“The Image of St. Bernadette” by Kim Abeles, one of books on display in Pasadena.

The cover of one book is made of black and orange furry material, topped by barbed wire. Inside, the pages are shards of glass.

Another book is an almost life-size mural of a photograph of a Greyhound bus. Sheets from a corrugated box, or palm trees, or sticks are used for the pages and covers of other books. And there are books with handmade, parchment-

like pages. Some tomes are finely embossed and printed on letterpress. And one book has a cover that is, in essence, a Band-Aid box.

In an exhibit that ends Jan. 5 in Pasadena, the Armory Center for the Arts has assembled a compelling collection of the art form known as artists’ books--

representing the work of more than 150 California artists, ranging from the well-known to prisoners and children who were taught the technique.

As an introductory panel to the exhibit reads, “Artists’ books explore the possibilities of a work of art made up of separate pages.”

The books, some recent, others created in the early 1960s--when the then-

innovative art form began to spread--come in all shapes and sizes and often employ unusual combinations of images and writings.

Jay Belloli, director of Armory gallery programs, said some of the books are worth very little, whereas others are valued at tens of thousands of dollars. But no monetary value is indicated in the exhibit and no distinction is made about the fame of the artists.

“The books stand on their own,” Belloli said. “We didn’t want to have people prejudge the books, based on who made them.”

The books are so intriguing, one wants to leaf through them, to touch the covers, the pages, the bindings. But, for their protection, the artworks are inside glass displays, and the tactile experience must be left to the imagination. On each Monday since the exhibit opened in October, though, a page of each book, when it is physically possible, has been turned to give viewers a different image weekly.

The gallery, at 145 N. Raymond Ave. in Pasadena, is open Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free.