The Largest Gorey Exhibit Ever (apart from The Edward Gorey House) is Now on View at Texas A&M University Cushing Memorial Library and Archives.
- by Patrice Miller
Over 600 items from the life and work of noted author, artist, and designer Edward Gorey fill three galleries at the Cushing Library at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. The show, which opened on April 10, was scheduled to run through September 17 but has now been extended until September 30.
According to the brochure produced by the university, “Ubiquitous Edward Gorey” takes a deeper look at Gorey’s output, too often characterized as merely dark whimsey or gothic sensibility. Gorey authored and illustrated more than one hundred books of his own and illustrated, drew covers, and designed typography for hundreds of books of others, including Charles Dickens, H.G. Wells, and T.S. Eliot. He is also known for his costume and set design for the Broadway production of Dracula and the animated introduction to the long running series Mystery! (now Masterpiece Mystery!) broadcast on public television.
Cushing librarian and curator Beth Kilmarx noted the exhibit includes family photographs, artwork, books, dust jackets, posters, ephemera and objects, including one of Gorey’s own fur coats. “The exhibition honors the centenary of Gorey’s birth and provides a biographical context to explore his wide range of work,” she explained. The exhibit also highlights the Cushing’s own Gorey collection.
Chris and Patrice Miller, who have loaned most of materials on display, have been collecting Gorey for more than 40 years. Both find Gorey’s work thought-provoking and fun. Ms. Miller, who co-curated the exhibit with Ms. Kilmarx, offered that the exhibit’s purpose is to introduce Gorey to a new audience and expand interest in Gorey scholarship. According to Ms. Miller, visitors to the exhibit have the rare opportunity to see examples of his work across the spectrum, which include translations, education, advertising, and periodicals. The Millers are grateful to Texas A&M for the opportunity to present a sampling of Gorey’s prolific fifty-year career and thereby helping to ensure his legacy. Ms. Miller, who took up bookbinding after a career in federal service, continues to be challenged by Gorey’s work with projects for the Millers’ imprint, Aredian Press. Her work can be found in both private and university collections (aredian.co).
The April 10 opening was well attended by university staff, students, Friends of the Cushing Library, and friends of the Millers. To the curators’ delight, attendees expressed a mix of surprise at the range of Gorey’s output and by recognition of illustrations and writings encountered during their childhoods. Class visitation has been steady and student attendees have commented enthusiastically in the exhibition visitor log. Already several professors have declared intentions to include Gorey study in their fall classes. As Ms. Kilmarx noted with pride: “It’s taken on a life of its own.”
An early manifestation of scholarship was realized on May 1, when noted historian, McArthur Genius Grant recipient, and University of Colorado visiting professor Dr. Patricia Limerick spoke about Edward Gorey at a history department sponsored event. She described her fandom dating back to 1972, during her first days as a graduate student. Having heard about the Cushing exhibit, she excitedly volunteered to speak about his impact on her own life and work. The assembled group enjoyed a lively discussion about life, death, and eccentricity as public service.
Ms. Kilmarx and the Millers are confident that the exhibition will continue to inspire scholarship and creativity throughout its run.
The Cushing Library galleries are open to the public Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; admission to the exhibit is free. College Station is located near the state’s center and is less than a three-hour drive from Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, or Houston.
The exhibit is staged with the cooperation of the Edward Gorey Charitable Trust.
Sotheby’s Shelf Life: Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper from the Library of Stanley J. Seeger and Christopher Cone 25 June – July 7
Sotheby’s, July 7: Ludwig van Beethoven. Autograph sketches for the overture "Die Weihe des Hauses", op.124, [1822], UNPUBLISHED. £150,000 to £200,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice, 1813, first edition, 3 volumes, contemporary half calf. £50,000 to £70,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Walt Whitman. Leaves of Grass, Brooklyn, 1855, first edition, first issue, original green cloth, the Doheny copy. £50,000 to £70,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Binding—Sangorski & Sutcliffe—Omar Khayyam. Rubaiyat, London, 1872, third edition, in a magnificent jewelled Peacock binding. £15,000 to £20,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: George Eliot. Middlemarch, Edinburgh and London, 1871, first edition in the original parts. £20,000 to £30,000.
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Hassall (Joan) A large collection of over 300 original woodblocks of engravings for various books, v.d., with Hassall's engraver's glass water-globe (Qty) - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 9: Eragny Press.- [Bradley (Katherine Harris) & Edith Emma Cooper], "Michael Field." Whym Chow, Flame of Love, one of only 27 copies, inscribed by Bradley, the rarest book from the press, 1914. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum, July 9: [Moore (Thomas Sturge)] [Wood Engravings], 71 wood-engravings printed by David Chambers from the original blocks, the only set on Japanese Hosho paper, from an edition of 5 sets, [1970]. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: La Fontaine (Jean de) Contes et Nouvelles en vers, 2 vol., engraved plates after Eisen, fine early 19th century blue morocco, gilt, by Bradel l'ainé, Amsterdam [Paris], 1762. - Est. £2,000-3,000
Forum, July 9: Erotica.- Prostitution.- Pretty Women of Paris (The); Their Names and Addresses, Qualities and Faults..., [Paris], privately printed at the Press of the Prefecture de Police, 1883. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum, July 9: Vale Press.- Ricketts (Charles) & Lucien Pissarro. De la Typographie et de l'Harmonie de la Page Imprimée…, [one of 216 copies], bound in dark blue morocco tooled in gilt, by Sarah T.Prideaux, 1898. - Est. £1,000-1,500
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Martin (John) Illustrations of the Bible, complete set of 20 mezzotints, good impressions, rarely found in early states, [c.1831-1835]. - Est. £1,000-1,500
Forum, July 9: Golden Cockerel Press.- Four Gospels of the Lord Jesus Christ (The), one of 500 copies, Mary Gill's copy, Waltham St. Lawrence, 1931 with a signed proof of engraving on japon numbered 10/10 (2) - Est. £5,000-7,000
Forum, July 9: Boccaccio (Giovanni) The Decameron, 3 vol., vol.1 extra-illustrated by John Buckland Wright with c.150 erotic original drawings in pen & ink and pencil, 1886 [extra-illustrated c.1940]. - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Cox (Morris) Collection of Gogmagog Press Books, 35 vol., rare complete collection of printed books issued by the press, limited editions, most signed by Cox, 1957-83. - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 9: Wynkyn de Worde.- [Terentius Afer (Publius)] [Comedie...], [Paris, Josse Badius: sold in London by Wynkyn de Worde, & others], [15 July 1504]. - Est. £4,000-6,000
Forum, July 9: Mosley (James) Ornamented Types. Twenty-Three Alphabets from the Foundry of Louis John Pouchée, 2 vol., one of 10 copies for presentation, from an edition of 210, 1992-93. - Est. £1,000-2,000
Freeman’s, June 30. Thomas Jefferson’s “Birth of the New Nation” letter, carried to Paris with the Treaty of Peace, by a Jewish patriot. $100,000-200,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. “The rockets’ red glare.” A British midshipman’s log recording the bombardment of Fort McHenry. $60,000-80,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. The Critical Promotion of a Naval Hero, Oliver Hazard Perry Commission signed by James Madison, 1812. $40,000-60,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. Born in the USA: First Day of Printing in the United States, July 4, 1776. $15,000-25,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. One of the Earliest Printed Announcements of American Independence, in the Exceedingly Rare Original Wrappers, 1776. $10,000-15,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. "The Two Big Guns of the N.Y. Yanks": A Striking Type 1 Press Photograph of Lou Gehrig's Hands. $8,000-12,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. A Unique Contemporary Manuscript Account of Joseph Smith's Final Words to His Followers, the Day Before his Violent Death. $8,000-12,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. The State of Minnesota Officially Certifies the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution Of the United States. $8,000-12,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. Extraordinarily Large Manuscript Petition Signed by a Who's Who of Colonial New York to Queen Anne from the Colony of New York. $8,000-12,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. Mickey Mantle's First Cover: The Earliest Front-Page Newspaper Image of Mickey Mantle, "Something Good from Joplin". $8,000-12,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. A Call to Arms in the Months Following the Declaration of Independence: An Early Continental Army Recruitment Poster. $6,000-9,000.
Freeman’s, June 30. Samuel Jones, the Statesman Behind the Newly Discovered "Jones Declaration": His Annotated Set Used in His Working Law Library. $6,000-9,000.
