Description of the Fair in general:
It was very busy and loud when I walked in. Visitors were asking a lot of questions of the publishers and the books they published for the Book Fair today. Some of the books, I will admit, were very fun in their use of color. However, some books were very raunchy in their use of adult images and I felt as though they crossed the line. Some of these books were also “too” adult-rated and unpleasant to look at; the images were a little demeaning of men in the positions they were in on the covers of these books. I do not agree with some of the artists’ styles especially the adult-rated books.
Publications I found interesting:
- Lucha Libre by Kate Glicksberg. When I spoke to Kate, she was very enthusiastic about my interest in one of her books. She informed me that Lucha Libre was a compilation of the photos she shot in 1997. After that, she told me she did not make the book until 1998 and it was the first book she ever made. How exciting! The photos she shot were of wrestlers about to get into action (i.e. wrestling) and that she shot them wrestling during one or two matches. There was an element of realism to the photos in which I appreciated from Kate. The photos were also very close up and wonderfully shot from a unique angle I would like to use when I take photos from now on. Kate has a great eye for photography and she staple-stitched the spine.
- Menthol Wars by Richard Prince, 1980 copyright, Published by Printed Matter, Edition 2000. The cover is comprised of a black and white sketched-effect of a woman in profile. Each section of the book is a chapter based on a different person/s life story. The book was very raw, simple, elegant and definitely not overdone. I appreciated the use of only black and white in order for the reader to avoid any distractions when reading.
- And by Peter Downsbrough 1977, Printed by Century Printing Company NYC. And has a red cover which stood out beautifully amidst all the others. The first half of And is a flipbook of pictures and other half is a flipbook of words. The book tells a story that is powerful. It is fun to browse through and reminds me of the books I used to read as a kid.
- For The People of Philmont, no. 478, The Traveller’s Companion Series August 2009, Printed for Sutton Lane, Paris, Printed in Philmont. The book is staple-stitched and simple to handle. The left side of page, once I opened it, had text in which you read and the right side has photos to illustrate what the story the left side of the page is telling. What attracted me to the book was its green cover. Green is my favorite color.
- Julie Lequin’s Book the ice skating tree opera director’s cuts as a book Tome #1, 2nd Cannons Publication. The book looks like something I would design. The cover is hand painted red and brown like a kid would paint. The content was also very interesting because it gave details about director’s cuts and what to look for when directing a play.
- Fifteen people present their Favorite Book (After Kosuth) by Matthew Higgs, Glenn Horowitz Bookseller, 2009. The right side has a picture of the person’s favorite book. The left side has the person’s name of who said their favorite book is. The cover is a book shelf showing the books that are named inside.