Exhibition Invitation to Aaron Siskind: Photographs 1976–1977 [Autograph Note Signed to Ben Raeburn]

Item Details

New York, LIGHT Gallery,, 1978, Self-Mailer Brochure

Unique Ephemera, Very Good—plus

AN INTIMATE GLIMPSE OF NEW YORK'S MODERNIST CIRCLE.
An exceptional piece of photographic ephemera issued for Aaron Siskind's 75th birthday exhibition at New York's influential LIGHT Gallery and mailed directly to his publisher and friend, Ben Raeburn. Tipped inside is a signed handwritten invitation from Siskind to an informal gathering following the exhibition opening, transforming a routine gallery announcement into a primary document of personal and professional relationships within the late twentieth-century New York art world.

FROM PROVIDENCE TO UNION SQUARE.
Issued while Siskind was teaching at the Rhode Island School of Design, the invitation connects two important figures of American modernism through a surviving piece of everyday correspondence. Beyond announcing the exhibition, it preserves a moment within the artistic community that linked photography, publishing, and the Abstract Expressionist movement.

AN AUTOGRAPH NOTE OF INVITATION.
The exhibition invitation is hand-addressed by Aaron Siskind to Ben Raeburn and retains the original Providence, Rhode Island mailing with contemporary postal markings.

A handwritten note signed simply 'Aaron' is tipped inside the brochure inviting Raeburn to an informal gathering following the exhibition: 'There will be an informal party, after 8:30 on Saturday, Dec. 2 at Golda Lewis' studio, 3½ Union Square West, 9C. Please come. Aaron.'

The note transforms the printed invitation into a personal document connecting Siskind, Raeburn, and sculptor Golda Lewis within the social circle surrounding New York's modernist photography community.

FEATURES 
+++ Visuals: Two black-and-white photographic reproductions by Aaron Siskind featuring his signature abstract street/peeling paper compositions. 
+++ Binding: Unbound single sheet of heavy glossy stock, folded once vertically (8.5 x 5.5 inches closed; 11 x 8.5 inches open). 
+++ Content: Announcement of the exhibition 'Aaron Siskind: Photographs 1976-1977' held at LIGHT Gallery on the occasion of his 75th birthday (Nov 29–Dec 23, 1978). 
+++ Provenance: From the estate of Ben Raeburn, founder and publisher of Horizon Press. 
+++ Limitation & Signatures: Hand-addressed exterior by Siskind to Ben Raeburn. Autograph note signed by Aaron Siskind ('Aaron') tipped into the interior fold.

CONDITION Very Good + The glossy cardstock is clean, bright, and well-preserved with a sharp original central fold line. Shows light, natural post-handling to the exterior including a crisp Providence, RI postal handstamp and a 15-cent stamp. Internally pristine with sharp contrast on the photographic reproductions. The tipped-in note remains firmly affixed to the upper margin.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE: 
Aaron Siskind was a pivotal figure in 20th-century American photography, known for shifting the medium away from strict documentary realism toward Abstract Expressionism. By treating walls, peeling paint, and weathered surfaces as autonomous formal compositions, Siskind aligned photography with the painterly movements of Franz Kline and Willem de Kooning.

Ben Raeburn, founder of Horizon Press, was a central figure in American avant-garde publishing, bringing important works of art, photography, and architecture (most notably Frank Lloyd Wright) to press. Siskind and Raeburn maintained a close personal and professional connection, as Horizon Press published major photographic monographs during this era.

This specific artifact serves as a documentary anchor for Siskind's 75th birthday retrospective at LIGHT Gallery. By incorporating the Rhode Island postmark and the union of Lewis' studio with Raeburn's publication orbit, it maps the physical and social geography of the late-1970s New York avant-garde.

DOCUMENTARY SIGNIFICANCE
+++ ASSOCIATION & PROVENANCE : Connects Aaron Siskind with Ben Raeburn, the visionary publisher behind Horizon Press who championed major architectural, literary, and artistic works throughout the mid-to-late 20th century. The inclusion of the informal after-party note provides primary documentation of the social networks binding Abstract Expressionist photography, art publishing, and studio culture in 1970s Manhattan.
+++ A NETWORK OF MODERNISM: The handwritten note references Golda Lewis (1915–2005), a pioneer in paper assemblage and a close confidante within the Abstract Expressionist movement, placing Raeburn squarely within Siskind's intimate social circle. The Providence, RI postmark aligns with Siskind’s tenure at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).
+++ LIGHT GALLERY AND THE PHOTOGRAPHY BOOM: Issued by LIGHT Gallery, the preeminent avant-garde photography gallery in Manhattan during the 1970s.

SUBJECTS: Aaron Siskind, Ben Raeburn, Horizon Press, Photography, Abstract Expressionism, Ephemera, LIGHT Gallery, New York Art Scene. 
GENRES: Ephemera, Association Copy, Autograph Note Signed (ANS), Exhibition Invitation.

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