The Ridgefield Gazook

The Ridgefield Gazook was a short-lived illustrated newsletter created by the American artist Man Ray in 1915. It was produced while Ray was living in an artists' colony in Ridgefield, New Jersey, and appeared only once, as issue number 0, dated 31 March 1915. The publication consisted of four pages and combined writing with illustration, reflecting Ray's early interest in experimental visual and literary forms outside the conventional gallery and commercial art systems. Although The Ridgefield Gazook had no continuing run, publisher-scale distribution, or established business structure, it is notable in accounts of the early history of avant-garde periodicals in the United States. Ray later became associated with Dada and Surrealism, but this newsletter predates the more widely recognized phases of his career. Its unusual title, compact format, and fusion of text and image are consistent with the independent, handmade character of early modernist and avant-garde publications. The newsletter was created within the social and artistic setting of Ridgefield, where Ray lived among other artists. This environment provided the immediate context for the publication, but no evidence indicates that The Ridgefield Gazook developed into a continuing newspaper, magazine, imprint, or commercial brand. It should therefore be understood primarily as a historical art publication and an early experiment in artist-produced periodical culture rather than as an operating media company. The sole known copy has been lost. As a result, surviving information about the newsletter comes from historical and biographical references rather than from examination of the original issue. Art historian and Man Ray biographer Arturo Schwarz characterized it as America's first proto-Dada periodical, a description that emphasizes its place in the prehistory of American Dada-related publishing. The assessment is significant because it links the newsletter to the broader development of anti-traditional, interdisciplinary art publications, while not implying that the publication itself had a sustained readership or formal movement affiliation. The Ridgefield Gazook is now remembered chiefly for its connection to Man Ray, its extremely limited publication history, and its position at the intersection of illustration, writing, and early avant-garde experimentation. It has no current products, operating markets, corporate owner, or active website.

The Ridgefield Gazook was created by Man Ray in 1915 while he was living in an artists' colony in Ridgefield, New Jersey. It was conceived as a very small illustrated periodical rather than as a continuing newspaper or commercial magazine. The publication appeared as a four-page issue numbered 0 and dated 31 March 1915. The use of an initial or zero issue suggests an experimental or provisional project, although the available historical record does not establish whether additional issues were planned. The newsletter's importance rests less on its circulation or institutional influence than on its place in Man Ray's early artistic development. It brought together written and visual material in a compact, independently produced format. This combination anticipated the kind of cross-disciplinary publishing associated with avant-garde art, in which periodicals could function simultaneously as literary objects, visual experiments, and vehicles for artistic collaboration or self-presentation. The Ridgefield Gazook did not continue beyond its single known issue. There is no evidence of a publisher, corporate structure, recurring sales operation, or established distribution network. The only known copy has subsequently been lost, leaving the publication documented through secondary historical and biographical accounts rather than through direct study of the original object. Arturo Schwarz, who wrote about Man Ray's life and work, described The Ridgefield Gazook as America's first proto-Dada periodical. This characterization places the newsletter within the early history of American avant-garde publishing and connects it retrospectively to the Dada interests with which Man Ray would later be associated. The description should be understood as an art-historical interpretation: the newsletter itself was a single, short-lived publication and not a continuing Dada organization or periodical title. Today, The Ridgefield Gazook is treated as an ephemeral early work connected to Man Ray and to the experimental culture of Ridgefield's artists' community. Because the original issue is lost and the surviving documentation is limited, details about its contents, production method, readership, and circulation remain unavailable.

• 1915

  Creation in Ridgefield

  [1]The Ridgefield Gazooken.wikipedia.org

  Man Ray wrote and illustrated The Ridgefield Gazook while living in an artists' colony in Ridgefield, New Jersey.

• 1915

  Single issue published

  [1]The Ridgefield Gazooken.wikipedia.org

  The newsletter appeared as a four-page issue numbered 0 and dated 31 March 1915.

• Only known copy lost

  [1]The Ridgefield Gazooken.wikipedia.org

  The sole known copy of the newsletter is no longer extant, limiting direct knowledge of its contents and production.

• Retrospective proto-Dada assessment

  [1]The Ridgefield Gazooken.wikipedia.org

  Man Ray biographer Arturo Schwarz described the publication as America's first proto-Dada periodical.

An ephemeral artist-produced newsletter combining writing and illustration, historically associated with the early development of American proto-Dada periodicals.

• Illustrated newsletter · 1915

  Issue number 0

  The only documented issue of The Ridgefield Gazook was a four-page newsletter written and illustrated by Man Ray. It was dated 31 March 1915 and was produced in the context of the artists' community in Ridgefield, New Jersey. The issue is historically significant as an early artist-made publication combining text and image, but the original copy has been lost. No further issues are documented.

1. 1The Ridgefield Gazooken.wikipedia.org