Title What the Earth is Made of
Artist / Creator James Allen
Place of Publication Portland, OR
Publication Date 2015
Structure / Binding Book Excavation
Dimensions (WxHxD) Book unframed 8.25 x 10.75 x .75 inches
Edition Size Unique
Signed & Numbered Signed by the artist

What the Earth is Made of by James Allen -SOLD!

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What the Earth is Made of is a Book Excavation created from Frye's Elements of Geography which was published in 1902. I was especially captivated by the beautiful illustrations of different people from around the world. The colored map pages from the age of colonialism were also interesting. All of Africa, South America, parts of Asia and the Pacific Islands were ruled from afar by the dominant European powers and the United States. This work unearths some of the moments from that past time to create a layered relief of the early 20th century. Must see TV! Oregon Art Beat, a weekly arts program on Oregon Public Broadcasting, has a fascinating segment about James Allen and his book excavations. Great video showing the process behind his art, in an in-depth, accessible manner. Watch it here.

ABOUT BOOK EXCAVATIONS

A book excavation is a sculptural work of art made by transforming various types of old books using precise cuts with a scalpel or knife, carving pages one by one until an astonishing new composition reveals itself. This almost surgical focus of dissecting books results in a wholly new object infused with a graphical history that evolves as the artist exposes each layer of the book while cutting around interesting images or text. For most artists working in this remarkable medium, the process is performed without pre-planning or mapping out the contents before cutting into the books pages and/or covers. Finished book excavations often appear as cross sections of the book, carved to create an alternate universe previously hidden between the covers.

Artist Bio

James Allen was born in 1977 in Great Lakes, Illinois and currently lives and works in Portland, Oregon where he shows at 23 Sandy Gallery. In 2000 He earned a BFA from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. Allen's artwork is included in Art Made From Books: Altered, Sculpted, Carved, Transformed published by Chronicle Books. In 2009 his work was exhibited at the Bellevue Arts Museum in The Book Borrowers: Contemporary Artists Transforming the Book. His Book Excavations are also in special collections libraries at UCLA, Ringling College of Art and Design, John's Hopkins University, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee and University of Colorado Boulder.