A Manifesto for the Book

What will be the canon for the artist’s book in the 21st Century? In an arena that now includes both digital and traditionally produced artists’ books, what will constitute the concepts of artists’ publishing in the future?This project was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council from March 2008 - February 2010. This project investigated and discussed issues concerning the context and future of the artist’s book, in an attempt to extend and sustain critical debate of what constitutes an artist’s book in the 21st Century.One of the key points of this project was to try and include all the book related activity that artists engage with. To include work that was being produced on, and exclusively for, digital technologies within the book arts field, and not leave it floundering uncomfortably on the edge, or subjected to a different terminology altogether, if the artist considered what they were producing to be a book, then we felt it should be included. We also looked at the continued practice of traditional production processes for artists’ books such as letterpress, etching, lithography, screenprint and woodcut, and have interviewed a range of artists and publishers who work with these, as well as those producing livres d’artistes, fine press books, design bindings, multiples, installation and audio books.Bodman will give a conference paper on this book at the IMPACT 7 International Multi-Disciplinary Printmaking Conference at University of Melbourne 27-30 September 2011. Topic 14: Printmedia and the Artists' Book - paper title ‘A Manifesto for the Book - artist's book - artist's publication - book art?’. http://impact7.org.au/program_wednesday.htm