Collection: Artists' Books

Apparently the only issue of this small zine featuring line drawings, xerox art, and brief prose works from various contributors. Strong punk and DIY vibes. From an edition of 600 copies. With laid-in folded "submissions" postcard. La Jolla, CA: Actual Size, 1982. Saddle-stapled; 6.5 x... More

A folder of unbound works by four members of the international Fluxus movement, apparently as organized by Danish artist and organizer Knud Pedersen (1925-2014). Eric Andersen's "Decision-Set" consists of nine sheets of transparent paper printed in black text (English language), along with a title page... More

An early artist's book by the American neo-conceptualist Holzer, pairing her cryptic and often somewhat ominous sentences with illustrations of abstractly rendered body parts by Nadin. The same body of work formed the basis of the 1982 "Eating Friends" installation at Artists Space in New... More

A self-published artist's book consisting of fifteen short sardonic andecdotes, one per page, all dealing with various characters' reactions to "my writings," "my work," etc., as in: 'Placing his hand flat against the wall a student called to me and said, "This is it. This... More

A handsomely conceived artist's book suggestive of the ways in which narrative and desire overlay the more prosaic aspects of contemporary housing. Los Angeles: Helix Press, 1982. Edition of 100. Spiral- bound with wire; 9 x 7 in.; unpaginated. Four sets of briefly captioned images... More

An artist's book on the theme of shoes by one of the founding members of Fluxus. Signed, dated, and briefly inscribed by Knowles on the half-title. First edition. Cavriago, Italy: Edizioni Pari & Dispari, 1977. Signature-bound in printed wraps; 8.75 x 6.5 in.; unpaginated (~130pp.).... More

A self-published artist's book of vibrant silk-screen prints, issued in an edition of just 20 copies. Ten images of everyday objects containing numbers, arranged sequentially from one to ten, with each image composed of a unique two-, three- or four-color combination. A lovely production, whose... More

Danbury, NH: Addison House, 1978. First trade edition (as distinct from the limited slipcased edition). Signed and briefly inscribed by Michals on the title-page: "For Richard, OK!" Signature-bound in glossy white wraps, in printed parchment jacket. 8.25 x 6 in. Unpaginated (~43pp.) Ten captioned photographs by... More

Los Angeles: Astro Artz, 1981. An inscribed monographic artist's book documenting the early career of the influential American performance artist. The first half presents performance pieces from 1964 to 1980, each one illustrated with a single black-and-white image on the recto. The second half consists... More

Neaderland, Louise, ed. ISCA Quarterly Volume 6 – Number 4: Third Annual Bookworks Edition, 1988. NY: ISCA, 1988. A complete set of 53  items + catalogue and membership application, housed in a cardboard box that also doubled as the shipping container. Issued in a limited... More

Beloit, WI: Tongue Press, 1979. Hardcover. Octavo. Unknown pagination. Grey cloth, silver titles. Signed and dated by Olson in pencil on base of textblock. Very good (+), with a small dent to one of the boards, and some adhesive-related residue and soiling to the top of... More

NY: Something Else Press, 1972. First edition. Quarto (11" x 8.75"); unpaginated; full red cloth, red topstain, in dust jacket. Signed, dated, and inscribed by Porter on the half-title to Gerard [Dombrowski], founder of Abyss Publications, who issued a number of Porter's (and also Something... More

A signed and inscribed copy of this fiercely feminist artist's book, which articulates, through a series of black-and-white images, a critical stance towards the "subordinate and unclarified" portrayal of women's genitalia in art from classical to contemporary times. Santoro's book generated some controvery when it... More

An artist's book, profusely illustrated in black-and-white, presenting the "documentation, notes, and shooting script" for Seemayer's film of the same name, which was screened once in 1981 and then not again until its restoration in 2013, and which captured the principal figures of the incipient... More

An artist's book exploring the threat of nuclear war through a simple yet compelling conceit. Text from the N. Y. State Civil Defense Warden's Manual (ca. 1952) paired with photographs from the 1981 Michigan State Fair. Subtitled: "on the past(?) wisdom of the U.S. Government... More

Walker (1917-1998) was an American photographer and book artist. In the mid-1960s, after receiving an offset press as a gift from his wife, he began publishing his own works, which show an increasing mastery of the various aspects of book production, from typesetting to binding... More