presented in a library setting and shown at Sherborne House, Dorset
The Reading Room
3rd April - 2nd May 2004
As part of the Timeline project, which has been running for a year at Sherborne House, this exhibition will include a specially made artist’s book created for Sherborne House by Kate Farley and Wes White.
The artist’s book has a background steeped in the historical traditions of book making: illuminated manuscripts, Islamic books, Japanese and Chinese scroll books and hieroglyphics, are all based on using narrative and images as a means of conveying a message.
More recently, the artist’s book has emerged from the European fine press tradition of the French Livre d’Artiste style of publishing. These books took the format of beautifully produced editions for bibliophile collectors and matched famous artists and writers of the time. In the 1970’s the artist’s book became a revolutionary artwork as many artists began to print and publish their own editions, to escape the ‘high art commerce’ of gallery circuits.
The artists’ books on show in this reading room have all evolved from various strands of those historical precedents into a contemporary art form combining both traditional print and new media. They have been constructed as portable artworks, often containing images and/or text that work within a narrative structure. The artist’s book is now an established art form, encouraging the viewer to engage with the artwork on an individual basis. Presenting these works in a reading room situation will offer visitors an opportunity to pull up a chair and spend some time enjoying some examples of art in the guise of a book.
Sherborne House
Newland
Sherborne
Dorset
DT9 3JG
01935 816426
www.sherbornehouse.org.uk
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