Granary Books is an independent

small press A small press is a publisher with annual sales below a certain level or below a certain number of titles published. The terms "indie publisher" and "independent press" and others are sometimes used interchangeably. Independent press is general ...

and rare books and archives dealer based in New York City. Owned and directed by Steve Clay, Granary has published hundreds of books that "produce, promote, document, and theorize new works exploring the intersection of word, image, and page." As a rare books and archives dealer, Granary Books also assists in the placement and preservation of authors' and artists' archives. In addition to these activities, Granary Books administers projects such as "From a Secret Location," a digital repository of materials related to the small press and mimeograph revolutions from the 1960s to 1980s. Its trade books are distributed by D.A.P./Distributed Art Publishers and

Small Press Distribution Small Press Distribution (SPD) is a non-profit literary arts organization located in Berkeley, California. As their name indicates, the core of their mission is to act as an umbrella distributor and marketer for hundreds of smaller literary publi ...

. The poet and translator

Jerome Rothenberg Jerome Rothenberg (born December 11, 1931) is an American poet, translator and anthologist, noted for his work in the fields of ethnopoetics and performance poetry. Early life and education Jerome Rothenberg was born and raised in New York ...

writes of Granary Books: "In the true history of American poetry...Granary Books, as a press & resource, is exemplary of how poets & related artists in the post-World War Two era were able to establish shadow institutions that operated, nearly successfully, outside the frame of any & all self-proclaimed poetic mainstreams." Kyle Schlesinger writes, "It is difficult to imagine that any syllabus (or practitioner’s bookshelf for that matter) about the artists’ book could be complete without at least one title from Granary" Granary Books' works have been the subject of over 10 exhibitions, including most recently ''Participating Witness: The Poetics of Granary Books'' at

Poets House Poets House is a national literary center and poetry library based in New York City. It contains more than 70,000 volumes of poetry, and is free and open to the public. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, they temporarily suspended operations in Nov ...

, New York City, in 2020.

History

Granary Books began in 1985 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as Origin Books—the name under which Clay published his first project, ''Noah Webster to Wee Lorine Niedecker'' by Jonathan Williams. A series of other small poem-cards and broadsides followed during the 1980s, as well as books by Jane Wodening, Jonathan Williams,

R. B. Kitaj Ronald Brooks Kitaj (; October 29, 1932 – October 21, 2007) was an American artist who spent much of his life in England. Life He was born in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, United States. His Hungarian father, Sigmund Benway, left his mother, Jeanne ...

, and

Paul Metcalf Paul C. Metcalf (7 November 1917 – 21 January 1999) was an American writer. He wrote in verse and prose. Devoted admirers included Robert Creeley, William Gass, Wendell Berry, Guy Davenport, Howard Zinn, and Bruce Olds. His books include ' ...

. By 1988, Granary Books moved to Manhattan on 636 Broadway, where Steve Clay and David Abel ran a gallery and bookstore on the tenth floor. Clay says that publishing "became more self-conscious as a project" and "serious in its ambition" in 1991 with the publication of ''Nods'', with text by

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading fi ...

and drawings by Barbara Farhner. In this spirit, Many of Granary Books' limited-edition publications continue to be collaborations or pairings between poets/writers and visual artists. Many also contain unique elements, such as handpainting;

Susan Bee Susan Bee (born January 14, 1952) is an American painter, editor, and book artist, who lives in New York City. In 2015, "Photograms and Altered Photos from the 1970s" were exhibited at Southfirst Gallery in Brooklyn. She had one solo show at Acco ...

describes this creative process for her book, ''Talespin'' (Granary Books, 1995). These limited-edition publications are held in special collections and archives internationally, and explore the relationship between "image and the word and tactile comprehension," in collaboration with artists, poets, bookbinders, printers, and designers.

Publishing

The author, book artist, visual theorist, and cultural critic Johanna Drucker described Granary Books' publishing aesthetic as "late twentieth-century fine press meets literary experiment and innovative arts." Steve Clay says that he began publishing as a result of his interest in "the ways in which writing was distributed on the margins, the kind of sociology of book distribution among small presses, and the poets who were producing work that was primarily published in small presses," along with his interest in booksellers such as Phoenix Book Shop, the Eighth Street Book Shop, Asphodel, Serendipity, Sand Dollar, Gotham and

City Lights ''City Lights'' is a 1931 American silent romantic comedy film written, produced, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin. The story follows the misadventures of Chaplin's Tramp as he falls in love with a blind girl (Virginia Cherrill) and ...

. Starting in the mid-nineties Granary Books began publishing books that contextualize scholarship in the history of small press publishing, poetry, and artists' books. The first Granary Books trade edition was

Johanna Drucker Johanna Drucker (born May 30, 1952) is an American author, book artist, visual theorist, and cultural critic. Her scholarly writing documents and critiques visual language: letterforms, typography, visual poetry, art, and lately, digital art ae ...

's ''The Century of Artists' Books'', followed by

and David M. Guss's ''The Book, Spiritual Instrument''. Other trade books include Jerome Rothenberg and Steve Clay's ''A Book of the Book: Some Works & Projections About the Book & Writing'', Betty Bright's ''No Longer Innocent: Book Art in America 1960–1980'', and Stefan Klima's ''Artists Books: A Critical Survey of the Literature''. Steve Clay and Rodney Phillips's ''A Secret Location on the Lower East Side'' resulted from an exhibition at The New York Public Library by the same name, and is considered "not only significant in its refusal to lose the evidence of the period it covers (1960-80), but for showing that entering the evidence into the public record is a means of shaping the discourse about the critical context of the period." Granary Books also published out-of-print works for wider distribution, such as

Joe Brainard Joe Brainard (March 11, 1942 – May 25, 1994) was an American artist and writer associated with the New York School. His prodigious and innovative body of work included assemblages, collages, drawing, and painting, as well as designs for book ...

's '' I Remember'', originally published by Angel Hair Books, as well as trade poetry books by poets including

Alice Notley Alice Notley (born November 8, 1945) is an American poet. Notley came to prominence as a member of the second generation of the New York School of poetry—although she has always denied being involved with the New York School or any specific mo ...

Ed Sanders Edward Sanders (born August 17, 1939) is an American poet, singer, activist, author, publisher and longtime member of the rock band the Fugs. He has been called a bridge between the Beat and hippie generations. Sanders is considered to have bee ...

Larry Fagin Larry Fagin (July 21, 1937 – May 27, 2017) was an American poet, editor, publisher, and teacher, and a member of the New York School. Biography Born in Far Rockaway, New York City, Larry Fagin grew up in New York, Hollywood, and Europe. He bega ...

, and numerous others. As of August 2020, Granary Books has a checklist with over 177 publications that includes limited editions and t rade editions of poetry, artists' books, and books about books.

Limited Editions (selected)

John Ashbery John Lawrence Ashbery (July 28, 1927 – September 3, 2017) was an American poet and art critic. Ashbery is considered the most influential American poet of his time. Oxford University literary critic John Bayley wrote that Ashbery "sounded, in ...

and Trevor Winkfield. ''Faster Than Birds Can Fly'', 2009. *Jen Bervin and Marta Werner. ''The Gorgeous Nothings: Emily Dickinson's Envelope-Poems'', 2012. *John Cage and Barbara Fahrner. ''Nods'', 1991. *

Henrik Drescher Henrik Drescher (born in 1955) is a Danish artist. Life and work In 1967 Drescher and his family emigrated to the United States. Drescher began studying at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston but quit after one semester to become an il ...

. ''Too Much Bliss'', 1992. *Johanna Drucker. ''Stochastic Poetics'', 2012. *Vincent Katz and

Francesco Clemente Francesco Clemente (born 23 March 1952) is an Italian contemporary artist. He has lived at various times in Italy, India and New York City. Some of his work is influenced by the traditional art and culture of India. He has worked in various art ...

. ''Alcuni Telefonini'', 2008. *

Terence McKenna Terence Kemp McKenna (November 16, 1946 – April 3, 2000) was an American ethnobotanist and mystic who advocated the responsible use of naturally occurring psychedelic plants. He spoke and wrote about a variety of subjects, including ...

and Timothy C. Ely. ''Synesthesia'', 1992. *

Emily McVarish Emily McVarish (born 1965) is an American writer, designer, book artist and professor at California College of the Arts. She lives and works in San Francisco and her work primarily takes the form of books. Clifton Meador says "she uses the form of ...

. ''Flicker'', 2005. *

Ron Padgett Ron Padgett (born June 17, 1942, Tulsa, Oklahoma) is an American poet, essayist, fiction writer, translator, and a member of the New York School. ''Great Balls of Fire'', Padgett's first full-length collection of poems, was published in 1969. He ...

and

George Schneeman George Schneeman (March 11, 1934 – January 27, 2009) was an American painter who lived in Tuscany, Italy, and New York City. Life and work George Schneeman was born on March 11, 1934, in St. Paul, Minnesota. He received a B.A. in philosoph ...

. ''Yodeling into a Kotex'', 2003. *Jerome Rothenberg and

. ''The Burning Babe'', 2005. * Edward Sanders, ''A Book of Glyphs'', 2014. *

Leslie Scalapino Leslie Scalapino (July 25, 1944 – May 28, 2010) was an American poet, experimental prose writer, playwright, essayist, and editor, sometimes grouped in with the Language poets, though she felt closely tied to the Beat poets. Writes Hejinian: ...

and

Kiki Smith Kiki Smith (born January 18, 1954) is a West German-born American artist whose work has addressed the themes of sex, birth and regeneration. Her figurative work of the late 1980s and early 1990s confronted subjects such as AIDS and gender, whil ...

. ''The Animal is in the World Like Water in Water'', 2010. *Buzz Spector. A Passage, 1994. * Cecilia Vicuña, ''Chanccani Quipu'', 2012. *

Marjorie Welish Marjorie Welish ( ; born June 2, 1944) is an American poet, artist, and art critic. Welish is a graduate of Columbia University and received her M.F.A. degree from Vermont College and Norwich University. She also studied at the Art Students Le ...

and James Siena. ''Oaths? Questions?'', 2009. *

John Yau John Yau (born June 5, 1950) is an American poet and critic who lives in New York City. He received his B.A. from Bard College in 1972 and his M.F.A. from Brooklyn College in 1978. He has published over 50 books of poetry, artists' books, fiction ...

and

Max Gimblett Maxwell Harold Gimblett, (born 5 December 1935) is a New Zealand and American artist. His work, a harmonious postwar synthesis of American and Japanese art, brings together abstract expressionism, modernism, spiritual abstraction, and Zen calli ...

. ''The Book of the Anonymous'', 2012.

Trade Editions (selected)

David Antin David Abram Antin (February 1, 1932 – October 11, 2016) was an American poet, critic and performance artist. Education and early career Antin was born in New York City in 1932. After graduating from Brooklyn Technical High School, he earned h ...

and

Charles Bernstein Charles Bernstein may refer to: * Charles Bernstein (composer) (born 1943), American composer of film and television scores * Charles Bernstein (poet) Charles Bernstein (born April 4, 1950) is an American poet, essayist, editor, and literary sc ...

. ''A Conversation with David Antin'', 2002. *

Ted Berrigan Ted Berrigan (November 15, 1934 – July 4, 1983) was an American poet. Early life Berrigan was born in Providence, Rhode Island, on November 15, 1934. After high school, he spent a year at Providence College before joining the U.S. Army. After ...

, Ron Padget and

. ''Bean Spasms'', 2012. *

. '' I Remember'', 2001. *Steven Clay and Rodney Phillips. ''A Secret Location on the Lower East Side: Adventures in Writing, 1960–1980: A Sourcebook of Information'', 1998. *Simon Cutts. ''Some Forms of Availability'', 2007. *Johanna Drucker. ''The Century of Artists' Books'', 2004. *

Lyn Hejinian Lyn Hejinian (born May 17, 1941) is an American poet, essayist, translator and publisher. She is often associated with the Language poets and is known for her landmark work ''My Life'' (Sun & Moon, 1987, original version Burning Deck, 1980), a ...

. ''A Border Comedy'', 2001. *Piero Heliczer. ''A Purchase in the White Botanica'', 2001. * Ligorano/Reese with Gerrit Lansing. ''Turning Leaves of Mind'', 2003. *

Jackson Mac Low Jackson Mac Low (1922–2004) was an American poet, performance artist, composer and playwright, known to most readers of poetry as a practioneer of systematic chance operations and other non-intentional compositional methods in his work, whi ...

. ''Doings: Assorted Performance Pieces 1955–2002'', 2005. *Jerome Rothenberg and Steven Clay, ed. ''A Book of the Book: Some Works & Projections about the Book & Writing'', 2000. *Edward Sanders, ''A Book of Glyphs'', 2014. *

Lewis Warsh Lewis Warsh (9 November 1944 – 15 November 2020) was an American poet, visual artist, professor, prose writer, editor, and publisher. He was a principal member of the second generation of the New York School poets,; however, he has said that � ...

and Julie Harrison, ''Debtor's Prison'', 2001. *Lewis Warsh and

Anne Waldman Anne Waldman (born April 2, 1945) is an American poet. Since the 1960s, Waldman has been an active member of the Outrider experimental poetry community as a writer, performer, collaborator, professor, editor, scholar, and cultural/political activ ...

, eds. ''Angel Hair Sleeps with a Boy in My Head: The Angel Hair Anthology'', 2001.

Threads Talk Series

Steve Clay and Kyle Schlesinger curated a series of talks from 2009 to 2012 about the art of the book featuring poets, scholars, artists, and publishers. The talks were recorded before a small audience at Granary Books and made available on

PennSound PennSound is a poetry website and online archive that hosts free and downloadable recordings of poets reading their own work. The website offers over 1500 full-length and single-poem recordings, the largest collection of poetry sound-files on the ...

. Speakers included Alan Loney, Charles Alexander, Simon Cutts,

, Cecilia Vicuña, Jen Bervin, Buzz Spector, Richard Minsky, Kathleen Walkup,

, Keith Smith, Richard Minsky, and

. The series is now collected in a book, jointly published by Granary Books and Cuneiform Press.

From a Secret Location Website

In 2016, Granary Books launched an expanded digital version of the book, ''A Secret Location on the Lower East Side''. The site contains alphabetized entries for small presses and journals of the mimeo revolution, as well as guest essays by their founders and contributors.

References

External links

Granary Books WebsiteFinding aid to Granary Books records at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library
{{Authority control Artists' books Small press publishing companies Poetry publishers Book publishing companies based in New York (state)