The act of reading books is an inherently sensory process. We read by sight, locating titles on covers, scanning sentences, allowing the words to form pictures in our minds. We flip through pages, leaving physical reminders of our progress. Dog-eared corners and cracked spines serve as evidence of our interaction with the content. Yet in an era dominated by digital technology, the role of the physical book is in flux. Words are no longer bound to the page but are weightless, accessible to anyone with an Internet connection. Thus when content does appear in book form this relationship is increasingly meaningful.
Book art addresses this tension, requiring that books be read not only as texts but also in terms of form, as aesthetic objects. Over the past several decades, Allan Chasanoff, B. A. 1961, has been acquiring artworks that reflect the book's changing place in society, assembling a vast collection that has recently been donated to the Yale University Art Gallery. Odd Volumes: Book Art from the Alan Chasanoff Collection features a selection of over one hundred works of art that use the book as the basis for experimental new objects. Some of these works are primarily sculptural, highlighting or manipulating the shape of the book. Others question the very concept of reading, employing the book to reflect on how we acquire knowledge in the digital age. Engaging a range of themes--including the history of the book and the relationship between viewer and work--the objects in the exhibition challenge the viewer to interact with books in ways they may never have imagined possible.*
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The works exhibited are stunning, imaginative, skillfully created, thought provoking. I photographed many and will share them over the course of several posts. Of the works in display cases, I only managed to photograph two without too much intrusive glare from the lights.
I'm posting in chronological order of how I viewed them. Hopefully, I've got all the tag info paired correctly.
Enjoy the photos.
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Mary Ziegler, The Necessity of Friction, full
Mary Ziegler, The Necessity of Friction, detail
Mary Ziegler
American, born 1959
The Necessity of Friction, 1994
found copy of Lenard Gross's How Much is Too Much,
electric motor, steel, magnesium, and sandpaper
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Svea Seredin, Passing Down, full
Svea Seredin, Passing Down, detail
Svea Seredin, Passing Down, detail
Svea Seredin, Passing Down, shadows
Svea Seredin
American, born 1962
Passing Down, 1993
found and altered book pages with nylon,
in a wooden frame
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Michel Mangard, Livre découpé, full
Michel Mangard, Livre découpé, detail
Michel Mangard
French, born 1948
Livre découpé (Cut-Up Book), 1985
Found and cut book stapled to a wooden plaque
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Georgia Boyd Russell, Nest, full
Georgia Boyd Russell, Nest, detail
Scottish, born 1974
Nest, 2008
found copy of The Royal English Dictionary with
shredded and cut pages, and transparent wire
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Scott McCarney, New Age Encyclopedia Index, full
Scott McCarney, New Age Encyclopedia Index, view from above
Scott McCarney, New Age Encyclopedia Index, detail
American, born 1954
New Age Encyclopedia Index, 1989
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Byron Clercx, Axiom, full
Byron Clercx, Axiom, detail of handle
Byron Clercx
American, born 1960
Axiom, 1993
found newspaper and theory books on postmodern art criticism
with glue and resin, and metal
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Byron D. Clercx, Big Stick #2, full view from end
Byron D. Clercx, Big Stick #2, full view from end
Byron D. Clercx
American, born 1960
Big Stick #2 (21st Century Edition)
ca. 1993, repaired and reissued 2011
found pages from the complete writings of Sigmund Freud
with glue and resin, in a custom leather case
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I'd like to request that if you happen to post any of my photos to another site (pinterest, tumblr), you take care to credit the artist and to give me photo credit as well. All photos were taken by me on January 29, 2015. Thank you! Stay tuned for more.
*on wall near beginning of exhibition
