Oberlin College Library Perspectives

Number 11, February, 1995

Leonard Baskin to Speak in April

Leonard Baskin, a leading American sculptor and graphic artist, will speak in Oberlin on Saturday, April 29. His lecture will focus on the early history of the Gehenna Press, one of the country's finest and most respected private presses, which he founded in the 1940s.

Throughout its history the Gehenna Press has published numerous books that are distinguished by both the quality of their printed texts and their striking images, most of which were created by Baskin himself. Baskin was inspired by such British figures as William Blake and William Morris and sought to emulate in the productions of the press their achievements as artists and as craftsmen/printers.

Titles published by the press cover a variety of topics. A particularly outstanding series inaugurated by the press in the 1960s is the Gehenna Essays in Art. Baskin's art works, which have been shown in numerous one-person and group exhibitions, are well represented in major U. S. and European public and private collections.

Leonard Baskin's visit to Oberlin is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Library and the Friends of Art. His lecture, entitled "Impulsion to Print," will be held in Fisher Art Auditorium at 4:00 p.m. on April 29.

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