Something Else Press

Something Else Press
Name	Something Else Press
Founded	1963
Founder	Claude V. Hayward
Country	United States
Headquarters	New York City
Publications	Books, Magazines, Catalogues
Genre	Fluxus, Concrete Poetry, Visual Poetry, Experimental Literature

Something Else Press was an influential small press active in the 1960s and 1970s that published avant-garde Fluxus artists, Concrete poetry practitioners, and experimental writers associated with Visual poetry, Conceptual art, and the broader postwar American art scene. The press operated from New York City and connected figures from the European avant-garde, British poetry circles, and the New York School, impacting networks that included galleries, museums, and academic institutions such as the Guggenheim Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, and Barnard College.

History

The press was established in the early 1960s amid the rise of Fluxus gatherings, Happenings, and postwar transatlantic exchanges involving artists from Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom; it published artists associated with Marcel Duchamp, John Cage, Jackson Pollock, and contemporaries who participated in Black Mountain College-derived networks. During the 1960s and 1970s the press issued editions that circulated through alternative spaces such as The Kitchen (arts center), the Judson Memorial Church, and independent bookshops linked to City Lights Booksellers & Publishers and the Grove Press distribution milieu. The press's activity coincided with exhibitions at institutions like the Whitney Museum of American Art and international events including the Venice Biennale and the Documenta exhibitions.

Founders and Key Personnel

Claude V. Hayward, who worked closely with artists and poets from Italy, France, and the United Kingdom, is commonly cited as the founder; he collaborated with editors, designers, and contributors connected to Robert Duncan (poet), Ed Sanders, Allen Ginsberg, and European figures such as Eugen Gomringer and Emmett Williams. Key collaborators and authors published by the press included Dick Higgins, Emmett Williams, Jackson Mac Low, David Tudor, and Henry Flynt, who were also engaged with organizations like Fluxus and institutions including The New School and Columbia University. Printers, binders, and distributors intersected with networks around New Directions Publishing and avant-garde periodicals like Poetry (magazine), Artforum, and Semina (magazine).

Publications and Series

The press issued a wide range of books, portfolios, and pamphlets featuring work by Jackson Mac Low, John Cage, La Monte Young, Yves Klein, Martha Rosler, Kenward Elmslie, Ray Johnson, and translators working between German and English such as those associated with Concrete poetry anthologies. Notable series included artist books and typographic experiments that paralleled publications from Something Else Press contemporaries at Wesleyan University Press and small-run projects similar to Z Press and Jargon Society. The catalog encompassed manifestos, exhibition catalogues, and ephemera tied to performances at venues like the Guggenheim, the MoMA PS1, and Lincoln Center festivals.

Editorial Philosophy and Influence

Editorial aims embraced interdisciplinary collaboration between practitioners linked to Fluxus, Concrete poetry, and the New York art scene, privileging experimental typography, chance operations associated with John Cage, and found-text practices reminiscent of Marcel Duchamp and Dada. The press promoted cross-cultural exchange among artists from Italy's Arte Povera, Germany's postwar avant-garde, and British experimental poets connected to Faber and Faber circles, influencing later critical studies at universities such as Yale University, Princeton University, and Harvard University. Its editorial stance resonated with curatorial programs at institutions like the Tate Modern and scholarship in journals such as October (journal), shaping discourse on authorship and publication in contemporary art history.

Distribution and Business Operations

Distribution strategies relied on collaborations with independent booksellers like City Lights Booksellers & Publishers, cooperative networks including Small Press Distribution, and relationships with museum bookshops at the Guggenheim Museum and the Museum of Modern Art. Financial and legal interactions intersected with grant-making bodies such as the National Endowment for the Arts and institutional acquisitions by university libraries at New York University and the Library of Congress (United States). Production workflows involved typographers and printers who had worked for Something Else Press peers and commercial partners active in the New York publishing industry during the postwar period.

Legacy and Impact on Avant-Garde Art and Literature

The press's output influenced subsequent generations of artists and scholars connected to Fluxus festivals, concrete poetry anthologies, and contemporary curators at venues including the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Tate Modern, and the Museum of Modern Art. Its publications are cited in studies of Conceptual art, Visual poetry, and the transatlantic avant-garde, informing collections at institutions such as the Getty Research Institute, the Museum of Modern Art Library, and university archives at Princeton University Library and Columbia Rare Book & Manuscript Library. Collectors, curators, and academics referencing the press appear in catalogues raisonnés, exhibition histories, and monographs on figures like Dick Higgins, Emmett Williams, Jackson Mac Low, and John Cage, ensuring the press's continuing presence in scholarship on postwar experimental art and literature.

Category:Small press publishers Category:Avant-garde art