Diary: How to Improve the World (You Will Only Make Matters Worse) Continued 1968, 1968
By John Cage

The SMS Portfolios were a collaboration between William Copley & Dmitri Petrov which they published through their Letter Edged in Black Press, working with some of the most important artists of the twentieth century. Exemplifying the community ethos of the '60s, Copley sought to produce a new form of art journal that would bypass traditional institutions to distribute the artistÆs work directly to its audience instead. Copley accepted contributions in almost any medium, carefully reproducing each artwork in his Upper West Side studio. All contributors, from the world-renowned to the obscure, received the same sum of $100 for their work. Presented without comment, each portfolio was mailed directly to subscribers every two months. Only six portfolios were produced, in an edition of 2000. Each portfolio contained from eleven to thirteen artist objects.

This SMS edition is a twenty-page booklet of Cage's autobiographical impressions printed on heavy stock with typeface, type weight, and color chosen according to chance. The booklet is wrapped in a mylar case with colored split-fountain typography.

The Letter Edged in Black Press; SMS 4; 1968; booklet with colored ink on mylar cover; 7.5" x 5.5"