ABOUT US
For the Birds Trapped in Airports is a small book bindery that started in Los Angeles, CA in 2022. As of August 2026, we are now located within the Mendocino Art Center in Mendocino, CA.
Through the various chapters of our work, we have collaborated with over 200 artists in making high quality, handmade book and box editions. Some have been written about, won awards, and been collected by prestigious institutions, all have been incredibly special, educational, and meaningful experiences.
Our work with book and box editions has been to support artists by providing financial support, connecting artists to one another through representation of their work, and by facilitating meaningful experiences in the design, hand-production, and publishing of their work.
2012 – 2026, 14 years of books and counting...
For the Birds Trapped in Airports evolved from Candor Arts, a small hand-made book publishing project based in Chicago from 2016–2021.
Before that, our publishing work began with The Chicago Perch, a Pilsen apartment project focused on free education, publishing, and community dinners from 2012–2015.
Our efforts through these projects have focused on supporting artists through the challenging financial and political conditions of each time span. The businesses have always been run by artists who experience and empathize with the struggles of making a living in the arts.
This business is currently owned and operated by two people: Matthew Austin and Kiki Lechuga-Dupont.
STILL LEARNING
Each of our chapters has evolved many times over within their years open, and once again after they’ve closed from economic and political influences, and we build anew with lessons learned:
The Chicago Perch closed in 2015 because Bruce Rauner, then-governor of Illinois, eliminated the arts grants that sustained our project.
Candor Arts closed in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and a lack of PPP funding from the government.
For the Birds Trapped in Airports moved out of Los Angeles in 2026 because of rising rent, inflation, and tariffs that made normal business operations impossible.
OUR NEWEST CHAPTER: FTBTIA MENDOCINO
Opening in late October 2026, our newest chapter in Mendocino may be the smallest or slowest operation we’ve run in 14 years. It is designed to serve artists who are not interested in speed or quantity, but rather provide an opportunity to calm their nervous system and focus on themselves in a beautiful coastal environment. Through this approach, they can have a meaningful collaborative experience in publishing the work they’ve fostered, and bear witness to its entire production first-hand. In its greatest fulfillment, a publishing residency will also result in lasting relationships rooted in trust and care.
The success of our work is rooted in the experience of being here together, learning through collaboration, and making something special.
Co-owners of FTBTIA:
Matthew Austin and Kiki Lechuga-Dupont
Matthew Austin (he/him) is an artist and bookbinder living in Mendocino, CA.
He has been working with books, furniture, and education in his creative efforts for the past several years.
Previous projects aligned with the efforts of this studio first began with The Chicago Perch in 2012 and evolved into Candor Arts in 2015. For the Birds Trapped in Airports is the current iteration of Matthew’s publishing practice.
They are inspired by visual memory and its capacity for emotion and perspective. They strive to create pieces that evoke a sense of wonder and mindfulness, bringing the viewer somewhere safe and warm.
Kiki is a contributing illustrator at Sixty Inches From Center.