Book Art is a field of art that involves the creation of works that use or refer to the structural and conceptual properties of books. The term is also used to describe works of art produced in this field. These works may contain text, images, or both, or they may be sculptural. Book art has existed for thousands of years, and can be seen, for example, in Egyptian papyri, in Chinese, Japanese and Korean scrolls and books, and in Mesoamerican codices. As a field of contemporary art, book art has seen explosive growth since the 1960s. The related term "book arts" refers to the creative and craft disciplines used to produce book art, such as printing, printmaking, papermaking, typography and bookbinding.
American colleges began offering book art programs in the 1980s, including the MFA program at the
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
and the MFA in book art and creative writing at
Mills College
Mills College at Northeastern University is a private college in Oakland, California and part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it was ...
in Oakland, CA. The College Book Art Association, founded in 2008, organizes annual conferences, publishes an open access journal titled ''Openings: Studies in Book Art'', and maintains the blog ''Book Art Theory''.
Organizations that exhibit, teach and promote book art include the Center for Book Arts in New York City, the Minnesota Center for Book Arts in Minneapolis and the San Francisco Center for the Book.
There are several sub-fields within book art, including
fine press books, sculptural bookworks,
artist's books,
altered book
An altered book is a form of mixed media artwork that changes a book from its original form into a different form, altering its appearance and/or meaning.
An altered book artist takes a book (old, new, recycled or multiple) and modifies it in any ...
s, designer bookbinding, installations and performances. Fine press book art follows in the tradition of the book as precious object. Publishers like
William Morris
William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...
's Kelmscott Press, active as part of the British
Arts and Crafts movement, was an important precursor to fine press book art. Examples of 20th century fine press book art include works published by Arron Press and The Gahenna Press.
References
External links
The Center for Book ArtsMinnesota Center for Book ArtsSan Francisco Center for the Book
Visual arts
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