Traice Pouliot's Book Series Full of Memories

Tracie Pouliot, a printmaker and bookmaker who focuses on people and the ways in which they find meaning, will be showcasing a long-awaited project at the Northampton Book Arts Fair this November. This project has been in the works for years, Pouliot’s research even dating back to 2009, and is titled the Chair City Oral History Book Series. The series details 13 people’s stories of working in a furniture factory in Gardner, Massachusetts and their lives after the factory shut down. It is near and

dear to Pouliot’s heart, as she spent years working there in her high school and college years. The series features woodcut prints of various chairs on the covers, as well as illustrations on each title page ranging from closeups of hands to old photos. The books were a “labor of love,” as they were a collaborative project in terms of the information collected, but also in the hand-binding of the books. It is a very special series, and worth the visit to the fair this Fall. 

A class of book arts students from the New Hampshire Institute of Art helps bind the books; photo credits to Paul Gingras

Outside of this project, Pouliot makes portraits of people or pets, and has honed a cozy, whimsical style that brings a bit of humor to her pieces. She went to school at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York where she earned a BFA with a focus in printmaking, and then went on to study community art practices at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. While in grad school at MICA, she was assigned an oral history project and, though it was not her favorite at the time, in doing this project she began to appreciate the importance of oral history, which then led to the book series. She spent a few years moving around the country post grad school, working different jobs, but found her way back to Gardner and is continuing to hone her crafts. She works figuratively most of the time, focusing on connections between the people she depicts.  

Pouliot creates thoughtful work that is well worth looking into, and makes commissioned portraits here:

https://www.peopleyoumaymeet.com/. Though these will not be displayed at the fair this year, do come by to browse and buy her hand-made books in person. They are delicate pieces of work handled with immense care and with so much heart.

A woodcut for the cover of a book in the process of being carved.

We hope to see you in Northampton on Friday, November 21st, 5-8 pm and Saturday, November 22nd, 10am - 4pm at the Community Arts Trust at 33 Hawley Street for the antiquarian book, ephemera, small press, and book arts fair. For tickets and fair info: www.northamptonbookfair.com

By Hallie S. Krause, September, 2025.