Book Art

Book Art is the field of art that involves the creation of works that use or refer to structural and conceptual properties of books. The term also is used to describe works of art produced in this field. These works may contain text and/or images, or may be sculptural. Book art has existed for thousands of years, and can be seen in Egyptian papyri, Chinese, Japanese and Korean scrolls and books, Mesoamerican codices, and in one form or another, through all human history. The term "Book Arts" refers to the creative and craft disciplines used to produce book art, such as printing, printmaking, papermaking, typography and bookbinding. As a field of contemporary art, Book Art has seen an explosive growth since the 1960s.

Since the 1980s many college Book Art programs have evolved, including MFA programs at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and a MFA in Book Art and Creative Writing Mills College in Oakland, CA. The College Book Art Association (CBAA) was founded in 2008. CBAA organizes annual conferences, publishes an open access journal titled Openings: Studies in Book Art, and maintains a blog on Book Art Theory.

There are several sub-fields within Book Art, including fine press books, sculptural bookworks, artist books, altered books, designer bookbindings, installations and performances. As this entry evolves examples of works in the subfields will be added, as well as a history of book art, and organizations that exhibit, teach and promote book art, such as the Center for Book Arts, located in New York City, the Minnesota Center for Book Arts in Minneapolis and the San Francisco Center for the Book.

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