[Art] Copley, William, et al. S.M.S.: A Collection of Multiples

New York: The Letter Edged in Black Press, February-December, 1968. In six volumes. First and limited edition, one of 2,500 unnumbered copies. Near-complete set, comprised of dozens of multiples in various mixed media; lacking the Julian Levy faux pills in No. 1, the Hannah Weiner multiple in No. 3, and the Roy Lichtenstein hat in No. 4. In original artist-designed paper portfolios; each in plexiglass slip case.

Portfolio 1: No. 1, February, 1968. Artists include: Su Braden, James [Lee] Byars, Christo, Walter de Maria, Richard Hamilton, Julien Levy (lacking the faux pills), Kasper Konig, Sol Mednick, Irving Petlin (cover), Nancy Reitkopf, La Monte Young and Marian Zazeela. Includes prospectus and letter from the publisher.

Portfolio 2: No. 2, April, 1968. Artists included: Nicolas Calas (front label separated and laid in), Bruce Conner, Marcel Duchamp (cover, with disc), Marcia Herscovitz, Alain Jacquet, Ray Johnson, Lee Lozano, Meret Oppenheim, Bernard Pfriem, George Reavey, and Clovis Trouille.

Portfolio 3: No. 3, June, 1968. Artists included: John Battan (cover), Aftograf, William Bryant,
Dick Higgins, Joseph Kosuth, Ronnie Landfield, Roland Penrose, Man Ray, H.C.
Westerman, and Terry Riley (box and tape, with an additional copy in cassette); lacking multiple by Hannah Wiener.

Portfolio 4: No. 4, August, 1968. Artists included: Paul Bergtold, John Cage, Arman Fernandez, Hollis Frampton, On Kawara, Lil Picard, Robert Stanley (cover), Rotella, Robert Watts, Princess Winifred, and La Monte Young and Marian Zazeela (tape, with additional cassette); lacking the Roy Lichtenstein hat.

Portfolio 5: No. 5, October, 1968. Artist included: Congo (chimpanzee, cover), William
Anthony, Wall Batterton, Edward Fitzgerald, Neil Jenny, Angus MacLise, Bruce Nauman, Mel Ramos, Robert Rohm, William Schwedler, Diane Wakoski, Larry Wiener, Yoko Ono, and William Copley.

Portfolio 6: No. 6, December, 1968. Artists included: Richard Artschwager (cover), Ed Bereal, Dieter Roth, Betty Dodson, Ronaldo Ferri, Toby Mussman, Adrian Nutbeam, Claes Oldenburg, Mischa Petrow, Jean Reavey, Paul Steiner, Bernar Venet, and John Giorno.

“Each issue of S.M.S. is an artistic incident of aesthetic and intellectual importance…S.M.S. is a portable gallery of contemporary hyper-awareness.”

Born out of the neo-dada, Fluxus, and conceptual art circles of New York in the 1960’s, S.M.S. (Shit Must Stop), was a short-lived collaboration between some of the 20th century’s most innovative artists. Undertaken from the collective studio of artist William Copley, S.M.S. sought to circumvent the institutional frameworks of the gallery and museum by providing a direct artist-to-subscriber exchange and experience. Utilizing a wide variety of inventive objects and formats, including records, die-cuts, photographs, sheet music, stamps, and more, these highly inventive portfolios are at times wildly humorous and deeply subversive.

This lot is located in Philadelphia.

From the Special Collections and Rare Book Collection at University of the Arts’ Libraries, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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1600 W. Girard Avenue, Philadelphia. Please contact the Auction Specialist for details.

Darren Winston

SVP, Head of Department, Books and Manuscripts, Philadelphia

darrenwinston@freemansauction.com 267.414.1247

Darren Winston, Senior Vice President at Freeman’s, has served as Head of Department for Books & Manuscripts, Philadelphia, since 2018. He has been a trustee of the Rosenbach Museum and Library since 2022, is a member of The Manuscript Society, The Bibliographical Society of America, and Philadelphia’s Philobiblon Club.

Raised in northern New Jersey, Darren moved to New York City in 1988 and began his career there as a bookseller in 1995. He spent the next 18 years selling to private clients and at East Coast book fairs. In 2003 he moved with his young family to Sharon, Connecticut where, in 2009, he opened his own bookshop. Darren Winston, Bookseller offered rare and vintage books, prints, fine art, and more, and hosted over 50 book signings and art shows. He was a trustee and, later, Board President, of the Sharon Historical Society, and for six years a trustee of Indian Mountain School in Lakeville, Connecticut.

Darren has hosted the radio program "Darren Winston's Book Report" for NPR-affiliate WHDD since 2009, appeared in the 2014 book-themed documentary The Paper Trail, and in 2024 he joined Antiques Roadshow as a books and manuscripts appraiser. From 1999 to 2005, Darren was the buyer and consultant to the Fine and Rare Books Department at Asprey, the British luxury goods company, at its New York headquarters. While there he spearheaded various in-store events including readings by Salman Rushdie and Dominick Dunne.

In 1993, Darren was hired as a Creative Consultant to Columbia Records, where he assisted in the repackaging of their 12-record Aerosmith back catalogue. He later sold his extensive collection of Aerosmith memorabilia, which he began amassing at the age of 14, directly to the band.

Darren now lives on the Main Line, outside Philadelphia, with his wife, two children, and dog. The family travels frequently to his wife's native England and Scotland. When not bookselling, he plays guitar in Pumped, an Aerosmith tribute band. Darren also appears on the top-rated PBS television program Antiques Roadshow.

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[Art] Copley, William, et al. S.M.S.: A Collection of Multiples

This lot is located in Philadelphia.

From the Special Collections and Rare Book Collection at University of the Arts’ Libraries, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Fine Printed Books & Manuscripts, Including Americana

[Art] Copley, William, et al. S.M.S.: A Collection of Multiples

Fine Printed Books & Manuscripts, Including Americana

[Art] Copley, William, et al. S.M.S.: A Collection of Multiples

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