Making Books with Generative AI is a compact artist publication by Harley Smart, produced as a portrait of an early creative investigation into large language models and their role in contemporary book arts. Developed during the emergence of generative AI systems, the work documents a period of experimentation where writing, design, and publishing were reimagined through human–machine collaboration .

Smart is a publisher at Anteism Books, an independent press dedicated to pioneering new-media and visual artists. Trained in Design and Computation Arts at Concordia University, his practice bridges bookbinding, publishing, and computational creativity. This edition—printed in a 6×9" format on Fabriano 60lb sketch paper with handmade cotton rag elements and a letterpressed cover—situates the codex as both artifact and research site.

The book reflects a formative study of generative systems as tools for ideation, production, and speculation, foregrounding questions of authorship, craft, and the evolving role of the artist within increasingly automated creative processes.

First printing - 100 copies

Cover and book design by Juliette Duhé