(French for ''art books'' or ''books of art''), otherwise referred to as (French for ''gallery books''), are books in which the illustration holds a predominant place in relation to the text. They often require high quality papers as they belong in the category of high quality publications.

History

According to a presentation from

Élie Faure Jacques Élie Faure (; 4 April 1873 in Sainte-Foy-la-Grande, France – 29 October 1937 in Paris) was a French medical doctor, art historian and essayist. He is the author of the ''History of Art,'' considered a historiographical pillar in the d ...

's (originally published from 1919–1921), the livre d'art is a new genre within the field of modern art, where each commentary (text) can be compared to the works (works of art, images) themselves, the juxtaposition and confrontation of images justifying the audacity of the connections between text and image which sometimes seem unusual. The , a Paris-based publisher specialising in producing livres d'art, which presents itself as , launched a collection of artist monographs entitled "ABC" at the end of the 1950s. The books were produced in pocket format and intended for a general audience. Since 1980, the has been presented on an annual basis to reward the best livre d'art. The " Découvertes" collection launched by Éditions Gallimard in 1986 is a new kind of artistic encyclopaedia with a dynamic page layout. Produced in pocket format and illustrated in colour, these books treat a wide range of subjects such as arts, archaeology, history, literature, music, philosophy, religion, sports, technology, all based on an abundant pictorial documentation and a way of bringing together visual documents and texts, enhanced by printing on coated paper. As commented in ''

L'Express (, stylized in all caps) is a French weekly news magazine headquartered in Paris. The weekly stands at the political centre-right in the French media landscape, and has a lifestyle supplement, ''L'Express Styles'', and a job supplement, ''R� ...

'': "All served by omnipresent iconography, which is in harmony with the text. ..In short, genuine monographs, published like art books. ..'Découvertes' changed the face of encyclopaedism and art book, adapting the book to the era of 'zapping'." In 2003, the Prix Livre d'art of the awards ceremony La Nuit du livre was established by Élisabeth Chainet, according to her, the prize "celebrates beauty in books, these masterpieces that reveal two talents: that of the author, whether he is a writer, photographer or illustrator, but also that of the manufacturer. The beauty of a book is in fact the result of a perfect encounter between the intellectual world of the author and the technical world of the manufacturer." Mimmo Paladino's and became the first winners of the prize, which are outstanding for their "adequacy between Paladino's illustrations and

Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...

's texts, the quality of page layout by Richard Médioni, the choice of paper, typography, binding, etc."

References

{{Reflist Book design Books by type Illustrated books Visual arts media

History

See also

References