S.M.S. Portfolios #1-6
A landmark conceptual publishing project, S.M.S. (Shit Must Stop) Portfolios #1-6 brought together an eclectic array of avant-garde artists, writers, and musicians in a series of boxed editions produced between 1968 and 1969. Organized by William Copley and Dimitri Petrov, each portfolio contained original multiples, prints, and ephemera created by contributors ranging from Man Ray and Marcel Duchamp to John Cage and Yoko Ono. The project challenged traditional notions of the art object by distributing works through a subscription model, blurring the boundaries between art, publication, and everyday experience.
- Location
- Phillips, Salt Lake City, UT
- Spotted At
- Auction House · PhillipsView on map
🔨 Auction Lot
Evening & Day Editions
January 19, 2017
Artists in conversation
Ray Johnson
American · b. 1927
Johnson pioneered the New York Correspondence School and mail art movement, distributing small scale multiples and ephemera through postal networks in exactly the same spirit of democratizing art access that drove the SMS portfolios.
George Maciunas
American · b. 1931
As the founder of Fluxus, Maciunas organized collective boxed editions and multiples featuring contributions from international avant garde artists, directly paralleling the collaborative portfolio format and Fluxus spirit of the SMS project.
Dick Higgins
American · b. 1938
Higgins cofounded Something Else Press and produced intermedia publications and multiples that blurred boundaries between art, music, and writing, closely mirroring the multidisciplinary and conceptual publishing ethos of the SMS portfolios.
Start the Discussion
Request access to join the discussion