Bartley explores the formal architecture of the printed photography book as well as its evocative and abstract qualities. Using the Project Space and the VSW Research Center library, Bartley will continue her work on Standing Open, a study of splayed-open photography books. She will be working on a “book of books” eventually taking its place (somewhat like a Russian nesting doll) on a shelf in the same library.

Book rubbing and inverted photograph of the rubbing

Mary Ellen Bartley is known for her photographs that explore the tactile and formal qualities of the printed book and its potential for abstraction. Represented by Yancey Richardson Gallery in New York, Bartley was chosen as a 2015 Watermill Center Artist in Residence. She lives and works in Wainscott, NY.