Graphic Writing Workshops

About

Rethink reading and writing

Graphic Writing Workshops are a series of library-based exercises that play with the substance and stability of words. Exercise One has participants select a book from the shelf, and hand-copy its text onto a provided piece of paper, following the curved and wavy guide lines of the page. For the second exercise, users place a stencil with randomly placed gaps on the bed of a photocopier. Participants then scan pages of text, hiding and revealing random passages. Exercise Three involves typing words onto a computer screen, while the computer moves and shifts the words you type, creating a collage of active letters. Finally, Exercise Four invites participants to use a collection of 3D letterforms, all with uneven surfaces. When placed on a photocopier, the letterforms create words that seem to melt into the paper. The Graphic Writing Workshops disrupt the stability of words and their individual forms, highlighting the flexibility of language.