Libby Barrett book

Handmade Artists’ Books: One of a Kind

The exhibition includes 62 works of art by 22 Maine artists who have created unusual and remarkable pieces resembling and moving far away from traditional book structures.

On view July 9 – September 30, 2015.
Reception and Poetry Reading: Saturday, August 29, 1-2:30 p.m.
Saturday Programs: Children’s Workshop, September 12; Adult Workshop, September 19.

Artists include Libby Barrett of Cape Elizabeth; Sandra Barry, East Boothbay; Kathleen Bender, Portland; Elizabeth Berkana, Portland; Sissy Buck, Cumberland Foreside; Bonnie Faulkner, Yarmouth; Rebecca Goodale, Freeport; Sarah S. Harvey, Woolwich; Solange Kellermann, Portland; Natasha Kempers-Cullen, Topsham; Richard Lee, posthumously; Kathleen Leggett, Falmouth; Anna Low, Portland; Cynthia Motian McGuirl, Thomaston; Arlene Morris, Brunswick; Susan Colburn Motta, Kennebunk; Scott Mullenberg, Biddeford; Jill Osgood, Portland; Stephen Petroff, Topsham; Abigail Robbins, Brunswick; and Sue West, Brunswick.

Related Events

  • Reception for the show will be held on Saturday, August 29 from 1-2:30 p.m. and will include two Poetry Readings by Gary Lawless and Stephen Petroff. Lawless is a poet and co-owner of Gulf of Maine Books in Brunswick. Petroff has books and paintings displayed in the current show.

  • Children’s Workshop, September 12, 10-11:30 a.m. “Make a Simple Flag Book,” with Jill Osgood. A hands-on workshop for children, aged 8-18, free of charge with advance registration; co-sponsored by Topsham Public Library and held at the Library. Email to reserve a spot; 207-725-1727

  • Adult Workshop, September 19, 9 a.m.-noon. A hands-on workshop for adults aged 18 and older, “The Concertina Book—Variations on a Theme +1” with Libby Barrett. Explore several book structures that all begin with a basic concertina or accordion fold, including the flag, star, and pocket books. Students will also make a simple stitched pamphlet. At Maine Fiberarts, $50/person. Some materials will be provided and students will be asked to bring some tools. List available upon registering. Email to register and reserve your spot; 207-721-0678

A definition of artists’ books would be as varied as the artists who make them. Formats include traditional structures, altered books, inventive structures, flags, accordions, pamphlets, and stars. Material can include paper of every kind, fabric, metal, glass, photographs, prints, thread, paint, ink, and found objects—all of which may be assembled, disassembled, or reassembled. Artists’ books “read” in their own way. They may or may not include words or images, but you will find they always have something to say.

Books on view at Maine Fiberarts spiral, hang from the ceiling, spill over, are hand-stitched, feature watercolors, have metal pages, are comprised of receipts, or are made of glass. One can even be worn! The books are inventive, unusual, disconcerting, and beautiful. Stories are told through images, pages, imagination and form.

This exhibition includes many artists associated with the Kate Cheney Chappell ’83 Center for Book Arts at the University of Southern Maine. Several of the artists have been students of CBA Program Coordinator Rebecca Goodale.

 Book Painting by Stephen Petroff
Book Painting by Stephen Petroff