Thursday, November 20, 2014

The Latest: Limited Edition ARTIST'S BOOKS




Disgorging bags full of books after a day of Paris shops and galleries resulted in a colorful miscellany of artist's books including some long out-of-print rarities from Le Dernier Cri and Bon Gout. Here are some snapshots taken back at my hotel on the freshly made bed. All the new material will be available at the Los Angeles Art Book Fair at the end of January. Note that I'm reserving copies of Vasta Editions' first publication, Hide And Seek, for the LA fair.

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Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Seen: COMIC ARTS BROOKLYN Artist's Books Posters



Annual CAB fair in Williamsburg is always fun and I came away with a handful of really nice limited edition artist's book including a few by David Sandlin. The show is held in the Lady of Mount Carmel church and organized by Gabe Fowler, the owner of the Desert Island book and comic shop on Metropolitan Avenue. 

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Kids just wanna make books!

 


 One of my favorite creator's of contemporary artist's books, 
David Sandlin, showing some of his silk screened books.







Paris WINE TASTING + La Coupole Gala + FIAC



During my two weeks in Paris there were a lot of activities in between the Paper Show and the launch party for Hide And Seek, including...a wine tasting on the sidewalk out front of the 165 year old shop Caves Auge on the blvd Hausmann. All from small producers of bio and organic wines. At the event with Poupee and Gilles, where towards the end we abandoned "swirling, tasting, spitting" and started "swallowing". We bought a couple of bottles! 
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Glass enclosed cashier's booth...

...and rows of cognac in the vitrine display.


Poupee and Gilles...sante!




At La Coupole in Montparnasse it was the monthly Gala Night with dancing and live music in the basement ballroom. The evening started with two charming models, bathed in purple light, posing on the bar in the dining room, surrounded by amateur sketch artists trying to capture the posers. La Coupole retains its marvelous ambiance and is always a wonderful place for cocktails, especially late nite.






The FIAC. What can I say. Another (art) fair that has grown too big, attracting a huge crowd making it difficult to see the art and get around the exhibits. I was happy to be there for the preview evening but after about an hour, I gave up, sat on the steps of one of the beautiful cast iron staircases of the Grand Palais and decided it was still early in the evening and I'd rather be outdoors. I hope sales were good, but for someone like myself, there to see the art, it's just too big and too crowded to enjoy. Coming in March '15 FIAC Los Angeles ?!



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Arts Factory STEPHANE BLANQUET Show Paris Oct '14




Excellent exhibition by Stephan Blanquet at the Arts Factory gallery in the Bastille on the rue Charonne. The show covers various aspects of Blanquet's career as artist and publisher, including posters, original artworks, three dimensional objects, dolls, books and an impressive elephant "sculpture" made of fabric. Forget the lines at the Paris museums and go see this show before it closes 11.22!


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Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Snapshot Boutique PHOTOGRAPHIES rue Charlot Paris




Finally made my way to Photographies, a great shop on the rue Charlot. I had heard about it from a number of people, but no one ever described the wonderfully eclectic "photo shop" interior filled with all types of vintage photography related stuff. The floor of the small shop is covered with snapshot photos, thousands of them. The gentleman minding the shop said to all that entered: "...pick one photo that you can keep and, if you would like, step outside, hold up the photo and I will take a portrait of you with the snapshot". Not sure what the final outcome for the photos will be, a fun idea nonetheless.
Part of the Mois de la Photo-off

It was love at first sight. The place is totally fitted out, every spot of the interior is covered photographs or something related to the creation of photographs, it feels like a walk-in curio cabinet. A great touch at work, kept simple and charming. Some very nice "non-snapshot" photographs on sale as well.


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A kid walking through the snapshots. Between his legs is an enlarging glass (below) 
which shows the image I was hoping to find for my portrait...
...instead I wound up with a commercail photo of a cathedral interior that 
I turned upside down, trying to get the most out of it, 
female anatomy-wise.