Text by Philip Aarons, Elisheva Biernoff, Alexandra Bowes, Jessica Brier, Ann Butler, Genie Candau, Christophe Cherix, Susanne Cockrell, Arnaud Desjardins, Marc Fischer, Chris Fitzpatrick, David Leiber, Michael Lowe, Adam Michaels, Tom Patchett, David Platzker, Marcia Reed, Lawrence Rinder, Anne Rorimer, David Senior, Erika Torri, Andrew Tosiello, Robin Wright.
Beloved by collectors and scholars alike, Steven Leiber’s beautiful bookseller catalogs shaped the canon of publications by artists
Steven Leiber was a pioneering San Francisco art dealer, collector and gallerist who specialized in the dematerialized art practices of the 1960s and 1970s and the ephemera and documentation spawned by conceptual art and other postwar movements. To sell this material, Leiber produced a series of 52 iconic catalogs between 1992 and 2010. Far from your ordinary dealer catalog, Leiber’s catalogs paid homage to the kind of historic printed matter that he bought and sold, mimicking iconic publications like Wallace Berman’s Semina journal and the exhibition catalog for Documenta V (1972). Leiber’s reputation spread via these unique volumes, which included works by John Baldessari, Lynda Benglis, Ray Johnson, Lucy Lippard, Allan Kaprow, Yayoi Kusama, Claes Oldenburg, Ed Ruscha, Lawrence Weiner and many more.
Across 252 pages, this book documents the full set of 52 dealer catalogs produced by Steven Leiber between 1992 and 2010. Inspired by Leiber’s often humorous borrowing for his catalog designs, the book’s format references Sol LeWitt’s Autobiography and includes an essay and contextual notes by SFMOMA Head Librarian David Senior. Additional contributors include Ann Butler, Christophe Cherix, Marc Fischer, Adam Michaels, Tom Patchett, David Platzker, Marcia Reed, Lawrence Rinder and Robin Wright.
Steven Leiber (1957–2012) began to buy and sell ephemera while working as a private dealer selling prints, drawings and multiples in the early 1980s. Scrupulously organized and cataloged, Leiber’s collection—housed in his grandmother’s basement—became an important resource for scholars, curators and other enthusiasts. The collection included the work of some 1,000 artists and represented practically every major movement within late 20th-century avant-garde practice, including Fluxus, conceptual art, land art, mail art, performance and video.
Featured image is reproduced from 'Steven Leiber: Catalogs.'
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Featured image, of Raymond Pettibon flyers produced as dealer catalog 45 (of 52), August 2006, by legendary San Francisco art dealer, collector and gallerist Steven Leiber, is reproduced from from Steven Leiber: Catalogs, launching tonight at Printed Matter. (Panel features Ann Butler, David Platzker and David Leiber with moderation by David Senior; exhibition opens October 10, 2019.) Housed in a kraft envelope, this catalog-cum-edition features 18 inkjet-printed cards and one stick of bubble gum enclosed in a wrapper. Edition of 120. In the amazing book just out from Inventory Press & Rite Editions, Leiber's brother, David, explains in his essay, "In his mid-thirties, my brother Steven Leiber began the production and mailing of The Catalogs, three on average per year, resulting in about fifty publications total. Technically speaking, these publications were sales catalogs; however they became collectibles if you were in the position to comprehend what you were holding in your hands: an artwork playing with the boundaries of art and commerce, the authentic and inauthentic. Steve referred to these objects simply as catalogs… His life was dedicated to the material and legacy of the artists he championed, and his tireless research and knowledge is manifest in every single catalog, which were flawless. He had absolutely no tolerance for inaccurate information, not even a typo. He did not make mistakes. Being able to work in a clear-headed manner, efficiently and flawlessly, required a daily ritualistic, albeit modest, routine: getting up early to communicate with Europe, a brisk, long walk in the fresh air, an espresso at Peet’s, a punctual and quick lunch in the neighborhood, more short phone calls, a walk to the post office, a home cooked dinner with an excellent glass of wine, and early to bed. My brother was endowed with unusual clarity and focus. He thought things through, and his catalogs became the perfect vehicle to synthesize his knowledge and passion into a creative expression." To understand the full scope of the experimentation and support of radical artists making radical work, you'll have to read the book. It's not something you can just condense. Too authentic, too cool. Who is doing this today? continue to blog
Wednesday, September 25, at 6PM, in advance of the exhibition Steven Leiber Catalogs (opening October 10, from 6–8PM), Printed Matter presents a conversation on the work of Steven Leiber (1957–2012), the pioneering art dealer, gallerist and expert in the field of artists’ archives and ephemera. Presented on the occasion of Steven Leiber Catalogs, newly published by Inventory Press & RITE Editions, the discussion will consider the extensive print catalogs which Leiber conceived, edited and produced over a twenty-year period, as well as explore his varied interests as a collector. Participants include Ann Butler (Director of Library and Archives at CCS Bard), David Platzker (Specific Object) and David Leiber (brother of Steven Leiber and Partner at David Zwirner), with moderation by David Senior (Head of Library and Archives at SFMoMA). A selection of Steven Leiber’s catalogs will be on view at Printed Matter during the event. continue to blog
Published by Inventory Press & RITE Editions. Text by Philip Aarons, Elisheva Biernoff, Alexandra Bowes, Jessica Brier, Ann Butler, Genie Candau, Christophe Cherix, Susanne Cockrell, Arnaud Desjardins, Marc Fischer, Chris Fitzpatrick, David Leiber, Michael Lowe, Adam Michaels, Tom Patchett, David Platzker, Marcia Reed, Lawrence Rinder, Anne Rorimer, David Senior, Erika Torri, Andrew Tosiello, Robin Wright.
Beloved by collectors and scholars alike, Steven Leiber’s beautiful bookseller catalogs shaped the canon of publications by artists
Steven Leiber was a pioneering San Francisco art dealer, collector and gallerist who specialized in the dematerialized art practices of the 1960s and 1970s and the ephemera and documentation spawned by conceptual art and other postwar movements. To sell this material, Leiber produced a series of 52 iconic catalogs between 1992 and 2010. Far from your ordinary dealer catalog, Leiber’s catalogs paid homage to the kind of historic printed matter that he bought and sold, mimicking iconic publications like Wallace Berman’s Semina journal and the exhibition catalog for Documenta V (1972). Leiber’s reputation spread via these unique volumes, which included works by John Baldessari, Lynda Benglis, Ray Johnson, Lucy Lippard, Allan Kaprow, Yayoi Kusama, Claes Oldenburg, Ed Ruscha, Lawrence Weiner and many more.
Across 252 pages, this book documents the full set of 52 dealer catalogs produced by Steven Leiber between 1992 and 2010. Inspired by Leiber’s often humorous borrowing for his catalog designs, the book’s format references Sol LeWitt’s Autobiography and includes an essay and contextual notes by SFMOMA Head Librarian David Senior. Additional contributors include Ann Butler, Christophe Cherix, Marc Fischer, Adam Michaels, Tom Patchett, David Platzker, Marcia Reed, Lawrence Rinder and Robin Wright.
Steven Leiber (1957–2012) began to buy and sell ephemera while working as a private dealer selling prints, drawings and multiples in the early 1980s. Scrupulously organized and cataloged, Leiber’s collection—housed in his grandmother’s basement—became an important resource for scholars, curators and other enthusiasts. The collection included the work of some 1,000 artists and represented practically every major movement within late 20th-century avant-garde practice, including Fluxus, conceptual art, land art, mail art, performance and video.
