The Saint Xavier University Gallery came alive Wednesday, Sept. 3, as faculty, students and community members gathered for the opening reception of “That Which Remains,” an exhibition by SXU Gallery Director and Professor of Art and Design Cathie Ruggie Saunders.
The collection, on display through Sept. 20, features artists’ books, letterpress prints and mixed-media drawings that explore themes of memory, history and transformation.
Ruggie Saunders, who completed the work during a sabbatical in fall 2024 and continued refining it through the summer, said the exhibition draws from three of her lifelong passions: archaeology, letterpress printing and poetry.
“These pieces come from layers of my life — my experiences, my teaching, my writing,” Ruggie Saunders said during the reception. “I hope visitors see that ‘old’ is not necessarily ‘out of date’ and that creativity often comes from viewing materials through new perspectives.”
One of the most personal pieces in the exhibit, an artist’s book titled “You Left,” features hand-marbled paper and is dedicated to Ruggie Saunders’ sister-in-law, Rhonda, who passed away in 2017.
“I knew I wanted to do something to commemorate Rhonda,” she said.
Ruggie Saunders’ artistic journey began at Northwestern University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and art with departmental honors. Her studies led her to participate in an archaeological excavation at the Koster Site in the Illinois River Valley, one of North America’s most significant digs. Fossils, shells, arrowheads and ancient burials discovered there continue to influence her work decades later.
The second influence comes from her 40-plus years of teaching letterpress printing at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. The centuries-old craft, she explained, connects past and present through its slow, deliberate process, leaving impressions on paper much like fossils embedded in the earth.
The third influence is her love of language. A poet and lifelong journal keeper, Ruggie Saunders often develops visual works in tandem with her writing, allowing words and imagery to merge into layered narratives.
“While spoken words may be forgotten, written words provide a lasting impact,” she said. Some pieces in the exhibition even feature salvaged prints from former students, layered and reimagined into what she calls “archaeological collaborations.”
Ruggie Saunders has been part of Saint Xavier University’s art faculty since 1983 and currently teaches two sections of Drawing I along with the department’s capstone Senior Seminar. Over the years, she has also taught courses in printmaking, artist’s books, Chicago architecture, children’s book illustration and other disciplines.
Visitors to the gallery during Wednesday’s reception browsed the intricate letterpress prints and mixed-media pieces while speaking with the artist about her techniques and inspirations. Many said they were struck by the intimacy of the work, describing it as both deeply personal and universally relatable.
For Ruggie Saunders, the exhibition also marked a personal milestone. As director of the SXU Gallery, she has spent decades curating other artists’ works. Seeing the space filled with her own creations was, she said, “a deeply humbling experience.”
“I’ve hosted so many incredible artists over the years,” she said. “To now see these walls covered with the visual evidence of my own journey — it’s an honor.”
