The Artist's Book as a Medium: A Historical and Institutional Survey

A survey of the artist's book in France traces its evolution from the 1960s to the present, highlighting its dual nature as both a limited-edition bibliophilic object and a mass-produced, politically engaged medium. The reissue of Anne Mœglin-Delcroix's "Esthétique du livre d'artiste" signals renewed public interest. Key milestones include Ed Ruscha's "Twentysix Gasoline Stations" (1963), which inaugurated the genre with its horizontal reading and poor-quality paper, and Christian Boltanski's "Reconstitution d'un accident..." (1969), the first of over 80 works. The Pop and Fluxus revolutions empowered artists to control production from conception to sale. In France, specialized publishers and galleries have multiplied since the mid-1990s, with over seventy active publishers today. Notable spaces include the Centre des livres d'artistes in Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche (founded 1994) and the Cneai in Chatou, which organizes the Salon Light alongside FIAC. Institutions like the Carré d'art in Nîmes and the Mac/Val now host artist-book collections. The article argues that digital printing and on-demand publishing are the latest revolution, merging art and edition.