The sculptor who can turn a book into an astonishing piece of art

The destruction of a book is considered by many to be an act of sacrilege.
But for Brian Dettmer slicing through the cover is an extraordinary act of creation.
The 36-year-old Atlanta based artist has carved dozens of intricate sculptures from volumes dumped in charity shops or at bookstores.

Meticulous: Artist Brian Dettmer from New York sculptured a set of vintage encyclopaedias to make this stunning piece of work depicting dozens of images within the pages

Each piece becomes a shifting 3D collage which transforms the viewers' perception of the book.
But unlike a collage, nothing is stuck on to the page or transplanted from one location to another.
Instead, Dettmer carves around the images and words nestling between the covers. The inspiration for the sculptures comes from the books themselves.
'If I have an anatomy book I think of the book as a body and approach it like a dissection,' Dettmer says.
'If it is a set of encyclopaedias, I think of the information as a landscape or a representation for the way we store and acquire information today.

Fanning out: A number of books are joined together to make this impressive circular sculpture which sits comfortably on the edge of table or shelf

In a spin: The circular sculpture pictured above, called Saturation Will Result, resembles a large water wheel. Hundreds of coats of arms and flags are carved from the pages, alongside other detailed images

'These are basic examples but basically my concept about the book's content dictates how the forms come together.'The text and images are always determined by the books itself. I seal the books edges and then carve it from the surface, removing one page or layer at a time.'I have no idea what will appear until I pull a page back and I don't move or add anything to the book.'So, the process is completely subtractive and everything you see is exactly where it always has been in the book.'

 

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Dettmer describes the process as 'excavation' and says that his actions are akin to editing until the role of the book is transformed. He describes how each objects function as a object to be read has slowly decreased due to new technology while the relevance of its content fades over time.By altering its physical form, he adds, 'new and unexpected roles emerge.'

Colourful: Mr Dettmer's piece Vertical Knowledge was made in 2009 and shows dozens of animals, people and buildings carved into a spiralling tower

Tube: This piece might pass for a rolled up newspaper at first glance, but it is actually called Western Civilization. A close-up shot shows the incredible detail in the sculpture, including bizarre faces and statures

Creating each piece is an intense labour of love using tweezers, surgical tools, rulers, saw, pliers, Xacto knives and adhesive.He works in bright sunlight and relies on the naked eye rather than magnifiying glasses or other visual aids.The process can take a week or a year. Dettmer, who has exhibited extensively, usually works on several sculptures at once and spends up to 50 hours in his studio every week He begins by sealing the books edges with glue to make it completely enclosed.Then, carefully, he cuts into the surface of the piece from the front, exposing each letter while cutting around the images and words that he wants to retain.

Wordy: This carving looks like a carefully stacked Jenga tower but it has actually been made from thousands of pages to show a jumbled mess of words

'Nothing inside the books is relocated or implanted,' he explains. 'Only removed.'Some pieces start and then hot a point where I don't know where to direct the structure to.'I have had some pieces that take a year or so before I fond a clear direction for the work to take.' One of Dettmer's pieces, Saturation Will Result, is made from a number of books that are positioned to form a circular structure that resembles a water wheel.Inisde the pages are carved hundreds of pictures from the original encyclopaedias.Another sculpture, Western Civilization, is made from pages that appear to have been rolled up to form a pillar.

Bookworm: Pages in this enormous book are folded outwards with art carved into them, while right,  the artist uses the hard red leather covers to make a piece that resembles a book stand

Unlike Dettmer's others, Tower of Babble actually uses words instead of the colourful pictures found in the other works. It resembles a carefully stacked Jenga tower.
Dettmer, originally from Chicago where he studied at Columbia College, cites Duchamp, Tom Friedman's early work and Tim Hawkinson as his favourite artists.
His work has been exhibited and collected throughout the United States, Mexico and Europe. He is exhibiting at Kinz + Tillou gallery, in New York, until June 11.