An Encyclopedic Effort!

Meanderer

Meanderer

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[h=1]Artist Guy Laramée Carves a Mountainous Landscape from an Encyclopedia Britannica Set[/h]
In one of his most ambitious book sculptures to date artist Guy Laramée created an homage to the printed Encyclopedia Britannica by transforming a 24-volume set into a sloping mountainous landscape. Titled Adieu, Laramée says the work was inspired in part by Encyclopedia Britannica’s announcement that after 244 years the would cease printing its iconic multi-volume book sets. The artist relied on his travels in Ecuador, Peru and Brazil to arrive at the final form carved into the book tops that gradually morphs from green mountains to grasslands and semi-desert prairies.

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Looks sort of like a moldy bed-sheet, but then I don't have an artistic eye.

Would have been better had he put a Z-scale model train going through the "mountains". ;)
 
Meanderer said:
Most of those sets are thrown out as out dated junk, by the next generation. Think of it as a re-cycling project. :)
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That definitely helps me see the art in it then. :) My first thought was a set of wonderful knowledge ruined but as I looked at the work I kept thinking beautifully done. I was torn. LOL Still I can't help thing in the right hands, those books would provide great knowledge to some household that may not be able to afford a more recent set. The work is quite astonishing though. I'm still on the fence on this one at this moment.
 
AprilT said:
That definitely helps me see the art in it then. :) My first thought was a set of wonderful knowledge ruined but as I looked at the work I kept thinking beautifully done. I was torn. LOL Still I can't help thing in the right hands, those books would provide great knowledge to some household that may not be able to afford a more recent set. The work is quite astonishing though. I'm still on the fence on this one at this moment.
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Some years back in the middle of a Summer day, a young man knocked on the door, and was selling a three book set for a reasonable price. One was a dictionary & the other two were a mix of practical guides and helps for schoolwork, including a section on "How to write a resume" The kids were still in school and used them for study and homework. They didn't weigh a ton and didn't need super shelving, so it was a good deal for us, and for the young gent working his way through college. Win-win!:) Most of the Families that I knew, who had a full set, never used them. Try to imagine Google in book form.:)
 
As a kid I had access to much educational materials and an encyclopedia was definitely a part of that collection. Once on my own, early years, not so much in the budget, but, I sure used to think about taking up those door to door persons on those payment plans. I used to read them often when I was a kid. I was very much a nerd, but a well rounded one. :D
 
AprilT said:
That definitely helps me see the art in it then. :) My first thought was a set of wonderful knowledge ruined but as I looked at the work I kept thinking beautifully done. I was torn. LOL Still I can't help thing in the right hands, those books would provide great knowledge to some household that may not be able to afford a more recent set. The work is quite astonishing though. I'm still on the fence on this one at this moment.
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I just realize, looking at the book sculpture again, that I like the mix of order (at the bottom) and disorder (on the top). Also, that nobody ever said "Too much information", when using the set of books.
 
It really gave me a pang seeing that. I grew up with a full set of Brittanica at home, kept it fot a few years after my folks both passed on when I was just 26, but finally couldn't afford the space for it any more & gave it to a charity. I first learned to do "research" when my Dad taught me how to use it. & was taught to take really good care of books. Silly but to this day I wince inwardly when I see a book trashed. Not saying that the artist trashed it, but.....
 
I showed my young grand kids how to use dictionary/encyclopedia. First word I had them 'research' was "antimacassar", had one on a chair and I asked them what it was. Gave a hint of course.
G_D that was soooooooo long ago.
[h=3]Antimacassar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/h]en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antimacassar
An antimacassar /ˌæntɪməˈkæsər/ is a small cloth placed over the backs ... Macassar oil was an unguent for the hair commonly used in the early 19th century.
 
I still have a 24 volume set that I bought in 1960, on time payment out of my scholarship living allowance. It is still useful to look up history. When I watch a movie based on something in history I use my EB to do some fact checking.
 
Art, like Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Anyone have the cheapie encyclopedia version that you bought one book at a time each week at the grocery store? Fraction of the price of Britannica.
 
Yup, I am bibliophile, too. I have got a first run edition of Lady Chatterly's Lover displayed prominently...
 

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