This month, the third annual Brooklyn Antiquarian Book Fair will be holding court from Friday, September 9th through Sunday, September 11th. With almost 100 dealers exhibiting a wide array of collectible and rare books and ephemera, as well as a busy agenda including interactive performances, a vintage photography exhibit, book signings, and workshops, the fair promises to be an exciting event.
Here’s a breakdown of the special events going on during the fair:
Opening Preview Night Celebration to Benefit 826NYC
The fair opens with a bang on Friday, September 9th with a preview event to benefit 826NYC, a local organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6-18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. From 6:00pm-9:00pm guests will have first dibs on the event’s 25,000 items on offer while enjoying locally sourced refreshments including treats from Jessy's Pastries. Jessy’s is known for their home-made, fresh empanadas and alfajores, Peruvian cookies which the Huffington Post calls “the best cookie you've never heard of.” And, as a special thank you, each preview guest will receive a free limited edition fair poster.
The Haiku Lounge
The Haiku Guys & Gals and Pop Productions will present “The Haiku Lounge,” an immersive, poetic hideaway featuring interactive performances, artful food and drink selections, curiosities, crafts, and other analog and antiquarian delights. These remarkable Haikuists will be authoring free, one-of-a-kind, poems and spreading the syllable love through their unique blend of performance, audience interaction, and humor.
Book Shots and Photography Expert Panel Discussion
Stacy Waldman, from House of Mirth, will present a lovingly curated, exclusive exhibit of vintage snapshots featuring books, readers, libraries, and other literary themes. In addition, Stacy will be moderating an expert panel discussion entitled Lost Souls Found Photos: Obsessive New Yorkers Talk About The Insanity Of Collecting Snapshots. This conversation will focus on the collection of vintage photographs, those “everyday” shots we all took with our Kodak and Polaroid cameras of our friends and relatives at family gatherings, at the beach, or wherever our camera happened to be. What was it in these collectors' lives that prompted them to start collecting vintage photos of people they have never met and what is the thought process which goes into assembling their collections? Participants in this discussion include: WM Hunt, Brian Wallis, Jane Hammond, Billy Parrott, and Barbara Levine, all well-known experts in the field of vintage photography.
Book Signing
Rebecca Rego Barry, the editor of Fine Books & Collections, will be greeting visitors and signing her newest book, Rare Books Uncovered: True Stories of Fantastic Finds in Unlikely Places, on Saturday, September 10th from noon to 3:00 pm. This book recounts extraordinary discoveries from the world of book collecting, like a stash of vintage comic books worth $3.5 million long forgotten in a basement closet or a first edition of To Kill a Mockingbird purchased at a Philadelphia flea market for a few dollars. The Washington Post called Rego Barry’s book "…a welcome gift for a passionate reader or collector.”
Free Drop-in Family Make-a-Book Workshop
Book author and artist Esther K. Smith of Purgatory Press will present her latest book, Making Books with Kids: 25 Paper Projects to Fold, Sew, Paste, Pop, and Draw, and will give a hands-on demonstration of simple pop-ups and movable books on Saturday, September 10th from 3:00pm to 5:00pm. Smith’s publications have been on display at the Metropolitan and the Victoria & Albert museums, and are in international collections including the MoMA, Whitney, Tate, Cooper Hewitt, and The National Gallery of Art, among many others.
Special Exhibit by The Center for Book Arts
Visitors will be treated to a remarkable display of artist books highlighting a variety of form and content from the permanent collection of this esteemed Manhattan based contemporary arts organization. The Center for Book Arts, the first not-for-profit organization of its kind in the nation, was founded in 1974 and the only location in New York City where visitors can view book arts exhibitions in the context of an active, working studio. The exhibit, which will on display throughout the three day event, will highlight works by Tadasha Mitsui, Shana Agid, and others.
The third annual Brooklyn Antiquarian Book Fair will be held at the Brooklyn Expo Center, on Friday, September 9th from 6-9pm; Saturday, September 10th from 11am-7pm; and Sunday, September 11th from 11am-5pm. A variety of ticketing options are available ranging from $7 for a Sunday only ticket to $25 for the preview opening benefit; for more information and to purchase tickets please click here. The Brooklyn Antiquarian Book Fair is sponsored by AbeBooks and brought to you by Book and Paper Fairs.
