Burned Pages

The burned pages project began from a collective loss: in 2008, the public library of Swan’s Island, ME was struck by lightening and completely destroyed. The library was one of the only public community spaces in the small town of Swan’s Island. The incident resulted in half-charred pages of books scattered around the remains of the building, and Elizabeth Awalt found herself collecting the remants of the library’s contents, not quite sure what she would do with them. Elizabeth slowly started what would become a large-scale collaborative project with the community of Swan’s Island, and with other Maine artists. Elizabeth invited people of all ages to memorialize the library by drawing or writing on the burned pages she had collected.

A house on fire with flames and smoke engulfing the structure.

Swan’s Island library fire, 2008

Burned and charred pages of books or newspapers.

Remnants of the library, 2008

A burnt piece of paper with a torn top and bottom, featuring a printed book page over which colorful pen doodles and handwritten annotations are drawn, including hearts, squiggles, and notes.

A burned page from a book with colorful drawings, including a green dinosaur, purple flowers, and abstract shapes drawn with markers.

A collage featuring torn pages with printed text, painted in bright orange, yellow, and red, overlaid by black ink markings. The background shows a person with a backpack in a natural setting with trees and foliage, amid a smoky atmosphere.

Mixed media collage with torn book pages, colorful paper, paint, and black silhouette images of flowers on burnished paper.

Drawing of a dog wearing a striped shirt, blue shorts, and a hat, with the name "Elijah" written at the bottom.

A colorful, artistic illustration featuring a man in a yellow-green striped suit sitting on a pink chair in a forest, with a paper and a book in his lap. Above him, a thought bubble contains a coat hanger. The word "BOOKS" is written in large blue le

Hand-drawn illustration of two women walking in a forest, with one holding a piece of cloth or clothing. The trees and sky are sketched with green, blue, and red ink, with a decorative border around the scene.

A torn piece of paper with colorful rainbow paint streaks overlaid on text from a printed page. The text mentions the United States and a location called Glacier Peak, with references to Seattle, the 1960s, and conservation activities.

Burned and charred paper with handwritten drawings of balloons, stars, and arrows in red, yellow, and blue, with some words written in yellow marker. A poem titled 'BROOK RIVER PUALLE' is partially visible in the background.

A torn piece of paper with a burnt edge, displaying a printed page from a book titled 'I, ROBOT.' Hand-drawn images of a robot outline and the initials 'DS' are added over the text.

A page with the title 'Dewey Decimal Classification' over a watercolor background, featuring a red and orange doodle in the center and overlaid text explaining parts of the classification system.

Burnt and tattered page from a book with yellow and blue ink scribbles and highlights, signed with initials 'S.D.' at the bottom.

Colorful doodles and handwritten text overlaying a burned, torn book page. The words 'WHAT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING?' are written in black marker across the page.

Burned and blackened piece of paper with handwritten notes and crossed-out text, showing signs of fire damage.

A torn page of printed text with a colorful hand-drawn rocket sketch overlay.

Hand-drawn illustration of a bear and a dinosaur facing each other inside a shield, with trees and a blue splash above. Below are the words 'DIAGNOSIS' and a poetic description about Birch bark and Welch-schmerz. At the bottom, a heart drawing with t

A burned and torn piece of paper with colorful crayon drawings of stars, a sun, and plants, with some printed text about the United States Congress and a handwritten name 'Fiona' at the bottom.

A burned piece of paper with a book page underneath the burn marks. The page contains colorful hand-drawn doodles in the margins, including swirls, circles, and a yellow and red shape. The text includes dialog from a book about Milton and Chastity Ha

Drawing of a girl with a bun and a tall hat, holding what appears to be a skating rink or a roller skate, on a burnt piece of paper with printed text.

A torn, burned-looking piece of paper with a hand-drawn sketch of a golf course hole, including a tee box, fairway, and green. The paper has text printed on it, and the drawing is overlaid in black ink with the words 'I wish I was here' and a small h

Burnt edges of a page from a book titled 'Game and Poultry' with an illustration of a chicken drawn on the page.

Torn page of printed text with painted blue and brown abstract shapes, resembling an art collage or mixed media artwork.

Burnt edge paper with watercolor background featuring star illustrations, chapter number 45, and a handwritten note 'Now I can see the moon' over the text.

Torn page of a book or document about social problems and services, with highlighted, underlined, and colored text, some handwritten annotations, and pink and red marker dots.

Page from a book about reindeer, with charred edges around the paper, and a handwritten word "shep" at the bottom.

Burned and torn page from a book with handwritten notes in black and red ink, colorful markers, and doodles on the page.

Handmade paper with colorful abstract watercolor art and overlaid text from a book. The paper has a torn, irregular shape with purple edges.

A mixed-media artwork featuring a torn, burnt, or aged paper with a sketch of a woman's face, overlaid with colorful paints and handwritten red text.

A burnt piece of paper with a watercolor portrait of a woman. The image is created by watercolor paint over printed text, with green, yellow, brown, and black colors.

A piece of paper with burned edges, overlaid with colorful paint splatters and translucent text from a book.

Burnt page from a book or document with highlighted text and colorful abstract shapes overlaying it, including pink, orange, yellow, and purple.

Mixed media artwork with pink and orange hues, featuring a black and white image of two people, on a textured surface with torn edges.

A weathered paper collage combining black-and-white photographic reproductions of ancient reliefs with torn, colorful paper and some text, creating an abstract mixed media artwork.

A piece of torn paper with multicolored scribbles and the words 'Kourtney' and 'Minnie' written on it, over a background of printed text.

A decorated, artistic piece of paper with colorful paint, various handwritten words, and collaged pink and purple rectangles over printed text.

A burned page from a book with colorful overlapping translucent paper or plastic pieces on top of it.

Mixed media artwork on a torn piece of book page depicting an orange bird with a dark beak and black accents, created with paint and marker.

A colorful abstract painting overlaid on a torn piece of paper with printed text, featuring black curvy lines.

A worn, burnt page with colorful abstract paint splatters in orange, purple, yellow, and blue overprinted on black-ink text from a book.

Two women smiling and standing in front of a colorful wall of artwork and decorated paper cutouts with burnt edges.

Elizabeth Awalt and Librarian Candice Joyce with burned pages 2009

An elderly man with gray hair and a patterned vest is holding an open colorful children's book featuring two birds and floral designs. He is standing in front of a wall decorated with numerous handwritten and illustrated pages.

Writer and Artist, Ashley Bryan, created a page and read his award winning book, Beautiful Blackbird while children created their pages.

The project continued to grow, and other Maine artists were invited to participate. In 2019, the community held a fundraising event for the construction of a new library, and the burned page drawings were auctioned off. The event raised approximatley $30,000 which was donated to help build a new library, completed in 2010.

Burned Pages

New Beginnnings