I read a book the other day called How to Talk About Books You Haven't Read. It was an interesting book for several reasons. As you read, the author is professing the needlessness and impossibility of having read a book, preferring to talk about it as different levels of unreading.

He made some good points, about how the work itself exists differently for everyone and serves as a screen to project ones own mental book onto, and also about how each book on its own means very little compared to its placement within the context of all books. Being able to situate a book in relation to others is more important than knowing any one book in detail.

As I read this I started thinking about how this related to artworks, just as no one ever entirely reads a book (for even those books read in detail begin to slip away due to our faulty memories), no one ever really 'reads' an artwork in its entirety. Its not like its the first time I've ever considered it but if yo're interested in reading a whole book about it check out How to Talk About Books You Haven't Read by Pierre Bayard.

Its hilarious and deep, and it finally helped me to figure out a few things I never really grasped in COntemporary Theory and Crticism class.

Oh, and if you're more interested in other than than books just read it replacing the word book with artwork and library with gallery and you're set!