The Fettered Lettered: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
|||
| Line 9: | Line 9: | ||
The rise of the 20th-century genre of the artists’ book has muddled the very meaning of a book, “resist[ing] definition, taking multiple forms and pursuing multifarious themes.”<ref name="Miline">Milne, Jo. “Artists’ Books as Resistant Transmitters.” ''Arts'', vol. 8, no. 4, 9 Oct. 2019, pp. 1–10, https://doi.org/10.3390/arts8040129.</ref> Many scholars and artists have argued that there is no apt definition of this genre without flattening the diversity of these books (too vague) or being inherently exclusionary (too specific).<ref name="Drucker">Drucker, Johanna. ''The Century of Artists’ Books''. Granary Books, 2004.</ref> Artists’ books vary extensively in form, aesthetic, production, circulation, materiality, etc. As Johanna Drucker writes in The Century of Artists’ Books, “[a]rtists' books take every possible form, participate in every possible convention of book making; every possible ‘ism’ of mainstream art and literature, every possible mode of production, every shape, every degree of ephemerality or archival durability.”<ref name= "Drucker"/> | The rise of the 20th-century genre of the artists’ book has muddled the very meaning of a book, “resist[ing] definition, taking multiple forms and pursuing multifarious themes.”<ref name="Miline">Milne, Jo. “Artists’ Books as Resistant Transmitters.” ''Arts'', vol. 8, no. 4, 9 Oct. 2019, pp. 1–10, https://doi.org/10.3390/arts8040129.</ref> Many scholars and artists have argued that there is no apt definition of this genre without flattening the diversity of these books (too vague) or being inherently exclusionary (too specific).<ref name="Drucker">Drucker, Johanna. ''The Century of Artists’ Books''. Granary Books, 2004.</ref> Artists’ books vary extensively in form, aesthetic, production, circulation, materiality, etc. As Johanna Drucker writes in The Century of Artists’ Books, “[a]rtists' books take every possible form, participate in every possible convention of book making; every possible ‘ism’ of mainstream art and literature, every possible mode of production, every shape, every degree of ephemerality or archival durability.”<ref name= "Drucker"/> | ||
Artists’ books are typically published through independent publishers, which helps to illuminate the history in which the artists’ book is situated — a history of wanting “to make a voice heard, or a vision available…”<ref name= "Drucker"/> The genre of the artist’s book is intimately linked to what Drucker refers to as the “activist artist” or the leveraging of art to inspire political or social consciousness and change.<ref name= "Drucker"/> Because books can be circulated widely and freely; are low maintenance | Artists’ books are typically published through independent publishers, which helps to illuminate the history in which the artists’ book is situated — a history of wanting “to make a voice heard, or a vision available…”<ref name= "Drucker"/> The genre of the artist’s book is intimately linked to what Drucker refers to as the “activist artist” or the leveraging of art to inspire political or social consciousness and change.<ref name= "Drucker"/> Because books can be circulated widely and freely; are low maintenance, long-lasting objects; and formally offer a means to communicate “beyond the limits of an individual life or contacts,” their formal and material aspects have a significant relationship to the typical content.<ref name= "Drucker"/> | ||
Many artists’ books are either a unique work; a limited edition; or an inconsistent edition, making them “rare” and/or “auratic” objects.<ref name= "Drucker"/> Not only are many artists’ books literally rare, many might seem to have an “auratic” character, producing an unexplainable level of interest or fascination. As Drucker explains, “[t]his is not the same as respect, interest, or other forms of engagement. It has to do with tapping into a certain level of the fantasmatic…”<ref name= "Drucker"/> | Many artists’ books are either a unique work; a limited edition; or an inconsistent edition, making them “rare” and/or “auratic” objects.<ref name= "Drucker"/> Not only are many artists’ books literally rare, many might seem to have an “auratic” character, producing an unexplainable level of interest or fascination. As Drucker explains, “[t]his is not the same as respect, interest, or other forms of engagement. It has to do with tapping into a certain level of the fantasmatic…”<ref name= "Drucker"/> | ||
Revision as of 18:12, 22 April 2024
Introduction
The Fettered Lettered, created in Bologna, Italy by Angela Lorenz in 2007, was sold to Penn Libraries by Booklyn in 2022 with support from the Ruth and Marvin Sackner Fund for the Arts of the Contemporary Book. Part of the University of Pennsylvania's Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, this artists’ book is one of many in the collection. Like many other artists' books, the Fettered Lettered is a highly limited edition, with only 19 copies.
A rough draft of this book was exhibited at the Addison Gallery of American Art from September to December of 2007 in Andover, Massachusetts. This exhibition provided the opportunity for the public to anonymously contribute suggestions of additional incarcerated/confined authors or works written while in confinement.
Genre of the Artists' Book
The rise of the 20th-century genre of the artists’ book has muddled the very meaning of a book, “resist[ing] definition, taking multiple forms and pursuing multifarious themes.”[1] Many scholars and artists have argued that there is no apt definition of this genre without flattening the diversity of these books (too vague) or being inherently exclusionary (too specific).[2] Artists’ books vary extensively in form, aesthetic, production, circulation, materiality, etc. As Johanna Drucker writes in The Century of Artists’ Books, “[a]rtists' books take every possible form, participate in every possible convention of book making; every possible ‘ism’ of mainstream art and literature, every possible mode of production, every shape, every degree of ephemerality or archival durability.”[2]
Artists’ books are typically published through independent publishers, which helps to illuminate the history in which the artists’ book is situated — a history of wanting “to make a voice heard, or a vision available…”[2] The genre of the artist’s book is intimately linked to what Drucker refers to as the “activist artist” or the leveraging of art to inspire political or social consciousness and change.[2] Because books can be circulated widely and freely; are low maintenance, long-lasting objects; and formally offer a means to communicate “beyond the limits of an individual life or contacts,” their formal and material aspects have a significant relationship to the typical content.[2]
Many artists’ books are either a unique work; a limited edition; or an inconsistent edition, making them “rare” and/or “auratic” objects.[2] Not only are many artists’ books literally rare, many might seem to have an “auratic” character, producing an unexplainable level of interest or fascination. As Drucker explains, “[t]his is not the same as respect, interest, or other forms of engagement. It has to do with tapping into a certain level of the fantasmatic…”[2]