Printed Matter presents the 2025 LA Art Book Fair at ArtCenter College of Design from May 15–18.
A Note from the Fairs Team
Welcome to the eighth edition of the LA Art Book Fair! We hope you find inspiration while wandering ArtCenter’s South campus, encountering publishers and projects in nearly every corner. The production of this Fair has been unique in many ways; it takes place as we’ve said farewell to long-time Director of Fairs and Editions Sonel Breslav, and welcome with excitement the newly appointed Director, to be announced on April 21. It also marks our first foray into working with ArtCenter’s striking and expansive campus architecture, which has created a new range of site-specific curatorial opportunities. Classrooms have been transformed into project spaces. Rooms with built-in monitors and projectors are programmed with publisher-submitted materials. A 9 ’ by 9’ office space is now a radio pop-up. The Transportation Design Building of 950 S. Raymond Avenue not only contains half of the Fair, but also offers a thematic through-line, across which we have playfully organized a number of car-related projects: a ticket edition and print with artist Mario Ayala, AUTO Books parked in a courtyard, and Alex Lukas’s FKA CA53776V2.gallery on the roof of his 2023 Subaru Outback.
We feel at home in this setting of an art school and hope to underscore the innately educational elements of Printed Matter’s Art Book Fairs, which gather together students and teachers alike. Visitors often attend with a desire to learn—whether it’s what paper works best with risograph printing, or the basics of how to publish their first book—and the ability to interact with and directly ask publishers these questions is invaluable. In addition to our signature lecture and discussion series The Classroom, we’ve introduced two new programs, Extracurricular Activities and Office Hours, to offer more points of entry into the world of artists’ book publishing.
We produce LAABF remotely from our flagship store and offices in New York. More than ever before, we’ve relied on the generosity of our West Coast community—first in connecting us with this new venue and materially supporting our efforts, then in helping us navigate the grief-stricken landscape of Los Angeles after the January fires. Two visits to LA this past Spring clarified how we could implement redistribution and mutual aid in developing the Fair. We offered waived and discounted fees to publishers affected by the fires and carved out space across all our programs to amplify the needs of many different local organizations, from Altadena’s Zorthian Ranch to No Canyon Hills. These are small gestures and there is always more work to be done. We hope that in moving through the Fair, you consider the impact of supporting independent artists and publishers from the Los Angeles region. Bring a zine to trade a zine! Sign up for a publisher’s newsletter! Don’t be afraid to ask questions!
Over a third of our 324 exhibitors are based in California while the rest of them have traveled from 26 countries outside of the United States. The international context of this Fair is no small feat in the face of a rapidly changing American political climate structured by xenophobia, ecological uncertainty, and economic crisis. In response to these realities, LAABF 2025 debuts a new Reading Room project that will carry through to future Fairs, highlighting the intertwined significance of print publishing and social justice struggles. You can read more about this project under “Programs.”
The phenomenon of the art book fair exemplifies many of the tenets Lucy Lippard once dreamed the artists’ book itself could attain: accessibility, cultural exchange, interdisciplinarity. We are also highly aware that the Fair format is subject to the same constraints as the world around us. Amidst the tumult of this year, it is an honor to carry forward this mission and ensure the dissemination of artists’ voices while celebrating this vital means of distributing art and ideas.
Sunny Iyer, Fairs & Editions Coordinator
sgp, Fairs & Editions Assistant
Printed Matter
New Fundraising Editions
Printed Matter presents new limited-edition artworks by Mario Ayala and Paul Pfeiffer. Fundraising editions support Printed Matter’s year-round work of providing resources to artists and championing the artists' books and publications through programs and services including the NY and LA Art Book Fairs.
For more information or to purchase, write to sales@printedmatter.org.
Support the LA Art Book Fair
Join the LAABF Committee today and help us forefront publishers from the West Coast, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific, present collaborations with LA-based artists, and community-driven programs—this year with a special focus on fire-relief efforts. Your contribution also helps make possible our Volume Grant, which provides four BIPOC-identifying artists and publishers with an in-kind exhibitor booth and an unrestricted stipend, and access initiatives like Free Sunday, which opens the Fair’s doors to all at no cost.
Commitee members receive a range of exciting perks. Learn more here!
Your gift will support this vital gathering for the Los Angeles cultural community and the many artist bookmakers around the globe who rely on this important platform.
Special Thanks
Printed Matter would like to extend deep gratitude to the entire dedicated staff of ArtCenter College of Design. We are especially grateful to Samantha Kinne, JoJo Tardino, and Rollin Homer at ArtCenter for their attention and support during this production. Special thanks to David Senior, Gladys Avila, Ana Lopes, and Noah Klein. Printed Matter is deeply thankful to the members of our LAABF Committee and supporters of the Volume Grant for their generous contributions. Thank you to the Shannon Michael Cane Award committee. Special thanks to artists Mario Ayala and Paul Pfeiffer for their generous contributions to Printed Matter's fundraising editions. Thank you to our partners Living Earth, dublab, Cult Classic, Hyperallergic, Carla, Freehand Los Angeles, Riso Studio Arts, BFA, GHP, and our other partners and in-kind sponsors. A very special thanks to Printed Matter's full Board of Directors for their participation and support.
The LAABF Team extends special thanks to the entire staff of Printed Matter for their valuable support in this production.
ArtCenter College of Design was founded in 1930 and is located in Pasadena, California. A global leader in art and design education, ArtCenter offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in a wide variety of industrial design disciplines as well as visual and applied arts. Renowned for both its ties to industry and its social impact initiatives, ArtCenter is the first design school to receive the United Nations’ Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) status. Throughout the College’s long and storied history, ArtCenter alumni have had a profound impact on popular culture, the way we live, and important issues in our society.
Support for Printed Matter, Inc.:
Printed Matter thanks its current funders: The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Cowles Charitable Trust, Daniel Graham and Mieko Graham Foundation, The Fox Aarons Foundation, Frances and Benjamin Benenson Foundation, the Getty Foundation, the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, The Milton and Sally Avery Arts Foundation, Pat Steir Foundation, Wagner Foundation, Walter and Karla Goldschmidt Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and the New York State Council on the Arts. We are also grateful to our NYABF and LAABF Committees, our Members, and individuals worldwide for their support. For a complete list of our supporters, please visit printedmatter.org.
LAABF 2025 Staff
Sonel Breslav – Director of Fairs & Editions (Emeritus)
Sanjana Iyer – Fairs & Editions Coordinator
sgp – Fairs & Editions Assistant
Camm Harrison – Head of Visitor Services
Lauren Lim – Head of Exhibitor Services
Joshua Rubens – Head of Installation
David Senior – Organizer of The Classroom
Gladys Avila – The Classroom Assistant
Noah Klein – Music & Performance Production Manager
Kathleen and Christopher Sleboda– Head of Design & Print Production
Eliza Strong – Fair Intern
LA Art Book Fair is generously supported by
Cultural Partners:
In-Kind Partners:
Media Partners
Additional Partners:
Printed Matter, Inc. is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1976 by artists and art workers with the mission to foster the distribution, understanding, and appreciation of artists' books and related artists' publications. Through the NY and LA Art Book Fairs, two storefronts, an online catalog, and other distribution channels, Printed Matter circulates more than 45,000 publications annually on behalf of artists and independent publishers. Printed Matter also offers comprehensive free public programming, online resources, and educational initiatives for the medium.
printedmatter.org
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