Different form: art book as a reinterpretation of “black art”

Abstract

Title of this article is a reference to a book by Beata Gryzio, titled Muzeum czarnej sztuki. Katalog inkunabułów Biblioteki Gdańskiej PAN (Museum of black art. A catalogue of incunabula in the Gdańsk Library). Many of the objects presented there became an inspiration to the author, because of their binding – for example, the “books in chains”, resembling the forbidden book from The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco. Others, because of their contents, and its presentation; today books are no longer written by hand.

            The article discusses the types of binding, materials, and techniques of drawing and printing or writing the text, which can drive inspiration from incunabula, to create interesting interactions between modern artist’s book and its audiences. Examples of such works are: miniature books with exposed, rounded spines, hard covers and headbands sewn on signatures; a student’s installation with notebooks filled with handwriting, which the author subjected to the destructive actions of the four elements; a book illustrated with photographs from an old album, which tells a story of a mysterious transformation of the protagonist, and the book consists of notes handwritten by the author; as well as a book – prop made of jute and goose and cock feathers, with illustrations drawn on thin blotting paper, filled with topics from 15th century, which could still be valid today.

            Sometimes the artist’s book in its final form may be not much different from a “regular book”, but the process of its creation is completely unique. It does not emerge from text, but rather from thinking in pictures. Sometimes these two paths meet at some point, and enrich the interpretation of the subject matter.