104 - [AMERICAN LITERATURE & AVANT-GARDE] - Anaïs Nin

[AMERICAN LITERATURE & AVANT-GARDE] - Anaïs Nin Winter of Artifice [New York], Gemor Press, [1942] In-8°. Original publisher’s hardcover in full illustrated black paper. Some scuffing. A genuine, rare American first edition, entirely hand-printed by the author. Fleeing Paris at the start of World War II, Anaïs Nin (1903–1977) faced rejection from American publishers, who were wary of the sensuality and boldness of her writing (the original 1939 edition by Obelisk Press having been outright banned in the United States). Determined, she bought an old foot-powered press, taught herself typesetting, and founded Gemor Press in Greenwich Village. *Winter of Artifice* was the very first book to come out of this avant-garde workshop. For this version, Nin radically revised her text: she removed the short story “Djuna” and extensively rewrote “Lilith” (which became the eponymous narrative centered on the figure of her father) as well as “The Voice.” The book derives significant aesthetic value from its unique physical design. Set by hand in Spartan type on Copper Plate paper, it is adorned with six in-text copper engravings by Ian Hugo (the pseudonym of Hugh Parker Guiler, the author’s husband). For these plates (which mark his first published work), the artist employed the intaglio engraving technique known as “revealed,” inherited from William Blake and developed by S.W. Hayter at Atelier 17. A unique artist’s proof, strictly limited to only 500 copies. References: Franklin, Anaïs Nin: A Bibliography, A2.b; Gemor Press Bibliography, No. 1. Provenance: from the Errera family library