While photography has come to dominate almost all kinds of publications these days, the origins of this concurrence have slipped into oblivion: How photos made their way into books is a long story, and its trajectory faced many technical difficulties. The various creative solutions the pioneers had to offer are therefore all the more surprising. Original photographs, test prints, or book maquettes opened a new perspective on a hitherto disregarded aspect of Austrian cultural history, one that is marked by the many cross-references between scientific curiosity, industrial interests, artistic experiments, and educational policies bound to the project of enlightenment.
An extraordinary panorama of innovative accomplishments unfolds along the lines of bibliophile coffee-table books and advertising brochures, travelogues and x-ray atlases, artistic drafts and publishers' catalogues.
A broad spectrum of early photobooks in Austria, presented in an exhibition in conjunction with this catalogue, features fascinating combinations of convincing photography, masterful book design, and technical perfection.
Published on the occasion of the exhibition Foto.Buch.Kunst at the Albertina, Vienna, June 28 - September 22, 2019
