An Exciting Weekend in Allentown, PA Where Vintage Paper is King
April 28, 2024
1 min read
One of my favorite short trips every April is to Allentown, PA – some 2 hours from NYC where one of the most curious antique shows takes place – Allentown Paper Show – focusing entirely on the paper as medium: from postcards, to rare magazines, travel posters, advertising labels, and everything in between. The show runs for 2 days – Saturday and Sunday and attracts thousands of paper lovers, including myself.
The show takes place in the large Allentown FairgroundsAllentown Paper Show opens at 9 am and the two large exhibition halls get busy right awayNEWWORK MAGAZINE, a large format newsprint magazine published in the early 2000s – each issue features new work from a wide range of artists and creators in the worlds of fine art, design, typography and high fashion. It is designed to be able to remove pages without tearing it apart and hang them on the wall as posters.In the wake of pop-art during the 1960s, items such as “paper” dresses became all the rage. From the extremely rare, 1st edition line of Poster Dress in London, this Eye dress is created by Harry Gordon.A full run of Aspen magazine, a rare innovative art & culture publication, including this issue signed by Andy Warhol – is available for $12,500There are many items at the show that go beyond the paper format – like this creepy antique wax head with real mustache and glass eyes.Some of my pick ups from the show – including scarce product catalogs, early 20th century maps of New York City, and a rare Fortune issue
Allentown Paper Show SPRING SHOW: April 27-28, 2024 FALL SHOW: October 5-6, 2024 302 N 17th St, Allentown, PA Hours: 9 am to 5 pm Admission $10 at the door allentownpapershow.com
