Through the month of May

We are proud to have on view in our Special Collections Cabinet the book work of Julie Wagner.

Julie has been a living and working in the El Rito for over 35 years. She has been producing works of sculpture in wood and now paper, drawings, and artist’s books.

"My books are almost always one-of-a-kind, sculptural in nature, and concerned with form.  I want the pages to have texture, weight, and often translucency.  I see them as interactive, so the viewer is in a sense going on a journey through them as they turn the pages or pass from one page of the accordion to the next.

When I make a book, I often have multiple agendas.  I like to have ideas running along in parallel or interwoven paths.  I like definitions, maps, diagrams, connections between things that seem disparate...vessels to drink from, vessels to travel in, vessels carrying blood or sap, vessels embodying virtues or qualities.  I like to have the images carry the weight of the ideas and rarely use a text. "

Julie's work will be on display Through the Month of May. These works are for sale and proceeds will benefit the library.