Download PDF scan of original article

California and the West Coast are host to some of the most exciting photography being produced today. From the intellectual purity of the work of Robbert Flick, to the transcendental lyricism of Linda Connor’s pictures of Asia and the American Southwest, to the raw satirical energy of Patrick Nagatani and Andree Tracey’s elaborate constructions, contemporary art is vastly enriched by the photographic work currently being done here.

But while that fact has long been realized by all the American critics and curators, so-called “experts,” it took a Japanese artist/entrepreneur, Minoru Shirota, to mount a concerted effort to share such knowledge with the non-expert and the rest of the world. Min (as he is known to all), through the publishing program of his Min Gallery in Tokyo, has courageously invested enormous energy—and considerable sums of money—in a one-man campaign to introduce us to this important new talent.

It is a campaign, too, for quality and substance. Handsomely designed and printed, the books in the Min series are the equal of any being produced by America’s major publishers. In the depth of coverage of each artist’s work, the Min books are unsurpassed.

There is today no better source of regular, high quality information and top-notch reproduction in contemporary photography than the Min Gallery series. I’m proud to recommend them to all who love photography, fine books, and significant contemporary art.