21 May The Book Plate Art Project – Redlands
Short essay by Dr Sally Butler – Associate Professor, Art History,
The University of Queensland 2025
Different parts of the brain fire when trying to understand images as opposed to words. We’ve all heard – a picture speaks a thousand words – but the semiotician Roland Barthes also reminds us that words in turn help focus the meaning of images. Words and images of course also work brilliantly together. They expand each other, like in cartoons where the punchline hits us somewhere in the blend of words and image. We clearly love the word + image game but add the element of surprise and it becomes intriguing and quite compelling. This word + image + surprise mix is what the Book Plate Art Project is all about, and now ‘playing’ in Redlands libraries.
How does it work? Well let’s track back to COVID-19. Yep, we prefer not to do that but still have to admit it opened up a whole bunch of new ways to do things. People couldn’t physically go into libraries and art galleries then, so the creative community staff had to get a whole lot more creative themselves. The Book Plate Art Project is the brainchild of curator Leanne McIntyre. Leanne saw how in one instance librarians at California’s Oakland Public Library tried to stay tapped in with borrowers by creating an online exhibition of some of the most interesting things people left in returned library books [https://oaklandlibrary.org/found-in-a-library-book/]. Included were notes and messages, photographs and gift cards, doodling and tickets to the movies, theatre, etc. Notes and scribbles ranged from heart-felt notes to self on living a better life to tips on why to either cease or keep reading the book! Together these random ‘finds’ became an accidental fragmented story of Oaklands’ readers. It forged a new way of sharing Oakland’s different ideas about books, art and life.
Leanne decided to flip this idea a little by instead having libraries leave surprises for readers. Commissioned postcard size artworks were inserted inside library books for borrowers to find when opening books. So the word + image + surprise game now brought artists, librarians, curators and readers into a part intended/part accidental exchange. Funded by a Brisbane City Council Creative Sparks Grant Program, 12 local artists were commissioned to create postcard size artworks responding to any book or story. These postcards included an invitation for readers to in turn submit their own artwork and these were also shared through social media. And so the creative community connected.
Here are some responses to the Book Plate Art Project:
“fantastic way for community artists to engage with library patrons…staff loved seeing community contributions each week… and artist-lead workshop fantastic way to encourage the spirit of creativity in the community. Exceptional uptake!” Acting Regional Coordinator (Corinda Library)
“love the idea of connecting the literary world with the visual world as the two art forms often inspire each other” Tamara Beale, Redlands Shire teacher
For this second iteration of the project Leanne commissioned artists who either live or work in Redlands Shire or have a strong connection. Quandamooka artists from Minjerriba (Stradbroke Island) are included, drawing on a legacy of strong cultural traditions of visual storytelling and outstanding literary talent in the figure of Oodgeroo Noonuccal (1920-93). Noonuccal was a nationally prominent poet, author and visual artist, and her legacy inflects this current Redlands creative community project with a deep word + image history.
The Book Plate Art Project – Redlands commissioned artists are: Michael Zavros, Delvene Cockatoo-Collins, Budla Malu (Mikayla Queary & Jhavon Auda), Mahala Burns, Renata Buziak and Kara Rosenlund.
The most beautiful aspect of this project is possibly how it empowers individual unique responses to books and artworks, and how it empowers everyone’s own creative expression. We are interested in one another – we want to share how we bond and how we differ – and this project creates a creative space to do so that is safe, powerful, and fun.
The Project is supported by a Regional Arts Development Fund. The Regional Arts Development Fund is a partnership between the Queensland Government and Redland City Council to support local arts and culture in regional Queensland.
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