We are pleased to present a beautiful new body of work, House of Books, by French photographer, Franck Bohbot. The series, which has been receiving much critical and press acclaim, is a visual compendium of magnificent libraries, each space selected for its distinct grandeur, reflective of the fantastic, complex beauty contained within their shelves.

The series was begun in Paris, continued in Rome and Providence, Rhode Island and will encompass libraries all around the world (with libraries in the UK to be photographed later this year), from the monumental to the intimate, the ancient to the contemporary. Bohbot captures these spaces with a unique, coherent approach to atmosphere, colour and composition, always consciously paying tribute to the architects behind the buildings with his visual style.

As we become an increasingly digitised society, this testament to the home of the printed word is a reminder of the once-precious physical object of the book, and the serene majesty of these institutions that first made such transformative objects accessible. With no human readers visible in the images, the books serve as the main protagonists of the series, with the library interiors forming their stately backdrop. The grandiosity of the chosen structures comes to symbolize the significance of the library itself—a vital, democratic space of refuge, education, remembrance, and possibility. To see more of Franck’s work, go to the Photographers section.

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