Creative Art Made From Manipulating The Pages Of Books [12 Pics]

There is nothing I love doing more than diving into a good book. From historical expeditions to fictional stories, I am equally happy exploring new worlds. There is just something magical about flicking through the pages of books. Don’t get me wrong, I love my iPad and all the magazines and books I read on there, but there is a tactile sensation I get when turning a real page that still transports me to my childhood or somewhere even more wonderful.

So for me, a book is a piece of art in itself. The cover design, the type, the chapters, and so on – it creates images in one’s mind that are so powerful. My father was a bookbinder, and I remember watching him create leather bound books with his hands and a few tools. He would sit and patiently stitch and glue all the pages of books together before laying down strips of gold leaf across the spine.

I guess my upbringing and my love of books is what stood out when I saw that Michigan based artist Math Monahan created these incredible installation artworks from the pages of books. The art installation is called ‘Between,’ and according to Monahan, the project is “an installation that explores the stillness in the space between places, powers and context.”

The images have an architectural feeling about them and feel almost like medieval structures like churches or cathedrals. I have seen many types of art using books with the spines, the covers, using the whole book as a brick type medium, and even a range of books that have been cleverly painted. But this is the first time I have seen the pages of books used in such a way.

I did once see a science program though that showed the strength that a book has when all the pages are interlaced in this braid type pattern. The scientist on the show used a book at the end of a bungee chord and launched himself off a crane with only the pages friction, creating enough strength to keep him from plummeting to his death!

That is not the way I will be enjoying my book tonight, and I think this would be a good time for the disclaimer ‘do not try this at home’ – the bungee thing I mean. Knock yourself out with the book art.