Jaime Lynn Shafer
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Old Geiger Grade

2016
6.75" x 4.375" x .25"
Letterpress printed from handset metal type and photopolymer plates on Rives BFK. The typefaces that appear in the book are Craw Clarendon and Clarendon. The book is hand bound in a drumleaf structure and presented in a paper wrapper and slipcase. Laser cut on an Epilog Helix 24 Laser Cutter and hand cut by the artist.
Edition of 50. 

Created as part of my experience as the Black Rock Press Redfield Fellow in Book Arts at the University of Nevada, Reno, Old Geiger Grade is the first book produced by the Black Rock Press for the Parley Project. The Parley Project is a biannual interdisciplinary book art project that engages other entities within the university in conversation with the Black Rock Press. It was influenced by the W.M. Keck Museum at the University of Nevada, Reno—the second oldest museum in the state. Special thanks to the staff and students at UNR who assisted with production: Inge Bruggeman, Amy Thompson, Amaris Martin, Judith Rodby, and Su Tran.

Old Geiger Grade was Inspired by Geiger Grade Road and the history of the Comstock. It places readers in the steep, dangerous terrain of the 1860s as they travel to Virginia City where they hope their fortunes might be found. 

Photography by the artist.

Code Red

2016
4.25" x 5.375 (closed book)
Inkjet printed and letterpress printed from metal type, wood type and photopolymer plates on Mohawk paper and book cloth. The typefaces used in the book are Bell and News Gothic Bold. Single sheet accordion book presented in a book cloth covered case.
Edition of 30.
​
Code Red is issued when an imminent and major danger threatens school safety. The interior text, printed from wood type, identifies documented locations where children have found loaded guns in the home. The exterior brick is printed as a memorial to the numerous victims of school shootings and includes names and ages. This is not an all inclusive list, but represents a sampling of children and adults who have been fatally shot in a school environment. The text message is reminiscent of the message I received from my partner when an active shooter was on her school campus. This incident helped me to better understand how one would feel when their loved one is in grave danger. 

Photography by the artist.

17927

2015
6.25" x 6" x 1" (closed)
Printed from linoleum blocks, wood type, and polymer plate on Magnani Pescia and book cloth. 
Edition of 10.
​
17927 is the revoked zip code for the town of Centralia, Pennsylvania. Centralia was once a prosperous coal mining town home to close to 1,000 residents. In 1962, Centralia's dump, which was located in an abandoned coal pit, caught fire.  The mine has been burning ever since. In the 1980's, the fire came to the attention of the nation, when a young boy fell into a sink hole. 

​Photos by the artist.

1 in 3

Letterpress printed in November of 2014, completed in 2015.
6" x 9" x .5"
Letterpress printed from metal type and polymer plate on Stonehenge paper in Baskerville and Univers; inkjet printed on Hahnemuhle Duo and Epson Ultra Smooth. Found photographs (used with permission). 
Edition of 25.

1 in 3 was inspired by recent media attention focusing on domestic violence. Creating this piece proved more difficult than I expected. It forced me to reflect on my own experiences with domestic abuse. Those who have never been in an abusive relationship usually ask , "Why did s/he stay?" Unless you have experienced it, it is hard to understand. This is not an all-inclusive representation of domestic abuse. However, I hope that the content of this book helps the viewer to better understand the victim's point of view and the lack of resources that often hinder a victim's ability to escape the situation.

Photos by the artist.

In Your Hands

2014
8" x  12" x .5"
Relationships are about the people in them. Choosing a partner that provides the right balance can alter the value of any relationship. My work is in response to academic research exploring the history of marriage in the United States. In Your Hands is a collection of letters I have written to individuals who have had an impact on my life—for good or bad. Every relationship and interaction we have with others changes how we see the world and how we behave.  From a young age, we are shaped by the individuals who surround us and by those who we choose to surround ourselves with as we age. We take a part of these interactions and relationships with us into the next phase of our lives.
Screen printed, letter press printed, and blind embossed on Somerset paper and Hahnemuhle Bugra, hand bound with a long stitch and leather spine, plaster cast hands. 
Edition of 7.

With All My Love

2013
6" x 9" (closed)
Based on a letter to Winifred Hanson, With All My Love reminds us of the challenges that soldiers face while on active duty overseas. Roy Hanson wrote to his wife often. She created scrapbooks of the letters, ephemera, and photographs he sent. Very few letters from Winnie survived due to Roy's ship sinking. He survived, floating in the ocean for approximately 3-4 days before being rescued. Like so many others, he never mentioned the hardships that he faced while at war, but focused on the small things that we take for granted. 
Inkjet printed on Somerset text weight paper and Somerset Velvet.
Edition of 10.

Mix and Match Families

2013
9" x 15" x 3/8"
In the USA, family is flexible and fluid, constantly changing as our society grows and develops an understanding for the people who live here.  This fluidity is essential and what I wished to explore. Mix and Match Families is an artists’ book that address these ideas.  The imagery for the book began while I photographed families and individuals in Washington, D.C.  I removed the original background from the images and placed them on solid colored backgrounds. The solid colored backgrounds indicate the original family unit in the artists’ book. The book is designed so that the viewer can flip through the pages altering the family (much like a children’s flip book) to include same sex families, heterosexual families, inter-generational families and interracial families.
Digital photographs inkjet printed on Epson Ultra Smooth Fine Art Paper.
Edition of 25.

CBAA 2014 Project Assistance Grant received to aid in production of this piece.

Lost and Found

2013
5" x 7" x 1/2"
Inspired by a visit to the ancient city of Machu Picchu, Lost and Found is a visual comparison of the city then and now. 
Digital photographs printed on Moab Entrada Bright.
Edition of 5.

Mother Clap's Ledger

2013
7" x 10" x 1/2"
Mother Clap’s Ledger is a false document that tracks the daily use of the rooms of Margaret Clap's Molly House from December of 1725 through February of 1726.  It ends abruptly when a raid ensues, and Mother Clap (Margaret) is arrested along with the sodomites in her house. "Molly" was the slang term for homosexual men or sodomites during this time.  Although, Mother Clap’s house was actually her residence, she was known to welcome homosexual men into her home, where she provided rooms with beds and spirits, for a small fee.  It was said that she was in the business for pleasure rather than profit. 
Leather, linen thread, Somerset paper, calligraphy.

No Refills Left

2013
1" x 1" x 3"
No Refills Left addresses prescription drug abuse from the first person and the omniscient.  The text allows the reader to experience the denial and the reality of the addiction. 
Recycled prescription pamphlets, acrylic paint, marker, recycled prescription bottle.
Unique book.

It All Starts Here: Take One Tablet to Start Your Addiction

2012
1" x 1" x 3" (closed), 1" x 1" x 19" (open)
An examination of the accessibility of prescription drugs. It recounts a teenager’s thoughts on his prescription drug abuse as he steals pills from his parent’s medicine cabinet. Using a confessional tone, it comments on society’s naivety and the evolution of the drug culture.
​
Inkjet printing on Canson Mi Teintes paper, probiotic pills, clay, recycled prescription bottle.
Canson paper, acrylic paint, marker, recycled prescription bottle, probiotic pills, inkjet printed.
Unique book.

It All Starts Here: Take One Tablet to Start Your Addiction All Over Again

2012
1" x 1" x 3" (closed), 1" x 1" x 19" (open)
The book, presented in the form of a pill itself, allows the viewer to experience a re-enactment of the drug abuse as he/she opens the prescription bottle and removes the book. Small white pills accompany it thus extending the experience of the process and reflecting how a person contemplating whether or not to start an addiction all over again might open the bottle and examine the pills.   
Clay, Canson paper, acrylic paint, marker, recycled prescription bottle, probiotic pills, inkjet printed.
Unique book.
Photography by the artist.

I Speak

2012
6" x 6" x 12" (open)
Focusing on rediscovering one’s voice following an abusive relationship, I Speak addresses the freedoms we take for granted in our every day life.
Canson paper, linen thread, color photographs, acrylic paint, marker.
Unique book.
(SOLD)
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