Artist's Postcards - Unoriginal Sins

11 Jul DAISIES. 1971, SIGNED “LOVE FROM IAN”.

Posted at 19:15h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
15.2 x 10.1cm, 2pp. Four colour (green, brown, blue and black) silkscreen of a drawing by Ian Gardner of a growing pot with a stick labelled "daisies" sticking out of it.
The wooden label becomes the daisy - much like in a Magritte a word replaces the thing it represents. A visual form of semiology where the interpretation of a sign becomes the most important and most dominant analysis of a (somewhat pretty) drawing.This example is signed on the back with :"Love from Ian" in black ink. VG+

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11 Jul BIRCH-BARK. 1971.

Posted at 17:46h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
16.8 x 12.5cm, 2pp. Duotone image of a toy boat made by Finlay on water by Dianne Tammes. Below the image is a two line poem - birch-bark/birch-barque. The former clearly refers to the tree and the latter the square multi-masted boat - but the word barque is an antiquated word for tree bark also. Birch bark peels away from the tree in large panels much like the way sail material is one single surface. The poem moves back and forth between the two meanings and the two visual parallels. VG+.

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11 Jun A HEART-SHAPE. 1971.

Posted at 17:42h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
14.8 x 10.4cm, 2pp. Two shades of red on white silkscreen card - the drawing by Ron Costley is of a a flat red rectangle with a square patch with white stitching.
Finlay refers to patching time and time again in his work - La Belle Hollanaise, the harlequin works of PIcasso, the text of Evening will come...

05 Jun I SAW THREE SHIPS. 1971.

Posted at 17:33h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
10.4 x 14.8cm, 2pp. Red and brown on white silkscreen card - the drawing by Ron Costley is of a tall mast ship with three large sails - two of which have vertical stripes.
The title refers to the Christmas carol with the opening verse "I saw three ships come sailing in/ On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day/I saw three ships come sailing in/On Christmas Day in the morning"
It is not quite clear Finlay's intent here but there are three distinct main masts to the ship. The song is much argued over - given Bethlehem's long distance from the sea then the three ships are presumably metaphors for perhaps the camels of the magi or some other trio, but by the same poeetic process the three ships can be metaphors for the ship's masts here although it is a bit strange having three ships become one. VG+.

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11 May SAILS/WAVES 2. 1971.

Posted at 17:31h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
10.5 x 14.8cm, 2pp. Blue on white - a design for a wall ceramic drawn by Ron Costley. The concrete poem points to the similarities between the billowing sails and the sea's waves - it is very similar to the previous Sail/Waves 1 card but the line drawing is not in negative and the drawing has minor redesigned elements. Other than tiles Finlay also used this design in other works. VG+.

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10 May SAILS/WAVES 1. 1971.

Posted at 17:31h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
10.5 x 14.8cm, 2pp. Light blue on white - a design for a wall ceramic drawn by Ron Costley. The concrete poem points to the similarities between the billowing sails and the sea's waves . Other than tiles Finlay also used this design in other works. VG+.

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11 Apr THE OLD NOBBY. 1971.

Posted at 17:21h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
16.8 x 12.5cm, 2pp. Duotone image of a toy boat on water above a traditional form poem by Finlay. The poem describes the fact that the boat is needing repair and is somewhat old - and ends with a Finlay trope - a patched sail. Finlay had made wooden models especially boats for much of his adult life. Photograph by Dianne Tammes. VG+.
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11 Mar THE HARBOUR. 1971.

Posted at 17:21h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
16.8 x 12.5cm, 2pp. Duotone image of a toy boat on water above a traditional form poem by Finlay. The poem begins with the supposition that the boat is real but by the end the sail is being used as a hanky (toy sails traditionally were made from hankies) and the boat "anchors by the water-lily". Finlay had made wooden models especially boats for much of his adult life. Photograph by Dianne Tammes. VG+.
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03 Mar THE SIGN OF THE NUDGE. 1971. SECOND PRINTING.

Posted at 16:29h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
10.3 x 15cm, 2pp. Red and black on white card with the text "THE SIGN OF THE NUDGE" next to a symbol that could be the prow of a boat or an elbow of a human. A visual pun.
This card was printed twice - this slightly larger version is the second edition and has black writing on the reverse.

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01 Mar THE SIGN OF THE NUDGE. 1971. FIRST PRINTING.

Posted at 16:26h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
9 x 11cm, 2pp. Red and black on white card with the text "THE SIGN OF THE NUDGE" next to a symbol that could be the prow of a boat or an elbow of a human. A visual pun.
This card was printed twice - this smaller version is the first edition and has red writing on the reverse. The second printing has black text and is larger.

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28 Feb FLAGS. 1971.

Posted at 16:19h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
12 x 16.6cm, 2pp. Black on cream with a drawing of various sweets much as one would find on a key sheet in a chocolate box. Some of the sweets however has been given a nautical feel (the rum truffle having a barrel on it being a reminder of how seamen would be given daily grog) or renamed after a boat eg Apricot Jam Boat. Below the drawing is a quotation: "To the initiated they bring almost instant meaning. it is doubtful whether flags will ever become obsolete no matter what advances science may offer." - anyone who has ever had a favourite chocolate (mine is cheery brandy) will know instantly which in a box to snaffle.
The car gives acknowledgment to Simon Cutts who had done similar "Flag" images in the 60s (and which were published in books that also anthologised Finlay). One of 500 printed. VG+.

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19 Feb HOMAGE TO DONALD MCGILL. 1971.

Posted at 16:11h in Artist's Postcards

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1971
14.6 x 9.5cm, 2pp. Blue and red on white - the front of the card has the text "William & Rose, with a pair of reefs down" above the blue rectangle bordered in red. Donald McGill was a baudy illustrator who made his fame from creating saucy sea-side postcards, the text on the front hints at that slight sexuality with the "pair of reefs down" hinting at the removal of clothing by William and his Rose- whereas in sailing, reefing is the means of reducing the area of a sail, usually by folding or rolling one edge of the canvas in on itself. A humorous allusion. VG+.

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