Presses like Wild Hawthorn and Moschatel have made the classic contributions
to the small publication of poetry, often plus images, in formats that go in
the post and stand better on the mantelpiece than the bookshelf (notion from
Thomas A. Clark). I was just thinking about the illustrated poetry pamphlet
series as a genre (neither of the above branded their pubs in series, so far
as I remember).
The famous Faber 'Ariel Poems': writers such as T.S. Eliot, Walter de Mare,
Edwin Muir, W.H. Auden etc etc, artists such as E. McKnight Kauffer, David
Jones, Blair Hughes Stanton, John Piper etc etc. (1920s-30s) Some of these
are on display at the V&A currently, in a show called 'Art and design at
Faber and Faber' (upstairs, Level 3, room 74)
http://www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/index.html
The Morning Star 'Folios', first of Alec Finlay's ever-impressive publishing
projects: Robert Creeley, Thomas A. Clark, Friederike Mayröcker, Robert Lax
...; Sol Le Witt, Hans Waanders, David Connearn, Alan Johnston ... (1990s)
The fabulous Tolling Elves of Thomas Evans: Clark Coolidge, Leslie
Scalapino, Allen Fisher, Miles Champion ...; Helen Douglas, Jess, Trevor
Winkfield ... (2000s) http://www.onedit.net/tollingelves/contents.html
Anyone got thoughts on this kind of thing? not just brevity (I am more &
more keen on having just one or two poems to read; a whole book makes my
heart sink a bit; but maybe this is a personal weakness!) but illustrated
poetry. Is it a good idea? do we need it? How 'collaborative' are these
enterprises, and does that matter?
Mulling over this today because Cardiff-based new poetry press Mulfran
http://www.mulfran.co.uk/ is holding a tea party in London today to launch
its first four 'Mulfran Miniatures', illustrated poetry pamphlets. These are
actually stapled A6, so more conventional and less ephemeral in format than
the above examples; however they are I think definitely conceived to be
mailable, at normal letter rate, and are sold with envelopes. The best known
of the poets so far is Peter Daniels; and one of the pamphlets has the
amazing coup of including 2 drawings by the major Welsh artist Ceri Richards
(1903-1971). Mulfran is founded by the poet Leona Medlin, who has a track
record in publishing as co-editor (with Richard Price) of Vennel Press,
which produced some excellent and striking illustrated collections, plus an
A6 series called 'Brief Pleasures'.
Today's event starts at 4 p.m. at Bunhill Fields Quaker Meeting House,
Quaker Court, Banner St., ECY 8QQ, near Old St. Find it also on Facebook!
Elizabeth
|