BOOKS WORTH THEIR WEIGHT IN GOLD
How much would you dole out for a book that was beautifully made — with special paper and binding, and maybe with a few extras added, such as a sculpture or a limited edition print? Here are some (rather expensive) books you might collect as you would a fine wine or a car.
GOAT — $7,800
This tribute to the late Muhammad Ali, GOAT (which stands for Greatest Of All Time) was published by Taschen in an edition of just 9,000. What makes it special? It’s signed by Ali and artist Jeff Koons and features more than 3,000 images, many of them in print for the first time. It’s bound in pink leather, “the colour of Ali’s first Cadillac,” the catalogue copy says. And you’ll need Alisized muscles to lift it: this tome weighs in at 34 kilograms.
GOAT — $19,500
You thought $8,000 was a lot? This version of GOAT is even more expensive. Limited to 1,000 copies, this is called the “Champ’s Edition” and includes everything in the less expensive version plus a sculpture by Koons “comprised of two inflatables and a stool,” as well as “four gelatin silver prints signed by photographer Howard L. Bingham and Muhammad Ali.”
HIROSHI SUGIMOTO: THE LONG NEVER, LIGHTNING FIELDS 289 — $14,300
Art books can command some serious money. This special edition, published by Damiani, contains 65 works by the artist Hiroshi Sugimoto. Text is from Jonathan Safran Foer. According to the catalogue, you’re getting much, much more than simply a book, as its “accompanied by an 11 x 14 inch gelatin silver print from Sugimoto’s Lightning Fields series. For this collector’s edition, Sugimoto has printed “Lightning Fields 289” and “Lightning Fields 304” in an edition of 25 each. The prints are signed by the artist; the book and print are housed in a custommade brushed aluminum box.”
MIMMO ROTELLA. 1944-1961: CATALOGUE RAISONNE VOL. 1 — $350
Much more affordable for most of us, this colourful hardcover book, published by Skira and written by Germano Celant, comes out in October. Like many of the more expensive books you’ll see out there, it’s a “catalogue raisonne” of a specific artist’s work. This is the first volume in a four-volume series, so you’ll have to pony up $1,400 to cover Mimmo Rotella’s entire oeuvre.