New Carved Book Landscapes by Guy Laramee

Artist Guy Laramee (previously) has recently completed a number of new sculptural works where he transforms thick tomes into incredible topographical features including mountains, caves, volcanoes, and even water. Many of the works are part of a new project titled Guan Yin, a series of work dedicated to the forces that enable individuals to endure grief and pain, or in his words “the mysterious forces thanks to which we can traverse ordeals.” If you happen to be near Quebec, a number of Laramee’s works are currently on view at Expression gallery in Saint-Hyacinthe through August 12.
LINK

'Angel Wings' Bookends Look Heavenly

These ethereal looking bookends are some of the most gorgeous.They are laser cut from metal, and powder coated using glossy white paint. The ‘Angel Wings’ bookends are available for $10 at Etsy.
Via: Lustik, Via: JazJaz

Circular Bookcase/Chair

Thomas Mills made this piece of furniture which he calls “Long Form Library.” It’s a combination bookcase and reading chair:

As you sit within the cradle, it rocks gently back and forth. Don’t get going too fast or you’ll roll all the way away. This library can hold its own weight in books (and I’d wager even more, by the looks of it), the cushioned seat a nod to the futuristic furniture found in Stanley Kubrick films, especially 2001. Reading lamps are placed for reading in the most obvious manner, while lights placed around the circumference act as a clock, timers changing the brightness of them to its highest at the equinox of the day, dimmed to nothing at midnight. Strange!

Link, Via: Born Rich | Designer’s Website | Photo by the designer |Via: Neatorama

50 Book Spoilers in 4 Minutes

Time for a whole new way to be educated! Novels and books beware, TheFineBros continue their mission to SPOIL THE PLANET this time by ruining the endings of 50 classic novels. LINK: Youtube

Manga Farming

Want an earth friendly way to upcycle old manga or maybe even telephone books! How about using them to grow radish or other sprouts, like this project by Japanese artist Koshi Kawachi. It would make in interesting conversation piece. My only concern would be that the book might get moldy after a few days, but perhaps you could transplant them into a pot or garden.

Link,– Via: mademoisellechaos, Via: Neatorama

50 Best Irish Books You Should Read This Month

There's a whole lot more to Ireland than four leaf clovers and Blarney Stones, so use this month's St. Patrick's Day celebrations as a chance to delve a little deeper into Irish culture, history and art.

Here are 50 great Irish books that will help you learn more about the people and the country and provide a free education on everything Irish for both the more knowledgeable and the total newbie to the subject.

LINK: The Presurfer

Beautiful Illustrations from Soviet Children's Books

The artblog A Journey Around My Skull has a compilation of unusual and surreal illustrations from children’s books of the Soviet Union. This image is from the 1989 book Hello, I’m A Robot Stanislav Zigunenko and illustrated by E. Benyaminson. At the link, you’ll see the first post in a series about such illustrations.

Link, Via: Gizmodo, Via: Neatorama

Celebrating The Books of Triond Writers From Around The World

Triond is a website that has been going for a number of years - a simple google search will find it in all its glory. It is an outlet for writers to be published online and also gives a percentage of its advertising revenue to the writers. Many who use it aspire to getting in to print on paper too - and this article by Glynis Smy highlights a number who have been successful in this endeavour.

If you are a writer and perhaps thinking of giving up because getting your work published has meant a thousand and one letters and emails saying no thanks, then read her article. Or if you have hit your head metaphorically (and possibly literally) against a brick wall in the process, most definitely read her article!

Thanks to Glynis for taking a lot of time out to research this. LINK

Celebrating The Books of Triond Writers From Around The World

Triond is a website that has been going for a number of years - a simple google search will find it in all its glory. It is an outlet for writers to be published online and also gives a percentage of its advertising revenue to the writers. Many who use it aspire to getting in to print on paper too - and this article by Glynis Smy highlights a number who have been successful in this endeavour.

If you are a writer and perhaps thinking of giving up because getting your work published has meant a thousand and one letters and emails saying no thanks, then read her article. Or if you have hit your head metaphorically (and possibly literally) against a brick wall in the process, most definitely read her article!

Thanks to Glynis for taking a lot of time out to research this. LINK

Oblivion Domino Day

Doing a Domino Day in TES Oblivion with books. LINK: Youtube

Brian Dettmer: Adaptations

Artist Brian Dettmer dissects books to expose the beauty of their anatomy. Using an X-acto knife and tweezers, Dettmer pulls away carefully selected layers of books, revealing a complex view of their internal organization.

In this time when the book is no longer the most efficient way to store and transmit data, Dettmer's transformations are at once nostalgic and forward-thinking. His process is a wonderful example of how a destructive act can create something beautiful and new. LINK

Free Online Books Every Student of Humanity Should Read

Here’s a site that links to public domain literature available on the web! You can read such classics as The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Art of War, Ivanhoe, Madame Bovary, The Lady of the Lake, Dracula , Walden, On the Origin of Species, and more -in fact there are 100 links to 100 books.

The beauty of the public domain is that after an author’s death, his or her works eventually become freely available to the public. This allows websites like Project Guttenberg to index countless classic texts for people to read online or download.

Link, Via: Neatorama

Books turned into music boxes

Artist Jennifer Khoshbin makes beautiful music boxes out of old books -- a new collection of works are on display at Rose and Radish, in San Francisco.

Music Books: Place ear to book, turn crank and listen. LINK: Boingboing

The Bittersweet Art Of Cutting Up Books

The Bittersweet Art Of Cutting Up Books. Via: Presurfer

Bookshelves Made From Books

Here’s the most unique piece of book furniture in the world. LINK

Nicholas Jones Book Sculptures

Nicholas Jones artwork consists of delicate book sculptures cut out from beautiful old books and Lucy from the ‘The Design Files’ managed to interview Nicholas in his studio. Most of the books are donated to him by Melbourne University library and some people might be confronted by the cutting up of books for art. His works had been shown at the Australian Art Resources, Perth Institute of Fine Art, The State Library of Victoria and many others. LINK