Schomer Lichtner, Ballet Celebration Drawings, Milwaukee, 1991

This is a joyous and fun filled accordion by the well-known Milwaukee artist and teacher who died in 2006 at the age of 101. Lichtner and his artist wife Ruth Grotenrath (1912-1988) were the city's power art couple for many decades with both of them having studied under Gustave Moeller at the Milwaukee State Teachers College and in the mid-1930s both were employed by the WPA (Works Progress Administration). In the Sheboygan post office at 522 N. 9th Street in Wisconsin, there's still a 1939 mural by LIchtner titled "Indian Life."

Lichtner's two consuming subjects were cows and ballerinas, and this accordion is dedicated to ballerinas, with two images of cows slipped in at the end. Lichtner was the official artist, and artist in residence of the Milwaukee Ballet. After his death the ballet created The Schomer Lichtner Scholarship "...in honor of longtime friend of the Milwaukee Ballet and local artist, Schomer Lichtner."

A big thank you to Annemarie Sawkins for passing on to me this cool accordion!

14 single-sided pages, individually 5.5" x 4.25" and when fully open 4' 11.5"

The inside flaps of the front cover

Back cover

Andrew Alexander, The Man Maker [codex], Cram Books, Brooklyn, 2022

Above is Alexander's accordion with a 'bellyband' cover that displays the title of this Risograph book. This is a kind of slapdash work done very loosely in the style of a faux Mayan codex with a narrative that is all about becoming an artist and the associated desire for recognition, as well as the accompanying agonies & uncertainties involved in believing in yourself as an artist. Alexander says this book is based on a Jorges Luis Borges short story "The Circular Ruins," available at this link: Microsoft Word - Borges, The Circular Ruins.docx

Alexander has "...been a working printmaker for over a decade working with David Sandlin, Gary Panter and dozens of other artists to make books, prints, and clothings." He graduated from the School of Visual Arts in 2016, and then attended their MFA Illustration and Visual Essay program.

16 single-sided pages, individually 10.25" x 7.25", and when fully opened 9' 8".

Cover page of the book

the final page