Spotlight On: Turning Pages, through the history of artists' books

Join Curator, Rare Books Susan Millard and artist Nicholas Jones for a journey through the evolution of artists’ books from early twentieth century European volumes to contemporary works.

Beginning with the evolution of artists’ books, curator Susan Millard will be sharing key works from Archives and Special Collections' holding of early twentieth century livres d’artistes. From the poetic surrealism of Joan Miró; to the conceptual provocations of Ed Ruscha; the minimalist structures of Sol LeWitt; and sculptural alteration of books to create new works of fine art by Brian Dettmer - these works represent a merging of fine art and literature in luxurious, limited-edition volumes.

Nicholas Jones will speak to, and demonstrate, his practice as an artist specialising in book sculpture. Jones reimagines and transforms old and unwanted books into unique artistic pieces. His work often involves folding, tearing, and sewing the pages of books, which he uses to question the future of the written word and the cultural significance of books in a digital age.

Presented in partnership with the PGAV’s Analog Art program, Archives and Special Collections' Spotlight Series features archivists, librarians, curators, researchers, academics and artists. Each session will spotlight the wonders our collection hold and create an informal space for engaging in critical conversations, reflective discussions, slow looking, creative workshops, talks and much more.