Conceptual art and artists' books : an Australian perspective

Abstract

It will be argued in this thesis that Australian conceptual and post-object artists' books established the field of Australian artists' books. From an Australian perspective, this thesis will investigate the international field of practice as it formed within global conceptualism through the period 1963 to 1983. This thesis will specifically examine the conceptual publications produced by expatriate Australian artists from the late 1960s onwards, and the artists' books produced by locally-based Australian post-object artists through the 1970s. This thesis will conclude by demonstrating how by the early 1980s, these conceptual and post-object artists' books produced during the previous two decades had set the material and discursive foundations for the field of Australian artists' books.