Candor Arts Records, 2014-2021 | Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Title: Candor Arts Records, 2014-2021

ID: 01/01/MSS00104

Primary Creator: Austin, Matt

Other Creators: Bohrer, Melanie Teresa

Extent: 10.0 Cubic Feet

Arrangement: This collection is arranged into administrative, operational, and digital records. Also included is a section for oversized items.

Date Acquired: 06/00/2021

Subjects: Artists

Forms of Material: Artists' Books--United States

Languages: English

The Candor Arts records document the short-lived operation of Candor Arts Press, a small publishing company for artist books based in Chicago, between 2014 and 2021. Included are administrative and operational records, correspondence, publications, collaborative and commissioned works, and projects by Candor Arts co-founder, Matt Austin.

See Administrative/Biographical History for more information.

Developed in Los Angeles in 2015 by Matt Austin and Ally Hasche, Candor Arts Press began as an online boutique of homemade artist goods. After moving to Chicago in 2016, Candor Arts was reincorporated under the co-ownership of Austin and Melanie Teresa Bohrer as a small artist book publishing company. The press was created with the intent to identify the exploitative relationships between publishing institutions and the artists they represent. With this mission, Candor Arts provided artists with an alternative to various self-sacrificing aspects of art publishing, such as: significant fund contribution by the artist(s); artist loss of control concerning content, censorship, and/or the possession of rights; and disproportionate profits for the publishing institution.

Between August 2016 and February 2020, Candor Arts press binders Austin, Bohrer, Katie Chung, and Hannah Batsel produced over 5,000 books by hand. Additional assistance in critical times of heavy production included Justin Nalley, Lauren Zollo, Molly Berkson, and Devyn Mañibo. In March of 2020, as the global pandemic impacted business across the United States, the press’ staff shrank to only include Austin and Bohrer, with much of the printing being outsourced. On May 18, 2021, Candor Arts Press closed its on-site location and by September 2021, their website was shut down. Since then, the Candor Collective has worked to continue the mission of Candor Arts as "a holistic support system for arts workers."

Sources

Candor Collective. "History." Accessed September 11, 2023. https://candorcollective.info/candor-history-menu.

Artists

Repository: Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Acquisition Source: Matthew Austin and Melanie Teresa Bohrer

URL: https://go.library.illinois.edu/CandorArtsCatalog

Box and Folder Listing

Series 1: Candor Arts Administrative Records, 2015-2020

Sub-series 1: Ephemera and Creator Records

Box 6

Folder 1: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 1 of 8, 2015-2021

Folder 2: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 2 of 8, 2015-2021

Folder 3: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 3 of 8, 2015-2021

Folder 4: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 4 of 8, 2015-2021

Folder 5: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 5 of 8, 2015-2021

Folder 6: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 6 of 8, 2015-2021

Folder 7: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 7 of 8, 2015-2021

Folder 8: "Matt Austin Projects" folder 8 of 8, 2015-2021

Box 7

Folder 1: Correspondence

Folder 2: Matt Austin Projects "21 Days in the Perch Office" Shape of Spilled Milk", 2013-2014

Folder 3: "Office Items and Ephemera" folder 1 of 6

Folder 4: "Office Items and Ephemera" folder 2 of 6

Folder 5: "Office Items and Ephemera" folder 3 of 6

Folder 6: "Office Items and Ephemera" folder 4 of 6

Folder 7: "Office Items and Ephemera" folder 5 of 6

Folder 8: "Office Items and Ephemera" folder 6 of 6

Series 2: Candor Arts Operational Records, 2014-2021

Sub-series 1: Projects and Collaborations

Box 1

Folder 1: "Celest, Maren 'I Saw the Sun'" folder 1 of 4, 2018

Folder 2: "Celest, Maren 'I Saw the Sun'" folder 2 of 4, 2018

Folder 3: "Celest, Maren 'I Saw the Sun'" folder 3 of 4, 2018

Folder 4: "Celest, Maren 'I Saw the Sun'" folder 4 of 4, 2018

Folder 5: "Collins, Bethany 'America: A Hymnal'" folder 1 of 4, 2019

Folder 6: "Collins, Bethany 'America: A Hymnal'" folder 2 of 4, 2019

Folder 7: "Collins, Bethany 'America: A Hymnal'" folder 3 of 4, 2019

Folder 8: "Collins, Bethany 'America: A Hymnal'" folder 4 of 4, 2019

Folder 9: "Cushenberry, Edward 'While Nothing Lasts'" folder 1 of 4, 2019

Folder 10: "Cushenberry, Edward 'While Nothing Lasts'" folder 2 of 4, 2019

Folder 11: "Cushenberry, Edward 'While Nothing Lasts'" folder 3 of 4, 2019

Folder 12: "Cushenberry, Edward 'While Nothing Lasts'" folder 4 of 4, 2019

Folder 13: "Elliot, David Robert 'I Used to Believe I Could Be Larry Bird'" folder 1 of 2, 2017

Folder 14: "Elliot, David Robert 'I Used to Believe I Could Be Larry Bird'" folder 2 of 2, 2017

Folder 15: "Foli, Kwabena 'On God'" folder 1 of 3, 2020

Folder 16: "Foli, Kwabena 'On God'" folder 2 of 3, 2020

Folder 17: "Foli, Kwabena 'On God'" folder 3 of 3, 2020

Folder 18: Grossi, Adam “Wind Through Quiet Tensions”, 2014

Box 2

Folder 1: Growing Concerns Poetry Collective “Five-Fifths”, 2018

Folder 2: "Honey Pot Collective 'Ma(s)king Her: Black Feminist Futures'" folder 1 of 5, 2017-2018

Folder 3: "Honey Pot Collective 'Ma(s)king Her: Black Feminist Futures'" folder 2 of 5, 2017-2018

Folder 4: "Honey Pot Collective 'Ma(s)king Her: Black Feminist Futures'" folder 3 of 5, 2017-2018

Folder 5: "Honey Pot Collective 'Ma(s)king Her: Black Feminist Futures'" folder 4 of 5, 2017-2018

Folder 6: "Honey Pot Collective 'Ma(s)king Her: Black Feminist Futures'" folder 5 of 5, 2017-2018

Folder 7: "Kay, Nic 'Cotton Dreams'" folder 1 of 3, 2020

Folder 8: "Kay, Nic 'Cotton Dreams'" folder 2 of 3, 2020

Folder 9: "Kay, Nic 'Cotton Dreams'" folder 3 of 3, 2020

Folder 10: Kendler, Jenny “Green Zones”, 2018

Folder 11: "McDonald, Cecil Jr 'In the Company of Black'" folder 1 of 3, 2017

Folder 12: "McDonald, Cecil Jr 'In the Company of Black'" folder 2 of 3, 2017

Folder 13: "McDonald, Cecil Jr 'In the Company of Black'" folder 3 of 3, 2017

Folder 14: Leek, Lakeisha “How to Make a Hood”, 2018

Folder 15: Tse. Ka-man “Narrow Distances”, 2018

Folder 16: Wilson, Sara J. “A Lick and a Promise”, 2017

Box 3

Folder 1: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 1 of 22, 2018

Folder 2: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 2 of 22, 2018

Folder 3: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 3 of 22, 2018

Folder 4: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 4 of 22, 2018

Folder 5: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 5 of 22, 2018

Folder 6: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 6 of 22, 2018

Folder 7: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 7 of 22, 2018

Folder 8: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 8 of 22, 2018

Folder 9: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 9 of 22, 2018

Folder 10: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 10 of 22, 2018

Folder 11: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 11 of 22, 2018

Folder 12: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 12 of 22, 2018

Folder 13: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 13 of 22, 2018

Folder 14: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 14 of 22, 2018

Folder 15: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 15 of 22, 2018

Folder 16: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 16 of 22, 2018

Folder 17: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 17 of 22, 2018

Folder 18: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 18 of 22, 2018

Folder 19: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 19 of 22, 2018

Folder 20: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 20 of 22, 2018

Folder 21: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 21 of 22, 2018

Folder 22: "Franklin, Krista 'Under the Knife'" folder 22 of 22, 2018

Box 4

Folder 1: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 1 of 9, 2019

Folder 2: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 2 of 9, 2019

Folder 3: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 3 of 9, 2019

Folder 4: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 4 of 9, 2019

Folder 5: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 5 of 9, 2019

Folder 6: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 6 of 9, 2019

Folder 7: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 7 of 9, 2019

Folder 8: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 8 of 9, 2019

Folder 9: "Kuriyama, Emi 'Sashiko'" folder 9 of 9, 2019

Sub-series 2: Commisioned Works, 2019-2021

Box 5

Folder 1: Kepha, Peter & Pacheco, Lauren “Slow and Low: Cultura, Arte, Cominidad”, 2021

Folder 2: Ngo, Huong “Reap the Whirlwind", 2019

Folder 3: Public Media Institute “Quarantine Times”, 2021

Sub-series 3: Oversize Projects and Collaborations, 2019-2021

Box 8

Folder 1: "Han, Li & Hyon Myungah ​'Kaleido_Book'” folder 1 of 6, 2020

Folder 2: "Han, Li & Hyon Myungah 'Kaleido_Book'” folder 2 of 6, 2020

Folder 3: "Han, Li & Hyon Myungah 'Kaleido_Book'” folder 3 of 6, 2020

Folder 4: "Han, Li & Hyon Myungah 'Kaleido_Book'” folder 4 of 6, 2020

Folder 5: "Han, Li & Hyon Myungah 'Kaleido_Book'” folder 5 of 6, 2020

Folder 6: "Han, Li & Hyon Myungah 'Kaleido_Book'” folder 6 of 6, 2020

Folder 7: Kay, Nic “Cotton Dreams", 2020

Box 9

Folder 1: "Beitiks, Meghan Moe 'A Lab for Apologies and Forgiveness'” folder 1 of 5, 2021

Folder 2: "Beitiks, Meghan Moe 'A Lab for Apologies and Forgiveness'” folder 2 of 5, 2021

Folder 3: "Beitiks, Meghan Moe 'A Lab for Apologies and Forgiveness'” folder 3 of 5, 2021

Folder 4: "Beitiks, Meghan Moe 'A Lab for Apologies and Forgiveness'” folder 4 of 5, 2021

Folder 5: "Beitiks, Meghan Moe 'A Lab for Apologies and Forgiveness'” folder 5 of 5, 2021

Box 10

Folder 1: "Hura, Sohrab and Nathaniel Stein 'The Levee: A Photographer in the American South'” folder 1 of 5, 2020

Folder 2: "Hura, Sohrab and Nathaniel Stein 'The Levee: A Photographer in the American South'” folder 2 of 5, 2020

Folder 3: "Hura, Sohrab and Nathaniel Stein 'The Levee: A Photographer in the American South'” folder 3 of 5, 2020

Folder 4: "Hura, Sohrab and Nathaniel Stein 'The Levee: A Photographer in the American South'” folder 4 of 5, 2020

Folder 5: "Hura, Sohrab and Nathaniel Stein 'The Levee: A Photographer in the American South'” folder 5 of 5, 2020

Box 11

Folder 1: "Williams, Amanda 'The Other Option is to Slow Down'” folder 1 of 4, 2021

Folder 2: "Williams, Amanda 'The Other Option is to Slow Down'” folder 2 of 4, 2021

Folder 3: "Williams, Amanda 'The Other Option is to Slow Down'” folder 3 of 4, 2021

Folder 4: "Williams, Amanda 'The Other Option is to Slow Down'” folder 4 of 4, 2021

Box 12

Folder 1: Wilson, Folayemi “Dark Matter: Celestial Objects as Messengers of Love in These Troubled Times” folder 1 of 2

Folder 2: Wilson, Folayemi “Dark Matter: Celestial Objects as Messengers of Love in These Troubled Times” folder 2 of 2

Folder 3: "Cole, Teju 'Go Down Moses'” folder 1 of 3, 2019

Folder 4: "Cole, Teju 'Go Down Moses'” folder 2 of 3, 2019

Folder 5: "Cole, Teju 'Go Down Moses'” folder 3 of 3, 2019

Folder 6: "Cushenberry, Edward 'While Nothing Lasts'” folder 1 of 3, 2019

Folder 7: "Cushenberry, Edward 'While Nothing Lasts'” folder 2 of 3, 2019

Folder 8: "Cushenberry, Edward 'While Nothing Lasts'” folder 3 of 3, 2019

Box 13

Folder 1: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 1 of 10, 2020

Folder 2: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 2 of 10, 2020

Folder 3: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 3 of 10, 2020

Folder 4: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 4 of 10, 2020

Folder 5: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 5 of 10, 2020

Folder 6: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 6 of 10, 2020

Folder 7: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 7 of 10, 2020

Folder 8: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 8 of 10, 2020

Folder 9: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 9 of 10, 2020

Folder 10: "Levine, Cara 'This is Not a Gun'" folder 10 of 10, 2020

Box 14

Folder 1: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 1 of 8, 2021

Folder 2: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 2 of 8, 2021

Folder 3: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 3 of 8, 2021

Folder 4: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 4 of 8, 2021

Folder 5: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 5 of 8, 2021

Folder 6: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 6 of 8, 2021

Folder 7: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 7 of 8, 2021

Folder 8: "Rodriguez, Oli 'Papi'” folder 8 of 8, 2021

Box 15

Folder 1: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 1 of 9, 2019

Folder 2: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 2 of 9, 2019

Folder 3: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 3 of 9, 2019

Folder 4: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 4 of 9, 2019

Folder 5: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 5 of 9, 2019

Folder 6: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 6 of 9, 2019

Folder 7: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 7 of 9, 2019

Folder 8: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 8 of 9, 2019

Folder 9: "Bradfield, Elizabeth & Contro, Antonia “'Theorem'” folder 9 of 9, 2019

Box 16

Folder 1: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 1 of 9, 2020

Folder 2: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 2 of 9, 2020

Folder 3: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 3 of 9, 2020

Folder 4: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 4 of 9, 2020

Folder 5: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 5 of 9, 2020

Folder 6: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 6 of 9, 2020

Folder 7: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 7 of 9, 2020

Folder 8: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 8 of 9, 2020

Folder 9: "Soldi, Raphael 'Imagined Futures'” folder 9 of 9, 2020

Sub-series 4: Oversize Commisioned Works, 2021

Box 17

Folder 1: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 1 of 12, 2021

Folder 2: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 2 of 12, 2021

Folder 3: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 3 of 12, 2021

Folder 4: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 4 of 12, 2021

Folder 5: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 5 of 12, 2021

Folder 6: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 6 of 12, 2021

Folder 7: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 7 of 12, 2021

Folder 8: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 8 of 12, 2021

Folder 9: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 9 of 12, 2021

Folder 10: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 10 of 12, 2021

Folder 11: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 11 of 12, 2021

Folder 12: "Marshall Brown Projects" folder 12 of 12, 2021

Series 3: Candor Arts Digital Records, 2014-2021

Sub-series 1: Photos

Sub-series 2: Project Files

Sub-series 3: Drafts of Published Books

Sub-series 4: Contracts

Sub-series 5: E-Mails