In the interview “Bookwork and Bookishness,” Jessica Pressman talks to artists Doug Beube and Brian Dettmer about their book sculptures. I find their statement about books as a medium in the digital age particularly exciting. Because it becomes clear that art is not just decoration, but criticism of a medium.

Beube describes his work as follows: “The book is a technology that is not meant to be malleable or flexible in the ways I use it, and I’m trying to force a fluidity onto the book that isn’t intended.” Originally, the book was a linear, rectangular, bound medium intended for reading information. However, when you bend and dismantle the book, it becomes “flexible.” This is precisely where the critical impulse lies. This even becomes clearer when he says: “Artists like myself pull the book apart to show that it is no longer the only way to present knowledge and information, especially not in a digital age.” In the past, books were considered the most important medium for storing and disseminating knowledge and information. Today, digital media and artificial intelligence have largely taken over this role. By literally taking books apart, artists illustrate this cultural shift.

Brian Dettmer adds to this perspective by pointing out the effect of media on our thinking: “The media we use has a large impact on how we digest content; it shapes our minds and influences the way we think.” He makes it clear that it is not only the content that is important, but also the framework, the way in which the medium structures our perception and thinking.  The linear book shapes our understanding of stories and knowledge. Meanwhile, digital media promote speed, networking, and multitasking.

In my opinion, Beube and Dettmer’s artworks are not nostalgic, but critical. They reveal that books are no longer a given in a world flooded with digital information. Beube and Dettmer’s artworks are not nostalgic, but critical. They reveal that books are no longer a given in a world flooded with digital information. By taking the book apart, they open up a discussion about what media do, how they shape our thinking, and why we still cling to physical books at all. Perhaps the real goal of their art is not to save the book. Rather, they want to remind us that both books and digital media shape the way we think.