The International Fine Print Dealers Association (IFPDA) has announced several major exhibitor highlights, as well as the 2015 recipients of the Richard Hamilton Acquisition Prize and IFPDA Book Award, at its annual Print Fair, from November 4–8, at the Park Avenue Armory.  

Highlights from this year’s fair, which features 89 exhibitors from old master to contemporary presenting rare masterworks and new-to-market editions, include: 

• On opening night (November 4th) at the stand of World House Editions (117) and in his first performance in New York City in over 30 years, 80’s star appropriation artist Mike Bidlo will reenact Piero Manzoni’s 1961-62 performance, Carta d’autenticità, where Bidlo will sign various random individuals and declare them “Sculture viventi” or  “Living Sculptures” and will issue those individuals signed certificates of authenticity, appropriated from the original Manzoni certificates and receipt booklet.  Additionally, World House Editions will release three new Not Manzoni print editions by Mike Bidlo, which represent not only the artist's first major graphic project ever, but also his first time collaborating with a publisher.

• A series of prints by artist and director William Kentridge at Robert Brown Gallery to coincide with the opening of his opera Lulu, Alban Berg’s epic tale of a femme fatale, at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. 

• The work of William Kentridge will also feature in ‘The Lulu Plays,’ published by Arion Press, a limited-edition artist book containing sixty-seven drawings by Kentridge and two plays by early 20th century playwright Frank Wedekind that were the basis of Berg’s Lulu libretto. Arion Press will also present four prints by Kentridge, preceding a talk between Arion Press’ Andrew Hoyem and Kentridge on their limited-edition letterpress volume of Lulu at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on October 13. 

• Two strikingly distinct, yet complementary iterations of Picasso’s ‘Jacqueline’ portraits. The first, ‘Profil de Jacqueline au Foulard’ (1955), presented by Frederick Mulder Ltd., is a rare example of the artist’s early experimentation with lithography. The second, presented by John Szoke Gallery, is ‘Portrait de Jacqueline de face. II’ (1962) evidences a refinement in both technique and form.

• John Baldessari’s Concrete Couples, a new series of print works from the noted conceptual artist, inspired by the Hollywood Walk of Fame, marking the sixth project in a two-decade partnership between Baldessari and contemporary publisher Mixografia. 

• Mixografia will also present 10 rarely-seen prints by Alberto Burri, created in 1990 but never before exhibited at the IFPDA Print Fair, to coincide with the upcoming Guggenheim retrospective, Alberto Burri: The Trauma of Painting. 

• A 16th Century Chiaroscuro woodcut by Andrea Andreani, ‘Abraham’s Sacrifice of Isaac, after Beccafumi’, presented by David Tunick, a working proof with touches of hand coloring throughout, a rare depiction of the stages of process proceeding final composition.

• Multimedia artist, Julie Mehretu, will present her new monumental project at Niels Borch Jensen Gallery and Editions. The focal work will consist of six panels, totaling approximately 7.7’ x 17’, combining etching and photogravure prints. 

In addition, the Cincinnati Art Museum will be announced as the fourth recipient of the IFPDA’s Richard Hamilton Acquisition Prize, sponsored by Champion & Partners, and named after the acclaimed print artist Richard Hamilton. The award, established in 2012, provides up to $10,000 to support a museum acquisition at the IFPDA Print Fair of one or more prints from any period. The Prize has previously been awarded to the Portland Art Museum (2014), the British Museum (2013), and the Philadelphia Museum of Art (2012). 

“A vital part of the Art Museum’s mission is to bring people and art together in ways that transform our everyday lives and our community. Prints have long been a key means of accomplishing this goal,” says Cameron Kitchin, Director of the Cincinnati Art Museum. “The Richard Hamilton Acquisition Prize will allow the Cincinnati Art Museum to further enhance the local appreciation of printmaking, providing both immediate and long-term benefits for the community.” 

IFPDA Executive Director Michele Senecal says, “With the generous support of Champion and Partners, the IFPDA is delighted to award this year’s acquisition prize to the Cincinnati Art Museum. Their longstanding commitment to the exhibition of works on paper mirrors the 
IFPDA’s efforts to encourage a greater awareness of the printmaking medium for a new generation of art enthusiasts and collectors.”

Geoff Champion, CEO of Champion & Partners, says, “We are delighted that the prize has quickly established itself on an international stage and continues to recognize Richard Hamilton’s substantial contribution to the canon of 20th century art.” 

The 2015 IFPDA Book Award will be presented to Clifford S. Ackley, the Ruth and Carl J. Shapiro Curator of Prints and Drawings at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, for his book, Holland on Paper in the Age of Art Nouveau, a beautifully illustrated and extensive celebration of the Dutch contribution to Art Nouveau. The IFPDA Book Award seeks to encourage research, scholarship and the discussion of new ideas in the field of fine prints.  

In naming the prize, Champion & Partners pays tribute to the artist Richard Hamilton, who inspired their own appreciation of prints, and his profound influence on printmaking. The Prize was conceived to enable museums to acquire significant prints for their collections and to inspire individual collectors by illustrating the profusion of affordable museum quality works on offer at the IFPDA Print Fair.