“Oscar Wilde: In Earnest and Out” by Emily Martin

2020
Letterpress printing
13” x 9.25” x 1.25”

First and foremost, I am interested in telling the viewer a story. The story might be drawn from theater, social observations, current events—sometimes all of those things in the same story. I often use humor and I nearly always include interactive elements to further draw in the viewer, to bring attention to just what story it is that I am telling. I originally trained as a painter and I started making artists books while still in graduate school in the late 1970s. I am interested in the relationship between the viewer and the book. To view a book fully it must be handled; this makes for a more connected, even intimate, type of viewing. To that end, I am very careful in my printing and construction, not only to honor the crafts that I use, but to make sure my books are sturdy and can withstand being out in the world. When constructing my stories, I consider what to include and what to leave to the viewer’s imagination or prior experience.