NY Art Book Fair and Sergio Larrain Exhibition (a reminder)

This is a quick event announcement for the second annual NY Art Book Fair that is happening in Chelsea this coming up weekend from September 28^th through the 30^th. This fair is taking place just a few blocks from the Eye Studio Gallery on 26^th street, so since you were all coming to the Sergio Larrain Book exhibition anyway (right?)…this is another incentive to come over and take a look at both of these great NY book events. A reminder that on Saturday the 29th from 6-8pm, there is a reception for the Sergio Larrain exhibition of books.

The NY Art Book Fair is going to take place at 548 West 22^nd Street between 10^th and 11^th Avenues in New York City.

This second annual book fair offers titles of contemporary art books, art catalogs, artists books, art periodicals, and ‘zines for sale by over 120 international publishers, booksellers and antiquarian book dealers.

The NY Art Book Fair is organized by Printed Matter, a bookstore at 195 Tenth Avenue. Printed Matter was founded in 1976 by Sol Lewitt, Lucy Lippard, and a group of like-minded artists and art workers. Now entering its 31^st year, it is the world’s largest non-profit organization devoted to artists’ publications. Printed Matter offers some 15,000 titles by 5,000 artists.

The Printed Matter store is a great resource for discovering very obscure, limited edition and handmade books by both artists you probably had no idea existed and artists that are household names. I have been buying books there and enjoying their exhibitions since 1987. They were responsible for making an edition of Larry Clark’s Tulsa available in 1999 when several unbound and uncut sheets from the 1971 edition were discovered by Clark and given to Printed Matter to bind and sell to raise funds for the organization. Released in only an edition of 100 hand-numbered and signed copies it is now one of the more desirable titles of Clark’s.

Although the main days of the NY Art Book Fair are free admission, there is a Benefit Preview on Thursday the 27^th for which there are tickets for sale at three different price levels. At the lowest level, the 7-9 pm preview is $20.00 and I have been told there is an open bar AND the admission ticket is an original piece of art by David Shrigley (called Fucking Aces) created specifically for the preview. The second level of ticket price for the preview is $150.00 and gets you all of the above PLUS an edition by Josephine Meckseper. The highest level price is available upon request and gets you in even earlier at 6pm and you get an edition by Ed Ruscha called Little Mexican Church on a Windowsill and the David Shrigley Fucking Aces ticket. All proceeds benefit Printed Matter, Inc.

The regular fair hours that are free admission are: Friday the 28^th from 11am to 7pm. Saturday the 29^th from 11am to 7pm. Sunday the 30^th from 11am to 5pm. There are also a series of events including book signings, discussions, workshops and performances celebrating art publications during the course of the fair.

For more information visit: www.nyartbookfair.com