Can't Tell a Book by its Cover
June 14, 2018 5:51 PM   Subscribe

Enchanting Illustrations Carved From Old Books
What happens to old hardcover books that no one wants any more? There’s donation and recycling, but it seems that as often as not they end up forgotten, in boxes and piles in garages, attics, or basements, where they can grow musty and moldy. But sometimes they can be repurposed, and if they find themselves in the hands of illustrator Isobelle Ouzman, they can be art.

Making the old new again, Altered Books aren't what you expect when you open the cover. Here's my favorite - what's yours?
posted by hilaryjade (9 comments total) 15 users marked this as a favorite
 
I love this stuff! Similar art can be found here.
posted by TedW at 6:36 PM on June 14, 2018 [3 favorites]


art [✔]
crafts [✔]
books [✔]
decluttering [✔]
something i can do at home for free [✔]

goodbye MeFi, I will see you on the other side of my new hobby/obsession.
posted by seemoorglass at 6:43 PM on June 14, 2018 [2 favorites]


Oh thanks, TedW - that post looks like a real treasure trove!
posted by hilaryjade at 7:04 PM on June 14, 2018


Gorgeous! These remind me of these incredible layered lightbox pieces by Hari and Deepti , which I seriously considered selling an organ to obtain--though Ouzman's have the advantage of giving a second life to books. Which i <3.

Any idea what her pieces go for? There's nothing currently available in her shop though she says some miniatures are coming soon ...
posted by alleycat01 at 8:11 PM on June 14, 2018 [3 favorites]


Those light boxes are amazing, alleycat01! I don’t know what the cost of Ouzman’s works are, I’m afraid.
posted by hilaryjade at 8:55 PM on June 14, 2018


Lovely and interesting, thanks.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 11:31 PM on June 14, 2018


This tickles my Humument bone.
posted by chavenet at 3:00 AM on June 15, 2018 [2 favorites]


Content Forms.
posted by Morpeth at 3:24 AM on June 15, 2018


Love these. They're so lushly intricate! I think the tiny one with the bee is my favorite.
posted by mixedmetaphors at 2:26 PM on June 18, 2018


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