BOOKISH
When books become art

1 July - 24 October 2008

Artists:
John Baldessari, Niall de Buitléar, Pavel Büchler, Jonathan Callan,
Ulises Carrión, Hans-Peter Feldmann, Rainer Ganahl, Katharina Jahnke, Marte Johnslien, Idris Khan, John Latham, George Henry Longly, Goshka Macuga, Jonathan Monk, Rosalind Nashashibi, Olaf Nicolai, Simon Popper, Mandla Reuter, Damien Roach, Jamie Shovlin,
Dirk Stewen, Richard Wentworth and Peter Wüthrich

What happens when books become part of an artwork? And what does that tell us about the nature of books?

This summer the Lewis Glucksman Gallery addresses these questions with BOOKISH: When Books Become Art, an exhibition that explores the changing status of books, as featured in sculpture, film, photography and other art forms. BOOKISH is an exhibition which presents artists that have used books at the core of their work; from Hans- Peter Feldmann’s life-scale photograph of his own book shelves, through to books being used as sculptural material in works by Damien Roach and Richard Wentworth.

What makes books such a fascinating subject?

Books are mobile objects that are shared, borrowed, and circulated; connecting people and places together. For many of the artists featured in BOOKISH, books are a way of referring to a broader set of relationships. Some artists refer to specific books that have a historical and cultural importance; books that once proposed new ways of living
which are now gathering dust. Other artists in the exhibition explore books in a more general sense, and their failed capacity to bind together the world's knowledge in neat and convenient volumes.

How many times does the word ‘book’ appear in Ulysses?

Simon Popper’s artwork consists of 100 copies of James Joyce’s Ulysses arranged next to a train track. Each copy of Ulysses in the installation has been adapted by the artist so that all the words of the novel are now arranged alphabetically. It points to a different way of understanding not just the text, but of the book as a multiple voyage
of personal, national and literary histories.

Which book has made the most impact on you?
We invite you to review your everyday relationship with books while also considering the impact books have had on your lives. We are curious to know your thoughts on books that have made an impact on you.

Please email your name and response to: bookish@glucksman.org