CHRISTOPHE BOUTIN BIO — Three Star Books

Christophe Boutin was born in Paris in 1957. After graduating from Ecole Estienne and completing two additional years of study at the Ecole des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, he co-founded the punk band 'Edith Nylon' in 1977 and recorded three albums through 1983. Soon after, Boutin transitioned into the visual arts, exhibiting his works in numerous galleries and institutions such as Yvon Lambert (Paris) in 1987 and Giorgio Persano Gallery (Turin) in 1992. In subsequent years, the digital age inspired Boutin to focus on the development and creation of artist’s books as works of art, leading him to co-found onestar press and Three Star Books, two distinguished presses dedicated to publishing books by artists.

Since the inauguration of onestar press in 2000 and Three Star Books in 2007, Christophe Boutin has conducted numerous workshops and conferences on artist’s books at art schools and institutions such as Oslo National Academy of the Arts, Norway; Akademie der bildenden Künste, Vienna; The Moderna Museet, Stockholm; IUAV, Venice; Fondation De Appel, Amsterdam; Ecole des Beaux Arts de Paris. In 2013, at the invitation of Bernard Blistène, Director of the Department of Cultural Development at the Centre Pompidou, Christophe Boutin and Mélanie Scarciglia (co-founder of both onestar press and Three Star Books) participated in founding BOOK MACHINE (Paris) at the Centre Pompidou. This 3-week event featured conferences, performances, and artist’s book publishing, all dedicated to the process of book production in the broadest sense.

Christophe Boutin has recently been appointed (2022), along with Mélanie Scarciglia, as a consultant to expand the artist book collection of the Serralves Museum in Porto. This new role will leverage his extensive experience and deep understanding of artist’s books, aiming to enhance the museum’s collection with a diverse range of innovative and influential works in this field. His expertise is expected to bring a fresh perspective and new insights to the museum’s approach towards artist books, further cementing its status as a leading institution in contemporary art.

This appointment follows a sustained collaboration with the institution, marked by three exhibitions conceived by Christophe Boutin in the library exhibition space at Serralves: PRINT MATTERS YEAH! (2024), BOOKS OF RESISTANCE (2025), and THESE ARE NOT BOOKS together with Sónia Oliveira, Library and Archives Coordinator (2026). Together, these projects have contributed to redefining the scope and critical discourse surrounding artist’s books within the museum context.