Art Made From Recycled Books

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UM Museum Inspiration- Special exhibit Hardcovers and Paperbacks by Brian Dettmer



Virtual Gallery Visit: 
Show your kiddos an example of Dettmer’s work!  Have the kids make predictions as to Dettmer’s process before explaining it to them. What does contemporary mean? Play I-Spy with one of Dettmer’s pieces (check out the Museum website or image above!) 
Brian Dettmer, born in 1974, is an American contemporary artist. Most well known for his alteration of existing media--such as old books, maps, record albums, and cassette tapes--to create new, transformed works of visual fine art.  A large body of Dettmer's current work is created by altering books, including older dictionaries, encyclopedias, textbooks, science and engineering books, art books, medical guides, history books, atlases, comic books, wallpaper sample books, and others. Dettmer seals and cuts into the books, exposing select images and text to create intricate three-dimensional derivative works that reveal new or alternative interpretations of the books. Dettmer never inserts or moves any of the books' contents. This process is performed without pre-planning or mapping out the contents before cutting into the book.  As he cuts away unwanted material with knives, tweezers and surgical tools, Dettmer stabilizes the remaining paper with a varnish. 
Dettmer has subsequently augmented his process by folding, bending, rolling, or stacking one or more books before sealing and cutting them or, in some instances, sanding them to create a variety of forms. Dettmer has also constructed larger sculptures using complete sets of encyclopedias and other reference books.
Brian Dettmer's work has been published and exhibited widely in museums, art centers, and galleries around the world, including the Smithsonian (Washington D.C.), Museum of Arts and Design (New York), here at the UM Museum, and many more!
Project: Sculpture Made from Books
Today, we are going to use Dettmer as inspiration to create a sculpture from existing media. 


  1. Gather recycled materials.
  1. Examples: Paper towel rolls, cardboard, boxes, plastic jugs, cans, ect. 



  1. Find an old book, magazine or newspaper!
  2. First brainstorm and construct a plan for the sculpture (What will my sculpture be in the shape of?).
  3. Using glue, scissors, and different recycled materials available, kiddos will create a sculpture.
    1. Tip: If available, have a “hot glue” station (for parent/guardian use only!) to use as necessary. 
  4. Once the kiddos have the “bones” for their sculpture, they will mod podge recycled book pages onto the outer layer of their sculpture. 
    1. Tip: If Mod Podge is not available, pour Elmer’s glue onto a small plate and apply with a paint brush instead!
  5. Have paint available for adding detail, but encourage the kiddos for their sculpture to be predominantly covered in book pages. 
  6. Allow time to dry and then display your sculpture! Take a photo of your finished work of art and tag us on Instagram @ummuseum

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