Where artists' books and the book arts meet online...
21st Century Book
Information
A group to discuss and contextualise traditional publishing formats for artists’ books and also quantify how artists are using new technologies as publishing tools.
Website: http://www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk/canon.htm
Members: 83
Latest Activity: Nov 20
Background to this Discussion
We believe that content is paramount for any artist’s book, yet format is also part of its context. We are currently working on a 2-year AHRC funded project (www.ahrc.ac.uk) at the Centre for Fine Print Research at the University of the West of England, UK, where our aim is to create a manifesto for a canon of the 21st Century artist’s book.
This discussion will form part of the related publications, which as a whole, we hope will illustrate and contextualise all formats of artists’ publishing. The study will consider the traditional publishing formats for artists’ books and assess their potential for future expansion within the field. We also aim to quantify how artists are using new technologies and screen-based media as publishing tools.
In the UK we are hosting seminars and a conference, organising an exhibition and running free publishing day surgeries for artists as part of the project. We are also interviewing artists, librarians, collectors, publishers, curators, educators and students around the world. These will all be added to our website, which we are regularly updating (www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk/canon.htm) and where we are also conducting an online survey that we invite you to join.
Johanna Drucker stated in 2005 that "…we don't have a good, specific, descriptive vocabulary on which to form our assessment of book works.” (see the whole article online at www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/ Critical issues/Exemplary works, Johanna Drucker, The Bonefolder, Volume 1, Number 2, Spring 2005).
We would like to address some of these problems with input from the international community, and will publish all our results as freely and accessibly as possible. The questions for the discussion start with What will this terminology be? We think that perhaps “book arts” or “artists’ books” have become too small an umbrella; perhaps “artists’ publications” would give us a better heading to start classifying and contextualising the field.
Wouldn’t it be great if a book artist could go anywhere and say what kind of book they made, and everyone they met would understand exactly what they meant? So, perhaps to put it simply, this is what we are trying to do, to make a proposal for an international language; a contextual descriptor for any type of artist’s book.
We are really keen to hear your views. The most efficient way of doing this is to start the discussion online and we will do our best to monitor and keep the threads going regularly.
Please note: Before you do join in the discussion, please be aware that this is part of a research study, and the comments made in this public domain could be used as part of our research findings free online publication (accredited to you) available from www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk in 2010. For further details on the project please visit: www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk/canon.htm
This discussion will form part of the related publications, which as a whole, we hope will illustrate and contextualise all formats of artists’ publishing. The study will consider the traditional publishing formats for artists’ books and assess their potential for future expansion within the field. We also aim to quantify how artists are using new technologies and screen-based media as publishing tools.
In the UK we are hosting seminars and a conference, organising an exhibition and running free publishing day surgeries for artists as part of the project. We are also interviewing artists, librarians, collectors, publishers, curators, educators and students around the world. These will all be added to our website, which we are regularly updating (www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk/canon.htm) and where we are also conducting an online survey that we invite you to join.
Johanna Drucker stated in 2005 that "…we don't have a good, specific, descriptive vocabulary on which to form our assessment of book works.” (see the whole article online at www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/ Critical issues/Exemplary works, Johanna Drucker, The Bonefolder, Volume 1, Number 2, Spring 2005).
We would like to address some of these problems with input from the international community, and will publish all our results as freely and accessibly as possible. The questions for the discussion start with What will this terminology be? We think that perhaps “book arts” or “artists’ books” have become too small an umbrella; perhaps “artists’ publications” would give us a better heading to start classifying and contextualising the field.
Wouldn’t it be great if a book artist could go anywhere and say what kind of book they made, and everyone they met would understand exactly what they meant? So, perhaps to put it simply, this is what we are trying to do, to make a proposal for an international language; a contextual descriptor for any type of artist’s book.
We are really keen to hear your views. The most efficient way of doing this is to start the discussion online and we will do our best to monitor and keep the threads going regularly.
Please note: Before you do join in the discussion, please be aware that this is part of a research study, and the comments made in this public domain could be used as part of our research findings free online publication (accredited to you) available from www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk in 2010. For further details on the project please visit: www.bookarts.uwe.ac.uk/canon.htm
Discussion Forum
Theorizing the artists book 3 Replies
Started by Charles Brownson. Last reply by Charles Brownson Nov 20.
Artists' Books or Artists' Publications? 37 Replies
Started by Tom Sowden. Last reply by Jackie Wills Nov 3.
Defining the book. 8 Replies
Started by Tom Sowden. Last reply by Charles Brownson Feb 21.
Comment Wall
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Comment by Robert Heather on July 31, 2009 at 11:44am - This article was in The Age newspaper last weekend and this fellow is coming to Melbourne tyo speak at our Writers Festival...
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Comment by Natalie d'Arbeloff on February 21, 2009 at 12:15pm -
Hello. As a painter/printmaker, I started making books, mainly in the 'livre d'artiste' genre, in the mid-1970s and a retrospective show of my bookworks was held in the Hague at the Museum of the Book (Rijksmuseum Meermanno Westreenianum) in 1992. I've been more involved in the digital world for the past 8 years and have published a book via Print on Demand but it's hard to classify this as an artist's book. I'd be interested in the research you're doing and am available for interview if you're interested. More about my press and work is on my website:
http://www.nataliedarbeloff.com
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Comment by Tom Sowden on October 8, 2008 at 10:24pm -
Hello everyone.
It's really good to see so many of you have joined this group. Sarah and I would really appreciate your comments on the discussions we have started, the more contributions the better, so please post a reply. If you know of anyone else who might be interested, then please also invite them to join the group and the discussions.
Tom and Sarah
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Comment by Sarah Bodman on September 22, 2008 at 9:59pm -
Hi everyone and thank you for joining already!
We kick off this Wednesday 24th September and look forward to talking to you.
Sarah and Tom
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Comment by malcolm enright on September 22, 2008 at 8:43pm -
I did the survey and posted to Sarah this time last week, I've also downloaded the above schematic and altered it to reflect my experience so far, as requested. I do hope that each member of the discussion does the same (and lets see how this takes the research into newer forms of the artist book) . . .
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Comment by Tom Sowden on September 19, 2008 at 10:20pm
- Please join this group and help us with our latest project (please see web address above for more details). We will be starting a discussion on Wednesday 24th September.
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