The Night Hunter

The Night Hunter seeks to give the reader not only the visual experience of a book, but a chance to engage with the text on a tactile, experiential level. The poem, by British writer Nancy Campbell, describes the traces left by the hunter on the austere arctic landscape of Greenland: “The ice shelf bears the mark of sled and knife –…”.
The lines of the poem, which repeat in accordance with the strict classical pantoum form, are printed on the paper-covered boards of the palm leaf book. On the reverse, the repeat pattern of the verses is reflected by a series of hand-drawn lines, printed polychrome.

The book is bound in driftwood boards, with dogbane cordage and a soapstone closure. It is accompanied by a carved wooden board with a rawhide pouch nestled into the top. The pouch holds objects of carved soapstone, a horse bone, and a piece of metal shaped like a primitive knife. Perhaps the hunter would have held similar things. By holding these objects, the reader comes to know something of the life of the hunter; by placing them in the depressions of the board, they participate in the telling
 of the story. The knowing from the language and the knowing from the physical sensation are different, but each is powerful in its own way.