Anyone lucky enough to happen upon a copy of Ted Berrigan’s C, a journal of Poety from February 1964 will find, along with poems by Frank O’Hara and Edwin Denby, five hand-printed black-and-white “covers” designed by Joe Brainard. In his collages and assemblages, Brainard used familiar images the way poets of his time used words, playing their meanings against their sounds. His ephemeral Pop collages incorporate Wonder Woman, Demuth-like tumbling numbers, and a hockey player with an arrow on his sleeve instead of a heart. Brainard’s synthetic work now looks like an essential spoor of the ’60s.

— Jeff Weinstein