Blake

Licensed Under
Creative Commons

9/11 Flipbook by Scott Blake

About the Cover

On September 12, 2001, I was working as a television salesman.
My relationship with television has always been a reluctant one. Selling them in a thankless work environment only made me bitter towards the medium. Having to sell them the day after the first American tragedy of the 21st century was infuriating.
Television was washed over with remembrances, interviews with families looking for missing people. Some people hadn't been able to leave or enter Manhattan yet. There was still smoke in the air. I don't think I had yet heard the phrase "al-Qaeda," or the name of Osama Bin Laden.
United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the World Trade Center, for me, approximately 126 times every seven minutes that day, news networks repeating the footage as I waited for people to buy televisions. (By the way, they did. One customer asked where everybody was, as if it was merely another slow business day. Most of the people in the store wore American flags. At the time, that gesture was still a show of community, only later would it evolve into a symbol of aggressive patriotism.
About a year later, haunted by that bombardment of imagery, I decided to throw myself into a dedicated act of remembering. The result is, in partial form, presented in the cover art of the book you're holding: Text blocks of the names of the Sept. 11 dead, colored to reflect the sequence of events which ended their lives.
It feels self-indulgent to say the process was harrowing. All I did was format a list of names into an image converter; I didn't worry if my girlfriend was stuck in the building or if a grandparent would be able to leave a nearby apartment. I just read and formatted every name that I could fit. An initial version of the project had names which served as links to Google search results. That process, designed to make these names human again instead of reducing them to television moments, was overwhelming.
When I put the piece online, I was reluctant. It was covered by The New York Times not based on any press release or promotional effort on my behalf, but by a posting to a mailing list asking people if this was OK or not. I was still uncertain when the paper interviewed me, in what ended up being the dubious highlight of press attention in my artistic career.
This, in itself, is problematic. Art about Sept. 11 is beyond any artist's ability to control. I was charged with being lazy and opportunistic, praised and criticized for capturing a patriotic zeitgeist. I've taken the piece offline and put it back up multiple times since the launch of the Iraq war. To me, those images are, on the one hand, a simple attempt to connect to this tragedy on a human level ˆ the names layer ˆ but they are also, inevitably, the image that launched the War on Terror, the invasion of Iraq, and the politics of fear. As such, I have a bipolar reaction to what the piece revealed, in the face of my own artistic and political naiveté: Humanizing the event doesn't stop us from politicizing it.
In fact, it contributes to the power of the images themselves as a tool of fear. It plays with the emotions of survivors, even those who merely survived watching it on television. It intensifies the images to a saddening extent, triggers a flight-or-flight response, swoops in with giant military might and gathers our will into wars. This statement, itself, is another side of the hypocrisy of humanization: I'm using it for political purposes, too.
This brings us to the flip book. I am drawn to the flipbook because it is not political. It simply says what has needed to be said: This is what happened. There is the smooth satisfaction of undoing the event by flipping backward, but always the temptation to make it happen again, in the way books inevitably turn forward. I am sure this book will provoke some angry reactions. It ought to. Some people don't need to be told that this event simply happened: it has hit them personally, and they have a right to whatever reaction they want.
The rest of us, however, need to move out of a collective haze. Most of us have. The end of the Bush Administration brings the end of the Sept. 11 decade. The flipbook comes just in time: Put it in your pocket. Leave it there, like car keys. But stop forcing it to mean anything outside of what it was: a senseless day of violence that we have more than made up for abroad.
There was a kind of beauty to that day, a reminder of the limited scope and fragility of our mortality, made almost comfortable by our collective confrontation. I don't think we lived up to the aftermath of that confrontation, and wallowing in Sept. 11 nostalgia ˆ which we have turned into two wars and long airport queues ˆ is not going to help anyone.

Summary, care of Foucault:
"All of this beauty of old times is an effect of and not a reason for nostalgia. I know very well that it is our own invention. But it's quite good to have this kind of nostalgia, just as it's good to have a good relationship with your own childhood if you have children. It's a good thing to have nostalgia toward some periods on the condition that it's a way to have a thoughtful and positive relation to your own present. But if nostalgia is a reason to be aggressive and uncomprehending toward the present, it has to be excluded."

Eryk Salvaggio
Bangor, Maine
August 15, 2008

Scott Blake has created a flipbook consisting of images of United Airlines Flight 175 crashing into the south tower of the World Trade Center. Accompanying the images are essays written by a wide range of participants, each expressing their personal experience of the September 11th attacks. In addition, the authors of the essays were asked to reflect on, and respond to, the flipbook itself. Not surprisingly, the majority of the essayists experienced the events through news network footage.

Blake is distributing his 9/11 Flipbooks to encourage a constructive dialog regarding the media’s participation in sensationalizing the tragedy. “My primary goal with the 9/11 Flipbook is to remind everyone how the mainstream media broadcast the violent attacks over and over,” Blake said. “The way I see it, the news did exactly what the terrorists wanted them to do. I'm concerned that if a similar tragedy happened again today, every TV and newspaper would do it all over again.”

To further illustrate his point, Blake recently conducted a media study of archived footage from September 11, 2001, counting the number of times major news networks showed the plane crashes, building collapses and people falling from the towers. “CNN showed the plane crash 109 times from 9AM to midnight, about once every eight minutes,” said Blake.

The BBC showed the planes crashing into the towers 240 times, roughly 16 times per hour. CNN showed the towers collapsing 161 times, or about once every five minutes. CBS was the first to show victims falling from the towers, beginning around noon and replaying the footage 13 times that day. These images are burned indelibly into the minds of everyone who witnessed the tragedy, whether firsthand or remotely. Said one New York essayist in Blake’s 9/11 Flipbook, “We could literally see the towers from our roof top. Although we had a better view on the TV.”

Blake personally assembles each flipbook in his studio in Omaha, NE. The books are printed, cut and bound using top of the line archival materials. The large 9/11 Flipbooks with essays measure 7.25 x 5.25 in (18.5 x 13.5 cm), 83 color pages, bound with three screw posts, signed, dated, numbered and registered in online database below.

100% of the profits from every 9/11 Flipbook sold is donated to the Twin Towers Orphan Fund, Fire Department of New York, and International Red Cross. The books may be purchased online or from a number of retailers including Printed Matter in New York, OK Store in Los Angeles, Goteblüd in San Francisco, Atomic Books in Baltimore, Quimby's Bookstore in Chicago, eve N odd in St. Petersburg, Bookart Bookshop in London, RAS Gallery and Bookstore in Barcelona, Sticky Institute in Melbourne, Australia, PolyEster Books in Victoria, Australia, Format Zine Shop in Adelaide, Australia, and Demetra in Milan, Italy. The entire book is also available for download, free of charge.

For more information read the press release.

Available in these stores

Los Angeles, CA

London, UK

Barcelona, Spain

Baltimore, MD

Chicago, IL

Adelaide, Australia

New York, NY	Victoria, Australia	San Francisco, CA	Melbourne, Australia
St. Petersburg, FL	Milan, Italy	San Francisco, CA

Also in these libraries

Omaha, Nebraska

Robert Haas Arts Library
New Haven, Connecticut

Weserburg Museum
Bremen, Germany

Browne Popular Culture Library
Bowling Green, Ohio

Princeton University
Princeton, New Jersey

Toronto Zine Library
Toronto, Canada

Indie Photobook Library
Washington, DC

Kansas State University
Manhattan, Kansas

There are several ways to obtain one of the small 9/11 Flipbooks.

1. Starting with the FREE DIY Kit you can download, print, and assemble one yourself right now.

2. Email Scott Blake a short essay inspired by this project, and he will send you a small 9/11 Flipbook, absolutely FREE.

3. Post a 3 minute video response on YouTube and he will send you a small 9/11 Flipbook, absolutely FREE.

4. Finally if you prefer to buy one, the small 9/11 Flipbook costs $5.

Each small 9/11 Flipbook is handmade by the artist, measures 2.5 x 1.25 inches (6.4 x 3.2 cm), with 37 pages, and heavy duty staple binding.

Do It Yourself Kit

for FREE

Post 3 Minute Video Response

Follow to YouTube for FREE

Submit 500 Word Essay

scott@barcodeart.com for FREE

Essays Inspired by Small 9/11 Flipbooks

Name Date Location Title

0. Scott Blake September 17, 2008 Omaha, Nebraska Introduction

1. Sarah Baker March 12, 2006 Omaha, Nebraska The very first essay

2. Sean Smith May 10, 2006 Toronto, Canada Tactical application of slowness

3. Mike Fischer May 17, 2006 Racine, Wisconsin My birthday is September 11

4. Pat Riot May 23, 2006 Los Angeles, California 9-11 FLIP OUT

5. Julian Miller May 31, 2006 New York, New York Desperate grab for attention

6. Scott Grant June 5, 2006 Bristol, United Kingdom I wished I didn't own a television

7. Daniel Clark June 6, 2006 Henderson, Nevada Media Monotony

8. Damon Lawner June 10, 2006 Los Angeles, California Concise yet massive story

9. Natalie Conforti June 12, 2006 San Francisco, California American student in Italy

10. K Torpy June 13, 2006 Omaha, Nebraska Incomprehensible accessible

11. Pierre Ernest June 18, 2006 Borsbeek, Belgium I also was born on Sept. 11th

12. Timothy Schaffert June 18, 2006 Omaha, Nebraska Lesson in commerce and tragedy

13. Chris Fischer June 18, 2006 Landisville, Pennsylvania i could give a fuck less

14. Aaron Norhanian June 19, 2006 Brooklyn, New York Hold the moment in my hand

15. Anonymous June 19, 2006 Anonymous. i think that Bush planned it

16. Steve Chudomelka June 19, 2006 Omaha, Nebraska Caught in the moment again

17. Adam Arsenault June 19, 2006 Prince Edward Island, Canada Respecting each other's visions

18. Pierre-François Maquaire June 19, 2006 Paris, France I collect folioscopes

19. Kim Lyvang June 20, 2006 Ontario, Canada My life is now richer

20. Alexis Turner June 20, 2006 Portland, Oregon Listen to *me*

21. Patrick Hughes June 21, 2006 Gainesville, Florida I would not like a 9-11 flipbook

22. Philippe Dubost June 26, 2006 Chamalières, France Sensational effects of this game

23. Jean-Pierre Becker June 27, 2006 Paris, France I could smile about your question

24. Jayne Sonshine June 28, 2006 Twp. of Washington, New Jersey Hold a piece of history

25. Tabitha Straws June 28, 2006 Seattle, Washington Selfish American

26. K. Verbonus June 28, 2006 Steilacoom, Washington Everyone wants to be right

27. Jo Bryan June 28, 2006 Cambs, United Kingdom Another frantic day

28. Hayley Gardiner June 28, 2006 Northampton, United Kingdom Not just about the victims

29. David Vogt June 28, 2006 Rockford, Illinois Feelings and emotions of others

30. Nick Jugovics June 28, 2006 Paxton, Illinois Made from suffering

31. Lennaert Bosch June 28, 2006 Cuijk, The Netherlands Ten and a half year old

32. Anonymous June 29, 2006 Anonymous Trivializing those events

33. David Pitman July 1, 2006 South Wales, United Kingdom Slap in the face

34. Tracy Cowell July 1, 2006 Somerset, United Kingdom Agree with it or not

35. Candy VanOcker July 1, 2006 Springville, New York This happened to everyone

36. Fadel Haowat July 1, 2006 Chicago, Illinois What the news can do

37. Daniel Sahagian July 1, 2006 North Arlington, New Jersey Light against Hate and Ignorance

38. Sam Brobvision July 1, 2006 Nottingham, United Kingdom Little effect on my life

39. Cain Radford July 1, 2006 Broken Hill, Australia Through tragedy life goes on

40. Susan Rabka July 1, 2006 Johannesburg, South Africa I might as well have been there

41. Nicole Brodsky July 1, 2006 San Francisco, California Arbiter of the act

42. Julie Gormly July 2, 2006 Brisbane, Australia Uncomfortable sharing

43. Nicola Dingle July 2, 2006 Somerset, United Kingdom Seize the day

44. Tarryn Bow July 3, 2006 Broken Hill, Australia Far more shocking

45. Ricardo dC Russo July 3, 2006 Manaus, Brazil World is full of lost words

46. Pascal Fouché July 4, 2006 Paris, France How people can see it

47. Anthony Mack July 4, 2006 Lacey, Washington ALL humans strive for freedom

48. Teri Jenkins July 6, 2006 Ontario, Canada Deepest sympathies

49. Alexandre Noyer July 6, 2006 Annecy, France Internationnal langage

50. Yolanda Yuyu July 6, 2006 Chengdu, China It tell us to remember something

51. Craig Park July 7, 2006 Rocky Mount, North Carolina Are we better for our learning

52. Kell Black July 11, 2006 Clarksville, Tennessee Small matchbox diorama

53. Anonymous July 12, 2006 United States Sophisticated visual humor

54. Lauren De Luca July 12, 2006 New York, New York Less than a mile from the Towers

55. Nanette Allen July 12, 2006 Las Vegas, Nevada Intimate translations

56. Manfred Reichert July 21, 2006 Visselhoevede, Germany Flash animation

57. B Rousse July 22, 2006 Paris, France It deserves our irreverence

58. Charlotta Bjorkskog July 22, 2006 Kokkola, Finland Of course you gain on it

59. Stuart and Tara July 24, 2006 Brooklyn, New York Better view on the TV

60. Dave Schneider January 29, 2007 Chicago, Illinois Remind me of "real" pain

61. Dan Keane January 30, 2007 Bloomfield, New Jersey what the fuck was the 'message'?

62. Thomas Hill February 6, 2007 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma perception is reality

63. Robert Fischer March 29, 2007 Houma, Louisiana the defining moment

64. Frank J Perrotta December 5, 2007 Sharon, Pennsylvania 9-11 Flip Book Manipulations

65. Matthew Lahey January 7, 2008 Los Angeles, Califronia On A Flipbook

66. Kristin Heikel March 16, 2008 Omaha, Nebraska Reporting and Voyeurism

67. Aibyouka Kun September 29, 2008 Westmont, New Jersey The First IM Chat

68. Bobby Ryan November 4, 2008 North Cape May, New Jersey Patriotic Work of Art

69. Trevon Watson February 3, 2009 Guyton, Georgia War On Terror is Fading Away

70. Adrian Davis February 17, 2009 Fort Bragg, North Carolina Something you care about

71. Dear December 26, 2008 Portland, Oregon Second IM Chat

72. James King May 4, 2009 Glasgow, Scotland The world will never be the same

73. Beáta Istvánko October 27, 2009 Budakalász, Hungary Opinion of the audience

74. Alex Klehfoth June 1, 2009 Lexington, Kentucky Twin Tower Pinata

75. Wolfgang Skodd May 5, 2010 Dortmund, Germany Agents & Provocateurs

76. Michiko Tanaka August 2, 2010 Seattle, Washington Over and over

77. DJ Tilley January 7, 2011 Reno, Nevada Wandering around the playground

78. Benjamin Goggin January 8, 2011 Portland, Oregon Tornadoes to terrorism

79. Tom Eubank January 8, 2011 New York City, New York Top floor of 95 Christopher Street

80. Ian January 8, 2011 Oakland, California Stir things up

81. Anonymous February 24, 2011 Anonymous Inconsiderate and offensive

82. Amanda Marsico March 3, 2011 District of Columbia, USA Thank you for making me think

83. Anonymous April 18, 2011 Anchorage, Alaska This isint a joke

84. Jessica Schwartz April 27, 2011 USA Who is the work for?

85. Dr. Kevin Dann May 19, 2011 Brooklyn, New York Thanks Art Spiegelmann

86. TheBigBoss May 26, 2011 Nairobi, Kenya Le Chêne et le Roseau

87. Stephania June 27, 2011 USA More Real Than Reality

88. Anonymous July 11, 2011 Brooklyn, New York Weak and Irresponsible

89. Renee Nied August 4, 2011 Cobleskill, New York Pick Up Tomorrow

90. Elliott Burris September 2, 2011 Saint Joseph, Missouri I was only 3

91. Sheila Zachariae September 9, 2011 Omaha, Nebraska Protecting the people from themselves

92. Wendy Parker November 6, 2011 Leicester, United Kingdom Interesting Yet Horrifying

93. Aidan Hicks March 12, 2012 Aurora, Colorado Quite Young on September 11

94. Patrick McCarthy April 17, 2012 Chicago, Illinois Propaganda Attack

95. Billy October 12, 2012 Sandia Park, New Mexico Bling Review 41

96. Gabriella Cutrone June 25, 2013 Brooklyn, New York Inspired and Upset

97. BSG October 31, 2013 Portland, Oregon Images Detach From Emotions

98. Wilfredo Raguro July 28, 2016 Irving, Texas Looking Back Now

Registered Owners of Large 9/11 Flipbooks

Name Location Date

1. Printed Matter Bookstore New York, New York May 30, 2009

2. Printed Matter Bookstore New York, New York July 29, 2009

3. Printed Matter Bookstore New York, New York July 29, 2009

4. Printed Matter Bookstore New York, New York July 29, 2009

5. Printed Matter Bookstore New York, New York July 29, 2009

6. Agents and Provocateurs Dunaujvaros, Hungary October 16, 2009

7. Anonymous Los Angeles, California November 5, 2009

8. Pascal Fouche Paris, France January 14, 2010

9. Pierre-François Maquaire Paris, France September 4, 2010

10. Bookart Bookshop London, United Kingdom September 15, 2010

11. Danny Schechter New York, New York September 13, 2010

12. Wendy Wight Houston, Texas October 10, 2010

13. K Torpy Omaha, Nebraska December 31, 2010

14. Joseph Calandriello Nashville, Tennessee January 7, 2011

15. Joseph Calandriello Nashville, Tennessee January 7, 2011

16. Joseph Calandriello Nashville, Tennessee January 7, 2011

17. Joseph Calandriello Nashville, Tennessee January 7, 2011

18. Andrew Beirne Elmhurst, New York January 7, 2011

19. Thomas King Toronto, Canada January 7, 2011

20. Sean Gossage Burlington, Iowa January 9, 2011

21. Bookart Bookshop London, United Kingdom January 13, 2011

22. Bookart Bookshop London, United Kingdom January 13, 2011

23. Bookart Bookshop London, United Kingdom January 13, 2011

24. Bookart Bookshop London, United Kingdom January 13, 2011

25. Bookart Bookshop London, United Kingdom January 13, 2011

26. Sarah Baker Hansen Omaha, Nebraska January 14, 2011

27. Timothy Schaffert Omaha, Nebraska January 14, 2011

28. Eryk Salvaggio Fukuoka, Japan January 23, 2011

29. Quimby's Bookstore Chicago, Illinois February 1, 2011

30. Quimby's Bookstore Chicago, Illinois February 1, 2011

31. Quimby's Bookstore Chicago, Illinois February 1, 2011

32. Quimby's Bookstore Chicago, Illinois February 1, 2011

33. Quimby's Bookstore Chicago, Illinois February 1, 2011

34. Quimby's Bookstore Chicago, Illinois February 1, 2011

35. Jennifer Kosharek St. Petersburg, Florida February 4, 2011

36. James Welch Orange, California February 24, 2011

37. Anonymous New York, New York February 25, 2011

38. Artists' Books Online Los Angeles, California March 2, 2011

39. Jean-Pierre Becker Paris, France March 12, 2011

40. RAS Gallery and Bookstore Barcelona, Spain March 18, 2011

41. RAS Gallery and Bookstore Barcelona, Spain March 18, 2011

42. RAS Gallery and Bookstore Barcelona, Spain March 18, 2011

43. Annie Dulong New York, New York April 29, 2011

44. Geraldine Fasentieux Sainte-Savine, France May 24, 2011

45. Anonymous New York, New York June 6, 2011

46. Indie Photobook Library Washington, DC June 27, 2011

47. Chemeketa Community College Salem, Oregon July 5, 2011

48. Chemeketa Community College Salem, Oregon July 5, 2011

49. Media Container Nantes, France July 5, 2011

50. Omaha Public Library Omaha, Nebraska July 11, 2011

51. Andor Skotnes Troy, New York July 27, 2011

52. Jim O'Brien Somerville, Massachusetts July 27, 2011

53. Sonia Baelo Allué Zaragoza, Spain August 2, 2011

54. Michel Cicero Ventura, California August 12, 2011

55. B. Rousse Oakland, California August 12, 2011

56. Aaron Norhanian Brooklyn, New York August 26, 2011

57. Craig Crawford Chicago, Illinois September 2, 2011

58. Kansas State University Manhattan, Kansas September 3, 2011

59. Jonathan Kahana New York, New York September 7, 2011

60. Dan Bischoff South Orange, New Jersey September 11, 2011

61. Jennie Hinchcliff San Francisco, California October 17, 2011

62. Matt Wobensmith San Francisco, California October 1, 2011

63. Anonymous New York, New York October 1, 2011

64. Princeton University Princeton, New Jersey November 7, 2011

65. OK Store Los Angeles, California November 8, 2011

66. Penn State University State College, Pennsylvania October 17, 2011

67. OK Store Los Angeles, California November 8, 2011

68. OK Store Los Angeles, California November 8, 2011

69. Lowri-Ellen Owen Cardiff, United Kingdom November 15, 2011

70. OK Store Los Angeles, California November 28, 2011

71. OK Store Los Angeles, California November 28, 2011

72. OK Store Los Angeles, California November 28, 2011

73. Frank Erfurth Merrillville, Indiana January 20, 2012

74. Raquel Decatur, Georgia January 24, 2012

75. Drift Station Lincoln, Nebraska May 7, 2012

76. Joyce Lynn Mill Valley, California April 10, 2013

77. Lynne Warren Chicago, Illinois December 27, 2012

78. Lynne Warren Chicago, Illinois December 27, 2012

79. Dorothy Lorig Arvada, Colorado September 11, 2012

80. Billy Sandia Park, New Mexico October 26, 2012

81. Johan Zonnevijlle Utrecht, Netherlands January 7, 2013

82. Michelle Greene Montclair, New Jersey February 17, 2013