Portrait by Carl Van Vechten For this installment of In The Stacks we sample a part of the extensive archive of Rockwell Kent's papers that reside at the Smithsonian. Kent traveled widely and wrote, painted and drew about his experiences. From Alaska to Greenland to Moscow, Kent and his family immersed themselves in the cultures they visited with each trip providing Kent a plethora of artistic fodder. In 1918 it was a trip to Alaska with his son that brought us the memoir Wilderness which the The New Statesman called "easily the most remarkable book to come out of America since Leaves of Grass was published."...
Doug Beube: Breaking the Codex
The codex, compared with computers, is undeniably limited in its capacity to store, perpetuate, generate and recreate information, I accept these boundaries - Doug Beube We can call Beube the Constant Gardner of the book. for three decades he has fed and watered the book in all of its metaphorical and material aspects -Betty Bright Life, 2004 For over 30 years now Doug Beube has cut, folded and gouged his way through life. He along with Richard Minsky are two of the godfathers of contemporary bookworks. With Doug Beube Breaking the Codex: Bookwork, Collage and Mixed Media we now have a fitting...
Of Interest : Book Burning, a Bad Library Idea, Go-Sees, Riprap, Jean Prouvé, Peking the Beautiful, Newer Book picks and more
This week's Of Interest takes us from a rare book on Peking to an anthology of one line poems to a collection of songs inspired by books with a sprinkling of newer books that have caught our fancy. First a few headlines: Seems like the burning of books is a hot topic these days - Pro-Russian demonstrators are burning Ukrainian-language books "in small bonfires in the street" http://ow.ly/uRGOL In what might a first - Vandals torch a Little Free Library near an elementary school in Tuscon, Arizona http://ow.ly/uR7R5 and in what might just be the most nearsighted, wackiest story in some time...
Holy Library! Quebec church transformed into a house for books
Originally built in 1964 by architect Jean-Marie Roy this church in Quebec has been masterfully transformed into a library by Dan Hanganu & Côté Leahy Cardas Architects. The library has been named after Monique Corriveau a local writer who wrote ten children's books, one for each of her kids! Enjoy. Church Converted in Library in Quebec – Fubiz™. photos © Stéphane Groleau
Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs
It was the last chapter of an amazing run. When he was no longer able to paint due to declining health Henri Matisse came up with a new way to express himself; Paper Cut Outs. He turned in his paintbrush for a pair of scissors and would carve and cut painted paper into an amazing array of work. The Fall of Icarus Beginning in April a new exhibition at the Tate Modern will be...