Dodd Senior Lecturer  Eileen Wallace curated a group exhibition at the Beatrice M. Haggerty Gallery at the University of Dallas focusing on artist books. The Space Between, which opened on Friday, August 25, includes work by Dodd alumni Katherine Miller (MFA 2018) and Raleigh Chesney (MFA 2014) and current graduate student Alex McClay (Dodd MFA candidate), along with artists Inge Bruggeman, Ellen Knudson, Karen Kunc, Leslie Noell, Lisa Beth Robinson, and David Wolske. Wallace just returned from Dallas where she delivered a talk about the thematic concept for the exhibition and how particular selected works fit within that scope. The Space Between is on view through September 23.

The exhibition features handmade artist books and printed works that converge around the idea of the space between things in a literal and metaphorical sense. Contemporary artists books are a dynamic and interactive art form that involve printing, papermaking, typography, and graphic design. Wallace hand-selected pieces from a talented array of artists that create powerful and engaging work within this field while also exhibited strong craftsmanship and expression. The subjects on exhibit range from investigations of the physical and emotional space between people, places, and things, to that transitory moment when shifts happen and one thing becomes another. The artists employ design approaches that investigate utilization of empty space on the page while highlighting the space and shape between letters and form. The works allude to the elusive space between things and how we navigate both its distance and impact. 

Wallace is a Senior Lecturer in Printmaking and Book Arts at the Dodd where she teaches letterpress printing, papermaking, and bookbinding. Prior to Wallace’s arrival at UGA she worked full-time at her business, Mile Wide Press, printing commission letterpress jobs and making custom boxes and books. Wallace also served as caretaker for the archives of Mountain House Press, which is the private press of noted papermaking scholar Dard Hunter. Wallace has taught numerous workshops, most recently at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, ME and at Penland School of Crafts in Penland, NC, where featured exhibitor Alex McClay was a Core Fellow from 2016–2018. Wallace is also the curator of Masters: Book Arts, a book featuring 40 mastered artists in this craft. Furthermore, Eileen served as a co-director of the Paper & Book Intensive for 14 years and was recently on the board of the Hand Papermaking Magazine.