the SOCIETY OF LAYERISTS in MULTI-MEDIA
SLMM books
Reconnecting: 1982–2022
SLMM 40th Anniversary
Edited by Laura Pope
Paperback / December 10, 2022
The commemorative exhibit book celebrating the 40th Anniversary of SLMM is now available for purchase here. The book contains 72 images of work by members, as well as a forward by and tribute to SLMM founder, Mary Carroll Nelson.
Unique Insights
Preface by Jaleh Etemad
Forward by Mary Carroll Nelson
Afterward by Barbara Seidel
excerpts
From the Preface
"Paging through the collected artworks of Unique Insights, one recognizes the diversity of the artists’ approach. However, Layerists share threads of emotions, thoughts, and a unique spirituality. We create art from within ourselves, in an art for the sake of healing, rather than for commercial consumption, public accolades or financial rewards. A common language of shared experience emerges for both creator and viewer. This book contains a dynamic visual interpretation of the SLMM philosophy and takes us on a journey toward an increased level of integration with our website and other print materials. We hope UNIQUE INSIGHTS can become a steppingstone in SLMM’s continued evolution, toward increased awareness of our mission as creative artists as well as integral members of a group with holistic intent."
Jaleh Etemad, President
Book Stats:
Hardcover, size 9 x 11, 96 pages, first edition
ISBN: 978-1934491522
Order information:
The University of New Mexico Press
1312 Basehart Road SE
Albuquerque, NM 87106-4363 USA
1 (800) 249-7737
Retail price $50 / $30 for active SLMM members
plus shipping and handling
From the Forward
"When SLMM was in its infancy, over 35 years ago, my first goal was to explain the holistic perspective in art I named Layering. Through observations and conversations, I noticed that some artists were responding to ideas of connectedness, especially Einstein's concept of a space/time continuum. They studied metaphysical systems, the Taos, Zen and the
Kabbalah. A number of artists I interviewed at the time mentioned the collective unconscious theorized by the psychiatrist Carl G. Jung.
I began to see relationships between the artists' processes, symbolism, and their philosophical and metaphysical explorations. It made sense to me that artists who seek a unified philosophy might develop
creative processes in which their work evolves, layer by layer, from the chaos of separateness to the order of wholeness. Their layers were related to meaning, allusions to their entire experience, rather than just a physical application of a medium or materials. These "layers" of content symbolized connections. At first, I was particularly alert to references in their work derived from science. Dominant words in my explanations were
also from science: geology, archaeology, anthropology, physics, optics, geometry. And I used personal words that came from the artists themselves: memories, dreams, epiphanies."
Mary Carroll Nelson, Founder
excerpts
From the Preface:
Visual Journeys, A Collaboration
"Within the visual journey each member is adjusting and modifying; there are unexpected detours and new roads to follow. Perhaps these variations along the way lead to new materials and techniques, different from those the member was using when he or she entered the group. The Society of Layerists in Multi–Media encourages its members in the evolution of their art. Each step of their journey is as important as any other. The images in this book are formed of layers that, taken together, enrich the collective whole. This book itself becomes "whole" by the layering of images on each page."
Nina Mihm, President
Visual Journeys:
Art of the 21st Century
Co–edited by Mary Carroll Nelson and Nina Mihm
Preface by Nina Mihm
Forward by Mary Carroll Nelson
History by Carleen Hearn
Book Stats:
Hardbound, laminated cover, size 8½ x 11, 160 pages,
first edition
Library of Congress Number: 2010926605
ISBN: 978–1–934491–23–2
Order information:
now available in limited quantities only through info@slmm.org
Retail price $40 / $20 for active SLMM members
plus shipping and handling
From the Forward:
Looking Backward, Looking Forward
"I see SLMM as a wellspring of energy that is contributing, however modestly, to the evolution of consciousness. Layered art suggests that an intuited world penetrates the ‘real’ one and it is available to all of us. What we derive from it connects us to everything else. The study of consciousness at the frontier of new science reveals the vast potential of our minds to receive and to transmit information through space and time. This discovery represents a far-reaching breakthrough. We notice that breakthroughs in knowledge are occurring faster in our time. To cope with both the speed and the volume of incoming data, the human race is evolving towards beings that futurist Barbara Marx Hubbard describes as "Homo universalis," whose consciousness will expand to cosmic proportions. We are their forerunners. For those who will come after us, the travelers who transit the galaxies, it is vital that an opening of the imagination prepares their way. Artists, among them Layerists, are crucial to this turning point. They are making the signs that will guide us forward."
Mary Carroll Nelson, Founder, SLMM, 1982
The Art of Layering:
Making Connections
Co-edited by Mary Carroll Nelson and
Nancy Dunaway
Preface by Richard Newman
Forward by John Briggs, Ph.D.
Introduction by Mary Carroll Nelson
History by Susan H. McGarry
Book Stats:
Hardbound, laminated cover, size 8½ x 11, 176 pages
ISBN: 0–9628851–1–1–8
Order information:
Sold Out
Bridging Time and Space:
Essays on Layered Art
Edited by Ann Bellinger Hartley
Forward by Mary Carroll Nelson
Afterword by Susan Hallsten McGarry
The SLMM book "Bridging Time and Space" is available in limited edition only through info@slmm.org
$100 retail / $50 for active SLMM members
excerpt
From the Preface: Beyond Boundaries
For some individuals the term “layering” presents an enigma, a word difficult to relate to artists and their image–making activity. To others, the term can suggest a method so common that it fails to acquire any meaning beyond a technical nature. Surely artists construct their works over time; therefore, materials are applied in successive layers, but understanding the source that shapes these layers of imagery and determines their fusion is another matter. To probe, “layering” fully as a cognitive process one needs to engage a deeper view of the creative mind...
Layering as an approach to creative expression recognizes the many dimensions that shape an artist's sense of personal growth and achievement. It articulates a procedure that is equally additive and subtractive as it reaches for completion and authenticity. It also brings into focus how many strata of the mind one actually taps during the process of conceiving, nurturing and refining a creative idea or product.
The term “layering,” when used metaphorically, can explain the mind's search for both personal and communal meaning. It lends itself easily to an interdisciplinary mindset that draws connections between all domains of knowledge while blurring the edges of traditional media of expression. Essentially, it honors the human quest to reach "beyond boundaries" to make sense of our human condition. Like the two-faced Roman god, Janus, the artist looks both forward and backward in charting his or her own journey in time and space...
Layering, by our definition, reaches across cultural divides and time barriers to unite the human spirit with the natural environment and the world community, both past and present. A premise adopted by the Society of Layerists is found in the following words of Wassily Kandinsky: “The relationships in art are not necessarily ones of outward form, but are founded on inner sympathy of meaning.”
Richard Newman,
President of SLMM 1986-2003
Layering an Art of Time and Space
Edited by Ann L. Hartley
Paperback / May 1, 1991
no longer in print
The Society of Layerists in Multi-Media is a non-profit organization intended to serve as a network for artists who express a holistic perspective. The Layering process is individualistic, but there are relationships among Layerists’ techniques. They frequently add or take away material, layer by layer as an analogue for aspects of nature, and the cycle of birth, death and rebirth. Most Layerists are mature, proficient artists who have achieved a meditative level of creativity. They imbue their work with meaning. Therefore, we say that it is not the technique that distinguishes a Layered work of art so much as the mind of the artist who creates it. The layers we refer to are both physical and metaphorical.
For information about joining SLMM, please contact us.