Books, beautiful inside and out

As a self proclaimed book lover, I truly appreciate books. Now I've discovered there is an artist who appreciates books in a whole new way. Nicholas Jones is a book artist. He takes books and turns them into his own sculptural art forms. What a unique idea. I can't help but feel a bit sorry for the words written on the pages, which after being turned into art, are not able to be read and enjoyed. Of course, there are plenty of books out there, and unless he is sculpting the only copy, a duplicate can be read. Is he destroying the book or recreating it? It is obviously a little bit of both. Destroy, however, is a strong word which I don't think applies here in its literal sense. Jones is passionate about his art. In his own way, he is paying tribute to the books he uses. Not only is he honoring the author but also the publisher and printer. He is demonstrating that there are more uses for a book than just reading and shelving. I guess, if someone has an artist's eye, he could see design in just about anything. Take an inanimate object and carve, paint, paste, sculpt, etc and create something new and fresh. As one who appreciates art in all its forms, I can value Jones intrinsic view upon the printed word. He sees potential in the volumes of bound paper around him.
I remember, as a child, I was taught to create a Christmas tree out of a Reader's Digest. We folded each page into a triangle. Then we spray painted our fanned out Digests and added glittery decorations. I wonder if Jones had created the same thing as a child? I always thought that it was a wonderful craft idea but, even then, I hated to see the written words destroyed so easily. I knew that the Digests had already been read and would only end up in the trash. The Christmas trees created from them was surely a tribute to the small magazine.
Michelangelo once said that within every block of marble there is a great sculpture waiting to come out. Apparently, Jones sees the same thing in the books he uses. Here's to art in all its wonderful forms. May each one of us learn to see the potential in all things.