Bealtaine Artist in Residence in Studio 2 at Uillinn I Artist Talk: 23 May, 1pm

In partnership with Cork County Council, Uillinn presents this year’s Bealtaine Artist in Residence 2026, Julie Merriman. As part of her visual arts practice, Julie Merriman creates Book Art, an evolving strand of work that extends her wider artistic interests. During her residency, she will explore how altering the physical structure of a book can disrupt the usual spatial relationship between image and text. This continues her ongoing approach of interrupting and re‑configuring source imagery to allow new readings to emerge, now tested through imagery made on folded sheets of paper.

The content for these artist books will be produced on a Japanese mimeograph press using the File Plate Process. In this method, a wax‑coated Washi paper is placed on a metal file plate and drawn into with a stylus, the pressure perforating the wax to create a stencil. These stencils will be printed on‑site using two analogue Horii duplicators from 1920.

Artist books offer an accessible and affordable way for artists to share ideas, and Merriman aims to encourage wider public engagement with this form. She is also committed to expanding the use of mimeograph within fine art, contributing to the revival of this once‑obsolete print technology. Visitors are invited to her studio to observe or take part in the processes involved.