Emily Payne: Last Year of a Rebel

A sculptor and painter, Payne (M.F.A., ’99) works with many different kinds of materials including, gouache paint, ink, book parts, shoe parts, rag paper, pins and wire. The book sculpture presented in this exhibition originates in her experimentation with disassembling discarded and used books (purchased at book sales held by public libraries) and mining them for their parts.

“I am particularly drawn to these used objects that show traces of the passage of time and human history,” Payne says. “In them I find tender dedications, a child’s doodles, a page that was dog-eared by a reader or a list of names of patrons on a library checkout sheet. They are dilapidated books that are falling apart and are oftentimes dated in their content.

“Having produced several editions of artist books, I admire how books are constructed. As I undo the author’s writing and the bookbinder’s thread, I build new sculptures that are inspired by and show my reverence for the original book form.”

Payne grew up in Mill Valley and Amherst, Mass. Her work can be seen at the Seager Gray Gallery in Mill Valley, SFMOMA Artist Gallery, Kala Art Institute and Cecile Moochnek Gallery.

Artist website: EmilyPayne.net