henry darger's realms of the unreal consists of 7 volumes, over 15,000 typewritten pages. discovered along with the drawings and paintings in his small chicago apartment.
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Posted by adam at August 19, 2004 11:48 AM
I had never heard of Henry Darger before this moment, but I saw the books here and immediately wanted them. I am a compulsive book buyer and a great book reader and I have always found myself attracted to older books. You know, the ones that looked used and ratty and those great hardcover ones with the title worn off the cover from use and age. I cannot go into a bookstore/garage sale/antique store/ second-hand store without at least one book.
The work is beautiful. The ratty pages-- handwritten!--and the musty look of it all is so appealing for reasons that I could never fully explain. The condition and display of his books adds to the theme, to his 'unreal' world. It gives the volumes a sort of spooky and supernatural look, as if they have lived thousands of years before surfacing once more.
Wish I could find a copy to read. I looked them up on Amazon, though, and was sadly disappointed at the price of $250.00. But perhaps one day while rummaging through a pile of crumbling books I'll get lucky!