How close is body art to book art? Pretty darn close if you follow the reasoning of Arthur Jaffe. Jaffe, the founder of the seminal Jaffe Center for Book Arts at Florida Atlantic University, "saw tattooed people as walking books, because, after all, what is tattooed skin if not printed narratives, illustrations and designs? They are also telling a story,"Jaffe goes on to remind us that "prior to paper, books were printed on parchment and vellum – the skin of animals – so the book metaphor is not a stretch."So why not study the art of the body? Here lies...
"Books are Art Too": New Paris Gallery Mixes it Up
The inaugural exhibit at the new Paris gallery/bookshop Le Pied de Biche (“The Crowbar”) is titled “Art, Ink and Rock and Roll" and features the work of three tattoo artists.Supplementing the the exhibit is the gallery's bookstore which is loaded with underground cartoons, rare books, fanzines, theatrical jewelry and toys for adults. The gallery will also publish, print and display limited edition books.Tiffany Khalil, founder of Le Pied de Biche, believes “Books are art too,” and hopes her gallery is "a move away from the classical, sanitized gallery. The aim is to create an uninhibited space, and put forward young,...
Tattooed Penguins: Six Books Get Inked
Bert KrakThe latest nifty offering from Penguin is a series called Penguin Inks where tattoo artists were commissioned to come up with cover designs for 6 modern classics.Chris ConnThe series is set to debut in June.More at Shelf Talk, the book blog of Entertainment Weekly.While we're talking tatts. Here's a women who sacrificed her back and arms for Alice in Wonderland.click image to enlargeand finally, don't forget Jeff Johnson's recent acclaimed memoir Tattoo Machine: Tall Tales, True Stories, and My Life in Ink.Thanks to @mikecane for the lead on the Alice tattoo