Monday, May 9, 2011

Obsolete Books and Vintage Paper


When an appeals court issues an opinion (ruling), sometimes the case is "published", meaning it may be cited as a rule of law. Over the decades, thousands of published opinions have filled volumes of books. Naturally, finding the right case to cite to takes research. Traditionally, this research was done in large libraries teeming with law books.

Only recently, however, online research has displaced traditional book research. Online research has proven to be more efficient, not only in time, but in eliminating the large amount of physical space necessary to hold the books and bookshelves.

The books themselves have become obsolete.

So what happens to the books? They become garbage. Or art!

My new series of work incorporates the vintage paper from these old books, still holding good law. For example, The School Girl, seen above, is a piece incorporating a California Court of Appeal decision from 1940. This was back when Earl Warren was the Attorney General of California, before he became one of the most renown and admired Supreme Court Justices in the history of the United States.

Here are some others:


People v. Guerrero, 8" x 6", oil and vintage paper on wood, 2011



Ex Parte Basuino, 8" x 6", oil and vintage paper on wood, 2011



Gump's Estate, 8" x 6", oil and vintage paper on wood, 2011

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