Antiquarian book dealers are as important a resource for design historians (and history buffs) as research libraries and archives. Knowledgeable dealers are essential to scholarship. So, from time to time I will showcase antiquarians that focus on the design fields. In this installment, meet Vloemans Antiquarian Books in The Hague (top and below) and Productive Arts in Cleveland, Ohio (middle and bottom).
Vloemans Antiquarian Books, founded in 1932, are specialists in books, periodicals, and documents on the Bauhaus, Constructivism, Dada, De Stijl, Functionalism, Futurism,Modernism, Poetism, Surrealism, Typography, the Czech and Romanian avant-garde movements, and more, including Berlewi, Brancusi, Doesburg,Huszar, Janco, Kassak, Lissitzky, Man Ray, Marinetti, Moholy-Nagy,Schuitema, Schwitters, Styrsky, Teige, Toyen, and Zwart.
Productive Arts features Russian and Soviet art and photo relatedbooks, magazines, publications, posters, and ephemera from before the revolution through the Constructivist period and Socialist Realism. They feature graphics designed by Tatlin, Rodchenko, Stepanova, Malevich, Lissitzky, Klutsis, Stenberg Brothers, Naumov,Deineka, Troshin, Pinus, Pimenov, Lebedev, Dlugach, and Konashevich.
About Steven Heller
Steven Heller is the co-chair of the SVA MFA Designer /Designer as Author + Entrepreneur program, writes frequently for Wired and Design Observer. He is also the author of over 170 books on design and visual culture. He received the 1999 AIGA Medal and is the 2011 recipient of the Smithsonian National Design Award.View all posts by Steven Heller →