Title | The Joy of Stamping |
Artist / Creator | Bettina Pauly |
Artist's Nationality | German |
Place of Publication | San Francisco, CA |
Structure / Binding | Tunnel book. |
Medium / Materials | Pictures are rubber-stamped by hand on Somerset paper, using stamp pads with archival ink. Small pieces of copper sheeting sewn to the paper. Panels are cut out by hand. Machine-stitching is used as a design element and to add stability to the structure. |
Paper Stock | Somerset |
Number of Pages | Four Panels |
Dimensions (WxHxD) | 7.25 x 6 x .25 inches |
Edition Size | Open edition |
Signed & Numbered | Yes |
The Joy of Stamping was made after a series of Tunnel Books. I wanted to work in a smaller format; by adding a transparent background this piece allows light into the tunnel through its back-panel. The images are carefully arranged to create a playfulness among the images. I find myself being drawn into the depth of the scene, trying to discover more as I take the time to really look in to the small little stage.
As I am using many different rubber stamps, this one features images from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (from Sir John Tenniel’s wood engravings).
Panels are cut out by hand.
Artist Bio
Bettina Pauly was trained as a professional chef, then worked as a head server throughout Europe before she received a B.A. in Hotel-Economy from Hotel Management School in Heidelberg, Germany. After coming to the U.S. and working in hospitality here, she went back to school and studied at the Academy of Art University San Francisco in the Fine Arts program under Chris Rolik and Macy Chadwick. She gained further book arts knowledge at the San Francisco Center for the Book, specifically taking advantage of classes taught by artists such as Julie Chen, Kumi Korf, Paul Johnson, and Mary Laird. Bettina is living in San Francisco as a book artist and working as a letterpress printer with Kim Vanderheiden at Painted Tongue Studios, Oakland, California. She teaches workshops at the San Francisco Center for the Book, the Academy of Art University and O’Hanlon Center for the Arts. She loves books and boxes both as physical objects and as containers of meaning. She is interested in a variety of folded, sewn and woven structures in which she can incorporate her printing. Her award winning work is included in library collections at: St John’s/Saint Benedict College Minnesota, Minnesota, Savannah College of Art and Design, Savannah, University of Denver, Colorado, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, San Jose State University, California, Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska Her work is shown at Galleries in the Bay Area and in Portland, Oregon, and has been featured in 500 Handmade Books, Good Mail Day, 1000 Artists’ Books, Thread Loves Paper, Ed Hutchins’ Moveable Book Society Newsletter.