The Artists' Book: A New BA Based Permanent Exhibition
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Alexandria—
The BA holds the Artist's Book permanent exhibition, as a new addition to the collections of the BA, which has an exceptional status as an international center of expertise in such a contemporary and new art: the Artist’s Book.
Dr. Ismail Seragedlin, Director of the BA, Dr. Mostafa El-Razaz, BA Plastic Arts Advisor, and Maestro Sherif Mohie Eldin, Director of the BA Arts Center inaugurated the exhibition as one of the distinguished BA-based permanent exhibitions.
Dr. Mostafa El-Razaz stated that the exhibition holds deep significance as it draws together the works of a selected group of the world’s most recognized book artists. Books are thought to be in use as early as 3000 years ago and they played a unique role in history as a receptacle for human ideas and heritage. They are an art form in their own right where image and text work together in harmony, spelling out the message. Different crafts were developed to serve printing, decoration, design, binding, gilding, restoration, and the creation of abstracted forms.
He added that the exhibition stands as a compelling cross-section for artists who merge creativeness with technicality and intellectual depth. It is the fruit of an enlightened idea to establish an international biennale for the ‘artist book’ and another for ‘imagining the book’. This was realized by the Arts Center, with the unlimited support of Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and Maestro Sherif Mohie-Eldin, Director of its Arts Center. The aim of the exhibition is to highlight the progress of this art form in the world, and to introduce our national production in this field to artists, critics, experts, and patrons of contemporary art all over the world.
Mestro Sherif Mohie Eldin stated that such an event could not have been made possible without the support of Dr Ismail Serageldin to the idea of holding two biennales for "Artist’s Book" and "Imagining the Book" in alternation.
Maestro Sherif added that the BA has, indeed, became a center of attraction for world artists, who take up the book as a theme of expression and medium for creative experiments and conceptual theories.