John Held, Jr.

John Held, Jr. (1947-) John Held, Jr. is an artist and writer living in San Francisco, California. He has been a participant in the Mail Art network since his introduction to the field by Ray Johnson in 1976. An information scientist by training, Held became a documentarian of the genre, publishing books on rubber stamp art, artist postage stamps, and the management of artist's archives, He has traveled widely both geographically and culturally, having surveyed the artistic landscape of his...See more

John Held, Jr. (1947-) John Held, Jr. is an artist and writer living in San Francisco, California. He has been a participant in the Mail Art network since his introduction to the field by Ray Johnson in 1976. An information scientist by training, Held became a documentarian of the genre, publishing books on rubber stamp art, artist postage stamps, and the management of artist's archives, He has traveled widely both geographically and culturally, having surveyed the artistic landscape of his time by interviewing such figures as John Cage, Clement Greenberg, Allan Kaprow, Anna Halprin, and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. The current work traces Held's concern for cultural community by collaging biographical and autobiographical writings in an attempt to convey new meaning from disparate pathways. FRONT COVER CREDIT: Photo: Anaglyph 3D Photography copyright 2021 Majed Abolfazi. Design: Mike Dickau See less