Thomas Ott's Silent Book 'The Number' Republished by Logos
Swiss artist Thomas Ott, born in Zurich in 1966, is a master of the silent book genre. His 2008 work 'The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8' has been republished in Italy by Logos Edizioni. The book is entirely wordless, following Ott's signature style of scratchboard illustration: he scratches white lines into black surfaces, creating images with a high proportion of black that match the dark, unsettling atmospheres of his stories. The narrative follows a strip of paper with an enigmatic number sequence that becomes a key to multiple destinies. Ott's controlled visual storytelling alternates multi-panel pages with full-page images, guiding the reader's pace with Swiss precision. The circular narrative includes homages to Jean Giraud/Moebius. The book was first published in 2008 and the Italian edition came out in 2016, priced at €20.
Key facts
- Thomas Ott was born in Zurich in 1966.
- His first editorial work was published in 1989.
- The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 was originally created in 2008.
- The Italian edition was published by Logos Edizioni in 2016.
- The book has 144 pages and costs €20.
- ISBN: 9788857607979.
- Ott uses a scratchboard technique, scratching white lines on black backgrounds.
- The story involves a paper strip with a number sequence that affects multiple lives.
Entities
Artists
- Thomas Ott
- Jean Giraud
- Moebius
- Ferruccio Giromini
Institutions
- Logos Edizioni
- Artribune
Locations
- Zurich
- Switzerland
- Modena
- Italy
- Genoa