Printed Matter bookstore

As my alternative assignment for Integrative Studio, I visited the Printed Matter bookstore in Chelsea, New York. Upon entering the store I was absolutely amazed at the sheer quantity of the artist books and zines displayed within the store, both vintage and new. Personally, I Appreciated how the store has a private collection which is almost always on view that began in the 1970s. Most stores either only have products for sale and display items or nothing expressing their heritage at all. As a non-profit, Printed Matter aims to educate not necessary to sell. The private collection is displayed throughout Printed Matter alongside objects which are for sale. Due to the mass amount of books within the store, I decided to only look at fashion oriented books, as I collect them. I found it very easy to find and locate the books I wanted as the books within the store are arranged by category like any other bookstore. For the most part, the books were relatively inexpensive in comparison to the other “designer coffee table books” I’ve seen at Barneys and other department stores. A very well designed and formatted book was only around $10-$30, however, some did exceed $1000+ (which was to be expected). I very much enjoyed visiting Printed Matter bookstore as I have never been to a store which only sold artist and artist-style books and I will definitely be retiring in the near future to expand my book collection.