WSW began publishing artists' books in 1979 and to date has published more than 90 limited edition books and folios. Themes range from personal histories to the history of the book form, from contemporary political issues to aesthetic concerns. Unusual form, compelling content and a combination of media characterize the books which are created at WSW. Our marketing program includes direct mail sales, wholesale marketing through reps, and sales calls at museums and libraries which regularly buy our books or have special collections of artists' books. WSW publishes a comprehensive catalogue of all artists' books available for sale, as well as a brochure of our most recent publications as they appear.

The following Artists' Books Catalog is a description of artists books available from WSW and we hope that you will be inspired to add some of them to your collection. More than 60% of the books we have published are sold out and are now collectors items, so we encourage you to buy now while the books are still available.

tick tiger trout
by Eva Mantell

This artist's book could be categorized as found poetry in that its language comes entirely from the New York City phone book. Any and all last names of the good people of New York that refer to nature are contained here "Sun, moon,planet,star and garland, lavender, lily, rose and tick, tiger, trout are a few examples of the flora and fauna/names of residents. Color xerox with hand collaged elements show densely layered and textured visual and verbal landscapes. Included is an introduction by the artist explaining why she undertook this obsessive act and how she came to see nature sprout from its urban confines into this new form. Edition 250 copies signed and numbered, 1996. 7 1/4" x 9", color xerox on acid free archival paper. $25

he likes you
by Indigo Som

This is a set of 3 folded, origami-type fortune tellers (also known as "cootie catchers") inspired by the fortune tellers made by generations of elementary school girls. Letterpress printed in 3 colors and photocopy-collaged (with images ranging from actual-size condoms to Bruce Lee). he likes you takes a painful but humorous/ironic look at the complex interactions of boys, girls, racial isolation, nerdiness, the mysteries of heterosex, popularity and going steady. It also delves into a young womanâs disappointment in dating men.1996, 5" x 5", edition 100. $50

Secret Language
by Molly Barker

This is a picture/poem book. A cycle of six stories, told in words and pen and ink drawings, that comment on the contemporary human condition. It is a hopeful book, where people struggle and finally triumph over the feelings of being lost in a world demanding conformity and uniformity. These tales are little gems of beauty, sanity and fun. 1996, 196 pages with 176 pen and ink drawings, offset 7" x 8 1/2", edition 100. $50


Mop Factory Incident
by Stacy Doris and Melissa Smedley

This book is actually a play in three parts, with text drifting from English to very simple Spanish, and back again. It is a somewhat lighthearted, somewhat morbid morality tale about Dona Avaricia, her sobbing tombstone, the television dependent Mars Bars boys and poor little Juanjo. 1996, 36 pages, offset with letterpress cover, spiral bound. 6"x 5 1/2", edition 100, $10

Miss Gowanus
by Meg Belichick

The book traces the evolution of the Gowanus Canal, which lies between the artist's home and studio in Brooklyn. The Gowanus was once a creek, transformed in the mid 19th century to a canal, which was a major commercial waterway used to transport coal, concrete and oil during the 1800's when Brooklynâs population was exploding. It quickly became polluted. The text, printed on laytex, chronicles the artistsâ growing up on the Gowanus Canal and is interleaved with photographs of the Gowanus from 1867 through 1952. The title of the book, Miss Gowanus, refers to the inaugural ceremony for the Flushing Tunnel and Sewer System in 1911 at which a young woman wearing a white dress and tossing flower petals from a barge into the Gownaus was hailed ãMiss Gowanusä. 1996, 28 pages with 9 duotones, 6 1/2" x 10 1/2", edition of 100 signed and numbered. $250

How to Talk About Art
by Miriam Shenitzer

This is a pop-up do-it-yourself guide. The narrator, a rat, points out that you can't get by on the same old platitudes any more when talking about art. In "a few easy steps," the rat shows the reader how to use a limited number of words in different combinations to create new platitudes about art to suit any occasion. Offset printed with die cuts and bound in hard cover. 1994, edition 500, 7 3/4" x 7 3/4" $100

Family
by Rita MacDonald and Melissa Smedley

This is a seven-page accordion fold book housed in a wooden box shaped like a front door which, when opened, reveals a series of images of household utensils. The utensils are used as portraits of individual family members. On alternate pages these images are layered over definitions of the roles to which the family members are predestined. Family investigates the idea of the family unit as a tool of socialization, a utensil for creating and perpetuating gender stereotypes. Screen printed on Gutenberg Laid Paper and bound in a handmade wooden box. 1994, edition 100, 7 3/4" x 3" (7 3/4" x 16" open) $100

Ruderal Plants in Manhattan
by Susan Mills

A visual acrostic poem about those plants that live on the edges and in the cracks. Screen printed in 9 colors on BFK Rives; endpapers handmade from ruderal plants, handbound in wooden covers. 1995, edition 100, 5 1/8" x 4 3/4" $95


Bent Like the River
by Terry Schupbach-Gordon

A short, lyrical poem is brought to life by a series of powerful woodcuts. The content celebrates and affirms the lives of people with disabilities. The rhythmic quality of the verse is echoed by the syncopated marks of the gouge and the movement of the bodies and waterways depicted over the pages. Bent Like the River is beautifully bound in handmade papers. 1995, edition 100, 9 1/2" x 11" $55

Tea, C, D & C/cycles interrupted
by Amy Wilson

This is a story-telling book about a woman who has had repeated abortions. The she/i character switches spontaneously between owning/disowning the events that take place. It's about secrets, stigma, strains of thought. Paranoia, getting better, getting caught. Leaving town, shutting down, throwing up. Trying any home brew alternative to a D&C. It is about saying only what she/i can manage to say, and having that capacity to change and grow. It's about being very fertile, feeling fucked up, feeling OK. 1994, edition 500, 3 1/2" x 7" $10

Talismans
by Sara Cushing

An exploration of images of "Lawn-art", Folk-art, and color drawings, as products of culture and of the human spirit; sharing power to protect and enhance lives. These twenty pages combine lithography with hand-mounted color photographs, charms, and objects to create a personal talisman for Life. 1993, edition 300 signed and numbered, 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" $50

Illustrations of Power
by Lisa Titus

This book deals with the issues of violence, oppression and silence and their relationship to power structures. Illustrations of Power plays with textures--glossy and handmade. The transparent quality of the book allows the reader to float through and between the ideas and images, to experience the intimacy of the pictures and words separately and then correlate the physical transparency of the book with the story. Vellum and color xerox, photocopy, bound in a crumpled paper with embossed title. 1994, edition 100, 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" $15

Lay Text
by Angela Lorenz

"We must stretch to obtain the truth for safety of all." The pages of Lay Text are made of latex sheets; each printed page can be stretched to reveal words which completely change the meaning of each phrase. The latex pages are bound at one end with a wooden skirt hanger and housed in a miniature canvas garment bag. Each portable garment bag also contains a pair of latex gloves. Silkscreened and handwritten text. 1993, edition 40, 6" x 16" $400