Many old books simply get thrown out—even by libraries. Artists have found a better second life for unwanted books.
Jonathan Callan of London – The Defrauder.
joseebienvenugallery.com
Jonathan Callen uses large screws to hold the books together.
joseebienvenugallery.com
Jonathan Callen – The theoretical assumptions of management, 2008.
Originally found at “https://www.artnet.com/galleries/kudlek-van-der-grinten-galerie/”
Cara Barer of Houston, Texas.
“No important books have been injured during the making of any of these photographs.”
Cara Barer
Whirligig 2006, 36” x 36” “I realized I owned many books that were no longer of use to me, or for that matter, anyone else. Would I ever need “Windows 95?” After soaking it in the bathtub for a few hours, it had a new shape and purpose.” www.carabarer.com
Psigologica biologica, (2012) by
Barbara Wildenboer barbarawildenboer.com
Book art by Ekaterina Panikanova, born in St. Petersburg in 1975, lives and works in Rome and St. Petersburg. www.ekaterinapanikanova.com
Book art by Ekaterina Panikanova.
www.ekaterinapanikanova.com
Matej Krén
Book Cell, Centro de Arte Moderna – Foundation Calouste Gulbenkian, Lisbon, Portugal, 2006. The artist has done numerous such book installations. www.matejkren.cz/en
Matej Krén
Inside of above Book Cell.
The artist currently lives and works in Prague.
Photo by Ferran Moreno Lanza, www.flickr.com
Daniel Essig
Asheville, North Carolina. Uses found books that have mangled spines and covers but good quality paper, and he uses that paper in his work. Often, as in this work, he uses old Bibles with exceptionally thin paper, which has a nice drape and flow. This work is a single structure that can be hung on the wall. danielessig.com
Book art by an anynomous artist found in Edinburgh. From March to November of 2011, ten small book sculptures with tags saying “In support of libraries, books, words, and ideas” were found in various book-friendly locations in Scotland.
Book art by an anynomous artist found in Edinburgh. From March to November of 2011, ten small book sculptures with tags saying “In support of libraries, books, words, and ideas” were found in various book-friendly locations in Scotland. schoollibrarybeyondsurvival.wordpress.com
Buddha carved from books.
Image courtesy of the artist / Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art.
Long-Bin Chen (Taiwanese, b.1964) halsey.cofc.edu
Indian Buddha carved from phone books.
By Long-Bin Chen (Taiwanese, b.1964)
Originally found at artnet.com
Book carvings from the culture warrior series.
Long-Bin Chen (Taiwanese, b.1964)
Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art.
halsey.cofc.edu
Book sculpture from the icon series.
Long-Bin Chen (Taiwanese, b.1964)
Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art.
halsey.cofc.edu
Wim Botha
Born in 1974, graduated from the University of Pretoria in 1996, and currently lives in Cape Town. Pic source Dealer: stevenson.info
.jpg "books as art")
Pablo Lehmann – Dialogues – Intricate book cut outs – which are then photographed.
www.pablolehmann.com.ar
Close up of Pablo’s work.
Pablo Lehmann – Ties 1
Argentinian. Professor at IUNA, Buenos Aires.
www.pablolehmann.com.ar
I Could Tell You,
2011, Paperback books, acrylic medium, 7” x 95” x 3″
Image Courtesy of the Artist and Packer Schopf.
briandettmer.com
Close up of similar to above.
By Brian Dettmer, briandettmer.com
Brian Dettmer – briandettmer.com
Formerly of Chicago, now living in Atlanta.
Brian Dettmer – briandettmer.com
“I begin with an existing book and seal its edges, creating an enclosed vessel full of unearthed potential. I cut into the surface of the book and dissect through it from the front. I work with knives, tweezers and other surgical tools to carve one page at a time, exposing each page while cutting around ideas and images of interest. Nothing inside the books is relocated or implanted, only removed. Images and ideas are revealed to expose a book’s hidden, fragmented memory. The completed pieces expose new relationships of a book’s internal elements exactly where they have been since their original conception.”
Brian Dettmer – briandettmer.com
Brian Dettmer – close up.
briandettmer.com
Brian Dettmer – close up of door below.
briandettmer.com
Emergency Exit
Paperback books with acrylic varnish, 2012.
by Brian Dettmer briandettmer.com
Brian Dettmer www.briandettmer.com
See the excellent video interview with the artist below…
Censored Book, 1974.
Book tied in rope, nailed, gessoed and painted.
By Barton Benes. centerforbookarts.org
Biblios
Guy Laramee: www.guylaramee.com
Grand Larousse (2010)
Guy Laramee: www.guylaramee.com
Historia das americas (2009)
Guy Laramee: www.guylaramee.com
Jorinde and Jorindel, 2010
by Su Blackwell. sublackwell.co.uk
Book Sculpture, Drowning from Obsession
By Thomas Wightman, www.thomaswightman.co.uk
Book Sculpture, Derailing my train of Thought
By Thomas Wightman, thomaswightman.co.uk
Book Sculpture Derailing my train of Thought, 2013.
By Thomas Wightman, thomaswightman.co.uk
An altered book or “book excavation” Skulduggery by James Allen.
“I opened this tome of DC Comics somewhere in the middle, laid it flat, and cut down through the pages of both the front and back covers. Through the right panel we see the distant past and as the pages go deeper we see more and more recent images. While the left panel shows the most recent images and the deeper pages reveal images from further in the past. In this way the pages of the book show a condensed history of all the 75 years of DC Comics all in one vignette.” 23sandy.com
Herder 9 by Alexander Korzer-Robinson
cut encyclopedia, 1930, 25 x 17 x 6cm.
White space and words cut away, “an encyclopedia can become a window into an alternate world, much like lived reality becomes its alternate in remembered experience. These books, having been stripped of their utilitarian value by the passage of time, regain new purpose.” alexanderkorzerrobinson.co.uk
Rune Guneriussen – Norway
It´s common knowledge, 2009, edition of 5+1, 187cmx150cm, c-print
www.runeguneriussen.no
Maurizio Cattelan
Oh Mariana, Mariana, Mariana
www.nymag.com
Robert The
‘Reader’s Digest’ Cake frosted with wax, 1998.
www.blogs.walkerart.org Walker Art Center Library’s collection.
Robeert The
Britannaca Book Broom
www.beautifullife.info
Robert The
‘Poetic Justice’
www.bookgun.com
White Undulation by Amy Genser
Rolled paper.
www.amygenser.com
Nick Georgiou
Bon Papier.
www.myhumancomputer.blogspot.com
Nick Georgiou
The Happy Shaman
www.myhumancomputer.blogspot.com
Nick Georgiou
The Meeting (in Nick’s Studio) of newspaper people.
www.myhumancomputer.blogspot.com
Nick Georgiou
Of Queens, NY – currently living in Tucson, AZ
Nick says his art is inspired by the death of the printed word.
www.myhumancomputer.blogspot.com
The Librarian, 1960, George Herms.
Wooden box, papers, books, loving cup, and painted stool. 57 x 63 x 21 in. Norton Simon Museum, Gift of Molly Barnes. © George Herms. blogs.getty.edu
Jacqueline Rush Lee
‘Stack’ 50″ high, from the Volume series created in 2000. The books are wet, dried, then screwed together into organic and geometric forms.
www.jacquelinerushlee.com
Jacqueline Rush Lee
Slice Trio, from the Volumes series 2001, created in 2000.
www.jacquelinerushlee.com
Alicia Martin
Spanish – Galleria Galica, Italy.
www.galica.it
Alicia Martin
Spanish.
www.blipoint.com
Mike Stilkey
Of Los Angeles. Source. www.mikestilkey.com
Mike Stilkey
Of Los Angeles.
mikestilkey.com
Mike Stilkey The Pipe
2009, ink, colored pencil and lacquer on vintage book pages, 33×24 inches
www.mikestilkey.com
Alex Queral
Carves faces into phonebooks.
Born in Cuba, received an M.F.A. from the University of Pennsylvania. His works have been exhibited in Canada, England, Mexico and throughout the U.S..
www.projectsgallery.com
Yuken Teruya
Based in New York, the artist constructs intricate paper cuttings with various materials such as toilet paper rolls and paper shopping bags. His ideas often reflect the life and history of Okinawa, his homeland.
www.yukenteruyastudio.com
.jpg "vases from old books")
Book Vases by Laura Cahill
Laura uses a band saw – then inserts glass tubes inside for the water. She says “I discovered that the glue in old books make them extremely difficult to recycle.”
Via www.dezeen.com
Waldo Lee, aka WALEE – digital artist/photographer – plays some photoshop games. www.behance.net
Book Bow Tie. Bind some pages in the centre with a piece of leather or fabric. via: no-aesthetic.tumblr.com
Origami Books
Just unfold and read! By Isaac Salazar www.flickr.com/photos/bookofart
Brian Dettmer
TED Video – worth a watch!
Long-Bin Chen
College of Charleston — 2013 Spoleto Festival USA.
Excellent video of sanding and nailing books here: youtube.com
BookLovers – check out this amazing site: bookshelfporn.com
Thanks for nice photos, really enjoyed. Appreciate your concept, taste and pretty collections.
Thanks for gathering these images. Beautiful work, great concept. Would love to attend an exhibit of works such as these.
Very creative. Fascinating. Fourth dimensional craft. Love it all!
HEY JUST A BIG SHOUT OUT TO SAY, I LOVE WHAT YOU DID WITH YOUR INSPIRATION! THANK YOU FOR SHARING! <3 DS
interesting! At first, I was shocked to see that many books going, but $ stores are packed with them and trash cans too throughout America and the world. Inspiring to see what free time can achieve with lots of lost knowledge
Amazing – so creative – I started the page by thinking this is more installation work and not practical but ended up thinking ‘what fun’! I wish I was so clever!
WOW! Anything i can readily think of to say bout this sounds so trite when I read what I have written! Your creativity is amazing. T have thought of all the various ways in which you’ve used these books is mind-boggling! Your art works are truly inspiring and thought-provoking.
I think I’LL START OUT WITH A COFFEE TABLE!
Living in a family of librarians I was told that a book should never be thrown away. But what do you do with a book that has done its time? This is inspiring and amazing a great use for old, but as we seen here, never useless books. Books in themselves are beautiful objects regarless of what is written inside and this just utilizes their form to the next level. Thanks for this compilation of beautiful book art.
I’m completely awed…They’re all magnificent.
What a great gallery of book art. I love it! The images kept getting more and more intriguing.
Thanks for putting this together. Book love at its best!
Thomas Allen’s ‘Paper Cuts’
https://thomasallenonline.com/
While Martej Kren’s work is very impressive, the carved head is infact Wim Botha’s – a South African artist:
https://www.michaelstevenson.com/contemporary/exhibitions/botha/index2009.htm
Check it out.
wow, this adds a whole new twist to my library. I’m so impressed!
these creations are example of extreme artistic passion
Just superb.
sell used textbooks
I always wonder what to do with the books we can’t use at the Friends of the Library sorting garage. Now I only have may imagaination to limit me.
What a glorious site! Thanks
Thank you for showcasing my work. I always appreciate it when bloggers take the time to peruse artworks and post inspirational works. I’d like to add that the works that you posted above are from my VOLUMES series from 2001, originally created in 2000. These are books that were wet, dried, then screwed together into organic and geometric forms. As in most of my work the colored edges from the inks are showcased, concepts and techniques that continue into my works of today. I thought I’d point out the dates as I think it’s important to include them with the work as it gives the viewer the perspective of a timeline of who created what, when and why. Thanks! Jacqueline (Rush Lee)
I didn’t know where to find this info then kboaom it was here.
Wow! Exciting! Came to this by accident. Thank you for your work.
As an artist and collector of books I was absolutely thrilled to see so many creative book ideas together in one collection of images…the work is abosolutely wonderful and thought provoking…I am currently helping a friend organize her home and can’t wait to share some of these images with her on what we can do with all those books she dosen’t want to part with. She collects art so why not! I have seen wood piles stacked differently to identify the owner so moving from this and with your ideas we may build some of that new furniture she wants out of books….thanks for the inspriration…..at the very least I will be contacting for permission to reproduce a print one of these ideas to hang as a reminder to my fellow hoarders!!!!
This is possibly the best webstie ive ever come across for art. So inspirational and full of personality. When you think it cant get better it does! really enjoyed the #Art from old books. Brilliant.
Marvelous page of book art
Looking for pictures of people made out of books
Love it love it love it!!!! Inspirational.
What ingenius creations-
out of this world — +then some!
Man’s ever-expanding creativity dazzles+inspires!!!
Thanks–this video is just great!
Tengo un proyecto relacionado con el aprovechamiento de libros como base de obras artísticas, creando una empresa de economía social, capaz de dar puestos de trabajo a jóvenes artistas, sin interés material por mi parte.
Agradeceré cuanta información puedan darme quienes tengan experiencia en estas técnicas, admitiendo su posible colaboración en el proyecto. Gracias y un cordial saludo.
What an amazing collection of images and artists! I’m so glad I stumbled on this post, thanks for putting this inspiring collection together.
I have a contribution too – check out artist Rachel Colwell and her art of erasure using old and discarded books!
https://oakland.figmentproject.org/the_art_of_subtraction_artist_rachel_colwell_on_the_meaning_of_erasure