The YDS and greater Yale and New Haven communities are invited to a reception on Tuesday, February 21, to celebrate the Margaret Shepherd “Song of Songs” calligraphy exhibition on display in the Divinity School’s Sarah Smith Gallery January 30-April 21.
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The event—featuring remarks by the artist, book-signing, and refreshments—will take place from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. in the gallery and adjoining space.
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The exhibition features 45 framed pieces of calligraphy from the Bible’s collection of love poems, Song of Songs. The works are also the subject of Ms. Shepherd’s 2021 book from Paraclete Press. “For Margaret Shepherd, calligraphy is a spiritual practice,” writes one reviewer. “Her art allows us to enter the world of young lovers in Hebrew scripture. We walk through grape arbors and navigate walled streets in search of love. We are reminded that our love for one another is sacred in God’s eyes.”
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Margaret Shepherd is a Boston-based artist, teacher, speaker, and author who has pursued her calligraphy for 45 years. In addition to Song of Songs, she has published 16 books about calligraphy and three about communication. Her books have been translated into Russian and Spanish. Her calligraphy is in the Cooper-Hewitt Museum (Smithsonian) collection in New York City as well as the Rare Books and Manuscripts Department of the Boston Public Library. Her 60-piece permanent memorial installation at the First Church in Boston was introduced in 1980 with her lecture and exhibition at the Boston Athenaeum, “Letters, Spaces, and People.” Ms. Shepherd has also mounted solo shows in the Wellesley College Rare Books Library, Lesley College, the St. Botolph Club, and the Hartford Public Library, where one of her Wallace Stevens poems hangs in the room dedicated to the poet.