Expanding the Book: National Art Library Unveils Transformative Display

At the entrance of the National Art Library, visitors encounter Expanding the Book, a striking exhibition of artist-designed books. This display features two cases of works created between 1985 and 2023. Materials like glass mirror boards, polymer clay, silk, and feathers provoke thought about the book as a storytelling medium.

Curator Hannah Mew described her selection process as a deep dive into the library's locked cupboards, which house much of its artist book collection. “By opening up countless boxes, I discovered lots of weird and wonderful books,” Mew stated on the V&A blog. This exploration led to a collection that pushes the boundaries of book design and questions the essence of a book.

Among the displayed works is Lady Freedom Among Us by Claire Van Vliet, a sculptural book that engages viewers as both readers and spectators. Created in 1996, it emphasizes the physicality of books, inviting interaction beyond mere reading. Another notable piece, Glass Book by an unnamed artist, uses reflective surfaces to transform each page into an exploration of transparency and opacity. Both exemplify the exhibition’s thesis: books are cultural artifacts that reflect their time while transcending it.

The diverse materials extend the dialogue beyond literature into visual art. By juxtaposing silk-bound pages with polymer forms, Expanding the Book broadens viewers’ understanding of what a book can be. The tactile presence of these objects, seen but not touched, highlights the importance of sensory experience in their conceptual core. This tension between the tactile and the visual animates the display.

The V&A’s National Art Library encompasses over 1 million items, from manuscripts to contemporary design. This display feels particularly relevant in a digital age where the physicality of books faces existential questions. Dr. Lisa Browne, an independent scholar specializing in artist books, remarked, “What makes ‘Expanding the Book’ significant is its focus on materiality. The curatorial decision to feature such diverse media reminds us that the question of ‘what is a book’ is as much about touch as it is about text.”

What distinguishes this exhibition is its accessibility. Positioned outside the library, it transforms a transitional space into an invitation for all passersby to encounter and contemplate these works. This intervention echoes the subversive spirit of the books it showcases. No tickets, no barriers—this is a democratized encounter with art and literature.

As book design evolves, exhibitions like this serve as archives and provocations. They document the history of experimentation while challenging viewers to rethink the future of storytelling. Will the next generation of book designers continue to reject convention, or will innovation settle into new norms? For now, the National Art Library’s display leaves the question open and the doors—literally—unlocked.