A showcase of art from Rice University is on display in Venice, Italy, during the prestigious Venice Biennale, offering a glimpse into the innovative and collaborative work of students and visiting artists. Titled “Wallpaper for Many,” the exhibition features Risograph and letterpress prints, captivating audiences at the European Cultural Centre’s Palazzo Mora since its April 20 opening.
Under the leadership of Christopher Sperandio, associate professor of visual and dramatic arts, the exhibition brings together the creative prowess of students from Rice and Ohio State University (OSU). Sperandio, known for his explorations at the intersection of mass and museum cultures, spearheaded this initiative to spotlight the artistic endeavors emerging from his Comic Art Teaching and Study Workshop (CATS) at Rice.
“In 2015, I took over an underused conference space in Sewell Hall, and I turned it into a resource for researching comics and also making comics,” Sperandio said. “Since then it’s snowballed a little bit.”
In 2023, CATS received more than $350,000 of gifts in the form of extremely rare vintage comic books and comic art, which is archived in the CATS collection at the Woodson Research Center. Two years ago, Sperandio acquired a Risograph printer for his classes, a Japanese stencil printer capable of producing remarkable prints at an impressive speed.
“Every time we print on it, we’re channeling Pulitzer Prize-winning comics,” Sperandio said, adding that legendary comic artist and friend Art Spiegelman autographed the printer when he visited Rice last year.
The collaborative spirit extends beyond Rice as Sperandio collaborated with Sergio Soave, professor of printmaking at OSU, to bring together students from both institutions for the showcase.
“I ran five different workshops during the spring semester, bringing in students who maybe had never made any artwork before or certainly never worked in Risograph or letterpress before,” Sperandio said. “Everybody made wallpaper.”
Soave and OSU students did the same, and the creations were installed together then topped with what Sperandio described as a “second cacophony” of letterpress and Risograph prints made by Rice students and visiting artists. The exhibition also offers an interactive experience through QR codes, inviting viewers to delve deeper into the stories behind each artwork on Instagram.
The project was supported in part by the Fondren Fellows Program at Rice. “We spent dozens of dollars on its production, not very much money at all,” Sperandio said. “Our modest little wall I think looks terrific.”
The impact of the exhibition extends beyond the confines of Palazzo Mora as it is already generating plans for future collaborations.
“Two different schools have reached out and said, ‘This is great. What are WE going to do in 2026 for the next art biennial?’" Sperandio said, noting that one of the schools is in Athens, Greece. “I can see collaborating with different schools globally without spending a lot of money doing it.”
Venice Biennale is an annual international cultural exhibition organized every year since 1895. The main exhibition at the event alternates every second year between art and architecture.
Learn more about CATS here.
