This new exhibit at the Clark is opening in conjunction with March 22nd’s lecture by Peter Hanff on his recent book, Cyclone on the Prairie, published by the Book Club of California — which is celebrating its 100th birthday this year.
Going Clubbing : Mr. Clark and the Book Club of California
An exhibition on view at the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, March 22-June 15, 2012
Founded in 1912 by fifty-eight charter members, the Book Club of California welcomes bibliophiles for exhibitions, lectures, and general bonhomie at the club’s San Francisco headquarters. Arguably the most important activity of the Book Club is its publication program, producing limited edition monographs, as well as a quarterly newsletter, keepsakes, and other ephemera. The first publication was that of Robert Ernest Cowan’s important Bibliography of the History of California and the Pacific West, printed by Taylor, Nash and Taylor in 1914. Cowan (Mr. Clark’s bibliographer) and John Henry Nash (Mr. Clark’s printer) no doubt influenced William Andrews Clark, Jr. to join the Club. In 1920 he paid $250 to become a life-time member. This exhibition celebrates Mr. Clark’s support of the Book Club of California, drawing on the Clark Library’s extensive holdings from the Club’s publication program and our mutual love for the printed word.
Curated by Rebecca Fenning Marschall & Nina Schneider
