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ex-libris ex-librisTHE WORLD OF EX-LIBRIS |
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A historical retrospective |
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3 MODERN TIMES The nineteenth century is perhaps the dullest period in the history of ex-libris, at least through its five middle decades. The pre-industrial age saw a proliferation of books and libraries, but in general of rather low quality; arts as a whole went through a phase of formalism and unimaginative stagnation, and ex-libris with them. In general, with the exception of Britain, the use of ex-libris became less frequent, also affected by the economic conditions prevailing at the time. The revival of bookplates was linked to the general revival in decorative arts in the second half of the century, and somewhat also to the fine arts movements which occurred in reaction to the rigid neo-classicism of the time. Another factor came into play in the 1880s, when collecting of ex-libris became fashionable. Soon, there were societies of ex-libris collectors in several European countries, and before long the practice of having more than one ex-libris for one’s books was well established, as was the hobby of collecting and exchanging them. Although the initial surge of enthusiasm of the 1890-1920 period dwindled somewhat, the production of and interest in bookplates has since slowly but steadily grown. |
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