SPACE: KNOWN /UNKOWN

SPACE: Known/Unknown is a collaborative project between Lauren Emeritz & Sarah Matthews. They explore the universe of book arts using “space” as a metaphor and immerse themselves in the possibilities of letterpress and sculptural book techniques. SPACE: Known/Unknown incorporated hand-carved letters, Stars from Galileo’s “Sidereus Nuncius” (Starry Messenger), wood and metal type and printing blocks, to create a set of five prints. Three of the prints feature quotes: “Open a book, open the universe” -unknown; “We are made whole by books, as by great space and the stars” -Mary Carolyn Davies; and “The Universe is under no obligation to make sense to you” -Neil deGrasse Tyson, while the other two prints are abstract compositions of letters and stars. The prints are printed on French Paper Pop-tone Black using transparent white, silver, yellow, and orange inks. Emeritz & Matthews used a Vandercook Universal 1 and Vandercook 4T to print 200 copies of each print; 1,000 prints total. SPACE: Known/Unknown then became a book art project.

Emeritz & Matthews folded, glued, sewed, foil-stamped, die-cut, and bound the prints to create a multitude of book structures, including: Flag Books, 1-page Accordion books, Star books, Sewn books, Japanese Stab books, Roll books, and fishbone books. Dimensions

SPACE: Known/Unknown is in the following collections:

Bryn Mawr College, Canaday Library, Bryn Mawr, PA

Florida International University, Steven and Dorothea Green Library, Miami, FL

Pratt Institute Libraries, Special Collections, Brooklyn, NY

Tulane University, Howard Tilton Library, Special Collections, New Orleans, LA

University of Georgia, Hargrett Library, Special Collections, Athens, GA

University of Florida, Smathers Library, Special Collections, Gainesville, FL

University of Maryland, Hornbake Library, Special Collections, College Park, MD