Leslie George Katz
Encyclopedia
Leslie George Katz was an author and publisher who founded Eakins Press
, a specialty publisher of books of art and literature.
, Maryland
, Katz attended Black Mountain College
in North Carolina
, where he met his future wife Jane Mayhall
. The two married in the 1940s and moved to New York City. As husband and wife, they were active participants in New York's bohemian
community starting in the 1950s, and became friendly with many of the prominent artists at the time.
Over the course of his career, Katz wrote for publications ranging from Classic Comics to The Nation
. He wrote speeches for Adlai Stevenson and created plays for a Brooklyn
community center. Katz was also a board member of Yaddo
, the artists' community located on an estate in Saratoga Springs, New York
.
He contributed garden statues to the Brooklyn Museum of Art that were retrieved from sites being demolished and helped arrange the Museum of Modern Art
's acquisition of photographs taken by French photographer Eugène Atget
.
.
Katz had obtained the funds to operate the press and his other business ventures by selling a series of paintings by Eakins that his father had purchased secretly and placed in locations scattered around Baltimore. Katz discovered his father's secret in the 1950s, and sold the paintings to art collector Joseph Hirshhorn
.
In the three decades before his death, Eakins Press published 56 books that were described by The New York Times
as being "notable for their meticulous, elegant design", including works of photography, poetry, sculpture and the New York City Ballet
.
The company's first book was a replica of the original 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass
, the collection of twelve poems written by Walt Whitman
that he had published himself. Another of the early books was Message From the Interior a collection of photographs by Walker Evans
, who was best known for his work for the Farm Security Administration
that captured the effects of the Great Depression
. Eakins Press also published works by his wife, including the 1966 volume of poems and plays Ready for the Ha Ha & Other Satires and the two-volume collection of poetry Givers and Takers printed in 1968 and 1973.
A January 1993 show at the Zabriskie Gallery in New York City featured selections of 14 works published by the Eakins Press, along with samples of the art produced by the artists highlighted in the books.
, due to cancer
. He was survived by his wife and a brother.
Eakins Press
Eakins Press is an American publishing house established by Leslie George Katz in 1966, naming it in honor of painter Thomas Eakins.Katz had obtained the funds to establish the company by selling a series of paintings by Eakins that his father had purchased secretly and placed in locations...
, a specialty publisher of books of art and literature.
Biography
Born in BaltimoreBaltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, Katz attended Black Mountain College
Black Mountain College
Black Mountain College, a school founded in 1933 in Black Mountain, North Carolina, was a new kind of college in the United States in which the study of art was seen to be central to a liberal arts education, and in which John Dewey's principles of education played a major role...
in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, where he met his future wife Jane Mayhall
Jane Mayhall
Jane Mayhall Katz was an American poet whose writing first received attention later in life, and was influenced by her transition from her youth in Kentucky to the hustle and bustle of life in New York City and her grief over the death of her husband...
. The two married in the 1940s and moved to New York City. As husband and wife, they were active participants in New York's bohemian
Bohemianism
Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people, with few permanent ties, involving musical, artistic or literary pursuits...
community starting in the 1950s, and became friendly with many of the prominent artists at the time.
Over the course of his career, Katz wrote for publications ranging from Classic Comics to The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
. He wrote speeches for Adlai Stevenson and created plays for a Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
community center. Katz was also a board member of Yaddo
Yaddo
Yaddo is an artists' community located on a 400 acre estate in Saratoga Springs, New York. Its mission is "to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists to work without interruption in a supportive environment."...
, the artists' community located on an estate in Saratoga Springs, New York
Saratoga Springs, New York
Saratoga Springs, also known as simply Saratoga, is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 26,586 at the 2010 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area. While the word "Saratoga" is known to be a corruption of a Native American name, ...
.
He contributed garden statues to the Brooklyn Museum of Art that were retrieved from sites being demolished and helped arrange the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
's acquisition of photographs taken by French photographer Eugène Atget
Eugène Atget
Eugène Atget was a French photographer noted for his photographs documenting the architecture and street scenes of Paris....
.
Eakins Press
Katz established Eakins Press in 1966, naming it in honor of painter Thomas EakinsThomas Eakins
Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator...
.
Katz had obtained the funds to operate the press and his other business ventures by selling a series of paintings by Eakins that his father had purchased secretly and placed in locations scattered around Baltimore. Katz discovered his father's secret in the 1950s, and sold the paintings to art collector Joseph Hirshhorn
Joseph Hirshhorn
]Joseph Herman Hirshhorn was an entrepreneur, financier and art collector. Born in Mitau, Latvia, the twelfth of thirteen children, Hirshhorn emigrated to the United States with his widowed mother at the age of six....
.
In the three decades before his death, Eakins Press published 56 books that were described by The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
as being "notable for their meticulous, elegant design", including works of photography, poetry, sculpture and the New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Leon Barzin was the company's first music director. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company...
.
The company's first book was a replica of the original 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass
Leaves of Grass
Leaves of Grass is a poetry collection by the American poet Walt Whitman . Though the first edition was published in 1855, Whitman spent his entire life writing Leaves of Grass, revising it in several editions until his death...
, the collection of twelve poems written by Walt Whitman
Walt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...
that he had published himself. Another of the early books was Message From the Interior a collection of photographs by Walker Evans
Walker Evans
Walker Evans was an American photographer best known for his work for the Farm Security Administration documenting the effects of the Great Depression. Much of Evans's work from the FSA period uses the large-format, 8x10-inch camera...
, who was best known for his work for the Farm Security Administration
Farm Security Administration
Initially created as the Resettlement Administration in 1935 as part of the New Deal in the United States, the Farm Security Administration was an effort during the Depression to combat American rural poverty...
that captured the effects of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Eakins Press also published works by his wife, including the 1966 volume of poems and plays Ready for the Ha Ha & Other Satires and the two-volume collection of poetry Givers and Takers printed in 1968 and 1973.
A January 1993 show at the Zabriskie Gallery in New York City featured selections of 14 works published by the Eakins Press, along with samples of the art produced by the artists highlighted in the books.
Death
Katz died at age 78 on April 18, 1997 in his home in ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, due to cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
. He was survived by his wife and a brother.