| Title | Prisms and Shamrocks |
| Artist / Creator | Sarah Nicholls |
| Artist's Nationality | United States |
| Place of Publication | Brooklyn, NY |
| Publication Date | 2015 |
| Process / Technique | Letterpress and linocut |
| Structure / Binding | Folded pamphlet/ single sheet |
| Paper Stock | Zerkyll Ingres |
| Dimensions (WxHxD) | 4 x 6 inches closed |
| Edition Size | Edition of 200 |
| Signed & Numbered | Unsigned |
Prisms and Shamrocks is one of a series of handprinted informational pamphlets that I have been publishing since 2010 and sending through the mail to a selected list of recipients. These small-scale publications combine text (handset in metal type) and image (carved in wood or linoleum) produced via obsolete technology in editioned works which are distributed at will to a chosen audience. The content of the series aims for historical interest, commemorative intent and a healthy dose of humor, and the distribution methods are based on the values of the gift economy. This issue concerns the history of cryptography, and asks the following questions: How do we solve the problem of communication at a distance? What is the best way to communicate secrets? Has the government always been reading our messages? What kinds of things do we substitute in place of language in order to keep things private? And other related issues, in easily portable paper form.
Artist Bio
Sarah Nicholls is a visual artist who makes pictures with language, books with pictures, prints with type, and animations with words. She often uses_found language and metal type, combining image, visual narrative, and time. She has_written a collection of self-help aphorisms, she publishes a series of informational pamphlets, and has just completed a field guide to extinct birds. Her limited edition artist books are_in the collections of the Brooklyn Museum, Stanford, UCLA, and the University of Pennsylvania, among others. For twelve years, she ran the studio programs at the Center for Book Arts in NYC, organizing classes, public programs, readings, and talks, coordinating publications, running residency programs, and teaching interns. Now she teaches letterpress at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and works on a variety of freelance illustration and design projects for individuals and institutions.