"Spirit Compass" virtual panel discussion

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As part of “Spirit Compass,” our current exhibition of the books and works on paper of Robin Price, Bromer Booksellers & Gallery is excited to host a virtual panel discussion on Price’s newest work and how it resonates with her long career in the book arts. Price’s art, the methods she employs, and her creative influences stem from a variety of intellectual and emotional sources; the panelists will reflect upon these diverse contexts, drawing from their own experiences and relationships with Price’s work to elucidate the thematic layers of “Spirit Compass.” Price herself will be the first panelist, and she will be joined by Ruth Rogers, curator of Wellesley College’s Special Collections; Betty Bright, historian of artists’ books; Harry Reese, proprietor of the Turkey Press & Edition Reese; and Meredith Santaus, exhibit curator and event host.

Join us for the panel discussion via Zoom on Monday, November 9th, at 6pm EST. Register here, and after registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Robin Price is an artist, editor, designer, letterpress printer & publisher, creating artists’ books since 1984. “A chameleon among book artists,” she has a long history of collaborating with others, with extensive diversity in content and form. Her limited edition press books, prints, and unique work are collected and exhibited internationally. Robin established her press in the Los Angeles area in 1984, under the imprint Lavender Armadillo Press, later revised to Robin Price, Printer & Publisher. Since 1995, the press has been located in an historic textile mill in Middletown, Connecticut, producing work with a team of assistants, apprentices, and interns over the years.

Betty Bright is a scholar, curator, writer, and teacher. Before settling into her PhD studies, Bright helped found the Minnesota Center for Book Arts. During her nine years as Program Director, she curated over fifty exhibitions, several of which toured nationally with accompanying catalogues. In spring 2000, she received a PhD in Art History from the University of Minnesota. That research formed the basis of her book No Longer Innocent: Book Art in America, 1960 to 1980. Bright lives near Minneapolis, Minnesota.

After forty years of teaching print, papermaking, book art, and media ecology classes, Harry Reese retired in June 2018 from UC Santa Barbara and now concentrates full-time on projects with Sandra Liddell Reese at Turkey Press & Edition Reese in Isla Vista, California. With an emphasis on letterpress printing and original printmaking, they feature their own handmade paper, typography and design, bindings and book structures, and collaborations with artists, poets, and writers.

Ruth R. Rogers is Curator of Special Collections, Wellesley College, specializing in the evolution of the book as material culture, visual communication and artistic form. She is responsible for strategic collection development of rare books, manuscripts, and contemporary artists’ books, and teaches a hands-on intensive seminar, History of the Book from Manuscript to Print as Lecturer in the Art Department. With a focus on material book history and the critical reading of contemporary artists’ books, Rogers is a co-founder and collaborator in the area of Book Studies at the College, a cross-disciplinary approach to past and future forms of textual communication.

Meredith Santaus is the gallery manager at Bromer Booksellers & Gallery. In that role, she uses her eye for the book arts and her education in librarianship and the history of the book to craft exhibits that are thematically unique, intellectually challenging, and artistically inspiring.