15 Jul

Posted at 09:24h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1978
9.6 x 13.8cm, 2pp. Black on white card with a drawing of a German tank amongst silver birch trees by Gary Hincks.
Finlay has a number cards (and some prints) bearing images of the German Panzer force which is often regarded (if not entirely true) as the most effective of the land war weapons of the conflict. This tank pictured by Hincks is specifically a Tiger 308 of the schwere Panzer Abteilung 502 and was one of the heavy weapons to aid in the (failed) push to conquer Russia.
The Silver Birch is also a tree that is found from Scotland to the East - it does not stretch south in Europe except at much higher altitudes - thus may also be regarded as "invading" Russia.
In any case, the tank symbolises death for Finlay and when shown in beautiful landscapes is a real reminder of the painting "In Arcadia Ego" by Poussin which is meant to remind humans that they too will die someday. VG+.

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15 Jun

Posted at 15:47h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1978
15 x 10.5cm, 2pp. Black on white card with a photograph by Dave Paterson of a toy military airplane made by Finlay which has been attached to a cross bar with string to create a marionette. The plane is painted in British camouflage and decals. The wings both are in two parts and one has been allowed to drop as if the plane has been damaged in a dogfight. This is a companion card to the previous one (Marionette 1) and presumably shows the after effect of encounter with an enemy. VG+.

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10 Jun

Posted at 15:55h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1978
15 x 10.5cm, 2pp. Black on white card with a photograph by Dave Paterson of a toy military airplane made by Finlay which has been attached to a cross bar with string to create a marionette. The plane is painted in British camouflage and decals. The plane is flying amidst clouds (cottonwool?) and ready for battle. This is a companion card to the next one (Marionette 12) and presumably shows the fighter before any encounter with an enemy. VG+.

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15 May

Posted at 15:58h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1978
8 x 16.6cm, 2pp. A card with two abstract drawings by Jim Downie - one representing the romantic interest of Wordsworth (trees) and the other the Dazzle form of camouflage invented by Edward Wadsworth to help defend ships at sea. Finlay clearly enjoys the slight change in spelling between the names and the resulting hard edge vs organic images. VG+.

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15 Nov

Posted at 16:04h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
6.6 x 21cm, 2pp. A photographic card with a b/w image of a lily pond and the surface pond scum which has been disturbed by the passage of a swimming bird to leave lines in the algae. Amusingly Finlay credits this painterly image to himself, Carl Heideken (the photographer) and an "unidentified waterhen". The image is meant to appear like an improvised painting or even an avant garde music score (if one squints a bit and uses one's imagination) hence the title. VG+.

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15 Sep

Posted at 16:11h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
11.5 x 7cm, 4pp. Artist's card with a reproduced drawing of a tree by Bernard Lassus of a tree printed green on white and the text: "TREE-SHELLS. Instructions: Apply ear to Tree-shell. Listen for Lakes." The card can be used to create the same auditory illusion as holding a sea-shell to the ear if cupped close enough - hence bringing the sound of water (lakes) to the ear. This is the third of three cards with the same idea but with different illustrations by different collaborators. VG+

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15 Aug

Posted at 16:18h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
26.7 x 11.cm, 2pp. A photographic card with three images taken from Livingston Development Corporation of newly painted housing gable ends (the houses had just been built) and a Finlay public artwork on walls in the Scottish new town (a version of the concrete poem WAVE). The stripes on the wall reminded Finlay of the Dazzle camouflage used during the Battle of the Atlantic: the longest continuous military campaign of World War II which ran from 1939 to 1945. The WAVE work here clearly symbolising the sea and the two zig-zag paintings representing the British boats with their Wadsworth inspired hard edged paintings together is a visual metaphor for the sea battles between the British fleet, their defensive escorts and the German U-boats and battle ships.

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01 May

Posted at 16:34h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
11.5 x 13.5cm, 2pp. The first of three cards which display a drawing (here by Gary Hincks) of an armoured tracked weapon from the second world war - this appears to be a US M7 Priest (from the double barrel) and it is camouflaged by the addition of tree branches on the sides (which one presumes are from birch trees). The birch is a tree that only grows from the East of Europe to the West but not South at all unless at high altitude (the tree does not like hot weather). This card reminds one - as with the other similar works - that even in the beauty of the countryside lurks death. As such it is a momento mori and not the first or last such work in Finlay's oeuvre. VG+.

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15 Apr

Posted at 16:45h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
15 x 10.7cm, 2pp. Two drawings by Gary Hincks of the same landscape with a large stately home in the distance.
The first drawing is labelled Palladian and the second drawing, which shows molehills disturbing the scene everywhere, is labelled Picturesque.
Thomas Hearne was a 17th century diarist and engraver of landscapes - and they were often in the style of the Picturesque.
The two scenes here are a jokey method of commenting on conflicting styles of drawing/landscaping and architecture, Palladian stressed austerity, classicism and symmetry whereas the Picturesque style emphasised nature and the natural. By including the molehills in the second drawing, Finlay is criticising the style in favour of his neo-classical tastes by making the realities of the wild a destructive force to beauty.
This example was sent by Finlay to Dawn MacLeod has a handwritten note "A wee "get well" top the recalcitrant wrist. Warm wishes, Ian" in black ink. VG+.

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15 Mar

Posted at 17:03h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
15 x 10.4cm, 2pp. A drawing by Michael Harvey of a gravestone with the title German text - Beware! Mines - and a skull and crossbones motif, it is covered in snow. This is a reference to the German attack on Russia which stumbled badly due to poor supply but also because of the vicious Russian weather. Much like Napolean's army before them, many died due to the cold conditions as they retreated back to their homelands. VG+.

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28 Feb

Posted at 17:11h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
12 x 9cm, 1pp. A list of seven painters are shown on a "in Memoriam" card. The first five of those named have had their Christian names changed to "Robert" whereas the last two - Robert Colquhoun and Robert MacBryde - have retained their real names ie Robert.
Finlay had met Colquhoun and Macbryde at Glasgow School of Art during the 40s at a time when they were the most feted of Scottish artists. Sadly both died early in the 60s (within 3 years of each other) - they were lovers - and were known by most as "The Two Roberts". By extending the roll call of "Roberts" Finlay is in some way placing his two acquaintances in the pantheon that includes Masson, Picabia, Ozenfant, Schwitters and Metzinger. VG+.

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27 Jan

Posted at 17:21h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1977
10.5 x 15.6cm, 2pp. A photograph by Carl Heideken of a Oerlikon cannon below which the word LYRE has been added by Finlay. On the reverse of the card there is a quotation from Jean Cocteau "With us, there is a house, a lamp, a plate of soup, a fire, wine and pipes art the back of every important work of art."
Visually the cannon's ammunition looks like the strings of a harp (lyre) so Finlay sees a visual correspondence between the gun and the musical instrument (both also make noise) and by adding the quote he is also suggesting that art may well be violent as well as based on the homely values of Cocteau. VG+>

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