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5 stars for the footnotes (2004 edition, not 1995). I mean it. I actually have read the footnotes twice just for the entertainment, the way Drucker criticizes some of the other scholars is hilarious (and would be considered suicidal in most academic circles).
This book is really interesting if you're into artists' books. Informative, too--I have a five-page list of books I want to look at now. It gets a little dry at times, but it's a textbook, so it kind of has the right. I would wish for more pictures, and in color, but otherwise it's really helpful and unique.
Finished it in one sitting, so attests for the engrossing nature of the book. I'm taking baby steps towards book history and reading practices as a field, especially with regard to children's books, or picture books and comics in general, so this was a great great entry point.
if artists' books are your thing than this is your bible. but if you're stuck reading it for a class as i was, be prepared to gouge your eyes out. i'm sure drucker had difficulties funding this book and that lead to some of the bigger issues with it. mostly the pictures being black and white, too few and far between, and points where she gets lost in descriptions of something that needs to actually be seen to be truly understood. since i had relatively zero context before starting this book, a l...
Read for class :)
required reading for my new job!
there are artists that use canvas, others who prefer cameras in order to film or take photographs and there are other who rather use stone they can carve. surprisingly, there are artists who use the format of the codex as the cornerstone of their artistic proposals. everybody knows what a book is and everybody has handled at least a few over their life. however, almost every book has ever been handled is just a recipient for the text, which is the important part. on the contrary, artist’s books
If you really want to know more about the Book Arts movement -- Drucker is definitely a name you should become familiar with. She has definitely put in a lot of groundwork in trying to build a canon of Book Arts artists, construct a history of the movement, and define crucial vocabulary terms.I liked her snarkiness -- especially in the footnotes! -- but her use of her own works as examples of well made artists books is pretty contentious.