Illustrated on page 132 of The Century of Artists' Books by Johanna Drucker, 1995.

Extract from Catalogue 234. Jonathan A. Hill, 2021. Art Books, Artists’ Books Book Arts and Bookworks.

79. Smith, Keith A. out of sight, Book Number 107.

A scarce visual and interactive poem by the celebrated book artist Keith A. Smith (b. 1938), bound by the artist and printed offset in a numbered edition of 200. This is a beguiling and intricate composition with overlapping text on each leaf, requiring repeated manipulation of the book and the pages.

Smith explains the structure and creation of this book (as well as for Book 108) in his auto-bibliography: “All the letters on the far right which exist in layered form protruding from all the remaining pages must form words when the book is opened to that folio. When that page is turned, the remaining letters form other words as the poem proceeds. This juggling act continues as each page is turned requiring the new writing on each page to make use of the letters in sight from all the remaining pages. The final page is the only one which is not dependent upon all the other pages . . .

“I love these two books because they are my best examples of writing that is conceived as a book experience. If the text of the poem were recited on the radio, the listener would hear the text, but that is only part of the book. I am always searching for ways to speak aside from the pictures and/or text . . . ” In pristine condition. The full text of this poem is reproduced in Smith’s 200 Books.

* Smith, 200 Books (2000), pp. 186-89. see also J. Drucker, the Century of Artists’ Books (2004 ed.), pp. 131-33.