MARIA LANI. Text by JEAN COCTEAU, Max Rambo and Waldemar George.

ILLUSTRATED with 52 PLATES of DRAWINGS, PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES, and a Frontispiece Photograph, of MARIA LANI, the remarkable and unique ARTIST'S MUSE (and some would say Scam Artist) of the late 1920s. The artworks were by many important artists of the period.

PARIS: Editions des Quatre Chemins, 1929. First edition. French Text.

Limited Edition. This is number 78 of 525 copies, likely a "Hors Commerce" copy with "H C" handwritten beside the ink stamped number 78.

Tan wrappers, French folds, burgundy and black titling to the front cover, 9x11 inches (23x28 cm). Pagination: [2] Half-Title and Limitation Page, [6] Frontispiece Plate and Introductory Pages, 7-21 Text Essays, 51 numbered PLATES each printed on its own leaf, [2] List of Plates and Colophon Page.

The 51 artist plates are of artworks (paintings, drawings, sculptures) of Maria Lani by 51 noted artists of the period. The artists include Bonnard, Braque, Chagall, Chirico, Cocteau, Matisse, Léger, Man Ray, Marval, Orloff, Max Jacob, Dufy, Rouault, Soutine, among many others. A page at the rear lists all the 51 artists.

CONDITION: The covers are toned, have some edgewear including some small closed tears, a few creases from handling, and most notably a well-worn spine that is now taped (not an uncommon feature as the issue is known for its weak glue binding). Internally, the pages are lightly toned, there is an approximately 1/4 inch piece of binding tape along the gutter edge of the blank backside of each plate, and an offset mirror image along the gutter margin of the facing plates - this is how the plates were mounted and is normal to all copies; there is just a bit of foxing found on the blank backsides and on a couple plates, the binding is shaky and is split between each plate, the plates could easily come out with a tug but currently all plates but one are still holding on by the sewn binding (plate 32 is loose but laid-in its proper place). Despite the flaws this is one of the nicer copies I have seen because the plates, which are the heart of this book, are all present, bright, clean, and clear.

About MARIA LANI (from Vanity Fair website):

******Maria Lani Was the Muse of Modernist Masters - Then She Vanished Without a Trace

Ninety years ago, an enigmatic actress and model swept through Paris, transfixing Cocteau, Matisse, Chagall, and dozens more of the day's visual artists. When she disappeared from the public eye, a myth emerged in her wake. Was she really who she said she was?****** (Please see the full Vanity Fair article by typing into the search bar: "Maria Lani Was the Muse of Modernist Masters Then She Vanished Without a Trace".)

About MARIA LANI (from Wikipedia):

Maria Lani (nee Maria Jeleniewicz), b.1895 d.1954, was an aspiring film actress and artists' model. In the late 1920s she was portrayed in paintings and sculpture by over fifty artists, including Bonnard, Chagall, Cocteau, Derain, Matisse, Rouault, and Suzanne Valadon.

Maria Lani was born in Kolno, Poland. She went to Paris in the spring of 1928 and falsely proclaimed herself to be a silent film star who had worked in Berlin. She claimed to be working on a film which required multiple portraits as part of the plot. She befriended Jean Cocteau and other artists, many of whom made portraits of her.

A limited edition book about Lani and the portraits was published in 1929 by Éditions des Quatre Chemins. It included fifty-one plates of artworks modeled by Maria Lani.

The film never materialized, but the portraits were exhibited as a group in Europe and the United States, and Lani kept them in her possession. She died in 1954 and was buried in a pauper's grave.******

BOOKBINDING - Operations performed when binding a book by hand. Method unchanged since the fourteenth century.

A BROADSIDE on BOOKBINDING by ARNO WERNER, BOOKBINDER.

INSCRIBED and INITIALED at the bottom by ARNO WERNER to LYNNE VEATCH: "From me - a.w. / For Lynne Veatch / 6.15.92".

Broadside, printed on heavy stock paper, 15x23 inches.

Printed by Meriden-Stinehour Press, Lunenburg, Vermont, undated, c.1992.

GOOD condition: There is light shorelining to the upper 1/3 of the blank backside of the poster, some of it faintly shows through to the top few inches of the front of the poster, there is also some waviness to the top few inches as a result of the shorelining; otherwise bright and clear.

This is a SCARCE poster, especially so with ARNO WERNER'S INSCRIPTION to LYNNE VEATCH (see Veatchs - Arts of the Book).

The broadside will be safely shipped in a sturdy mailing tube.

About ARNO WERNER (from his New York Times Obituary):

******Arno Werner, a German-born master bookbinder who was credited with keeping the craft alive in the United States, died on July 28, 1995, at his home in Hadlyme, Connecticut. He was 96.

His work, often executed in painstakingly hand-tooled morocco leather, was marked by a sturdy yet elegant simplicity. Until 1982 he was chief bookbinder for rare editions at the Houghton Library at Harvard University. His association with the library went back almost to its opening in 1942. In the catalog of Houghton Library's 1981 Retrospective of Werner's work, James E. Walsh, the keeper of printed books, wrote: "There is scarcely a shelf in the Houghton Library that does not contain one or more pieces of Arno's work."

Arno Werner was born in 1899, in Mylau, Saxony, one of 10 children of a weaver. He was apprenticed to a bookbinder at 13. He came to New York in 1925 with $25 and his tools in a cigar box.******

THREE WAYNE THIEBAUD ART MONOGRAPHS:

(1) WAYNE THIEBAUD - A PAINTINGS RETROSPECTIVE. Text by Steven A. Nash and Adam Gopnik. Published by the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco on the occasion of the exhibition that took place at the California Palace of the Legion of Honor, June 10 - September 3, 2000, then traveled to other museums.

Softcover Book, 9x12 inches, 216 pages. Illustrated throughout. FINE condition.

(2) THIEBAUD SELECTS THIEBAUD : A Forty-Year Survey from Private Collections. Text by Stephen C. McGough. Published by the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, in conjunction with the exhibition of the same name that ran from April 21 - August 4, 1996. First edition.

Softcover Book, 8.5x11 inches, 56 pages. VERY GOOD condition, toning to the margins of the covers and inner pages, otherwise barely used, tight, bright, clean and unmarked. The art reproductions are all brilliant.

(3) THE PALETTES OF WAYNE THIBAUD. Published by the Elliott Fouts Gallery of Sacramento. Illustrated with numerous color photographs of palettes used by Thiebaud. The collection of palettes was built by Matt Bult, stepson of Wayne Thiebaud. Matt Bult is currently the chairman of the Wayne Thiebaud foundation.

From the Introduction by Matt Bult: "For more than three decades I've been collecting the discarded palettes of Wayne Thiebaud. Some are large pieces of glass, palette paper or some are what could be referred to as 'portable palettes.' These consist of paper plates, napkins, tennis ball can lids, cottage cheese lids or small scraps of paper...Once framed, they become three dimensional objects putting them into a different realm - something that one can hold and exhibit."

Softcovers, 8.5x11 inches oblong, NEAR FINE condition, tight, bright, clean and unmarked.

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This 3 Volume Lot is heavy and will require additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the charges and be able to accept or reject them before payment is taken. Thanks!

IVONNE BAKI - PAINTINGS of WOMEN of the MIDDLE-EAST..

Ivonne Baki is primarily known for being a diplomat, politician and the first female Ambassador from Ecuador. She was an ambassador to Qatar and later to the United States. BUT she is also an artist. This book catalogs some of her paintings of Middle-Eastern Women (she lived 19 years in Lebanon where she raised her family) as well as promotes her as an artist.

SIGNED & INSCRIBED by IVONNE BAKI on the inside front cover, below her photo: "Muy estimado Fred, Con todo cariño y amistad! Te deseos stempu felicidad! / Ivonne / Dec. 7th, 1991". Baki also wrote a sentence in Arabic below the Spanish inscription.

Softcovers, 8.5x11.5 inches, 46 pages. TEXT in FRENCH and ENGLISH.

ILLUSTRATED with 6 reproductions of Baki's paintings, a photograph of a young Baki at work, and a photograph of Baki on the inside front cover. The book also contains listings of her exhibitions, works in private collections, press articles, etc.

GOOD condition, the covers are pulling from the inner text block due to weak glue, but the sewn text block remains tightly bound; otherwise bright, clean and clear.

Publisher not stated, perhaps self-published; printed by NAHHAL, Beirut, Lebanon, c.1991 (the date of the inscription).

An unusual item from a formidable Ecuadorian woman.

About IVONNE BAKI (from Wikipedia):

******Ivonne Leila Juez Abuchacra de Baki (aka A-Baki), b.1951, is an Ecuadorian politician and diplomat. She is most known for her time as the Ecuadorian Minister of Industries and Productivity and as the President of the Andean Parliament. She is Ecuador's former Ambassador to Qatar and the United States. She is currently the Ecuadorian Ambassador to France. She was the first female ambassador in Ecuadorian history. She is fluent in Spanish, English, French, German and Arabic.

In 1998, she became the first woman in Ecuadorian history to represent her country in Washington as ambassador, and four years later, the first woman ever to run for president. A-Baki, as she is commonly known, spent 19 years in Lebanon, living through Lebanon's brutal 1975-90 civil war, and more recently has witnessed Ecuador's rapid slide into violence and gang warfare.

Yet "my first identity is as an artist," A-Baki told The Washington Diplomat some 25 years ago. "Art opens the right and left sides of your brain. It helps you see the whole picture. Music, poetry, painting and dancing make you more human. In order to be in politics, you have to be human. And that's what art does for me."******

SLEEPY PEOPLE story and pictures by M. B. Goffstein

The scarce 1966 first edition of Marilyn Goffstein's enchanting story of a miniature family living in a slipper whose bedtime routine includes drinking hot cocoa, stretching, yawning, singing quietly and finally, snoring.

Published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Ariel, New York, 1966, First printing, so stated. Small format hardcover, periwinkle blue cloth with embossed white slipper design on the front cover and titling on the spine, 5" x 4.75", 30 un-numbered pages, beautifully illustrated with Goffstein's delightful drawings throughout. GOOD PLUS CONDITION: lacking dustjacket otherwise complete, covers have light staining/spotting but remain solid and bright, internally some small droplet staining, otherwise just lightly used, tight, bright, clean and unmarked. A scarce first printing of this iconic children's picture book.

Marilyn Brooke Goffstein (1940-2017) award winning American author, artist, photographer and painter renowned for her diminutive illustrations and charming stories. Awarded the Caldecott Medal and Jane Addams Children's Book Award, her themes are rich in friendship, family, natural history, and following one's heart. Goffstein taught Children's Book Arts at the New York Parsons School of Design.

Methuen Handbook of Colour by A. Kornerup & J. H. Wanscher

Published by Methuen & Co., Ltd., London, England, 1967, second edition revised, printed in Denmark. Hardcover in dustjacket. Indigo cloth with embossed gilt design on the front cover and title on spine, 7" x 5", 243 pages, illustrated with 30 double pages of color samples (1266 colors) and b&w diagrams. VERY GOOD CONDITION: lacking the grey card finder that was tucked into cloth fold on rear pastedown otherwise complete, covers have light wear to the corner-tips and spine ends, two small stains to the fore-edge, internally the rear hinge is just starting, and the gutter is cracked in a few few places but holding well, and a touch of age, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked, in a price-clipped dustjacket that is chipped at the spine-ends and flap-folds, has a 1" tear in the upper margin of the front panel, it remains solid and bright and retains the four color disks on the rear flap, now protected in a clear jacket protector. A very respectable copy with vibrant color samples.

UN PORTRAIT D'APRÈS NATURE - ou l'histoire telle qu'on la crée. A monograph on the Belgian Female Surrealist Artist JANE GRAVEROL, by the surrealist poet PAUL NOUGÉ.

SIGNED and INSCRIBED by JANE GRAVEROL in FRENCH on a blank prelim page. Graverol's inscription thanks a friend for their kindness and companionship during her trip to New York and Washington. Ends with: "Très affectueusement / Jane Graverol / Mai 1963".

PARIS: Le Soleil Dans La Tête, 1955.

Wrappers / Softcovers, 5.5x7.5 inches (14x19 cm), 126 pages. Illustrated with 30 b&w reproductions of Graverol's surrealistic art works (28 in-text and two on the covers).

Condition: The covers are soiled, sunned, smudged, peeling at the spine, and starting to pull from the text, nonetheless they are present and still doing their job. Internally the pages are nice, lightly toned at the margins, otherwise bright, clean, clear and unmarked, and the sewn binding is holding the pages of text together well. Graverol's inscription is bright and bold.

Scarce with the Signature and Inscription of the sadly overlooked female Belgian surrealist artist, Jane Graverol.

About JANE GRAVEROL (from Wikipedia):

******Jane Graverol, b.1905 d.1984, was a Belgian surrealist painter. She started painting between 1920 and 1930, before the rise of surrealism and before she adapted the surrealist style she is known for today. She began to exhibit her work in 1927.

Graverol was closely linked to the development of surrealism in Belgium. She would considered her canvases to be "waking, conscious dreams". Her encounters after the war with René Magritte, Louis Scutenaire, Paul Nougé, and then Marcel Mariën, with whom she collaborated on the periodical "Les Lèvres Nues", reconfirmed her belief in surrealism. Her painting La Goutte d'Eau is a collective portrait of the Belgian surrealists. Her paintings offered an original, dreamy version of feminine sensibility, painted with a figurative technique that was both precise and cold.******

About PAUL NOUGÉ (from Wikipedia):

******Paul Nougé, b.1895 d.1967, was a Belgian poet, founder and theoretician of surrealism in Belgium, sometimes known as the "Belgian Breton".******

MIKUCOLOR : KEI HATSUNE MIKU ILLUSTRATION WORKS, by KEI (Kei Garou).

BOLDLY SIGNED BY KEI on the title page.

The Special, Limited SIGNING took place at the KINOKUNIYA BOOKSTORE in San Francisco on July 19-20, 2014, during the City's two day J-POP SUMMIT. The original KINOKUNIYA Book Store sticker from where the book was purchased for the signing event remains on the rear cover.

Published by KADOKAWA SHOTEN, 2012. FIRST EDITION, with the statement "First Published on August 31, 2012" [in Japanese] on the copyright page.

SOFTCOVER BOOK, French flaps, with its original wraparound obi band, 8.25x11.25 inches, 128 pages. Fully ILLUSTRATED with KEI's drawings of HATSUNE MIKU. Text in Japanese.

The book is in FINE condition, tight, bright, clean and clear. The Signature of KEI is bold and brilliant.

This First Edition is RARE and SPECIAL with the SIGNATURE of KEI.

About HATSUNE MIKU (from Wikipedia):

******Hatsune Miku is a Vocaloid software voicebank and its official mascot character, a 16-year-old girl with long, turquoise twintails, created by KEI. Miku's personification has been marketed as a virtual idol, and has performed at live virtual concerts onstage as an animated projection. The task of coming up with Miku's image went to the manga artist KEI GAROU.******

About the KEI SIGNING at the San Francisco J-POP SUMMIT in 2014:

******J-POP SUMMIT FESTIVAL TEAMS WITH KINOKUNIYA TO PRESENT HATSUNE MIKU CHARACTER DESIGNER KEI.

San Francisco - The 2014 J-POP SUMMIT, San Francisco's premiere annual celebration of Japanese pop culture, is proud to team with Kinokuniya Book Stores to present very special Guest of Honor - KEI - the official character illustrator who designed Hatsune Miku, the wildly popular Vocaloid icon and world's first virtual pop star.

The 2014 J-POP SUMMIT is set to take place across this city's Japantown district Saturday and Sunday, July 19th and 20th.

Hatsune Miku character designer KEI will appear in person at the Kinokuniya booth on both Saturday, July 19th and Sunday, July 20th for a special autograph session. Only the first 100 people will have the opportunity to have their book autographed by KEI.******

L'ART DANS LA DÉCORATION EXTÉRIEURE DES LIVRES - Les Couvertures Illustrées, Les Cartonnages d'Éditeurs, La Reliure d'Art. Par OCTAVE UZANNE.

[ART in the EXTERIOR DECORATION of BOOKS - Illustrated Covers, Publishers' Bindings, Art Bindings. By Octave Uzanne.]

SIGNED and INSCRIBED PRESENTATION COPY. Inscribed on the half-title page by OCTAVE UZANNE to the renowned book collector JAMES CARLETON YOUNG. The inscription reads:

"à James Carleton Young / Un ami des livres dédicacés pour qui bien volontiers J'offre en décoration extérieur de celui-ci la signature de son ami / Octave Uzanne".

(to James Carleton Young / A friend of dedicated books for whom I gladly offer as an exterior decoration of this one the signature of his friend / Octave Uzanne)

PARIS: Société Française d'Editions d'Art / L-Henry May, 1898. LIMITED EDITION of only 1060 copies. This copy is an unnumbered presentation copy.

FINE-BINDING. The original softcover book, including the front and rear wrappers, are bound in fine contemporary hardcovers, 3/4 leather and marbled paper covered boards, five raised spine bands, gilt spine titling, marbled endpapers, and gilt top page edges; 8x10.5 inches, VI, 272 pages.

ILLUSTRATED throughout with examples of decorative artistic covers, bindings and cases.

VERY GOOD condition: The hardcover binding has some scrapes to the leather at the spine ends, spine folds, and corners, but overall the fine-binding is solid and attractive. The bound-in original softcover book is very nice, the pages are lightly toned, as normal, otherwise tight, bright, clean and clear. The personal inscription by Octave Uzanne to James Carleton Young is bright and clear.

A lovely, presentation copy of this rare book that deserves to go from the home of one great collector, James Carleton Young, to another.

You can read all about the amazing French bibliophile, writer and publisher OCTAVE UZANNE on his wikipedia page and many other places on the Internet.

Here is some information about the lesser known Minnesota bibliophile JAMES CARLETON YOUNG (from the Hennepin County Library website):

******James Carleton Young, b.1856 d.1918, was an internationally known Midwest American

book collector. He graduated with an M.A. from Cornell College in 1876, and in 1909 Cornell presented him with its first-ever Doctor of Literature degree. He became wealthy buying and selling mid-west real estate, and used almost all of it to acquire first edition books.

Young collected first editions of both contemporary and non-contemporary authors, often sending the contemporary books to their authors with a request that they inscribe them. In Europe Young was given the title "Le Roi des Livres". Young was named honorary commissioner to the Paris exposition of 1878, elected as one of the three foreign members to the Société Des Amis Des Livres in Paris, awarded the Cross of the Legion of Honor in 1910, made a Fellow to the Royal Geographical Society of London, and received awards from many other important European and American book clubs and societies. The books in his library ultimately numbered in the tens of thousands and required the services of a full-time librarian, bookkeeper, several assistants, catalogers, translators, and agents.

Mounting obstacles to his dream of keeping the collection together and eventually donating it to the Smithsonian forced him to allow it to be auctioned off in installments by the Anderson galleries in New York in 1916. Young took consolation that his books would "pass into the possession of my fellow collectors and enrich hundreds of public and private libraries." He ended up being much better known abroad than in America, and relatively unknown in Minneapolis.******

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This book will require additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the charges and be able to accept or reject them before payment is taken. Thanks!

WATER-COLOUR PAINTINGS OF CHRYSANTHEMUMS AT DR. SUN'S MAUSOLEUM - PAINTED BY ONG SCHAN TCHOW.

HONG KONG: Yik Mui Art Association, 1939. From the copyright page: "First Edition, Printed January 1939...Engraved and Printed by The Asiatic Litho. Printing Press / 390, King's Road, Hong Kong."

Hardcovers, cord binding, 10.5x15 inches oblong. Pagination: [1] Title Page / Table of Contents, [4] Preface Pages, [2] Comment Pages, [20] Twenty Plates of Chrysanthemum Watercolors side-by-side with Calligraphic Poems. Each leaf is printed on one side only.

VERY GOOD condition, the covers have some rubs, a few scrapes and wear to the top of the spine, otherwise they are solid and doing their job well; internally the pages are complete, tight, bright, clean and unmarked.

SCARCE and IMPORTANT WORK by the CHINESE / HONG KONG ARTIST ONG SCHAN TCHOW. This book almost never comes up for sale, the last copy I am aware of was incomplete - missing plates.

About ONG SCHAN TCHOW (from Wikipedia):

******Ong Schan Tchow, b.1900 d.1945, was born in the Longyan prefecture, Southern Fujian Province, China. He was known for Chinese ink wash painting, color paintings of flowers (Chrysanthemums in particular), and Calligraphy. He was one of the first Chinese artists to study in Paris and one of the early artists to integrate traditional Chinese and Western art techniques,

In Paris, Ong studied at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts. In addition, he obtained a Master of Arts in Law, French and Political Science from the University of Paris.

In Nanjing Ong produced one of his MONUMENTAL WORKS - a compilation of paintings of chrysanthemums with accompanying poems and commentary from well known persons. This compilation was succinctly called the "BOOK OF CHRYSANTHEMUMS" [and un-succinctly titled WATER-COLOUR PAINTINGS OF CHRYSANTHEMUMS AT DR. SUN'S MAUSOLEUM]. The book contained paintings of the vast variety of Chrysanthemums planted at the newly completed mausoleum of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the "Father of Modern China", at Nanjing, the former Capital of China.

During the Second Sino-Japanese War, Professor Ong exhibited his works extensively and gave all the proceeds to the war relief effort. The war destroyed many of his paintings but he managed to salvage some important works. The advancing Japanese army forced him to move his exhibitions to Hong Kong and later to Singapore and Malaysia.

Ong died in 1945, at the age of 45, while exhibiting his works in Ipoh, Malaysia. In the Annals of Longyan, Ong is considered one of her most famous citizens.******

F. GYGI + CO. BERN : INSERATE UND NEUJAHRSKARTEN 1942-1954. (F. GYGI + CO., BERN : PAINTERS AND PLASTERERS.)

Bound portfolio with 76 full-page, 2-color plates of graphic and typographic advertising and promotional art commissioned by Fritz Gygi + Co. of Bern, and created by some of the best Swiss graphic artists of the day, including: Herbert Auchli, Franz Fedier, Adolf Fluckiger, Hans Hartmann, Bernhard Luginbuhl, Dieter Roth, Robert Sessler, Hans Thoni, Otto Tschumi, Kurt Wirth and Ernest Witzig. The book is basically a "who's who" of Bern based graphic designers of the day.

These ads for F. Gygi + Co. were featured on the back covers of KUNSTHALLE BERN (BERN ART MUSEUM) exhibition catalogs of the 1940s and 1950s. The New Year cards were sent out in the 40s and 50s to the Company's customers.

Softcovers, 9.5x13 inches (24x33 cm), 6 prelim pages (title page, introduction) + 76 plates, each printed on its own leaf on paper stock of various colors and weight.

Published by Fritz Gygi + Co., Bern, Switzerland; Printed by Stampfli & Cie, Bern, 1954. First Edition. The book was selected as one of the "Most Beautiful Swiss Books" of 1954.

GOOD condition: The covers are toned / sunned, have shelf rubs, and a scrape to the spine; the inner pages are toned at the margins, otherwise tight, bright, clean, clear and unmarked. The graphic artwork is brilliant. A solid, presentable copy.

A rare, inspirational resource for that graphic artist in your life or soul.

S CURVES: THE ART OF SHANE GLINES, VOL. 3.

Published by Stuart Ng Books, Torrance, California, 2018. First Edition, limited to only 1000 copies.

Hardcovers, no dustjacket as issued, 8.5x11 inches, 160 pages. Fully illustrated with Glines' drawings, sketches and illustrations.

FINE Condition, looks and feels as new.

Volume 3 has been sold out for some time and is increasingly hard to find.

From the Publisher:

******S Curves Vol. 3 is an entirely new collection of over 400 color sketches, designs and pin-ups by animation designer Shane Glines.

Shane is currently working on the Harley Quinn animated series for DC's streaming service. He was most recently Lead Character Designer on Warner Bros. Animation's Justice League Action. He has been a character designer in the animation industry for 20 years, designing for Batman: The Animated Series, Superman, Batman Beyond, Justice League, Beware the Batman, Samurai Jack, and many others.

Print run of 1,000 copies.******

Fritz Eichenberg. WERKKATALOG DER ILLUSTRIERTEN BUCHER 1922-1987 / CATALOGUE RAISONNE OF THE ILLUSTRATED BOOKS 1922-1987.

SIGNED and warmly INSCRIBED by ANTONIE EICHENBERG to LILI (LILLY) and ERICH WRONKER. ANTONIE EICHENBERG was the WIFE of FRITZ EICHENBERG (she designed this as well as many other books by her husband). LILI WRONKER, b.1924 d.2019, was a noted book illustrator, typographer and small press operator. The inscription reads:

"To Lilly and Erich Wronker / Fritz would have loved to sign it - Now I have to do it to you both. / With Love / Toni / 24. XII. '90"

In addition Antonie Eichenberg SIGNED her name beside the frontispiece photo of her husband (which she took): "Foto: Toni"; and again SIGNED: "Love Toni" in the margin of the Publisher's Introduction next to the German printed text (here in English): "I also feel obliged to Antonie Eichenberg, who designed the book cover and styled the typography of so many of her husband's works and without her help this book could not have been possible."

MEMMINGEN: Edition Curt Visel, 1987. Text in GERMAN and ENGLISH.

Hardcovers, 8x9 inches, 164 unnumbered pages. The latter half of the book is filled with examples of Fritz Eichenberg's b&w graphic works.

GOOD condition: The covers are lightly soiled and have corners that are lightly bumped, else solid and bright; internally the pages are tight, bright, clean and clear. A nice, presentable copy.

About FRITZ EICHENBERG (from Wikipedia):

******Fritz Eichenberg b,1901 d.1990, was a German-American illustrator and arts educator who worked primarily in wood engraving. Eichenberg was born to a Jewish family in Cologne, Germany. In 1933 he fled the rise of the Nazis and emigrated with his wife and children to the United States, where he settled in New York City for most of the remainder of his life. He taught art at the New School for Social Research and the Pratt Institute and was part of the WPA's Federal Arts Project.

In his prolific career as a book illustrator, Eichenberg worked with many forms of literature but specialized in material with elements of spiritual and emotional conflict, illustrating such authors as Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, Charlotte and Emily Brontë, Poe, Swift, and Grimmelshausen. He also wrote and illustrated books of folklore and children's stories.******

About LILI WRONKER, to whom the book was inscribed (from an online obituary):

******Lili Cassel Wronker, b.1924 d.2019, was born in Berlin, Germany. She and her family fled the Nazi regime and immigrated to the United States in 1940, settling in New York. She illustrated her first children's book, The Rainbow Mother Goose, in 1947. It was described by the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) as one of the "Fifty Best Books of the Year". She later taught calligraphy at the New School.

In 1952 she married Erich Wronker with whom she would later run a small private press from their home.

A typophile par excellence and in deep love with Judaism, Lili Wronker was a founding member of the Society of Scribes in New York. Her typographic work can be seen in hundreds of book jackets between the 1940s and 1960s. Her love of Judaism found artistic expression in her Hebrew calligraphy, which appeared in many fine art books and magazines.******

THE JAPANESE BOX - Limited to only 1500 Sets, this being number 695. Edited by Christoph Schifferli. Designed by Gerhard Steidl and Karl Lagerfeld.

Published by EDITION 7L, PARIS, 2001; Distributed by STEIDL, GÖTTINGEN. ISBN 10: 3882433019 ISBN 13: 978-3882433012

The production of THE JAPANESE BOX was conceived of by printer Gerhard Steidl and fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld to celebrate the avant-garde of Japanese photography of the late 1960s and early 1970s. A vanguard of that movement was the publication of PROVOKE magazine by Takuma Nakahira in 1968.

Includes a select group of facsimile reprints of six rare photographic publications of the Japanese Provoke era, plus a descriptive introductory pamphlet by Schifferli. The publications are handsomely presented in a specially designed wooden box with metal clasps. The books inside the box are nested in black crepe paper, and there are two thick rubber bands, one with the printed words "The Japanese Box". The inside of the box's lid is a label with the limitation and printing information. The box set with its original cardboard shipping box.

From the Foreword: THE JAPANESE BOX presents six publications by a remarkable group of Japanese photographers and writers whose work was a response to the climate of political and moral unrest in Tokyo around 1968. The publications include three issues of PROVOKE (1968-1969) plus For A Language To Come by Takuma Nakahira (1970), Sentimental Journey by Nobuyoshi Araki (1971), and A Farewell To Photography by Daido Moriyama 1972).

VERY GOOD condition, just lightly used. The covers of some of the issues have a few scrapes and rubs, internally all are tight, bright, clean, clear and unmarked. The specially designed wooden box is excellent, the inner crepe paper remains intact, the thick rubber bands have split and are disintegrating with age, as rubber bands are wont to do.

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This Box Set is heavy and will require substantial additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the additional charges and be able to accept or reject them before your payment is processed. Or you can contact us ahead of time to find out the shipping charge to your country. Thanks.

Seven Nathan Oliveira art exhibition catalogs. Softcovers, various sizes and pagination. They are lovingly SIGNED and INSCRIBED by NATHAN OLIVEIRA to his close friends MARGOT & JAMES SCHEVILL. Six are inscribed on the title page or front endpaper, one has a laid-in inscribed postcard.

GOOD Condition: All the catalogs have some soiling to the covers, two have a sunned spine, one, Turomaquia, has a half-dollar size old grease stain to the front cover; internally all are tight, bright, clean and clear. A nice set.

Both James Schevill and Margot Schevill, to whom the catalogs were inscribed, led very interesting lives.

James Erwin Schevill, b.1920 d.2009, was an American poet, critic, playwright and professor at San Francisco State University and Brown University, and the recipient of Guggenheim and Ford Foundation fellowships. In a 1950 letter to Robert Sproul, the president of the University of California, he refused to sign a loyalty oath, at the time a prerequisite to becoming an instructor at UC Berkeley. - Wikipedia.

Margot Blum Schevill, b.1934 d.2024, was a talented musician and scholar. In 1972 she graduated from Brown University's first women's class. Margot was an opera singer in San Francisco during the 1950s and 60s, performing with orchestras. She founded the New Music Ensemble at Brown University. In the 1980s, she transitioned to anthropology, focusing on indigenous textiles and curating exhibitions. - S.F. Chronicle Obituary

You can read much more about the Schevills on the Internet.

LARGE COLLECTION OF PHOTOGRAPHS by FRED PRESS of PANAMA, ECUADOR, GUATEMALA, HONDURAS and other locales in CENTRAL AMERICA. ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS taken by FRED PRESS while stationed with the SIXTH AIR FORCE in PANAMA during WORLD WAR II. During this time he was ART EDITOR and then MANAGING EDITOR of the CARIBBEAN BREEZE, the official publication of the Sixth Air Force. He was also the ARTIST for the covers of many issues. FRED PRESS went on to become an IMPORTANT MID-CENTURY DESIGNER of GLASSWARE, some of which can still be found on eBay. He was also a noted sculptor and artist.

The lot includes: 51 mounted b&w photographs, most ranging from 5.5x7.5 to 7.5x9.5 inches, all mounted on 10x12 inch boards; PLUS approximately 200 loose mostly 4x5 inch photographs. All the photographs show an artist's eye, truly capturing the native peoples and their culture. They are sharp, clear, and quite wonderful. The mounted photos were once separated by blank mounting boards with headings of various countries - Columbia, Panama, Costa Rica, Peru, Galapagos, Guatemala, Ecuador - but all the separation mounting boards are now laid behind the 51 mounted photos, so you'll have to figure out which belong where. There are 10 handmade pockets for the smaller loose photos, each with a handwritten name of a country, e.g. Guatemala, and/or the names of Jack Lamberts and Dan Frost, both of whom were stationed in Panama with Fred Press and WROTE ARTICLES for the Caribbean Breeze. Many of the smaller photos are in the pockets, many are not, and I'm not sure that even those in the pockets are in the correct pocket.

The backs of the mounts of some of the mounted photographs note Fred Press (some seem signed, some simply credit his name), most of the backsides are blank. A couple of the large photos include Fred Press in the image, one with him and a native woman, one with him in a rather absurd looking Mariachi outfit. (Fred Press has a rather unique, unmistakable profile).

The lot also includes: SEVEN ISSUES of THE CARIBBEAN BREEZE, the official publication of the Sixth Air Force, published in PANAMA during WORLD WAR II. Fred Press was first the publication's art editor, then assistant editor and finally its managing editor. He provided the cover art for many of the issues and also wrote articles for the publication. The art and photographs Fred Press provided for the publication were meant to share the culture of the indigenous people of Central America to the soldiers stationed there.

About FRED PRESS (from the Fred Press Artwork website, and elsewhere on the Internet):

******Fred Press, b.1919 d.2012, was a 20th century American artist known primarily for his mid-century designs that revolutionized the glassware industry, but also for his artworks and sculptures. His parents had emigrated from Russia in the early 1900's and Fred Press was born in Boston.

During the Second World War Fred Press was a member of the Sixth Air Force stationed in the Panama Canal Zone. He rose to the rank of Tech Sergeant. While in Central America he was the Artist, Art Editor, and then Managing Editor of the Caribbean Breeze, the official publication of the Sixth Air Force. Most of the Covers were drawn by Fred Press, based on his photographs of the local peoples. He also wrote articles to accompany his art and photographs, meant to help educate the soldiers about the surrounding area's culture and history. Much of the knowledge gained during this time was used later as subjects for his paintings and sculptures.

Early in the 1950's, Fred Press moved to New York City where for the next three decades, as chief designer and executive Vice President of Rubel and Company, he helped revolutionize the giftware industry of New York's Fifth Avenue. The Museum of Modern Art, NY awarded him a design award for his glassware and his numerous multi-media products.******

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This lot will require substantial additional postage.

GREEN MANSIONS by H. Hudson. ILLUSTRATED by E. McKNIGHT KAUFFER, who SIGNED and INSCRIBED this copy on the front free endpaper: "Inscribed for / Leslie Roos / E. McKnight Kauffer".

ILLUSTRATED MODERN LIBRARY EDITION / Random House, 1944. First thus edition. Hardcover Book, green cloth covered spine and paper covered boards, gilt lettering to the spine, lovely Kauffer illustration on both the front and rear cover, top page edges stained green, 5x7 inches. Pagination: x, 254 pages. Illustrated by Kauffer with 10 color plates and in-text drawings. The book comes in a slipcase with a lovely McKnight Kauffer plate on the front.

Condition: VERY GOOD book, the covers have some scrapes to the spine label, a bit of rubbing to the edges and corner tips, and a 1/8 inch scrape to the top edge of the front panel, overall just lightly handled, tight, bright, clean and clear. In a GOOD MINUS slipcase that has some scratches and a few edge scrapes but is solid, still doing its job well, and the Kauffer plate is lovely.

RARE with the SIGNATURE and INSCRIPTION of E. McKNIGHT KAUFFER.

About E. McKnight Kauffer (extracts from Wikipedia):

******Edward McKnight Kauffer, b.1890 d.1954, was an American artist and graphic designer who lived for much of his life in the United Kingdom. He worked mainly in poster art, but was also active as a painter, book illustrator and theatre designer. Born in Great Falls, Montana, by 1910 he had moved to San Francisco working as a bookseller and studying art at the California School of Design. Professor Joseph McKnight of the University of Utah became aware of Kauffer's work, sponsored him and paid to send him to Paris for further study. In gratitude Kauffer took his sponsor's name as a middle name. Kauffer moved to London upon the start of the First World War, and remained there for most of his career.

Kauffer may be best known for the 140 posters he produced for London Underground, but he also created notable book illustrations and book covers.

He returned to New York City in 1940.

It was in 1952 that he designed what is perhaps his most famous work, the dust jacket art of Ralph Ellison's novel Invisible Man. He died two years later, in 1954.******