What is an Art Book?

For the second volume, The Modern Language Experiment once again posed the simple but important question: What is an art book? The project was produced during Artists’ Books Weekend, organised by The Mews Project Space.

An art book today can occupy many positions: a piece of theory, a catalogue, a printed exhibition, a work of art in itself, or a supplement to a pre-existing work. It can be a proposal for the future, an examination of the present, or a record of what has passed. What is an Art Book? investigated the art book’s material and conceptual concerns.

Artists, writers, curators, designers and other practitioners were invited to contribute their interpretation of what an art book means to them and their practice. Contributions could take the form of text, drawings, photographs, sculpture, performance, audio, video or any other concept or theory, provided it could ultimately be realised on A4 paper in black and white.

Contributors: Alex Lawler, Beth Fox, Bruno Borges, Bureau, Carlos Correia, Carlos Noronha Feio, Carmen Billows, Catt Bagg, Cedar Lewisohn, Charlotte Norwood, Chooc Ly Tan, Christina Mitrentse, Copy, David Rickard, Erica Scourti, Francisca Ferreira Larsson, FrenchMottershead, Giorgio Sadotti, Gordon Shrigley and Grayson Perry Studio.

Also contributing: Jesse Darling, Joey Holder, Karl England, Leslie Deere, Linda Stupart, Maite Zabala, Marita Fraser, Mike Miles, Paul Knight, Rebecca Meanley-Eyre, Richard Ducker, Rosalind Davis, Rui Goncalves Cepeda, Ruth Proctor, Simona Brinkmann, Steven Morgana and Welmoet Wartena.

Artists’ Books Weekend was an initiative of The Mews Project Space: an open-affiliation celebration of artists’ books as a medium, held in parallel with the London Art Book Fair. The open-source festival highlighted books and other methods of multiple production through events staged by participating organisations.