Richard Minsky, Juror

Hudson, New York

George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four, 1949

Second prototype binding. Lizard-grained cowhide, white hologram foil stamped title. LCD monitor embedded in cover with miniature video camera hidden behind leather with 1/8" hole for lens. When you hold the book you see yourself on the screen. The original 1949 binding is preserved within the new one. While on the base above the screen and camera power are supplied by two transformers to enable continuous operation when the book is on display. When you remove the book from the base it automatically switches to battery power so the cover continues to function while holding it in your hands. Created 2004. Collection of David S. Rose.

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Richard Minsky, born in 1947, is one of the most influential book artists, first being introduced to the book arts in 1960 when at the age of thirteen he purchased his printing press. He studied bookbinding with Daniel Gibson Knowlton in Providence, Rhode Island, and in 1974 founded the Center for Book Arts in New York (CBA) making it the model for subsequent centers to follow. While a traditionally trained bookbinder, his work has long challenged traditional bookbinding aesthetics, moving the book from an expression of craft to art, and influencing generations of book artists to use the materials and structure as metaphors for the work. The Birds of North America featured a salted pheasant skin recalling the techniques of nineteenth-century naturalists who shot the animals they depicted. Other works by Minsky have featured barbed wire, rat skin and a gas mask. An innovator in many areas, Minsky was one of the first book artists to make use actively of the Web as a means for showcasing his own work and as an outreach tool. He is highly sought after as a speaker and workshop presenter. His work is held in collections worldwide, including Yale University Library, the Getty Research Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Website at www.minsky.com.