Swiss artists’ books

The artist’s book has become an icon and a cult object within the history of art and libraries. The publication tackle the Swiss artists’ book from an international perspective, working from the most extensive collection of artists’ books in Switzerland, housed at the Swiss National Library. It covers roughly 1,500 titles spanning a considerable time period. From ephemera to current fanzines, 112 interviews capture the development and significance of the phenomenon of the artist’s book in Switzerland since the early, illuminated codices of the Middle Ages, or indeed since the origins of cave paintings 30,000 years ago. As a result, Swiss Artists’ Books – Schweizer Künstlerbücher – Livres d’artistes suisses – Libri d’artista svizzeri emerges as the first unique, encyclopedic collection of artists’ books.