Paula Cooper Gallery Archive.
Scarce Printed Matter
Cooper, Paula. Paula Cooper Gallery Collection. 1968-2008.
The Paula Cooper Gallery Collection presents the history of the Paula Cooper Gallery through the ephemera it produced for its exhibitions, in a variety of art forms in representation of various artists. Present are press releases, calendars, posters, announcement cards, invitations and postcards, all reflecting the many artists associated with the gallery and the novel events and sessions that were held there.
The history of Paula Cooper Gallery is, in many ways, the history of the New York art world. In 1968, Cooper opened the first gallery in lower New York City, at 96 Prince Street. Her first undertaking was an event called “Benefit for the Student Mobilization Committee To End The War in Vietnam,” a now legendary exhibition that included works by Donald Judd, Robert Ryman, Carl Andre, Jo Baer, Dan Flavin, and Sol LeWitt, among other artists (a number of whom Cooper would eventually come to represent). By 1975, the neighborhood had been renamed SoHo, and included 83 other art galleries. Cooper relocated the gallery to Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood in 1996. The gallery is primarily known for the Minimalist and Conceptualist artists it has represented and whose careers it helped launch. From this auspicious and audacious beginning, Cooper has, over the ensuing 40-plus years, continued to support not only the social and political causes she believes in, but also a truly idiosyncratic group of people whose work she has helped achieve wider acceptance. Her historical roster has included such luminaries as Carl Andre, Jennifer Bartlett, Lynda Benglis, Jonathan Borofsky, Elizabeth Murray, Robert Wilson, Robert Gober, Sherrie Levine, Christian Marclay, Rudolf Stingel, Mark di Suvero, Donald Judd, Sol LeWitt among others.
Throughout Cooper’s influential career, the art world has both rapidly expanded and suffered multiple financial crises, but all along, she has maintained her independence and brought an unusual degree of integrity to her dealings with artists and the public alike. At age 74, she is in many ways an unconventional icon among art dealers. Her holistic approach suggests that a gallery might be more than merely a commercial enterprise – that it might also play a larger role in the community, an idea evidenced by the many benefits she has hosted over the years for organizations ranging from the Professional and Administrative Staff Association union members of the Museum of Modern Art to Amnesty International and the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power.
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