Michael Lieberman

In the Stacks: Playing Cards at the Beinecke

One of the most extensive collections of playing cards ever assembled resides at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University.Known as the Cary Collection, it consists of over 2600 packs of cards, 460 sheets of uncut card papers, and 150 wood blocks for printing cards. The Collection contains standard cards from 16 European countries and 6 countries in the Western Hemisphere, as well as nonstan­dard cards from 23 European and 3 Western Hemisphere countries, and its content represents over 500 years of cardmaking.The "nonstandard" cards include subjects like:  Advertisement, Carto­mancy, Education, History, Humor, and Souvenir types, many not intended...

Continue Reading →

Book Gris. Part II

Pierrot with Book ca. 1924Here is the second installment featuring the representation of books in the work of noted Cubist painter Juan Gris.Enjoy!The Open BookThe Book of MusicBook and GuitarStill Life with Guitar, book and newspaperStill Life with Book, 1913Previously on book patrol:Book Gris: Cubism, Juan Gris and the Book

Continue Reading →