Judith Hoffberg was an art librarian and curator who was a major influence in the emergence of books as an artist's medium. The collection consists of ephemera related to artists and mail art including gallery exhibition announcements, lists of art works, press releases, clippings, photographs, resumes and biographies, a small amount of correspondence, and posters. Also included is a small amount of original works, mainly of mail artist Guglielmo Achille Cavellini and publicity releases for the New York Gallery Franklin Furnace,

Judith Ann Hoffberg was born May 19, 1934, in Hartford, Connecticut. She earned a BA in political science (1956), an MA in Italian language and literature (1960), and an MLS (1964) from the University of California, Los Angeles. Hoffberg worked as an Art Librarian at Johns Hopkins University Bologna Center in Italy, the Library of Congress, the University of Pennsylvania, UC San Diego, the Brand Library in Glendale and the Smithsonian Institution. In 1973, she co-founded the Art Libraries Society of North America and served as its first chairwoman. In 1978, Hoffberg began publishing Umbrella, a journal dedicated to artists' books; she was also was an authority on mail art. During her career Hoffberg curated a number of exhibitions, including Women of the Book and Freedom: The International Mail Art Exhibition. Over the years she amassed an artist book collection. In 1999 she developed the idea for the International Edible Book Festival, which is held each year on April 1 (April Fools Day). Judith Hoffberg died January 16, 2009.

122.2 linear ft. (138 boxes, 8 map folders, and 8 flat boxes)

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UC Regents. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Open for research. STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact UCLA Library Special Collections for paging information.