Too big to ban? TN professor raises awareness with 'Unbannable Library' public art project

A professor at Austin Peay State University is pushing back against the increasing trend of book restrictions and bans in public school libraries across Tennessee in a big way — literally.

The project, titled the Unbannable Library, was created by APSU art Professor Paul Collins and consists of a series of massive books — around three feet by five feet — made by various artists that each feature different passages or themes from commonly banned or restricted books.

Collins has been making giant books for various projects for around eight years, all stemming from his love of literature.

“I want a book big enough that I could sort of camp out in,” he laughed. “And the experience of painting a big book is incredibly immersive, because it's something that's bigger than you, that totally surrounds you. It's a really cool experience.”

The books are made using a method that Collins has carefully perfected over the years, built from a collection of materials easily found at any hardware store. The books are massive, covered in a riot of colors and filled with huge, crinkling pages that can be flipped through like an actual book.

The exhibits serve as visual and tactile homage to the accessibility and immersive nature of books.

But the passion project evolved last year, when it was displayed at the 2023 Southern Festival of Books, from a love note to literature to a boisterous defense of it after Collins saw the startling rise in book restrictions in public school libraries.

“It really frustrates me as an educator,” he said. “The real challenge that I have is giving students the confidence they can do (art) and trusting their voice. And by trusting their voice, that means investing in thinking about who they are, talking proudly about their history, about where they come from. And these book bans target those experiences and they disproportionately target students who are seen as other.”

Of particular note to Collins was a recent proposal by Tennessee lawmakers that sought to expand who could file legal challenges against librarians and schools under an controversial law that requires public schools to identify books and other materials deemed "harmful to minors.”

The proposed law failed in the House in April.

“That really prioritizes certain voices in some towns,” Collins said. “If you think about the voting population of a small town, you could be talking about 10 people given the ability to censor the entire public collection.”

A number of content-restrictive laws have passed in Tennessee since 2022, when state lawmakers passed the Age Appropriate Materials Act, which removed the legal exception that previously protected librarians and other school personnel from being charged with a criminal offense over the presence of such materials in libraries.

A number of laws restricting content and increasing penalties against book curators have passed since then, with many facing pushback for their vague standards and lack of consistent implementation.

More: 'Wild West' of book bans: New legislation, complaints lead to increasing debates

In the face of these laws, more than 300 book titles across Tennessee have faced scrutiny, with some being kept on shelves, and others being removed from certain grade levels and still others banned altogether.

Collins said fear of criminalization has been evident as he approached libraries and schools with this project.

“(Librarians) are energized. They are courageous,” he said. “They're saying, ‘We want to do anything’ every time I reach out to a library. But when it comes time to actually talking about how to do this, they're scared.”

To counter the fear, Collins has assembled 20 teams of artists, pairing of a visual artist and a writer or poet, to make and display these books around the state.

Locations include two books at Tennessee State University, a Clarksville high school, the Edgehill Public Library, Vanderbilt University and more.

For many of them, Collins himself makes the large, blank books in his studio for the teams to then fill with excerpts from commonly banned books, or discussions of themes found in banned books.

The 20 books will be completed in a staggered order between now and the 2024 Southern Festival of Books in October, with many displayed at their respective school or library locations before being displayed as a group at the festival.

“There is so much work to be done,” he said. “And I feel the excitement growing amongst the teams.”

Currently, the professor is seeking sponsors to help him make the creation process even easier for the team of volunteer artists. In the future, he said he hopes it can take on an even bigger life to fight rising book bans.

“It does seem expandable,” he said. “This is a suppression of lived experience issue. For me, as an artist, an educator and a dad, with that suppression leads to self-censorship, and leads to questions about one's self worth, about one's place in society. These are truly dangerous things. And it's very dangerous to just accept it, and I won't. And I don't think anybody should.”

The USA TODAY Network - Tennessee's coverage of First Amendment issues is funded through a collaboration between the Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners.

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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Too big to ban? TN professor raises awareness with 'Unbannable Library' public art project