Meet the latest antiquarian booksellers accepted as members of the ABAA. Full Members: Keith de Lellis, Keith de Lellis Gallery LLC, New York City, NY Beginning in 1970 at the age of 15, Keith de Lellis began dealing in Fine Art Photography and has done so continuously over the past 50 years. De Lellis has watched the interest in photographs grow from an exceedingly small specialized market into a major field of collecting. He started dealing when he was in junior high school and was soon selling to the Smithsonian, the Metropolitan Museum of Art along with collectors some of whom are long forgotten others who are now legends to those familiar with some of the early figures in the world of collecting art photography. The first thirty years operating as a private dealer in Manhattan and beginning in 1998 as gallery owner of the Keith de Le... [more New Members of the ABAA]
We asked the winners of the 2021 National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest to introduce themselves, and learned about some fascinating books and collections along the way! First place: Jessica Camille Jordan (Stanford University): Could you give us a brief description of your collection? My collection is comprised of works that bear the illustrative or graphic design work of husband/wife duo Leo and Diane Dillon, whose career together spanned six decades. Most of the objects in my collection are books, but there are also comics, records, posters, and more. The earliest items I have are science fiction pulp magazines from the 1950s, and the most recent is a 2019 picture book called Love and the Rocking Chair, an autobiographical story they were working on at the time of Leo's death in 2012, and which Diane later completed. What first int... [more Meet the 2021 NCBCC Winners]
The ABAA is proud to announce the winners of the 2021 National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest. First: Jessica Camille Jordan (Stanford University) for "Six Decades of Leo and Diane Dillon." Second: Read W. Brown (New York University) for "The Serious Business of Fun: A Collection of Books on the Video Game Industry." Third: Shannon D. Bohle (Johns Hopkins) for "Life through Space and Time: A Personal Journey through Modern Science, Collecting Hand-signed Autographs, Manuscripts, and First Editions." Essay Award Joseph E. Hiller (Duke University) for his essay "Como un detective salvaje: Gathering Small Press, Experimental, and Untranslated Latin American Literature." The National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest is jointly administered by the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA), the Fellowship of American Biblioph... [more 2021 NCBCC Winners]
It is with great pleasure that the Northern California Chapter (NCC) of the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA) announces the winners of the 2021 George Robert Kane Memorial Scholarship, Nicholas Pillsbury and Cecelia Shaw. This year, we had two exceptional candidates who were quite similar. Both were highly recommended, both are currently working as booksellers, and both want to continue in the librarian/special collection field. Because the scholarships combined were less than we normally expend due to the courses being online, we decided to offer both of them a scholarship as they were both so deserving. Nicholas is currently working at Bad Animal Books, a combination bookstore / wine bar / restaurant in Santa Cruz, CA, and is handling all of the rare books online. His experience as a librarian and his M.L.I.S. educa... [more 2021 George Robert Kane Memorial Scholarship]
Meet the latest antiquarian booksellers accepted as members of the ABAA. Full Members: Victoria Dailey, Dailey & Turner Rare Books & Ephemera, Los Angeles, CA Victoria Dailey has rejoined the ABAA as a full member after being an Emeritus Member for a short time. In other news, Victoria has recently been named the Deputy Editor of The Book Collector. Daniel Moyer, Daniel / Oliver Gallery, Brooklyn, NY Dan Moyer is one half of the Brooklyn based gallery Daniel / Oliver (along with co-owner Ollie Lott). Daniel / Oliver handles photographic material and other works on paper, primarily unique collections and comprehensive archives, which chronicle American stories. Dan Moyer is also a playwright and screenwriter. His play “Half Moon Bay” premiered at the Cherry Lane Theatre in NYC and he has written for the Facebook Watch show “Limetown.... [more New ABAA Members]
The 2021 National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest is now accepting entries! Established in 2005 by Fine Books & Collections Magazine to recognize outstanding book collecting efforts by college and university students, the contest is now sponsored by The Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA), the Fellowship of American Bibliophilic Societies (FABS), the Grolier Club, and the Center for the Book and the Rare Books and Special Collections Division of the Library of Congress. The contest aims to encourage young collectors to become accomplished bibliophiles. Book-collecting competitions are held at more than three dozen colleges and universities across the United States, and some of these contests have been conducted for many decades, dating back to Swarthmore College's first competition in the 1920s. All college or univer... [more National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest 2021]
The Kenneth W. Rendell Collection on the Detection of Forged Handwriting Donated to the Grolier Club. The Grolier Club Library is pleased to announce the receipt of a major gift, the Collection on the Detection of Forged Handwriting, which is the most important and comprehensive collection on the subject known to exist anywhere. The gift is from club members Kenneth W. Rendell and Shirley McNerney. Rendell, a leading dealer in historical letters and documents, has exposed numerous famous forgeries such as the Hitler Diaries fraud, Mussolini's diaries, the Mormon forgeries and murders, and Jack the Ripper's forged diary. This collection was formed over a 60-year period and consists of thousands of forgeries, facsimiles of handwriting, reference books, and archival files concerning major cases in which Rendell has been involved. The collect... [more Kenneth W. Rendell Collection on the Detection of Forged Handwriting]
Bibliophiles everywhere are invited to join the hunt for rare books and all manner of fine works on paper March 4-6 during the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America's California Virtual Book Fair. Exhibitors from 14 countries will present a carefully curated collection of more than 4000 books, maps, manuscripts, photographs, and rare historical artifacts. “The ABAA's California International Antiquarian Book Fair has always been the most eclectic and inclusive, and we expect this virtual fair to be no different. More than 150 exhibitors from 14 nations will be offering a diverse array of rare books and fine works on paper. This one's not to be missed,” said Brad Johnson, ABAA President. Exhibitors will offer a rich selection of manuscripts, early American and European literature, modern first editions, children's books, maps... [more Visit the California Virtual Book Fair]
The public programs at the upcoming California Virtual Book Fair have been announced. The events are free, but pre-registration is required. Thursday, March 4 2:00 PM EST: A Matter of Time Join knowledgeable panelists as they explore topics ranging from horology, timepieces, the artistry and history of watchmaking, rare books and archival materials. In partnership with Vacheron Constantin. Jonathan A. Hill is a rare book and manuscript seller specializing in science, medicine, natural history, bibliography, and early printed books. Eric Ku is an internationally renowned collector, expert, and seller of vintage and contemporary watches. Sigrid Offenstein is Collections and Archives Manager for Vacheron Constantin. Register for this event... 3:00 PM EST: Virtual Tour: What's Cooking? WHAT'S COOKING? A virtual tour with our experts in culina... [more California Virtual Book Fair Special Programs]
The 2021 winner of the California Young Book Collector's Prize is Jessica Camille Jordan of Palo Alto, California. Her collection, “Women in Subscription Bookselling” explores the role of women book agents, who went door-to-door selling books to people in their homes, rather than in a bookstore. A selection of Jordan's collection will be displayed virtually in conjunction with the California ABAA Virtual Book Fair (March 4 – 6), and can be found at www.abaa.org.vbf. She will also take part in a panel discussion with past winners of the prize on Saturday, March 6 during the fair. Please register in advance for this free event here... As Jessica sought for narrative accounts of the experiences of these book agents, of the approximately two dozen she has unearthed, she found that “they were predominately written by women, despite the... [more Third Annual California Young Book Collector’s Prize Awarded]