cARTalog

BoneFolder is an ejournal devoted to the book arts. Take a look at the article "The Story in the Cards: Intimacy, Empathy and Reader Response," by Kristin Baum. It is the story of librarians, artists, and countless others creating art from the 1,000.000 cards the staff were able to salvage from the discarded card catalog at the University of Iowa.
"Participants – from Iowa, across the country and around the world – were invited to adopt cards and recreate a home for them in whatever way was most meaningful to them. Over the year and half duration of the project, over 500 individuals and organizations requested cards for countless projects – some known at conception and others which are still in a phase of germination. Demographically, participation was organic and well-rounded, representing international and intergenerational scope. Cards found rebirth in the hands of preschoolers, retirees, students, teachers, children and parents and grandparents. Among these participants emerged artists, writers, librarians, comedians and musicians, to name a few."
One of my favorites tells the story of a woman who did not do so well in library school at the University of Iowa so she changed to the MFA program in printmaking. Her piece is entitled "Failed Librarian." Take a look at the gallery of images from the cARTalog project. I love this kind of recycled, reimagined act of piracy . It is subversive and conservative simulataneously.