overview

Art reaches deeper than
contemporary rhetoric.

The Peace Library was created in 2003 by a group of artists and interested citizens. It was envisioned as a forum for community dialogue about the concepts of war and peace, and how these ideas affect current events. 

overview

Artists books: intimate, surprising, and emotionally charged

The Peace Library organizes exhibitions of handmade books that are displayed in a gallery setting – creating a temporary library. We start with a “call for entries” soliciting work from both artists and non-artists; children, students and adults. Over 150 artists and community members have participated in 8 Peace Library exhibits between 2003–2012.

When the public visits the “library” something special happens. There is an intimacy that develops between the book’s artist and the viewer. Holding a book is both familiar and comfortable, you discover its contents page by page. Artists’ ideas can be both seen and read. By appealing to the senses, art has a way of depoliticizing the arguments that both support and protest war. Art reaches deeper than contemporary rhetoric.

In an effort to preserve the essence of each show, an expandable “card” catalog of entries is created for each Library exhibition. These catalogs offer a record of the artists’ images and ideas.