Published by Surfacing Press
Designed by Jiang Jiao and Mona Zhao
August 2026

Jiang Jiao’s studio is a “museum of inorganic objects”, where shelves are filled with various small manufactured parts. She is fascinated by how specific functions shape their forms, such as the curved inner structure of a plastic cap designed for opening and sealing.

Early this year, Jiang began drawing her collection. She traced their outlines on paper, filled the shapes with pencil, and recorded the time spent on each drawing. The process lasted much longer than expected, one hour was the most common duration, while the longest took four hours. Sometimes, the repetitive act of filling brought her into a state of deep concentration. In such moments, the drawings showed almost no visible strokes, only fine graphite powder spread across the paper surface, with subtle variations in light.

To preserve the delicate qualities of original drawings in print, the publication specially chose 48g lightweight dictionary paper. The transparency of the paper allows forms from different pages to show through and overlap, creating shifting relationships between the shapes and interactions with light. During printing, some of the printing plates were randomly selected, with a small percentage of silver ink added to the black ink. As a result, the texture of graphite is occasionally enhanced when the pages are turned, creating subtle visual changes.

A special sheet of paper was randomly inserted into the book. It is a casual drawing Jiang made more than a decade ago, tracing the outline of a razor blade on her worktable. Perhaps her fascination with these objects began earlier than she had realized. The original piece has turned yellow over time, and the book uses cotton fiber paper that naturally yellows as well, creating a small connection across time.

The black borders seen throughout the book first appeared by chance when Jiang scanned the drawings. She decided not to crop them out, and they became the final edge of the work. She found it fitting. Like the small objects she was fascinated by, the shape is the result of function, while beauty is an unexpected outcome.

After finishing the project, Jiang photographed all these small objects together and placed them alongside her drawings in the book. Detached from their original contexts of use, they are left as forms without function, suspended between the familiar and the strange, tools and waste.

"Softassstill" is published by Surfacing Press, edited by Mona Zhao, designed by Jiang Jiao and Mona Zhao, August 2026.