In 1977, documenta 6 presented artists' books, book objects and "concept books" in a separate section for the first time. On the upper floor of the Neue Galerie, the Wiesbaden lawyer and book collector Rolf Dittmar, together with the New York art historian and critic Peter Frank, conceived the Metamorphoses of the Book section and brought together different positions such as Dieter Roth's bound and die-cut excerpts from Icelandic daily newspapers, Gerhard Rühm's concrete poetry, Timm Ulrich's stone-carved request "Denken sie immer daran mich vergessen" (always remember to forget me) (as a gravestone in the form of an open book) or Alice Koch's "Knüll-Book" - a "Knüll object" in a plastic bag with a plastic cover.

Until the end of February, the documenta archiv is presenting documentary material that deals with the design of books and book art in the context of documenta history. Together with André Biribanti, Emily Denyer has curated a studio exhibition that provides an insight into the diverse holdings of the special library and casts a special spotlight on the historical book art section of documenta 6.

The exhibition is complemented by a reference collection with literature for browsing and reading.

Curator Emily Denyer will guide visitors through the exhibition "Book-Art: Art-Books" on February 8 and 14, 2024 at 4.30 pm.

On display in the reading room of the documenta archiv

Kulturhaus Dock4

Untere Karlsstr. 4, 34117 Kassel

Tuesday to Friday 9 - 16