Call for Donation of Books｜The Library of Unread Books by Heman Chong and Renée Staal
Do you have a book you never got around to reading, please donate it to The Library of Unread Books by Heman Chong and Renée Staal. Someone else will read it for you.
Started in 2016 by Heman Chong and Renée Staal, The Library of Unread Books is a traveling library made up of unread books by their previous owners. After stops in Singapore, Manila, Milan, Prague, Dubai, Utrecht, Seoul, Penang, London, the project will be hosted at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo as part of its 30th anniversary exhibition, from August 23 to November 24, 2025.
If you have a book you’d like to donate, please bring it to the Information Counter at MOT. Each donated book will be marked with the donor’s name and the date it was given. You’re also invited to share why you never read it.
“Each book in The Library of Unread Books was previously owned as private property and someone has decided to give up that exclusive status with the book and donate it into this common pool. By receiving and revealing that which people choose not to read, The Library of Unread Books is a collective gesture that addresses the distribution, access and surplus of knowledge.”
–– Heman Chong
Information
- Book Drop-Off Location
Information Counter at MOT
- Collection Period
5 June - 21 July, 2025
2 August- 24 November, 2025- Closed
Mondays (If Monday is a national holiday, closed on the following day)
- Opening Hours
10 AM – 6 PM
*Open until 9 PM on Fridays from August 14 to September 26- Please note
Kindly note that donated books will not be returned.
Installation view: Serpentine Pavilion 2024, Archipelagic Void, designed by Minsuk Cho, Mass Studies © Mass Studies Photos by Heman Chong