[Japan]: dated “5 May 1846” in top right corner.

A strikingly drawn panorama of Commodore James Biddle’s appearance off the coast of Japan in July 1846, one of the first official encounters between America and Japan. In July 1845, Commodore James Biddle (1783-1848) concluded negotiations for the Treaty of Wanghia between the United States and China. With two ships, the USS Columbus and USS Vincennes, he then sailed to Uraga Channel, close to the Japanese capital, Edo. This went against the conventional wisdom that he head to Nagasaki, where the Dutch enjoyed a monopoly on trade with Japan. Stationed in... More

Photographic black & white illus. on recto. Photographic postcard. Düsseldorf: Konrad Fischer, [1969].

Postcard invitation for Bochner’s first exhibition at Konrad Fischer’s gallery, this show came shortly after the opening of the artist’s presentation with Heiner Friedrich (9-31 May) in Munich, where he displayed Measurements. For this exhibition with Fischer, Bochner bisected the gallery vertically.

In fine condition.

❧ D. Fischer, ed., Ausstellungen bei Konrad Fischer: Düsseldorf Oktober 1967-Oktober 1992 (Edition Marzona: 1993) 20. More

Black & white illus. on recto, details on verso. Large pictorial postcard, mailed. Düsseldorf: Konrad Fischer, [1968].

Invitation to Darboven’s true solo debut at Konrad Fischer’s gallery; the previous year Darboven (1941-2009) and Charlotte Posenenske (1930-85) had concurrent exhibitions at the gallery (5 December-2 January). The recto illustration reproduces one of Darboven’s drawings. On the verso there is a list of the artist’s previous exhibitions. She presented a series of drawings, five with a vertical orientation and five horizontal. One of Fischer’s most important and early clients, the Dutch collector couple Martin and Mia Visser likely purchased two drawings from... More

Blue facsimile manuscript on recto, details on verso. Oblong card. Düsseldorf: Konrad Fischer, [1969].

Card for Nauman’s debut exhibition with Konrad Fischer, it was the artist’s first presentation outside of the United States.

“Fischer originally contacted Nauman through Kasper König, who had visited him in his studio in San Francisco in 1966. On Fischer’s invitation, Nauman travelled to Europe for the first time in 1968 to create a new work on site. He recorded his violin, which he brought with him, as well as other sounds at the gallery to create soundtracks. The name of the exhibition was 6 day... More

Exhibition details, diagram illus. & artist biography & exhibition list. [4] pp. Folding card. Düsseldorf: Konrad Fischer, 1967.

The extremely scarce card announcing Konrad Fischer’s very first exhibition, the presentation of a site-specific sculpture by Andre (b. 1935). The gallerist simply sent Andre a plane ticket and the sculpture was fabricated on sight with locally sourced materials. Inside the card is a diagram of Andre’s resulting work, 5 x 20 Altstadt Rectangle.

“It all began with Carl Andre. He was the first artist to be exhibited at Konrad Fischer’s gallery…When Fischer sent the American artist a plane ticket in 1967... More

Color and black & white illus. [11] leaves. Large 4to, printed pink wrappers, staple-bound. Prague: Galerie Hlavního Mešta, 1992.

An excellent copy of this very rare Martin Kippenberger (1953-97) exhibition catalogue.

“Das gute muß gut sein [What is good must be good] was published to accompany an exhibition at the Galerie Hlavního Mešta, Prague, from 20 October to 19 November 1992, organized on the initiative of Jörg Schlick…

“The catalogue shows works from the period 1989-1992 and includes a text by Jana Ševcíková and Jirí Ševcík in Czech and German. Martin Kippenberger is represented by colour illustrations of three ‘Frog’... More

Scroll (350 x 6620 mm.). [Japan]: most recent date is 1909.

An attractive collection of natural history drawings in scroll form, employing brush & ink and color washes. There are five images of a weasel (dated November 1905), one of a pheasant in a nature setting, a long-tailed game bird (dated November 1905), three views of an unidentified river fish found in the Kanogawa River in Izu, various sketches of leaves and weeds, ayu fish, lichen, 11 fine views of different parts of a crane (dated 30 January 1909), five images of sparrows (dated November 1908), six views of another... More

Large 4to (303 x 237 mm.), orig. boards covered with patterned silk (the silk has become quite worn). [Japan]: Meiji–Taisho eras.

A wonderful survey of the confectionaries and snacks manufactured throughout Japan at the beginning of the 20th century. Many items are identified with the manufacturers’ names and their cities. Most of these companies, especially in Kyoto, Tokyo, and Osaka, are still active, more than a century later.

These sweets and snacks are very regional, made from special ingredients found only in that part of Japan. The geographical range of manufacturers is from Hokkaido in the north, through the main... More

[Cologne]: Soft Geometry, ca. 1976-77.

One of 60 sets; a portfolio of stamp impressions by the Czech artist J. H. Kocman (b. 1947). This work was distributed by Geza Perneczky (b. 1936), who has confirmed to us by email that six stamped sheets comprise a complete set. On the front of the manila envelope, there is a stamp — “this art-work by j. h. kocman is dedicated to ……” — and pencil inscription — “Ted Purves” —, as well as the hand-written limitation “40/60.” Ted Purves (1964-2017), an artist and professor at California College of the Arts, was an avid... More

Printed in black and red. Poster (430 x 280 mm.), folded for mailing. New York: Dwan Gallery, [1970].

The poster for Flavin’s second solo show with Virginia Dwan’s gallery in New York. A small installation sketch by the artist is reproduced in the center. A fine copy.

❧ James Meyer, ed., Dwan Gallery: Los Angeles to New York, 1959-1971 (2016), p. 361 (pictured). More

Amsterdam: ca. 1979.

An original collage made by Ulises Carrión (1941-89) and gifted to Maurizio Nannucci (b. 1939) in support of Zona’s non-profit mission, following the Zona Parolo & Suono festival (11-19 June 1979). Near fine; faint foxing.

❧ See G. Schraenen, ed., Dear reader. Don’t read. (2016), pp. 120-23, for similar works by Carrión employing graph paper. More

Diagrams printed in green throughout. [4] pp. Single folded A2 sheet. Amsterdam: Art & Project, 1979.

Lawrence Weiner’s fifth Art & Project bulletin.

“The artists most at home with creating pageworks for the format of the Bulletin are Lawrence Weiner and Richard Long, the one primarily with words, the other primarily with photographs. In most cases Weiner’s Bulletins activated the centrefolds with paired (occasionally tripled) phrases…[They] are simply but effectively conceived for the openings of the Bulletin; they also appeared in tandem and harmony with his artist books of the same time – some published by Art & Project –... More