In Profile: Peter Russo

Peter Russo is the editorial and program director of Triple Canopy, a collectively published online art and literary magazine founded in 2007. With its unusual horizontal scrollbar and quirky issue subjects, such as "And Yet It Moves" and "Bad Actors," the Triple Canopy collective has challenged preconceived notions about the publishing, enriching traditional forms through the added functionality of the Internet. This week, Russo spoke with A.i.A. about his work with Printed Matter, his thoughts on the changing face of the publication field and Triple Canopy's new headquarters in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

You recently worked with Printed Matter on the annual New York Art Book Fair. How did you come to be involved with the Fair?

For the past three years, I've worked as coordinator for the NY Art Book Fair, organizing the fair's programming. My duties also include working with the exhibitors, planning press coverage, sponsorship, and a range of other activities.

The thousands who descend upon MoMA PS1 for the fair each year are there to browse and purchase; but the educational component has always been a key part of Printed Matter's mandate as a nonprofit venture. Consider how radically different the conversation around publication was in 2005, for art audiences and otherwise. In just a few years, countless museums, galleries, project spaces, and especially artists have recast themselves as publishers of some kind, whether that editorial model manifests itself on the Web or via a renewed commitment to print material, design, and form.

The art-book field has come to seem absolutely vital amid the publishing industry's supposed collapse. Artists who publish books have traditionally played the role of author, designer, and distributor, with particular consideration for the way their work is activated and changed by circulation. Now that's every author's job!

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW.

PHOTO BY DAVE SANDERS.