Exquisite Corpse:
Edward Gorey’s Moveable Books
Edward Gorey seemed driven to explore every physical permutation one could inflict on a book: multiple-fold books, pop-up books, flipbooks, accordions, fans, tarot decks, and even books that don’t really open at all. All these paper experiments were a logical (or, illogical) evolution born of Gorey's forays into Surrealist storytelling, non-sequitur reveals, anagrammed authorships, and cryptic dedications. Blurring the line between Book and Game, Exquisite Corpse explores how Gorey reveled in subverting the physical realm of the book to allow for endless visual and narrative possibilities to, quite literally, unfold.
A Moveable Book (‘Movable’ is acceptable as well, but we’re going with the Hemingway spelling) means just that: a book expressing its story in a physically interactive and unconventional way. Not just books whose pages you move forward, but multiple-fold books, pop-up books, flipbooks, accordions, and dissolving books. Edward explored many of these forms as well as cut-outs, fans, tarot decks, books containing two stories moving in different directions, and even miniature books that don’t really open at all (and thus question the very nature of a book). While several of the books in this exhibit were complex endeavors produced by large publishing houses involving large (for Edward) commercial print runs, most of the books included are very small press operations frequently limited to hundreds of copies—which puts them into the category of Artists’ Books. They are nonetheless all Moveables in body or spirit. Nearly all are quite rare and Exquisite Corpse is the first exhibit to bring them all together under one roof.
The title Exquisite Corpse derives from an early 20th Century Dadaist/Surrealist game of creating a drawing from separately drawn parts—usually by different artists. Likewise, the game can be played with snippets of text, or just the random pairing of individual words—which is likely how the game’s title came about. Obviously, the name stuck as it perfectly represents the jarring beauty that sometimes arrives with casual juxtaposition.
Gorey's immersion into moveables also meant he was collecting examples of such. The San Diego State Library, which houses Gorey’s personal library, has dozens of Moveable Book titles in their collection and have generously loaned a handful for this exhibit. Additional moveable and miniature works held by Gorey’s Trust, or from the House’s archives are featured as well. Many of the books are 1970s or ‘80s reprints of 19th Century moveables, including examples of pop-up books, circular picture books (volvelles), and dissolving books (intertwined sheets moved by a tab that alters/transforms an image). There are also miniature books from Edward’s collection which obviously influenced his own forays into this diminutive genre.
Sometimes a book doesn’t behave like a book but defies interpretation—explicitly at odds with what a book is supposed to do. Sometimes a book poses more questions than answers. Under Gorey’s authorship, inscrutability and ambiguity are given the keys to the bus, and his move into the physical realm of books is both a brilliant experiment and obvious direction as well. Works like The Tunnel Calamity, The Dwindling Party, Le Mélange Funeste, Les Échanges Malandreux, The Dripping Faucet, The Fantod Pack, FMRA, and E. D. Ward: A Mercurial Bear among others shows that in his moveables, as with his more traditional books, Gorey entrusts his reader with a great deal of responsibility, the parameters of his moveables allowing each reader to set a course on exactly how the book would be experienced.
The period that Gorey was preoccupied with moveables was relatively brief— essentially, the 1980s—and it’s unfortunate that he didn't continue exploring the potential of moveable books: dissolving book, flap-books—a touch-me-texture book—but it was not to be. Because Edward was vigilant in not repeating himself, by the early 90s, he’d moved on from moveables to fabric arts, printmaking, and a return to theater work. As distillations of a lifetime’s involvement with the content and design of books, Gorey’s moveable books push the boundaries of structure and narrative, blurring the line between book and game. Clearly, they display the joy that went into their making—joy being a word that certainly doesn’t come up very much in describing Edward Gorey’s world.
Exquisite Corpse exhibits at the Edward Gorey House
April 4th through December 29th, 2024.
Plan your visit here.
The House thanks the following organizations and individuals who assisted in the creation of this exhibit: Eric Sherman and Will Baker at the Edward Gorey Charitable Trust; Joanne and Vince Cassaro; Dinah Wolff; Peter Haining, author of Movable Books, (published by New English Library, 1979, and featuring the remarkable collection of David and Briar Philips); special thanks to the Edward Gorey Personal Library Collection at San Diego State University and Linda Salem, Assistant Head of Collections.
