Introduction
Created and maintained by Someguy, a San Francisco–based graphic designer who chooses to remain anonymous, the 1000 Journals project is designed to stimulate collaboration and understanding among perfect strangers. The project began when blank, 220-page books from San Francisco were distributed around the world—sent through the mail or delivered by hand to discrete locations. A stamped set of instructions inside each journal invites participants to make their mark in it by drawing, pasting, cutting, ripping, folding, burning, or writing on its pages. When finished, participants pass the journals on. A website 1000journals.com tracks the books and their contributors, and displays scans of the pages.
The journals have traveled by air, sea, and land throughout 40 countries and all 50 states. They've come to rest in hostels, cafes, and law offices, and they've been passed on in phone booths, bathrooms, and bookstores. The journals feature 100 unique cover designs (appearing on 10 journals each) created by a variety of emerging and well-known artists including Amy Franceschini of futurefarmers, renowned rock-poster artist Mark Arminski, illustrator Gary Baseman, and digital design guru Joshua Davis.
