Printed Matter, Inc. is an independent

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

grant-supported bookstore, artist organization, and arts space which publishes and distributes artists' books. It is currently located at 231 11th Avenue in the

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

neighborhood of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History and mission

Printed Matter, Inc. was founded by a loose consortium of artists, critics, and publishers—including

Sol LeWitt Solomon "Sol" LeWitt (September 9, 1928 – April 8, 2007) was an American artist linked to various movements, including conceptual art and minimalism. LeWitt came to fame in the late 1960s with his wall drawings and "structures" (a term he pref ...

Lucy Lippard Lucy Rowland Lippard (born April 14, 1937) is an American writer, art critic, activist, and curator. Lippard was among the first writers to argue for the " dematerialization" at work in conceptual art and was an early champion of feminist art. S ...

, Carol Androcchio, Amy Baker (Sandback),

Edit DeAk Edit DeAk (; formerly deAk; ; September 16, 1948 – June 9, 2017) was a Hungarian-born American art critic and writer, co-founder of the journal '' Art-Rite'' and the non-profit bookstore and artist book distributor, Printed Matter, Inc. Early l ...

, Mike Glier, Nancy Linn, Walter Robinson,

Ingrid Sischy Ingrid Barbara Sischy () (March 2, 1952 – July 24, 2015) was a South African-born American writer and editor who specialized in covering art, photography, and fashion. She rose to prominence as the editor of ''Artforum'' from 1979 to 1988, and ...

Pat Steir Pat Steir (born 1940) is an American painter and printmaker. Her early work was loosely associated with conceptual art and minimalism, however, she is best known for her abstract dripped, splashed and poured "Waterfall" paintings, which she s ...

, Mimi Wheeler, Robin White and Irena von Zahn—in 1976 as a for-profit art space in the

Tribeca Tribeca (), originally written as TriBeCa, is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. Its name is a syllabic abbreviation of "Triangle Below Canal Street". The "triangle" (more accurately a quadrilateral) is bounded by Canal Stre ...

neighborhood of

. The original concept arose from Sol LeWitt's desire for artists to take over the means of production of their variously serious, unique, and oddball

artist's book Artists' books (or book arts or book objects) are works of art that utilize the form of the book. They are often published in small editions, though they are sometimes produced as one-of-a-kind objects. Overview Artists' books have employed a ...

s (alternatively known as "bookworks" or "book art"). At the time, these artist's books were viewed as inconsequential and used by dealers as free promotional materials, instead of being regarded as art.

cites International General, an independent publisher of artists' books run by artist

Seth Siegelaub Seth Siegelaub (1941, Bronx, New York – June 15, 2013, Basel, Switzerland) was an American-born art dealer, curator, author, and researcher. He is best known for his innovative promotion of conceptual art in New York in the 1960s and '70s, ...

, as a model for Printed Matter Inc. Printed Matter is one of the first organizations dedicated to creating and distributing artists' books, incorporating self-publishing, small press publishing, and artist networks and collectives. Historically there was no lack of publishers of these works, but there was a real need for distributors; Printed Matter functions as both a distribution agency as well as a publisher of artists' books. Printed Matter focused heavily on the distribution of these artists' books because it could simultaneously broaden the reach of art outside museums and allow artists to "control their own production." The works published by Printed Matter are editioned and are conceived by artists as artworks. However, due to mass-producing they can be sold at affordable prices (currently around $5-$50), as they are meant to spread the accessibility of art. Printed Matter also serves as a support system for avant-garde artists as well as a place of community, often balancing its role as publisher, exhibition space, retail space, and community center of the downtown arts scene.

Corporate status and operations

In 1976 writer and editor

was hired by

and the board of directors as the inaugural director of Printed Matter, Inc. By 1978 she was successful in applying for and being granted

corporate non-profit status, and Printed Matter Inc officially became a non-profit organization with a focus on artist publications. Materials on view at Printed Matter are either discovered through a submission process or arrive via a network of artists, distributors, and publishers. Because of the non-traditional approach to curating content, the inventory of Printed Matter is very diverse, representing the

long tail In statistics and business, a long tail of some probability distribution, distributions of numbers is the portion of the distribution having many occurrences far from the "head" or central part of the distribution. The distribution could involv ...

concept of offerings. The mail order catalog model of fulfillment is how Printed Matter maintains a global reach to its worldwide customer base, which includes libraries, archives, and museums, as well as academic institutions and individuals. The collected works are organized by artist's name, with special sections organized by genre i.e. zines, audio works, periodicals, or publisher. Each summer the inventory is assessed from top to bottom resulting in a comprehensive backlist and updated archive being ready for perusal in the Fall season. Printed Matter also curates artists' window installations in the front window that engage the public beyond the prospect of buying and selling books. Artist

AA Bronson AA Bronson (born Michael Tims in Vancouver in 1946) is an artist. He was a founding member of the artists' group General Idea, was president and director of Printed Matter, Inc., and started the NY Art Book Fair and the LA Art Book Fair. Earl ...

served as executive director of Printed Matter from 2004-2010 and during that time created and directed the

NY Art Book Fair The NY Art Book Fair is Printed Matter, Inc's annual event, historically held in September or October. The NY Art Book Fair is the world’s largest book fair for artists’ books and related publications, featuring over 370 exhibitors from 30 c ...

. Started in 2006, the

hosts over 200 independent presses, booksellers, antiquarian dealers, artists, and publishers. The LA Art Book Fair was started in 2013. The NY Art Book Fair and LA Art Book Fair are now both presented by Printed Matter. After Bronson's departure, Phil Aarons, who is on the board of Printed Matter, and

Jordan Nassar Jordan Nassar (born 1985) is an American artist based in New York City. He primarily works with textiles, especially in creating works based on traditional Palestinian embroidery. Nassar also creates self-published artist's books and zines. Ear ...

help to put together the book fairs. From 2010-2017, the late Shannon Michael Cane was instrumental to the success of the fairs.

The Curated Shelf

In collaboration with

Artspace Artspace may refer to: * Artspace (website), an online marketplace based in New York City * Artspace, New Haven, an art gallery in downtown New Haven, Connecticut * Artspace Mackay, Mackay, Queensland, Australia * Artspace NZ, a visual arts cent ...

Aspen Art Museum Founded in 1979, the Aspen Art Museum (AAM) is a non-collecting contemporary art museum located in Aspen, Colorado. AAM exhibitions include drawings, paintings, sculptures, multimedia installations and electronic media. Aspen Art Museum Building ...

, and Centro University, Printed Matter created The Curated Shelf that displays and sells artists' books. The Curated Shelf includes artists' books from the 1970s to current day that range a variety of different themes and styles.

Exhibitions

* ''Learn to Read Art: a Surviving History of Printed Matter'',

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-United States Secretary of the Treasu ...

's 80WSE Gallery, 2014/15

Location history

* 1976: 7 Lispenard Street * 1989: 77 Wooster Street (at

Dia Art Foundation Dia Art Foundation is a nonprofit organization that initiates, supports, presents, and preserves art projects. It was established in 1974 by Philippa de Menil, the daughter of Houston arts patron Dominique de Ménil, Dominique de Menil and an h ...

) * 2001: 535 West 22nd Street * 2005: 195 10th Avenue - Here, Printed Matter suffered significant losses due to

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

. * 2015: 231 11th Avenue - Printed Matter's current space, designed by

Handel Architects Handel Architects LLP is an architecture firm that was founded in New York City in 1994. Led by Partner Gary Handel, the firm has offices in New York City, Boston, San Francisco, and Hong Kong. The firm is composed of five partners: Gary Handel, Bl ...

Gallery

File:Printed Matter 2009.jpg, Tenth Avenue location, 2009 File:Printed Matter, Inc.jpg, Tenth Avenue location, 2009 File:Inside Printed matter bookstore.jpg, Inside the 11th Avenue location, 2017 File:Printed Matter Inc's storefront.jpg, 11th Avenue location, 2019

References

External links

*
Printed Matter, Inc. records, 1975-1991
at

Smithsonian Archives of American Art The Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 20 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washingt ...

{{Authority control 1976 establishments in New York City American artist groups and collectives Artist-run centres Companies based in New York City Non-profit organizations based in New York City Chelsea, Manhattan Publishing companies of the United States Independent bookstores of the United States