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What a fabulous question to contemplate on a Friday morning! Forgive me if I wax poetical, but to me artist books are indeed magical. They stretch the definitions of book and art and how those two intersect to create some entirely new dimension. They are touchable art, made for the viewer to hold and look at in an intimate one-on-one relationship that cannot, I believe, be duplicated with (almost) any other art form. They are sensual and sensory, with the feel of the paper or materials, the smell of the ink and (sometimes) of the contents, the opportunity to see how a book is made, bound, sewn, folded, constructed, printed, colored - all of which add so many dimensions to the work that do no occur with other art objects. They are junctures of technology, technique, ideas and aesthetics in a (usually) portable, (usually) recognizable, (usually) comprehensible form, but their form and structure can be anything. They are holistic works, with the form working with (or sometimes against) the content, requiring the .reader/viewer to participate in the creation of meaning and in trying to understand the decisions the artist(s) made when constructing the object. They are, in my opinion, the perfect work of art! Best to all, Moira ______________________________________ Moira Steven, Library Director Joanne Waxman Library @ Maine College of Art 522 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04101 207-775-5153 (general)/207-699-5090 (direct line)/207-775-5087 (fax) "We shouldn't teach great books; we should teach a love of reading." - B.F. Skinner Please consider the environment before printing this message. On Thu, Nov 18, 2010 at 9:56 AM, Jenny Beard <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Art Librarians, > > I've been thinking about the relationship between librarians and artists > books. The benefit to artists books is obvious: librarians have fostered the > medium from the beginning by purchasing, preserving, offering critical > perspective, and acting as defenders of the medium. > > What is less discussed is how librarians and libraries benefit from their > relationship with artists books. Of course there is pleasure in collecting > as well as fulfilling the mission to preserve the cultural objects of our > time. But is there a passion for artists books that, I think, borders the > mysterious. > > How can I better understand the personal and passionate interest of so many > art librarians and curators in artists books? > For instance, how would a librarian be effected if their institution's > collection of artists books was absorbed by another department or perhaps, > sold off? The large collections of artists books seem to be in art > libraries,and often in art museum libraries. Why not in art museum > curatorial departments? How does the presence of artists book in library > collection effect the morale of librarians? > What do artists books signify to librarians? > > I'm wondering if anyone has any notions or personal anecdotes about why > artists books are so very valuable to the profession of librarianship? > > I would be very grateful for your comments, observations or references to > interesting articles. > > Jenny Beard > Graduate Assistant, Image Cataloger > Pratt SILS > MLIS Candidate, 2011 > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > Mail submissions to [log in to unmask] For information about joining > ARLIS/NA see: http://www.arlisna.org/join.html Send administrative matters > (file requests, subscription requests, etc) to [log in to unmask] Archives and subscription maintenance: > http://lsv.arlisna.org Questions may be addressed to list owner (Judy > Dyki) at: [log in to unmask] > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Mail submissions to [log in to unmask] For information about joining ARLIS/NA see: http://www.arlisna.org/join.html Send administrative matters (file requests, subscription requests, etc) to [log in to unmask] ARLIS-L Archives and subscription maintenance: http://lsv.arlisna.org Questions may be addressed to list owner (Judy Dyki) at: [log in to unmask] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~