Books As Art Objects Engage In A More Tactile, Intimate Experience

It’s a cross-over between two worlds: art and publishing. Books that are art objects – art objects that push the idea of what a book is thought to look or act like. It can be anything and everything. It aims to express the imagination of its creator, an emotion, tell a story beyond written words. It engages the viewer in a very different way than a painting, or a sculpture, as the viewer, also becomes a reader.

Books as art object allows one to come close, flip through the pages, closely admire and pour over the carefully created content. It takes art off the wall, breaks down the glass barrier, and allows it to be touched.

Book as an art object or an artist’s book is a book that is made or conceived by an artist – different than an art book, which is a book about art

We often bond our nostalgia for a good literary experience with its physical equivalent. But books are more than vessels for nostalgia, they are objects that appeal to those who love them. The form – size, shape, feel, and smell – not to mention the paper, printing, and binding, together create an experience unmatched. So it’s not surprising some creatives choose the medium to explore their artistic endeavors with. Book as an art object is sometimes referred to as an artist’s book (not to be confused with an art book which is simply a book about art), and it often is the artist’s way of exploring an alternative method of consuming art or examine topics and ideas that may be difficult to communicate via any other means.

Books as art objects allow one to come close, flip through the pages, closely admire, examine, and pour over the carefully created content. It takes the art off the wall, breaking down the protective glass barriers, and allows itself to be touched. A tactile artist’s book allows for a new experience – one that unfolds in your hands, page by page.