Artists’ books in Monash Special Collections

Monash Special Collections has a range of artists’ books. We support Monash Architecture, Design & Art students with a focus on art and design based books. These include photography books of American Pop artist Ed Ruscha, which contain serial black and white photographs of the subjects in the titles, such as Some Los Angeles Apartments and ThirtyFour Parking Lots in Los Angeles. Ruscha’s first title of this series, TwentySix Gasoline Stations, which was published from his own press in 1963, is considered to be one of the first artists' books.¹

Collaborative projects also form part of our artists’ books collection. Endgame: Late Capitalist Realism includes the work of fifteen Melbourne-based contemporary artists. It was produced by the artist group The Office of Utopic Procedures, whose work operates at the intersection of language, politics and society.

We also have a large number of works by renowned German conceptual artist, Olaf Nicolai. Nicolai’s book works explore a range of social and political themes. Trees for matches / matches for trees is a response to the reforestation project of Trossachs National Park in the Scottish Southern Highlands. Approved by the Scottish Forestry Commission, it aimed at creating greater biodiversity, while generating employment and tourism for the region.

Nicolai’s work presents picturesque postcards of the lochs and forest terrain with an unbranded matchbox attached, as the felled trees were used to make matches. This replication of tourist postcards and matchbox highlights the consumption of nature as both product and by-product.

Access the collection

Locating items

• The Library's collection of artists' books can be found within Search.

• We've also put together a collection of artists' books that appear in the exhibition Silence is no Refuge. Browse the collection

How to view items

• Read our short guide on how to request and view an artists' book held within our Special Collections

^{1 Drucker, J., & Granary Books. (2004). The century of artists’ books (2nd ed.). Granary Books, p.11.}