Avant Garde magazine Issue 4
Published in New York in September 1968
Condition: VG
Take a look inside Issue 4 of Herb Lubalin and Ralph Ginzburg's phenomenal Avant Garde magazine, the publication that broke taboos, gave rise to the equally loathed and loved typeface by the same name, and published some truly groundbreaking content, including John Lennon's erotic lithographs and Marilyn Monroe's last photos.
This issue, published in 1968, contains a special section devoted to one of our favourite artists, George Tooker. Tooker was a queer artist working in mid-century New York, who rallied against the establishment in both life and art, and critiqued the loneliness and disaffection of an increasingly bureaucratic world. He hated officialdom, red tape and the de-individualisation that came with it.
His figurative paintings are both disturbing and beautiful, focusing on feelings of despondency in urban life, and mostly associated with Magical Realism, though he wasn't too personally keen on the label. Tooker died in 2011, and is now considered one of America’s preeminent painters. This special edition magazine is an amazing testament to his work.