Ruth Greene
It can be said of visual art and books that the two fields share a common aspiration. Both capture our ambitions, our struggles, our joys, triumphs and failures. Both attempt to preserve, document and house the very parts of the human essence that are worth preserving and provide insight, wisdom, caution and inspiration. The two realms of visual art and books will often cross paths and cooperate in their endeavor, sometimes so harmoniously that the distinctions between them become blurred. This summer, at Rosamund Felsen Gallery will be one of those times.
In the gallery’s exhibition, The Book Shop: Books as Artworks, Artworks as Books, art historian/journalist Rosanna Albertini and artists Ruth Greene, Tom Knechtel and Cindy Tower join gallery artists Nancy Jackson, Jean Lowe, Grant Mudford and C.K. Wilde in presenting books as artworks and artworks as books, all situated where the two fields commingle & intertwine. Artist Ruth Greene uses humor and intellect in a remarkably sophisticated manner, Tom Knechtel’s drawing, Library, is another example of his incredible technique and subject matter, while Cindy Tower carves her book sculptures using a chainsaw.
In a monograph published by the architectural doyen, Crosby Doe, of the house and garden of artist Mineo Mizuno, Grant Mudford photographs and an essay by Rosanna Albertini create a beautiful testimony to this unique residence. Examples of Albertini’s elegant handmade books will also be exhibited, along with those of her bookmaking mentor C.K. Wilde. Jean Lowe’s colorful and beloved painted papier-mâché books continue to use wit, irony and charm to critique social norms such as gender roles and other power relations. Nancy Jackson once again delights with an exquisite hand-embroidered, bejeweled portfolio made specifically to transport one of her paintings.
