Books have transported our stories since before Guttenberg. Books are created, collected, and protected because they hold significance in our society. They are associated with knowledge and wisdom. We have elevated books beyond the normal status of a mere tool or technology. However, as we navigate a paradigm shift in our understanding of data and information, the function of books, and the spaces we dedicate to them, are being rewritten.

The ‘BookSpaces’ photographic project visually explores libraries and other places where printed materials are collected, organised, stored, and used. Books, and the spaces we build around them, offer unique architectures, facilities, and artifacts that hold stories of intellectual and social significance. The ‘BookSpaces’ project attempts to document some of these stories.

As the function and purpose of libraries evolve, it seems crucial to collect dedicated images of the activities they undertake, the technologies they use and the environments they occupy. However, the project is much more than a study of form, and function. Book spaces have character and purpose. We create them for their communities, and as such, they reflect the stories associated with people and place. I wish to capture the unusual, the quirky and the curious aspects of book spaces that reveal their communities.

Rob Lee

ablrys@gmail.com