May 19, 2022
Morris Library hosts special exhibit honoring Polly Winkler-Mitchell
The Special Collections Research Center of Morris Library is hosting an exhibit, “Drawing with Scissors: The Art of Polly Winkler-Mitchell, 1970s-2000s,” in the library’s Hall of Presidents and Chancellors, across from the first floor rotunda, from Monday, May 23, through June 30. The exhibit is on display from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
In celebrating Winkler-Mitchell’s life and art, the exhibit recounts her journey in scherenschnitte, the folk art of intricate paper cutting. The exhibit features samples of her work from materials donated to Special Collections by her husband, Marion Mitchell.
Winkler-Mitchell, who died in 2019, characterized her art as “drawing with scissors.” She sold her artwork at Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, at craft fairs and from her home in Carbondale. Winkler-Mitchell distinguished herself from traditional scherenschnitte artists when she began creating color collages of local scenes in the 1990s.
In 2012, the Friends of Morris Library purchased several of Winkler-Mitchell’s collages depicting the university’s history for permanent display on the library’s third floor.