Geraldine J. Sherman Memorial Endowment for Artist's Books

The Geraldine J. Sherman Memorial Endowment for Artists’ Books was established to support the acquisition, preservation, and processing of artists’ books in UCLA Library Special Collections. The endowment was established by Dr. Sherman’s husband, Russell, and her three daughters, Cubby, Amy and Sara. Amy served as the executive director of UCLA Library Development from 2004 to 2011. Geraldine Sherman, known to everyone as Gerry, had a broad range of interests that filled her life, but her passions were art and books. The family home was filled with modern and contemporary art, much of it by local Los Angeles artists, and folk craft of the world, especially masks, textiles and pottery, collected during family travels.

An optometrist by profession, she read widely and deeply and was never without a book; visits to the public library were regular bi-weekly activities for her and her daughters. Gerry’s family believed it was a fitting celebration of her life to establish a library endowment that combines her two passions. The endowment bookplate is a rendering of Santa Monica Bay, a short walk from her beloved home in Santa Monica Canyon.