The world's smallest and most widely reproduced work of art, the postage stamp was an official vehicle for extraordinary visual work for more than 100 years before twentieth-century artists and activists began to appropriate the format as a potential venue for their own unsanctioned expressions. From the stamp experiments of Fluxus mail artists like Robert Watts to fantasy stamps issued by fictional countries, this humble canvas has been home to all manner of free expression. The Book of Stamps is at once an homage to and continuation of this tradition. Sumptuously designed and printed, this cloth-bound volume features 15 detachable, perforated and gummed full-page sheets of limited edition, artist-designed stamps by Walead Beshty, Melissa Brown, Melissa Dubbin & Aaron S. Davidson, Spencer Finch, Carl Michael von Hausswolff & Leif Elggren, Jonathan Herder, Mikhail Iliatov, Emily Jacir, Julia Jacquette, Vandana Jain, Sandra Eula Lee, Line Up, Frank Magnotta, Michael Oatman and David Shrigley. A must-have for collectors of artist multiples and stamps alike, the edition also includes a text by George Pendle. |
