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Sarah M. Smith

ARTIST BIO

Sarah Smith produces books and broadsides in the realm of nonsense and absurdity. Her work involves her writing and drawings and is often letterpress printed. She received her MFA in Book Arts/Printmaking at University of the Arts in Philadelphia and currently manages the Book Arts Workshop at Dartmouth College, in Hanover NH. Sarah has taught letterpress printing, bookbinding, printmaking, and graphic design at Maryland Institute College of Art, Massachusetts College of Art, Endicott College, Simmons College and at Montserrat College of Art, where she helped create a letterpress printing studio and BFA concentration in Book Arts. While teaching, Sarah worked as a book conservator at the Northeast Document Conservation Center, in Andover MA and the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts in Philadelphia, PA. Her work can be found in collections and with booksellers such as Vamp and Tramp Booksellers; Printed Matter; Moma Artist Book Collection; The Banff Centre; The Kohler Art Library, University of Wisconsin; Boston Public Library; The Art Museums at Harvard University; The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley; Haas Arts Special Collections, Yale University; Clapp Library, Wellesley College; Kimbrough Library, Ringling School of Art & Design, J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah and others.

See more of Sarah's work at:  www.olfactorypress.com


ARTIST'S STATEMENT

"I’m interested in how and why, and by what means we trust or have faith in the things we’ve learned or been told. And how is it that no matter how often we’re shown we’re wrong, we keep coming back again to our beliefs? I want to express, visually and verbally the state of mind we are in when we are doubting and wavering, just before re-convincing ourselves of our “truths”. A person could often go either way—stampeding toward whatever conviction they’ve decided on or sliding into uncertainty and possibly despair. In such indecision and turmoil, absurdity and incongruity thrives. Incongruity naturally generates humor—albeit an occasionally dark humor. It often involves our interactions with each other, the way we behave as a group or society, our place in nature, or the things we surrounds ourselves with.

Ultimately all I want to do is laugh."


ARTIST'S WORK

Should Cards: Package No. 1—Dating

2009

letterpress with hand-set type and printer's cuts

2" x 4.25" x .25", edition of 125

All real advice






Minutes: Dance Steps for the Beleaguered

2012

letterpress with polymer plates

Printed during a residency at Asheville Bookworks

Inspired by many hours attending meetings.








Gripe

letterpress with hand-set wood and metal type and printer's cuts

















The Conversation

2012

letterpress and woodcut

18 x 24




An image inspired by co-workers and conversations at home after a long day at work.



Daily Drawing Project

Drawing and posting one drawing every day for a year.

Pen and ink, brush and ink, graphite and whatever else works.

See more at: http://olfactorypress.tumblr.com/


Sarah is currently artist in residence at the University of Otago in New Zealand. Read about her experience on her blog: http://sites.dartmouth.edu/biggreenkiwi/

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