Spector Books was established by its three co-founders Markus Dreßen, Anne König and Jan Wenzel 20 years ago, and still operates from the same offices in the heart of Leipzig to this day. Since then it has published over 600 books, including titles by luminaries including Hito Steyerl, the late critic Waldemar Cordeiro, Freud and Jonas Mekas – among others. The question is, how did a love affair with books transform into a business? And how do they translate this obsession into an identifiable part of every book they publish? Here, in conversation with Jan Wenzel, we find out.
Photography courtesy of Gert Mothes
SLEEK: How did you end up becoming obsessed with books?
Jan Wenzel: I grew up in a small town called Bautzen in the Lausitz region of Germany. At the age of 10, I not only started reading books but also buying them. Once a week, I would browse the various bookshops in the town to see what was new. You had to be quick in those days, because in the DDR good books always sold out in days. It was also around that time that I developed a passion for antiquarian bookshops. My German teacher played a major part in that because her family ran one. And that was the beginning of my love affair with books. They’ve been a part of my life ever since.
Photography courtesy of Gert Mothes
How much of that has made its way into the DNA of your publishing house?
The sociologist Bruno Latour coined the term ‘nonhuman agency’. If I think about what that might mean, the first thing that springs to mind is books. Books support us, and in some situations in life, they have the capacity to show us the way. You can be in permanent dialogue with them. When you read one book, it can sometimes lead you to the next. Some books you lug with you from place to place every time you move house. They’ll languish on the shelf, forgotten for 10 years, until you come back to them at some point. The consciousness that every book can possess is quite singular and is very much a part of what we do in our publishing house.
Photography courtesy of Gert Mothes
Full interview available in SLEEK #70 – Truth.