The way we receive information is changing. Some friends have completely abandoned hardcover books for e-books; others have never read a book in electronic form, and yet others have collections of both. Our public libraries increasingly offer patrons a choice of formats.

With the rapid development of technology, I think this was bound to happen. Books have been around for millennia — in essentially the same form for six centuries — and as a painting teacher once told our class, “The only constant in design is change.”

The relationship of artists to written communication has also changed. In the past, the destruction of a book meant the destruction of the information it contained. But when anyone can carry a library in his or her luggage, designers and artists are beginning to view bound, printed pages as art supplies. Several artists are exploring ways to keep books from landfills and preserve their shelf life.

Jim Rosenau takes that challenge literally. The son and grandson of book publishers, Rosenau was raised in a house with 5,000 books.  He is now a carpenter, comedy writer and software developer living in California, but he is perhaps best known for creating furniture — including bookshelves — from discarded hardbacks and salvaged lumber.

Shelf made from a set of three dictionaries by Jim Rosenau.

“Who Done It?” Shelf made from three carefully selected abandoned books by Jim Rosenau.

Bookcase made from rescued books by Jim Rosenau.

While majoring in 3D Design in college, British artist Laura Cahill kept track of the number of objects discarded within a mile radius of her school. In response to her findings, she began a collection, “Readable Furniture,” made from recycled books.  “I am fascinated in reusing objects in a way that gives them a new life,” she said.

Vase made from old books by Laura Cahill. The spines are wrapped around test tubes so that the vases don't get damaged when they are filled with water.

Table and lamp from old books by Laura Cahill.

The Dutch firm Bomdesign offers several sculptural reading lamps made from reclaimed books, and creates boxes from other recycled materials to ship them to clients throughout the world. Lamp sizes vary, depending on the size of the original books.

Reading lamps made from old books by Bomdesign.

Furniture made by stacking books has been around for a long time — almost any dorm-dweller can do it without special training. In college I made bookshelves by stacking out-of-date textbooks between custom-cut boards.

Here are some other designs that take this technique to the next level.

Stacked Book Tables.

When the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands needed a new reference desk, the staff created one from old intact library books.

The reference desk in the Technical University of Delft library.

Closeup view of the library reference desk in Delft.

Learn more about the artists at their websites:  Jim Rosenau, Laura Cahill and Atelier Bomdesign.

Loose change between everyday sofa cushions takes on a very different significance in Johnny Swing’s world.  That’s because whenever the ingenious sculptor/furniture maker/welder comes across a coin, he’s on his way to creating a new work of art. For instance Swing has fashioned a contoured couch by painstakingly welding 7,000 nickels together — actually he has made 20 to date..  It takes more than 300 hours to complete the 35,000 welds that hold all the coins in one couch together.  When sold, the couch costs upwards of $50,000.

Johnny Swing on his Nickel Couch..

Underside of the Nickel Couch.

His shimmering designs (in all sizes and shapes) are fully functional and inviting pieces of furniture.  That’s just the idea, says Swing. “People don’t touch sculptures, and I wanted them to physically interact with my work,” he says.

Swing, who had long worked with everyday found objects, began creating furniture from discards in 1991.   “It’s more about taking something worthless and making it special,”  he says. He also wanted to develop a body of work that could be reproduced rather than continuously crafting one-of-a-kind objects and he wanted to work with an abundant supply of castoffs. Swing opted for out-of-date coins after checking with the Secret Service — then part of the U.S. Treasury Department — to see if it was legal to use them to create art.  They said, “It’s your money, do with it what you want,” says Swing.

Half-Dollar Butterfly Chair crafted from 1,500 half-dollars and 7,000 welds by Johnny Swing.

View of the Half-Dollar Butterfly Chair from the back.

Swing’s first experimented with a chair made from discontinued pennies. It didn’t work out:  he discovered pennies are difficult to use because those made after 1981 contain zinc which caused them to disintegrate when welded together. He now uses nickels, quarters and half-dollars.

Johnny Swing’s body of functional art includes more than furniture:  he also creates coin bowls, a line of chairs and chandeliers made from glass baby jars, a windshield table, and a 15 ft. lamp made from satellite dishes. Individuals and museums throughout the world have collected his work, which has been exhibited in galleries in London, Los Angeles, and New York.

Unlike most furniture makers, Swing’s face is well known to many who watched the TV series “Junkyard Wars” during its 2001-2003 seasons when he participated on one of the competing crews. To learn more about Johnny Swing, visit his website.