A Bird in the Head is Worth Two in the Hand, Margaret Couch Cogswell

Jessica White, BookWorks Gallery Coordinator, created the inaugural exhibit in the new gallery space, a BookWorks Instructors’ Invitational entitled, “Hands Prompt the Mind.” “This show celebrates all of the tactile, sensory, physical and intellectual growth that takes place here at BookWorks. It includes instructors of the past and present, as well as those just now getting involved with upcoming classes and workshops. These works exemplify them as artists in their respective fields and how their hands have prompted their (and our) minds.” Jessica White, Gallery Coordinator.

“The title of this show is a phrase that I heard often from one of my mentors, Gary Frost, as we worked side by side at the University of Iowa’s Library Conservation Department. He was referring to the idea that ‘the evolution and use of the hands shaped the brain, language and human culture’ and ‘how the development of the brain follows this other development.’ This was a concept developed by Frank R. Wilson in his book, The Hand, where he describes in detail how ‘this circumstance engendered a learning pathway based on discovery by manipulation and tactile observation. This perceptive channel of primate dexterity then prompted the mind toward conceptual thought.’ In other words, we don’t just develop physically and haptically from learning with our hands, but we grow intellectually as well.” Jessica White, 2010

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