Hillary Butterworth, earned her BFA from the University of Michigan’s Penny Stamps school of Art and Design in 2015. During her four years she curated two exhibitions in the Warren Robbins gallery on campus, had her science illustrations published in the field guide Michigan Shrubs and Vines, and won the top jury prize at the 2015 undergraduate show for her interactive, Arduino-controlled sculpture. In the summer of 2015, she studied abroad in County Clare, Ireland and presented the series of mixed media drawings and fiber art sculptures created during her residency in the show entitled, Timeline, at the Burren College of Art.

Since graduation, Hillary has focused solely on drawing and painting the figure, becoming one of the founding members of the 404 collective, a group of six painters from across the globe. In the summer of 2018, she and the 404 collective were invited by Untitledxxi to participate in a week-long residency in Ghent, Belgium, during which they made large-scale collaborative paintings. The meeting was filmed and made into a feature length documentary, which is set to premier in Belgium. 

   Across all media, Hillary is motivated to record and preserve precious interactions between family and friends. During her time with the book, Hillary was especially focused on her relationship with food preparation and fitness; themes which emerge throughout it.

To develop a bond with the book, she carried with her for the entire year, softening the pages through handling and coats of gesso. As the spine creased, and the book grew fatter, it lost its novelty and became familiar. For Hillary, nurturing each book until it feels like an extension of herself is the key to any successful book.

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