Deb Rindl

The Human Chain
A multi-layered book of connections exploring events during the last two millennia in parallel with the fundamental essence of life - DNA. The common thread in both of these is their unchanging quality. Sometimes it seems that our only advance in twenty centuries is in the sophistication of the weaponry we use to dominate and kill each other. The technological aspect of modern life is underlined further when the book is held in its cover, thus resembling a slide under inspection in a microscope.

Times Square
Concertina book containing cut-outs based on a two times table. Designed in the early part of 2001, it has now become topical rather than merely an observation, being reminiscent of the grid design of New York streets and of the skyscrapers to be found there.

Exercise Book
A simple three-dimensional pun. At first glance this seems to be just a small version of a traditional exercise book but on further inspection the cuts and folds reveal a series of physical exercises. Printed letterpress.

A Recipe for Disaster
This bookwork is a response to the current conflict in Afghanistan. From the perspex container in the shape of a stealth bomber come forth a bomb and two smaller bomblets. The bomblets are constructed of 'pages' spelling out 'Collateral Damage' whilst the main bomb contains the nub of the message in its text. This is punctuated by bullet points, some being bomb-shaped, some like tears. The whole piece is carried in a grey card box reminiscent of an attractive sweet box, just as the cluster bombs being spread around Afghanistan are designed to resemble toys, to appeal to children and encourage them to be picked up. The results, of course, are disastrous.

Source

alphabet book with 26 lithographs

alphabet book with 26 lithographs
" The words in this alphabet book were selected from a dictionary. A series of 26 prints was created to accompany the words. Spontaneous drawing marks were used to create a chaos with the order of the alphabet representing the human
condition"




Source

Books by graduate students

Treating the heart as a symbol, this book is made as a box for two heart-shaped ceramic bowls. The pages are made with heart-like cutouts into which the bowls fit when closed, and that also serve as decorative elements repeating the theme. The book is made of four-ply two-colored illustration board and adhesive-bound together with the covers. Covers include a clasp which securely holds the book shut to prevent the bowls from falling out. This book incorporates three-dimensional objects, in this case ceramic bowls. It functions as a box and at the same time as a book about a heart.

The merger of 2 dimensional and 3 dimensional art. Over here the book is a secondary item to contain the heart. But it merges well enough to translate the concept into physical item.

Source

Karen Hanmer

Playful works fragment and layer text and image to intertwine memory, cultural history, and the history of science. I find her work has strong interest in dealing the the element of time and a play with viewer's mind.
An action or motion always exist in her pieces.
She also uses flag book structure to express this ongoing motion in her work.

Karen Hanmer

What are artists' books?

Artists' books are not books about art; they are art expressed through book form. When the content and form of a book are considered together, and given equal significance, the book becomes more than a simple container for information. The goal of many book artists is to involve the reader actively in the viewing process, not only to see the words on the page but also to think about how the words, pictures, and physical form of the object all contribute to the meaning.
In the western tradition, readers are so familiar with the codex or traditional book format that they rarely think about the form, only about the contents. To break out of this mindset, the format of the book must step out of the ordinary, in whatever small or large way, so that the reader will no longer take it for granted. Instead, the form of the book becomes an integral and dynamic part of the work and of the reader's experience. This can be achieved simply by changing the traditional codex form into a scroll or accordion, by altering the typography, or by the use of creative binding materials so that the work draws attention to itself as a whole. Some book artists go further, altering the form to the point that the book no longer functions for reading. Bindings have been torn, glued shut, or tied up, text may be transformed or unintelligible. All that is left is the idea of the book and the viewer's reaction to it.

Artists' books are not really a new concept. Several traditions in book publishing can be seen as precursors to this modern notion. Perhaps the earliest example of a book artist in the modern sense was William Blake (1757-1827). Blake, a poet, painter, engraver, and visionary mystic, produced a series of remarkable books in which the illustrations were intrinsic to his text. He not only wrote and illustrated the books, but also pulled the etchings, hand colored the plates, and sold them in multiple editions. However, he worked so far outside of the mainstream of his day, that he had no immediate followers.

A clearer line can be drawn from another nineteenth century artistic innovation. That is the livre d'artiste which became popular in France during the 1890's. The art dealer Ambroise Vollard began to commission his artists to illustrate texts, often classics, and then to have these works finely printed and bound. The livre d'artiste emphasized the illustrations in the book and produced a beautiful well-crafted work similar to today's fine press illustrated book. However, these are not works conceived and produced by the artist, and to some cannot be considered artists' books in the modern sense.

The idea of artists becoming involved with inexpensive multiple editions of their own works in published format may be seen in the work of the Futurists, Dadaists, and Constructivists of the early part of this century. These groups manipulated the boundaries between art forms particularly in the integration of typography and image in their manifestos. This trend was revived in the late 1950's and 1960's by the Fluxus group, who begin publishing their own works by creating the Something Else Press in 1964.

Finally changes in the larger art world of the 1960s were a key component of the development of the contemporary artists' book. During this period, artists sought ways to bypass the traditional gallery and museum systems. Alternative artists' spaces, co-ops, happenings, performance art, and other innovations became vehicles used to reject the materialism and bureaucracy of the mainstream contemporary art world. Advances in technology from Polaroid cameras to photocopiers to computers soon allowed artists to become their own publishers.

By UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE LIBRARY
Special Collections Department

Bind-O-Rama 2009

Source

list of book arts

list of book arts

http://www.dmoz.org/Arts/Crafts/Paper/Book_Arts/
http://www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk/artbkmks.htm

Blackbox2

Unexpected and provocative book created by designers for designers by Brand Managers for brand





A design catalogue by Victor Konovalov

Poetry and Art: The Letting Go

A fusion between poetry and art.
Reference point on how narrative form is depicted in a artist's book manner. The relationship between the poetry and the images reemphasize the text itself.
The elements of design used in this book reminded us about the destructive art by the Dada from the modern art.



Source

Pig 05049 by Christien Meindertsma

‘PIG 05049′ by Dutch designer Christien Meindertsma, a book documenting the products made from a pig, won the Play category of the Index Awards, which were announced yesterday.


Name of a pig whom was tagged with number 05049, was raised on a Dutch farm. And this book took her 3 years to find out where did the pig go after death. The pig was made into products and related to bullets.
Many kids nowadays have the problem even to visualise the animals, like pigs or chicken. They may just appear like a drawn picture in their mind instead of a live animal.
This is almost like a reverse analogy of what is happening to our world and addressing the the number of by-products one pig can be made into.

The aim of this book is to raise the awareness of our environment. Knowing where our primary resources come from, and hopefully, cherish them as if they are the first and the last on earth.


Her pages consist of minimium text and she emphasize on the visual statement on each page. It is also interesting to note that the visuals in the book are of 1:1 actual scale. An exhibition was also put up to publicize the idea. All the products were placed physically in a supermarket cooling fridge.

Poor Mr Pig...but its a lucky chap to have such a massive record of its after life.

Watch this video on how she and her prof talks about the project.


Website

Adele Outteridge

picture source
Bus ticket book that consist of 300 journeys. Everyday objects might not mean anything when it is stand alone. but when it is bounded together, the message is strong and clear.


picture source
Steps to enlightenment.
Exploded book binding. Yes. It is still a book since the pages are "binded" together.
I think book binding itself is an art form. Putting aside the functionality and economic aspects of a "proper book" for reading, book design is a true marry of art, craft and design. The space in between is very interesting that I could imagine more paper forms on each piece of paper and sculpted into a 3 dimensional building or something like that. That division of space allow viewers to imagine and dream.

A very inspiring and power piece that opens up my mind that book binding need not be pivoted at a point.




Picture source: Keith A.Smith and Fred A. Jordan, Bookbinding for book artists, Keith Smith book, 1998, NY, p.122

Outteridge is seen here as experimenting with materials and properties of materials. And a juggle between geometry and dimension. Same goes for the one below.


Picture source: Keith A.Smith and Fred A. Jordan, Bookbinding for book artists, Keith Smith book, 1998, NY, p.108


Picture source: Keith A.Smith and Fred A. Jordan, Bookbinding for book artists, Keith Smith book, 1998, NY, p.65

Again, daily objects used to create a book.
That reminded me of the Lipton tea bag tags I have been collecting since the start of this year.
I wonder how much can one push the boundary of using daily objects to make art?


A short biography of her can be found here

Alison Wilton

Alison Wilton, designer from US finds herself in the world of colours. Many of her works are loud and playful. "Perhaps one of the most exciting things about Allison’s passion for creation is the possibility she sees behind melding the boundaries that exist between fine art and design."
Thus, many of the books are experimental and wacky.
This book shown below is bounded by telephone wires. The book is an echo social networks online.




"Social networking sites have grown immensely in popularity in recent years. Along with growing popularity, controversy has arose as well. Concerns of privacy and the amount of personal information an individual choses to disclose are also an issue. There have been numerous incidents of violence and sexual abuse from social networking sites as well. myspace.com is a compilation of opinions and anecdotes about myspace and its recent rise in popularity."
Website

Katherina Manolessou

Illustrator Katherina Manolessou has created a number of limited edition books working with silk screen, linocut and letterpress printing. These personal projects have helped her to visually narrate stories and develop her illustration work. She finds taking charge of the whole process, from idea generation to bookbinding.



Manolessou states that 'skills in typography, design and layout are essential for an image-maker, enabling you to speak the designer/art director's language, create self-promotional material and engage in a wider variety of projects. Manolessou also collaborates on book projects with illustrator and printmaker Otto Dettmer.

I like the use of accordion binding to bring the colours of the illustration instantly to the viewer. As if presenting an overview of the narrative story in a shot.

Image from Website
Write up: Wigan, Mark. Text and Image. Singapore: AVA Publishing SA, 2008.

Lesley Moore

Lesley Moore was founded by Karin van den Brandt and Alex Clay situated in Netherlands.
From here



A very simple use of Ledger bound with flat cords for the binding. Which most probably to bring out the simplicity of the overall look of the design.




Inspiring page design, breaking the boundaries of traditional books. Reminded us about the art of origami foldings that most probably reflects the products shown in this catalogue.

Book Art

"Nowadays, book art reaches beyond the traditional ink and paper format, and incorporates a vast range of materials, techniques and methodologies... the book art genre encompasses approaches from multiple to limited edition livres d'artistes, from small press handcrafted books to book-like works of art..."

Those who have pioneered development in this field include William Morris, the Kelmscott Press, William Blake, Ambroise Vollard, the Futurists, Dadaists, Surrealists, Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst, Sonia Delaunay, Jean Dubuffet, Fluxus, Ed Ruscha, Liliane Lijn, Dieter Roth, Sol LeWitt, Tom Philips and Rachel Whiteread.

Exploring the book as a vehicle for personal creative expression allows illustrators to investigate and integrate:

• Form and Function
  
• Content
  
• Narrative
  
• structure
  
• texture
  
• format
  
• paper
  
• engineering
  
• text, image and object relationships
  
• pacing
  
• pagination
  
• sequence
  
• juxtaposition
  
• time
  

Information from: Wigan, Mark. Text and Image. Singapore: AVA Publishing SA, 2008.