Be Kind to Books Club
10"x8"
$29.60
Sale price
$29.60
Regular price
$40.00
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In searching for the original image file we refined for art print form, we discovered there’s actually a whole series of similar posters beseeching people to practice care with their reading material. “Don’t dog ear”, “a bookmark would be better”, and “rain is bad for a book” they read. But the all-encompassing simplicity of the statement on display in Be Kind to Books Club really caught our attention. It’s delightfully didactic, a positive appeal to be a part of a book-protecting brigade. This artwork’s adamant but approachable enthusiasm is perhaps traceable to its target audience: Be Kind to Books Club was intended to encourage children, especially, to read and care for books. Stop destroying their spines by folding their front covers backwards, keep them safe and dry—basically, treat your tomes with respect! It’s a savvy PSA—teaching kids to care for books, to elevate them to the status of something worth safeguarding, just might sow some full grown bibliophiles.
Be Kind to Books Club
$29.60
Sale price
$29.60
Regular price
$40.00
The Works Projects Administration (WPA) was established in 1935 as a government program designed to employ millions of job-seekers for public works projects with a goal of alleviating the economic effects of the Great Depression. Be Kind to Books Club was designed in 1936 as one of more than 30,000 poster designs created by artists working under the Federal Art Project (FAP)—a subset of the WPA—to promote community activities, proactive approaches to health, and positive social values.
In searching for the original image file we refined for art print form, we discovered there’s actually a whole series of similar posters beseeching people to practice care with their reading material. “Don’t dog ear”, “a bookmark would be better”, and “rain is bad for a book” they read. But the all-encompassing simplicity of the statement on display in Be Kind to Books Club really caught our attention. It’s delightfully didactic, a positive appeal to be a part of a book-protecting brigade. This artwork’s adamant but approachable enthusiasm is perhaps traceable to its target audience: Be Kind to Books Club was intended to encourage children, especially, to read and care for books. Stop destroying their spines by folding their front covers backwards, keep them safe and dry—basically, treat your tomes with respect! It’s a savvy PSA—teaching kids to care for books, to elevate them to the status of something worth safeguarding, just might sow some full grown bibliophiles.