MORRISTOWN, N.J. (Morris County) — A design-centered exploration of how books inspire contemporary art-making is now on view at the Morris Museum. The exhibition, Contemporary Volumes, features works by nine internationally recognized artists whose creations span political, aesthetic and fantastical perspectives.
Crafted from materials including wood, metal, acrylic paint, recycled and organic substances such as coffee grounds — and even books themselves — the works address themes of content suppression, historical erasure and the evolving nature of the book as a physical object. The exhibition, presented in the museum’s largest gallery, runs through March 2026.
“Visual artists have always been inspired by the ideas captured and archived in books. This exhibition examines how their physical form shapes creation and ideas in today’s practice, bringing together artists from the region and across the country,” said President and CEO Thomas J. Loughman.
The show includes work by acclaimed book-based artists such as Colette Fu, whose celebrated piece Noodle Mountain showcases her inventive paper engineering techniques. Brian Dettmer transforms pre-existing media into intricate sculptural artworks, while Samuelle Green contributes a one-of-a-kind immersive installation.
Informed by current events surrounding book censorship, Amanda Love’s dissected and reassembled books create evocative spaces — one tracing the winding path of the Tigris River.
Other featured artists include Cheryl Gross and Cheryl R. Riley of Jersey City, Sarah Faith Matthews of Hyattsville, Md., Susan Rostow of Brooklyn, N.Y., and Diana Schmertz of New York, N.Y.
The artists’ work has been featured in solo exhibitions at venues including the Riverside Museum of Art in Beijing, Arte Laguna Venice in Italy, the University of Maine Museum of Art, the Everhart Museum in Pennsylvania, and Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, N.J.
Fu will be featured in PBS’s Craft in America series in 2026. Before the episode airs, she will give an artist talk and demonstration on Dec. 13 at the museum’s Bickford Theatre, where the episode will also be screened.
