By Prem Krishnamurthy

On Letters is an epistolary essay, structured as thirteen wide-ranging and personal letters to the late conceptual artist On Kawara. It is the first book by designer, curator and polymath Prem Krishnamurthy.

Playing with language and its limits, the letters focus first on On Kawara's five decade long body of “Date Paintings” and their relationship to typography. From this starting point, the writing swerves to encompass topics such as the creative process, mindfulness, numbering systems, race, narrative structures, and more.

On Letters is a unique glimpse into one artist’s inner dialogue and an exploration of how the solitary practice of artmaking can spark other transformations in the world.

"The structural conceit (the title’s clever double meaning quickly becomes clear that it’s a book on letters but also a book of letters to On) creates a strange intimacy, making for a soft, personal, and stunning text of both memoir and art and design criticism." —Jarrett Fuller, "The best design books of 2022," Fast Company

Edited by Sam Korman

Designed by David Knowles

Published by Domain, 2022

Softcover, 152 pages, three color printing, 4.5 × 7 inches
Cover color may vary

ISBN: 978-1-73-472858-3