The Lewis Baltz Library - Steidl

There is often a special fondness in the heart of a mature artist for a younger one. After all, every artist was once a child,
and more than a few, in quieter and more humble moments, will recall what it was like to grapple awkwardly with the
yet unfocussed creative urges and grand aspirations of their youth. Picture, for example, our very own Gerhard Steidl,
the original little Steidl, at age eleven with his first camera in hand, arguing with the printer over the unacceptable
quality of his black, demanding a reprint, and, finally, declaring, “Ich drucke selbst,” I’ll print it myself!
It is in the spirit of an inspiring encounter between master and fledgling artist that we have created the Little Steidl
program. The artist book serves as an unrivalled creative platform for communication with young readers. It may be
compassionate, clever, dissonant, revelatory, even deceptive. But always visual. Always freely expressive. Always
provocative. Because every young artist wants to be addressed as an artist in his or her own right. There is no need
to simplify, to tame, to explain. A young artist can accept a creative work at full force.
While the Little Steidl program is an unprecedented approach to visual books for young audiences within the
publishing world, it is also simply business as usual for Steidl Publishers. Steidl has always given absolute priority to
artists and approached the book as a creative form and democratic imperative. Little Steidl is just a convenient excuse
to remind our readers that artist books are for everyone, a necessity for all.
Our attentiveness to younger readers should not mislead anyone into thinking that Little Steidl books are for children
alone. Rather, they are works to be entered at an early age that will keep the interest of a reader well into adulthood.
They offer the possibility of a sustained and mature encounter with the visual works of our own time, for adults
and children alike.
Nina Holland
Jerry Sohn
Simon Johnston
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