NO-ISBN / On Self-Publishing

A catalogue of micro- and alternative fairs held on four continents, an outline of media history, and manifestos from current avant-garde artists interspersed with texts on the international boom of artists' books, written by active practitioners of self-publishing.This first, richly illustrated reader has been compiled by a team of editors uniting the areas of conceptual art, media theory, and cultural studies. It thus offers a navigational aid in the discovery of new, uncharted terrain. The second edition comes with an updated chapter on micro-fairs and an interview with Arnaud Desjardin.NO-ISBN – On Self-publishing investigates extraordinary books that withdraw from the international book trade. A register contains 1,800 items that have three features in common: they are recent, printed on paper, and circulate without an ISBN.

What role will self-publishing play in the 21st century? Will the new kind of book printing develop to become an alternative to electronic communication? How is it possible to distinguish subversive gestures and New Biedermeier?

NO-ISBN – On Self-publishing provides an outline of media history from 15th century book printing to the present time, a schedule of micro- and fanzine fairs from four continents and manifestos of historical and current avant-gardes. They are interspersed with texts about the international boom of artists´ books, written by protagonists of self-publishing. This first, richly illustrated reader offers an apparatus to discover a new, yet uncharted terrain.