Sixteen Books by Ed Ruscha

The fall exhibit in Special Collections and Archives features 16 books created by Los Angeles artist Ed Ruscha in the early 1960s and 1970s. Twentysix Gasoline Stations (1962) was Ruscha’s first book and became a pioneering example of a self-published, self-distributed book. Including 26 utilitarian black and white photographs of gas stations taken along Route 66, it helped establish a new paradigm for what became known as artists’ books, in opposition to the tradition of fine press, limited edition books or livres d'artistes.  Subsequent works, Some Los Angeles Apartments (1965), Every Building on the Sunset Strip (1966), and A Few Palm Trees (1971) continue this detached, documentary style.  Also on display are Babycakes (1970), Real Estate Opportunities (1970), and collaborative books completed with others, Royal Road Test (1967), Business Cards (1968), and Crackers (1969).These books influenced many artists, so the exhibit will also include a few books by Sol LeWitt, John Baldessari and Chris Burden. We present this exhibit to coincide with  other Southern California programs relating to the Pacific Standard Time project, a Getty Research Institute initiative that focuses on postwar art in Los Angeles. More information about the exhibit is here:

The exhibit will run from October 2011 to March 16, 2012, and can be viewed on the 5th floor of the Langson Library outside of Special Collections and Archives.

For more information contact Steve Macleod, Public Services Librarian (smacleod@uci.edu, x44967).