Gordon's Print Price Annual 1997

by Jane Ballard

Gordon's Art Reference Inc, 1997. Hard cover, 1340 pp. [Excerpt from INTRODUCTION] At first glance it might seem a formidable task to approach this book. Without question it is a very serious volume and is put together with great care. There are no color pictures and it is big and heavy. Its primary appeal is to the professional in the field of fine prints, posters, and illustrated books, as it always has been. Yet we have found that thousands of people throughout the world having little familiarity with fine prints and posters use Gordon's regularly. So one of our major tasks this year has been to make it more accessible to the "amateur" in the field. ... We hope our expanded explanatory information and timely guest essay will make using Gordon's a bit less taxing and more enjoyable. And within these pages you will find a number of changes and new features. First, if the advertiser requested it, we have moved that firm's advertisements) to the very front of the book. Second/ in an effort to reach out to our European friends across the "Pond", for the first time we have translated several sections of the book into French. .... Third, many people have inquired into our present and our future, so we have included our plans for this year and next in the section entitled "About Gordon's Art Reference." Fourth, we are very pleased to present Mary Bartow's essay reviewing the past year of fine prints at auction. Mary is Vice President of the Print Department at Sotheby's New York and has been in the field for over 20 years. Jonathan Rendell, the director of the Print Department at Christie's, New York, has graciously agreed to contribute the guest essay reviewing the 1997 print auction year. We hope to make this a regular feature in each succeeding book. Fifth, we have re-arranged and slightly re-written the "How to Use the Book" section of the Annual.

1376 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1997