Library of Artistic Print on Demand. Post-Digital Publishing in Times of Platform Capitalism

Gilbert A, Bülhoff A (2025)


Publication Language: English

Publication Type: Edited Volume

Subtype: Book

Publication year: 2025

Publisher: Spector Books

City/Town: Leipzig

Abstract

Print-on-demand has revolutionized the world of books. As analog-digital hybrids, PoD books are the very embodiment of the post-digital age. Digital printing and low-threshold online platforms such as Blurb, Lulu, or Kindle Direct Publishing make it possible for virtually anyone to publish instantly and worldwide—without financial investment or risk. This opens up spaces beyond the traditional book market and leads to a democratization of production. At the same time, this new radius of action is fundamentally dependent on the rules and interests of the platforms themselves. Out of this tension, an entire subculture has emerged—one that tests the book once again for its possible contents, aesthetics, materialities, economies, and publics, while also critically reflecting and negotiating our digital present.

The Library of Artistic Print on Demand maps this field of experimentation for the first time in its global spread, historical depth, and political relevance.

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How to cite

APA:

Gilbert, A., & Bülhoff, A. (Eds.) (2025). Library of Artistic Print on Demand. Post-Digital Publishing in Times of Platform Capitalism. Leipzig: Spector Books.

MLA:

Gilbert, Annette, and Andreas Bülhoff, eds. Library of Artistic Print on Demand. Post-Digital Publishing in Times of Platform Capitalism. Leipzig: Spector Books, 2025.

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