500 Handmade Books: Inspiring Interpretations of a Timeless Form

500 Series

by Suzanne J.E. Tourtillott (Editor)

Interest in bookbinding and the related arts has exploded in the past decade, inspiring artists to explore the unlimited possibilities of the form—and delighting collectors, crafters, and gallery owners. Lark’s Cover to Cover has been a bestseller for more than ten years, and this new and provocative on-the-page gallery, richly illustrated with hundreds of breathtaking photographs, will appeal to that same large and discerning audience. They’ll appreciate the artistry of a finely tooled leather cover, embellished with traditional gold-leaf lettering; the intricacy of an exotic Ethiopian binding with a show-stopping open spine; and others that resemble mysterious puzzle boxes, or that curl, hang, and swirl. The sublimely talented contributors all put their finest work on display: Jeanne Germani’s Cloudspeak showcases her own handmade papers, made from such varied materials as recycled denim, thistle, and other plant matter. Chris Bivin’s codex-style volume features curious, tiny, found objects. One of Laura Wait’s untitled pieces utilizes a handsome raised-cord binding to connect a pair of stained-cedar covers with abstract aluminum letterforms attached.
The entire collection is juried by the esteemed Steve Miller.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Crafts, Books About Books, Reference, Design, Journal

419 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2007

About the author

Suzanne Tourtillott was born in post-war Germany but lives and works, happily, in Asheville, North Carolina. After studying and then teaching fine art and commercial photography, she turned to writing arts journalism for periodicals and, ultimately, to writing and editing craft books. Suzanne has edited more than 50 titles in jewelry, ceramics, needle crafts--even poetry. Her business/Twitter is @editorious; see the site at http://editorious.org and tweets via #editorious. you can follow Suzanne's visual interests on Pinterest (pinning as username suzanne33).

Reviews

[rachel weisz as evelyn o'connell in the mummy (1999) · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was really neat! i don't think i've given much thought to the art of bookmaking in the past, so this was a great first look. although, i do wish some of the entries included more pictures, and perhaps some more background on the artists and the works. but overall very refreshing and soothing to peruse through! and the works included have inspired me within my own work :)

[Lorie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this '500' series. Great color pictures. Would be nice to have a paragraph or two on the artist's intent in the making of the books.

[Edie Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love books about art and here we have a book about the art of book. Each example qualifies as not just as a book but as a piece of contemporary art.
These books aren’t just pretty faces. One of the prerequisites of inclusion in this volume was that each entry actually functions as a book. The artists find creative solutions to this requirement.
I only wish I could experience holding these works and turning their beautiful pages.

[Pamela Hatch · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found a preview of this title on Google Books -- it was similar to others that I had looked through that showed an illustrations of a highly crafted book art project with name of the artist. But the book is more for inspiration and display than instruction. I enjoyed looking at the examples, but will not need to read it again.

[liberal sprinkles · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a wonderful book with great inspiration for bookmaking, art journaling and any other creative project. The interpretation of "book" is somewhat liberal, so even a brush with its head made of strips of text can be considered a book! But that's what makes 500 Handmade Books unique. The plethora of ideas and interpretations from different artists that really make this a selection of art pieces, rarely in the form we expect of books. The incredibly varied materials and techniques used are often eye-opening. Many of the designs are gorgeous.

If you're looking for a how-to book, look elsewhere. Otherwise, this is absolute eye candy and inspiration. The reason why I'm giving this 4 stars and not 5 is the little detail provided for each handmade book. The list of materials and binding techniques are indicated but there's at most 2 photos of each book. I would like to have had a better look at the truly unusual ones.

[Sumi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Art, some of which I thought was very clever and some of which were items that probably only the artist could love. There were two that I particularly enjoyed. One was a book using a Jacob's Ladder structure that illustrated the Second Law of Thermodynamics and the Corollary to the First Law of Thermodynamics. The other was called the Office Politics Alphabet were "I" stood for Interminable Staff Meetings. I think most of us could come up with our own equivalents.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were all sorts of imaginative books in this collection. I was pretty impressed with the variety of textures, colors, and techniques that were used. I really enjoyed looking through all the different books. Granted, there were a few books that I thought were a little disturbing or unnaturally dark. I would probably recommend this book to people who like art or crafts.

*Taken from my book reviews blog: http://reviewsatmse.blogspot.com/2009...

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book, I really did. Instead, I found most of the creative works to be extremely pretentious and got the impression that the majority of artists who make books (or at least the ones chosen for this collection) are incredibly self-involved! Rather than being impressed (and believe me, some of the "books" in this collection are amazingly complex), I was mostly just annoyed :(

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

A heavy little book that is full of inspiration for those of us intrigued by the art of the handmade book. Many unusual interpretations, and brimful of inspiration, book art lovers will not be disappointed. Be warned though, this book does not contain instructions it is simply loaded with visual beauty of other artists' interpretation of handmade books.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chock full of a variety of artist books. A nice variety of type. In a few cases I wish there were more pictures of the inside of the book and there is at least one book that you would just think was a photo if you didn't know it was a book(ie - probably could have been omitted). Not a how to book - but still lots of inspiration to be had within the pages of the book.

[Tammy Marie Jacintho · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exquisite handheld objects... There is a world of imagination in these pages. If you are looking for sublime book ideas, you'll find them here. As a bookmaker, I love this book. This isn’t a “how to” book--but if you get the basics, these pictures will get you moving on your own creations.

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an absolutely beautiful book. I just wish it were larger and contained more pictures of each of the books. If you love books and bookmaking then this is a must-see. Several of the books are personally inspiring to me and my bookmaking plans are back at the front of the line.

[Adrienna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book of artistic and creative books handmade. Not a book to read! I love it, so inspiring for those who are into the literary market and creative arts. Publishers can also look at this book. I will have to add this to my collection in near future.

[Lucia · Rating 4 out of 5]

opl.
zero instructions. more of a museum/gallery book.

very pretty pictures, often only one vantage-point though, so it's hard to see how they're made or even what they look like.
good for inspiration.

[Phyllis · Rating 4 out of 5]

a great book visually, but I would like to have a little more detail about artists and process.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me likey this 100 percent.

[Anneliese Bennion · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book for the creative mind. It had a lot of ingenious ideas that just sparked my brain a-thinkin'. I'm glad I picked it up at the library.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Examples of beautiful books without instructions. Very nice photography.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steve Miller is The Man and did a bang-up job curating this collection.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great photos of amazing art books in here. Some of the techniques can be extrapolated from the pictures, but it is certainly not an instruction manual!

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I should start a book shelf titled 'please-buy-this-for-me-for-xmas' so this book would have a home.

[Kristenyque · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughtful, well crafted, intricate, gorgeous hand made books.

[Kate Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for inspiration,

[Mills College Library]

745.59 A11182 2008

[Anne Harlan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love looking at what artists can do with books, but it is frustrating to see them represented as only one still picture.

[Electric · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a neat book with a lot of inspiration!! Well worth the read to get the creative juices flowing. Reminds me how much I love handmade paper.

[Michael Goodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful collection of handmade artist books by first class book artists.