Comments on: Cara Barer

by: jeffrey

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 03:23:34 +0000

The book series reflects compositional excellence while simultaneously raising questions about the collection and transfer of information. Wonderful series!

by: Cara Barer

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 01:44:12 +0000

To “Boofaunt”

Shame? Ha! Thank you for making my point.

It’s the book itself that matters, not what its text may be.

by: Randal Petrick

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 16:10:38 +0000

Love the book series. As someone who is an owner of a couple of your works it is wonderful to see you get the attention deserved!

by: Eric

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 02:12:32 +0000

I have to agree with those expressing discomfort at seeing books destroyed. Certainly I find arguments that the contents of the books are distasteful to be highly unpersuasive. I’m reminded of the quotation “Where they have burned books, they will end in burning human beings.”

BUT for books that can persuasively be argued to be so old and out of date that no one will ever want them for any kind of reading or research…maybe a phone book from 1990…in those cases I’m a little less discomfited.

Still, I’d be happiest if you photocopied the books’ contents first if they’re any chance you’d be destroying unreproducible information.

by: M. Bouffant

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 01:35:46 +0000

Oh, you visual artists with your horrible attitude toward the written word. Have you no shame? It’s the book itself that matters, not what its text may be.

by: B

Sat, 14 Apr 2007 03:46:30 +0000

Impressive, but vaguely creepy. Doubly so for Georgia Russell’s work linked to by claire.

by: Mary Strausser

Fri, 13 Apr 2007 13:37:42 +0000

I’m just sentimental I guess. It does seem like the death of a book.

by: JT

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 23:55:56 +0000

WOW! Awesome pictures on a really cool site!

by: Lynn Rich

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 20:59:16 +0000

I especially like the book series, they appear to be in a state of flux just as the way we attain information these days. I love the introduction of color into the series.

by: Cara Barer

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 18:17:45 +0000

Happy to disturb you, Mary. Actually, my temperature usually remains at 98.6.

by: Pat Kramberg

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 18:15:22 +0000

A corpse?? Yes, if you consider “the death” of a book. I choose to see the lovely sculptures formed in these photographs which in a sense, gives the book a new life and purpose.

by: Tracy

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 14:41:08 +0000

CAra,

These are very nice images. Like you I have tremendous respect for books. Using out of date and context books for art makes great sense. In our times books have physically evolved as the primaray reservoir for knowledge to the secondary. As the digital age contimues we will have much more material for this genera of work.

I did a few similar pieces with books a few years ago:

http://www.tracyhicks.com/scbook.htm
These started with a series of books I found on genetics written prior to WWII that cast people of color as less, In my view those books were much better salt cured like a ham.

Tracy

by: claire

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 22:28:58 +0000

Mangled corpses? Hmm… Then I guess you would just about pass out if you saw what Georgia Russell does to them.

http://www.englandgallery.com/RUSSELL_Georgia.htm

by: Mary Strausser

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 14:51:15 +0000

Well there is a sort of beauty in the images but on another level there is something disturbing about them as well.Like finding artfullness in mangled corpses. I tend to have relationships with books.Usefullness or non usefullness is sort of cold blooded.