University Press of Kentucky book receives gold in Creativepool Annual Awards
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 2, 2024) — “Final Words,” a sweeping project that consists of a collection of the last statements uttered by 578 men and women executed on Texas Death Row, has been named the Gold Category Winner in the publishing category for the Creativepool Annual 2024 Awards. The somber project, published by the University Press of Kentucky, was compiled by documentarian Marc Asnin and features a foreword by Randall Horton, Ph.D., author of the American Book Award-winning “{#289-129}: Poems,” also published by the University Press of Kentucky.
“Final Words” was hailed by The Washington Post:
“The University Press of Kentucky recently published an extraordinary book called ‘Final Words.’ It’s an imposing volume that presents the final words of 578 people executed by the state of Texas since 1982. Each two-page spread contains a photo of the convict, a brief description of their crime and then a transcript of the words they uttered in the last moments of life....The prisoners’ last words are haunting: confessions of love, expressions of gratitude, claims of innocence, statements of faith, apologies, sometimes cries of defiance, sometimes complete silence.”
The Atlantic called the book “a haunting read for a number of reasons, and one of its more poignant lessons has to do with how death curates priorities. Like anyone else, the men and women executed in Texas since 1982 approached their deaths with fear, faith, hopes for their families and regrets about their transgressions.”
According to Creativepool judge Philip Harding, “Final Words” is “a project with real purpose — beautifully and powerfully executed. Fascinating, thought-provoking — bold but simple layout gives it real gravitas and ink-smudged authenticity.”
The Creativepool Annual Awards are presented in a number of categories including animation, art, branded content, data, digital, graphics, illustration, photography, publishing, social good and typography. The awards, which recognize the best work, talent and agencies in the creative industry, are evaluated by both judges and the public and are considered an inclusive celebration of the creative industry. The 2024 Annual Awards were held Sept. 5 in London.
“Final Words” was released by the University Press of Kentucky in November 2023. Marc Asnin is a documentary photographer whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, Time and Newsweek. Randall Horton is a writer, poet, artist and an associate professor of English at the University of New Haven. Horton is the only person in the U.S. with seven felony convictions and academic tenure.
The University Press of Kentucky is the statewide nonprofit scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Serving all Kentucky state-sponsored institutions of higher learning as well as nine private colleges and Kentucky’s two major historical societies, it was organized in 1969 as successor to the University of Kentucky Press. The Press is dedicated to the publication of academic books of high scholarly merit as well as significant books about the history and culture of Kentucky, the Ohio Valley region, the Upper South, and Appalachia.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.
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