Rebound: A Survey of Contemporary California Artists’ Books

In 2011, Simon Blattner curated an exhibition for the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art of Contemporary Handmade Books. This exhibition emerged from both Blattner’s curatorial ambition and his deep belief in the power of the book as an art form.

Northern California’s vibrant community of book artists made the region a natural foundation for the exhibition, which surveyed the remarkable range of artists engaged in the art and craft of bookmaking. Presented alongside the museum’s David Hockney etching exhibition, the show benefited from an intimate gallery space that allowed visitors to spend time with the works and, in some cases, experience them up close. Though modest in scale, the exhibition featured exceptional and rarely seen pieces generously lent by collectors, museums, and artists—an affirmation of the importance of the project and of artists’ books themselves, which too often received limited attention in the fine arts world.

The exhibition focused primarily on handmade artists’ books, works crafted by artists at every stage, from printing and paper-making to binding and image reproduction. Like opera, successful book art depends on the harmony of many elements: structure, materials, visual presence, and meaning working together as a unified whole. Text frequently plays a role, reflecting the communicative nature of the form, while paper and materiality were treated as integral artistic components. Rooted largely in the Bay Area’s rich book arts culture yet acknowledging the medium’s long history, the exhibition aimed to broaden appreciation for this complex, collaborative, and deeply tactile art form.

Its realization was made possible through the support of the San Francisco Center for the Book, the expertise of colleagues at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, dedicated designers and SVMA staff, and the shared optimism and commitment that brought the project to life.