Lab Creates Copy of ‘Fahrenheit 451’ That Can Only Be Read When You Add Heat to It

Heat Sensitive Book Fahrenheit 451

Holland-based Charles Nypels Laboratory, part of the Jan van Eyck Academie—an institute for fine art and design—has created a heat-sensitive edition of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Developed in collaboration with graphic design collective, Super Terrain, the lab-made pages are covered in what appears to be a soot-black, screen-printed layer. Words are only revealed when a high temperature is applied.

Published in 1953, Fahrenheit 451 by American writer Ray Bradbury is set in a dystopian America, where books are prohibited and firemen are ordered to burn any that are found. Besides the plot, the inspiration behind this new experimental edition may be found in the book's tagline, which reads “Fahrenheit 451 – the temperature at which book paper catches fire, and burns.”

The creators shared a video on Instagram demonstrating how the fireproof fiction works, and even mentioned in the comments that they plan to put the experimental book into production.

This book can only be read when you add heat to the pages.

A post shared by Jo Frenken (@charlesnypelslab) on

Jan van Eyck Academie: Website | Instagram | Facebook 
h/t : [Open Culture]

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Emma Taggart

Emma Taggart is a Staff Writer and Video Editor at My Modern Met. She earned a BA in Fashion and Textile Design at the University of Ulster in Belfast. Originally from Northern Ireland, she lived in Berlin for many years, where she fostered a career in the arts, dabbling in everything from illustration and animation to music and ceramics. She now calls Edinburgh home, where she continues to work as a writer, illustrator, and ceramicist. Her ceramics, often combined with hand-painted animation frames, capture playful scenes that celebrate freedom and movement, and blend her passion for art with storytelling. Her illustrations have been featured in The Berliner Magazine as well as other print magazines and a poetry book.
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