Paris + the Champerret Paper Show

It was mid-February, time for Paris and the paper show at Champerret. What can I say it's always wonderful. Bought and sold some great material, ate and drank, talked and walked, criss crossing the city countless times in search of the marvelous, the elusive and previously unseen beauty. Music-track by sayCet for my week in Paris is here. Champerret + Paris photos...click on any image to enlarge.

French pin-up, glamour illustrator extraordinaire, Aslan, always well represented at the fair, passsed away February 11th at the age of 84.

Poster for the Folies Bergere by Brenot

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My trips to Paris are not complete until visiting Nicole Canet's galerie devoted to the nude and the body, Au Bonheur du Jour...

 

...and my dear friends Gilles Berquet and Mirka Lugosi

...showing me/posing with their latest work

Mutual friend, Poupee Mecanique of the band Human Toys, recently 

returned to Paris after a long sojourn in Los Angeles.

Recent drawing by Mirka. I will have an exciting announcement soon about a collaboration between Mirka, Gilles and Vasta Images.

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Everyone knows Paris is the city of light. It is also a city of typography and graphics. The Place de la Concorde metro station is a distinctive example with its décor created by artist Françoise Schein: she covered the entire vault of the 12 line station with tiles spelling out the Déclaration des Droits de l'Homme et du Citoyen of 1789.

Highly recommended exhibition at the Musee d'Art Decoratif of the typographer Philippe Apeloig there until the end of March.

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My next show is the two day New York City Photo Fair April 11 & 12th

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Next Show: Paris Paper February @ Espace Champerret

The boxes are back from LA and sorted out as I repack and take some of that material with me to Paris for the Paper Show next week. Once again at Espace Champerret, however in an abbreviated, more humane version running from the 14th to the 18th. I'll be arriving on the 12th and at the venue on and off throughout the duration of the show and departing Paris on the 20th. Let me know if you're there or in the city and would like to get together for drinks. Show details here.

I will be "standless" shopping and carpet-bagging my way around the show in countless rotations. The "vieux papier" shows continue a slow decline and the venue of late gloomy with all the bad economic news. Nonetheless many of the dealers create excellent displays of their best material helping to make this one of my favorite shows in one of my favorite cities.

Above: a bright spot from the Oct '12 paper show when some of the lovely strippers from the Pink Paradise Club showed up at cocktail time. Sante demoiselles!

Click images to enlarge

Brenot artwork for the Folies Bergere

Other salons, events and happenings in Paris: the 25th Anniversary Exhibition of Raw Visions magazine at the Halle Saint Pierre; the Paris premiere on the 19th of Jim Jarmuschs' latest film Only Lovers Left Alive a meditation on life, love, death and desire ~ arguably his best film ever; Robert Wilson (Einstein on the Beach) Living Rooms exhibition at the Louvre (run to that it closes on the 17th); at the Pompidou a huge, must see exhibition Plural Modernities 1905 ~ 1970 plus two other exhibitions of note: surrealisme and Frida Kahlo; the Musee d'Art Decoratif examines the career of designer Philippe Apeloig in Typorama as well as artist's books from Take Five Editions in the Ceci est un Livre exhibition which closes on the 15th.

Fete du Livre Poster 2012 designed by Philippe Apeloig

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Los Angeles Art Book Fair: Scene at the Fair

The Los Angeles Art Book Fair inhabited the entire space of the Geffen Contemporary located in downtown LA's Little Tokyo district. The overwhelming array of traditional and non-traditional art book publishers, art galleries, antiquarian book sellers, artists, 'zine and periodical publishers made it difficult to see it all in just one visit. 

Because of the size of the venue, I walked the fair repeatedly to take it all in and loved it a little more each day. I discovered new bits and pieces while revisiting the seller stands, coming away with great conversations and some wonderful new artist's books which I will share with you soon. And, as always, while I walked the fair, I shot the fair and here is a taste of what I saw. Above, the "SUP" magazine silver balloons against artwork on a gallery back wall has become, for me, the iconic image for the fair.

The Vasta crew had a fantastic fair and while packing up we starting planning for the Printed Matter Fair in September and are already looking forward to LAABF 2015. See you all next time at MoMA PS1! 

Click on any image for slide show

There will always be at least one surfboard at the LA fair

 Transgender publication OP Original Plumbing

 

 

Simon Vasta, my son and stand manager par excellence 

Arthur Fournier, antiquarian dealer on the left with 

Jordan Nassar, Printed Matter's show coordinator. Thanks to the whole Printed Matter team and especially to Jordan for his tireless efforts. 

 The huge 'zine area of the fair: (xe)rox & paper + scissors

 KCHUNG dj booth/living room ~ bliss out my brothers!

This kinda sums it up for me: the LA/NY push pull of the art book fairs

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vasta@earthlink.net

Los Angeles Art Book Fair: Vasta Images/Books

It was an amazing four days at the Los Angeles Art Book Fair. We loved LA and LA loved us back! Thanks to the thousands who turned out and to the staff of printed matter, especially Shannon and Jordan, who ran the show seamlessly. Above, the stand as we arrived with the shipped boxes awaiting and below, two days later, all dressed out and ready for the preview crowd. Details of the Vasta stand in the photos below. A second LAABF post to follow.

Click on any image for slide show

My crew and dynamic duo, Chloe and Simon

3-D Simon and me

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