Digital Artists' Books Exhibition

The wonderful Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library at Emory University has created "The Artists' Books Showcase", a digital exhibition spotlighting some of the limited-edition and one-of-a-kind artists' books in MARBL's collection.

The site is easy to navigate, offering access to:

✦ All Books ~ The treasury of books selected for the showcase is available in three sections; each section comprises a display of images of books (images have been provided by the artists and may not be downloaded). For each artist book represented by an image, MARBL provides a title, description, creator's name, source, date, format, identifier(s), original format, physical dimensions, and citation(s).  In some cases additional images of the book are provided. An easy-reference list of books to browse is here. An easy-reference list by collection is here.

✦ Altered Books ~ This section comprises an essay about several specific artists' use of books and how they alter them. The well-known Brian Dettmer is one of the artists mentioned here.

✦ Glossary ~ Included here are common terms that identify specific kinds of artists' books. Images of examples from MARBL's collection are provided to show the construction of each type. 

✦ Miniature Books ~ This section offers a brief introduction to miniature artists' books in MARBL's collection; singled out are four presses (Peter  and Donna Thomas, De Walden Press, Mystical Places Press, and Patrice Baldwin's Pequeno Press) specializing in the production of these tiny books. As in other sections, the sources consulted are listed and hyperlinked.

✦ Student Work: Writing About Literature ~ Essays by Emory instructor Amy E. Elkins and three students address the use of artists' books in the classroom and for assignments.

✦ Women and the Artist's Book ~ A brief essay looks at why and how artists who are women have come to dominate the field of artists' books. It highlights the materials, techniques, and processes of four artists in particular: Ellen Knudson, Julie Shaw Lutts, Robbin Ami Silverberg, and Maria G. Pisano.

MARBL's collection includes artists' books from the Raymond Danowski Poetry Library (see my August 26, 2013, post), books from Nexus Press, Granary Books, and Coracle Press, and books by such artists as Ed Ruscha and the duo Gilbert and George.

Kudos to MARBL for this excellent resource for educators, researchers, and collectors of artists' books and for its other initiatives to digitize and make widely accessible rare or special collections that most of us otherwise would be unable to see!