In conversation with Didier Mutel: contemporary engraving and book arts.

A talk by award winning French book artist and engraver Didier Mutel on historical and contemporary engraving and book arts, to coincide with an exhibition of his work at Maggs Bros. in London.

Award winning book artist, engraver, maître d’art, and university professor (Institut Supérieur des Beaux Arts, Besançon, France) Didier Mutel will discuss his historic engraving studio (founded in Paris, 1793) and the current challenges for book artists and engravers.

Along with a retrospective of Mutel’s work, the artist will tell a linear tale about the development of his practice as a book artist from his early work (Oiseaux, 1991, and Jekyll & Hyde, 1994) up through his most recent books (R217A, 2016 and The First Atlas of the United States of Acid, 2017). “The book,” Mutel says, “is the most beautiful terrain for artistic expression. In my work I strive to bring the traditional techniques of etching into a material dialogue with all the modern tools available to an artist in the 21st century. In my books you will see a continuum, an exploration, and the effort to create new books by combining the ancient and the contemporary to make the future.”

40 Places are available for this free event and we look forward to welcoming you to our premises in Bedford Square. If you are unable to attend this event, the exhibition of Didier's works will be on show between November 23rd – December 7th, Monday to Friday from 9:30am to 5pm. 

Image: Didier Mutel, The First Atlas of the United States of Acid. Plate 8, Alabamacid. Atelier Didier Mutel: Orchamps, France, 2017