The handmade Prodigal Son book hanging over a chair

A book about
finding your way
back home

„Fiul Risipitor” (The Prodigal Son) is an experimental artist’s book exploring themes of identity, rebellion, and the journey home. In the age when everyone is chasing the next new story, this project sets out to take a step back and turn an ancient parable into a transformative journey of contemplation and self-reflection.

Holding the handmade book above a tray of paints

The parable starts out as a young man makes a heartbreaking demand to his father: “give me my share of property!”, a scandalous ask for those times. As he takes the money and leaves, we see his lifestyle quickly leading him towards ruin. But the story doesn’t end there. As misery overtakes him, he decides to go back and plead to be accepted as a slave. When the father recognizes him from afar, he runs to him and receives him with open arms, not as a slave, but as a son.

This book invites readers into a journey to explore their own life, recognize what sacred treasures they might have forsaken but also remember about a father who receives with open arms.

The themes of this story are present as recurring symbols all throughout the book. Color is an indicator of closeness to the father, visual progressions represent the journey of the character and the semi-abstract illustrations become visual metaphors.

An illustrated spread showing a figure and intersecting hand-printed paths
Close-up of the book’s pages, a reader holding a yellow spread, and an open book on a mustard chair
“A great famine came to that land” ”Father, give me my share of property”

The craft behind the story

When I started this piece, I knew I wanted to make as much as I could by hand. Human touch is a resource that is becoming more and more scarce, which is why this book was created by a human, for humans.

This inspired me to use various everyday materials, like yarn and food items to create unique ink stamps.
A hollow slice of bread became the symbol for famine, potatoes became stamped footprints and strings of yarn told the story of wandering far from home. The colored backgrounds, which show closeness to the father, were also hand-painted with my old watercolors. And the writing is drawn individually for each spread.

As a finishing touch, the book was made with an open-spine stitch binding and special inserts of parchment paper to really create that engaging experience for the reader.

Printing the wandering paths using inked yarn Potato and bread stamps used to print the illustrations
Close-up of the open-spine stitch binding
Turning a translucent parchment insert Hand-drawn lettering and printed textures on the book’s pages

Books are
more powerful
than we realize

I believe that art and literature has the power to challenge and change culture. Mainstream is trendy, but also quickly forgotten. Craftsmanship on the other hand, lasts for decades.

This is why I chose to make this book, as a voice of hope and truth for our society now and generations to come.

Making the book by hand on a cutting mat
Reading the handmade book at a table The book’s blue painted cover and illustrated pages
Holding the finished Prodigal Son book above a patterned rug