Ilan Manouach is an artist. His latest creation is impressive, he assembled all the volumes of the famous manga Onepiece to make it the biggest book in the world.
This special edition is published by Jean Boite Editions. Beyond technological and creative prowess, Ilan Manouach also delivers a message.
Onepiece the longest book in the world
Onepiece by Ilan Manouach is a limited edition of 50 copies. The paper sculpture is composed of 21540 pages.
This edition one piece weighs almost 17 Kg. It is presented in a magnificent case. This sculptural object contains all the volumes of Eiichirō Oda’s manga series.
This work cannot be read or exhibited in bookstores. It is a work of art in its own right. It is, according to the publisher, the largest book in the world.
The artist’s message
Manouach’s objective is not to appear in the record books. His message goes further. In a press release, the publisher explains the process.
The wealth of content available online and the rampant digitization of the comic book industry challenges the current state of comic book craftsmanship. ONEPIECE by Ilan Manouach proposes to develop the understanding of digital comics from a qualitative examination of the formal possibilities of digital comics to a quantitative reassessment, that of “comics as Big Data”.
ONEPIECE initiates a “computational turn” in comics, contributing to the formation of new areas of practice, expanding the ever-growing artistic toolbox that allows artists to think about comics at different scales and temporalities.
Comics are dual objects. They have a use value for readers, and an exchange value that is aimed at communities of collectors. If the boundary between these two functions is not always clear, they sometimes play against each other.
ONEPIECE intensifies this duality because it can only be considered as the material exemplification of a digital ecosystem saturated by the media, that of online comics. ONEPIECE only exists as an object of pure speculation.
This limited edition of 50 copies found a buyer for the modest sum of 1900 euros per copy. Collectors have jumped on it and there are none left!