Altered book
Encyclopedia
An altered book is a form of mixed media
artwork
that changes a book from its original form into a different form, altering its appearance and/or meaning.
An altered book artist
takes a book (old, new, recycled or multiple) and cuts, tears, glues, burns, folds, paints, adds to, collage
s, rebinds, gold-leaf
s, creates pop-ups, rubber-stamps, drills, bolts, and/or be-ribbons it. The artist may add pockets and niches to hold tags, rocks
, ephemera
, or other three-dimensional objects. Some change the shape of the book, or use multiple books in the creation of the finished piece of art.
Altered books may be as simple as adding a drawing or text to a page, or as complex as creating an intricate book sculpture. Antique or Victorian
art is frequently used, probably because it is easier to avoid copyright issues. Altered books are shown and sold in art galleries and on the Internet
.
An exhibition of altered books by contemporary artists was shown at the Bellevue Arts Museum
in 2009, titled The Book Borrowers. It contained 31 works, books transformed into sculptural works. The John Michael Kohler Arts Center
will host an exhibition of altered books in early 2010.
A NOTE : Altered books may include collage, painting and colouring in illustrations. Collaging is one of the most popular methods to use as it's a simple, easy and quick. Children especially like to colour in the illustrations inside the covers of their very favourite books, with felt-tips or normal kid-safe pencils.
Mixed media
Mixed media, in visual art, refers to an artwork in the making of which more than one medium has been employed.There is an important distinction between "mixed-media" artworks and "multimedia art". Mixed media tends to refer to a work of visual art that combines various traditionally distinct...
artwork
Work of art
A work of art, artwork, art piece, or art object is an aesthetic item or artistic creation.The term "a work of art" can apply to:*an example of fine art, such as a painting or sculpture*a fine work of architecture or landscape design...
that changes a book from its original form into a different form, altering its appearance and/or meaning.
An altered book artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
takes a book (old, new, recycled or multiple) and cuts, tears, glues, burns, folds, paints, adds to, collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
s, rebinds, gold-leaf
Gold leaf
right|thumb|250px|[[Burnishing]] gold leaf with an [[agate]] stone tool, during the water gilding processGold leaf is gold that has been hammered into extremely thin sheets and is often used for gilding. Gold leaf is available in a wide variety of karats and shades...
s, creates pop-ups, rubber-stamps, drills, bolts, and/or be-ribbons it. The artist may add pockets and niches to hold tags, rocks
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
, ephemera
Ephemera
Ephemera are transitory written and printed matter not intended to be retained or preserved. The word derives from the Greek, meaning things lasting no more than a day. Some collectible ephemera are advertising trade cards, airsickness bags, bookmarks, catalogues, greeting cards, letters,...
, or other three-dimensional objects. Some change the shape of the book, or use multiple books in the creation of the finished piece of art.
Altered books may be as simple as adding a drawing or text to a page, or as complex as creating an intricate book sculpture. Antique or Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
art is frequently used, probably because it is easier to avoid copyright issues. Altered books are shown and sold in art galleries and on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
.
An exhibition of altered books by contemporary artists was shown at the Bellevue Arts Museum
Bellevue Arts Museum
The Bellevue Arts Museum traces its roots back to street fair art in 1947. After several temporary locations, it moved to the third floor of Bellevue Square, a large shopping center in the center of downtown Bellevue, Washington in 1983...
in 2009, titled The Book Borrowers. It contained 31 works, books transformed into sculptural works. The John Michael Kohler Arts Center
John Michael Kohler Arts Center
The John Michael Kohler Arts Center is a not-for-profit art museum located in downtown Sheboygan, Wisconsin. The original house at the facility is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the John Michael Kohler House...
will host an exhibition of altered books in early 2010.
Notable altered book artists
- James Allen (Washington)
- Noriko Ambe (New York)
- Gary Berg (Washington)
- Chen Long-binChen Long-binChen Long-bin is a Taiwanese contemporary sculptor.-Biography:Chen Long-bin was born in 1964 in Taipei, Taiwan. He received a BFA from the Fine Arts Department at Tung-Hai University in Taiwan, and an MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York...
- Casey Curran (Washington)
- Brian DettmerBrian DettmerBrian Dettmer is an American contemporary artist. He is noted for his alteration of preexisting media—such as old books, maps, record albums, and cassette tapes—to create new, transformed works of visual fine art.-Life and art:...
- Alan Corkery Hahn (Washington)
- Jenn Khoshbin (Texas)
- Jane Lackey (Washington)
- Guy Laramée (Canada)
- Jacqueline Rush Lee (Hawaii)
- Tom Phillips
- Dawn Rosendahl (Florida)
- Georgia Russell (United Kingdom)
- Livia Burity (Brazil)
- Buzz Spector
- Yuken TeruyaYuken TeruyaYuken Teruya is an artist based in Brooklyn.Teruya was born in Okinawa. He works in a variety of media and often references consumer culture alongside traditional craft techniques...
(New York)
A NOTE : Altered books may include collage, painting and colouring in illustrations. Collaging is one of the most popular methods to use as it's a simple, easy and quick. Children especially like to colour in the illustrations inside the covers of their very favourite books, with felt-tips or normal kid-safe pencils.
External links
- Altered Arts Magazine
- International Society of Altered Book Artists
- Corinne Stubson - altered book artist
- Ingrid Dijkers - Altered Book gallery
- Altered Books Gallery - Altered books, tips and techniques
- Altered Books at Pickafight Books - Sydney Australia
- Brown altered books and prints
- Tom Philip's A Humument
- Altered books homepage
- The Altered Book: Cyber Home of the Altered Book Artist
- Nicholas Jones homepage
- Jacqueline Rush Lee homepage