Join the MIT Libraries in celebrating the work of book artist Werner Pfeiffer. We will be unfurling one of Rotch Library’s newest artists’ book acquisitions and an impressive and moving piece not to be missed: Pfeiffer’s Errantry. Inspired by a 16th-century graphic cycle called Emperor Maximillian’s Triumphant Procession and a Tolkien poem thought to be about war, this 27-foot scroll is housed inside of a deactivated shell casing from 1943.

“One of the dominant features in this document is the militant nature of many of the characters depicted, as well as their posture in parading their arms on horse, by carriage or on foot,” Pfeiffer writes in his artist’s statement. “The text and images are set against a chronology of war, conflict, and genocide in the 20th century.”

The evening will also feature opportunities to interact with Pfeiffer’s other work featured in the Rotch Limited Access Collection, including Zigzag, a book “exploring zigzag folding techniques, their structural as well as their kinetic effects on paper and the unusual rhythms they create in relationship to word and text.”

Event details
Rotch Library Map Room (7-238)
Remarks at 4pm
Exploration until 5:30pm