Cambridge: Meantime, n.d. (1977)
25.5 x 20.5 cm, 80pp. Blue typographic wrappers. A single number of this literary magazine with contributions by John Stezaaker and others but here notable for a 14 page version of Heroic Emblems by Ian Hamilton Finlay with illustrations by Ron Costley and commentaries by Stephen Bann.
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Osaka: s.p. (Mieko Shiomi), 1976
21x 27.2cm, 72pp and pictorial wrappers. A major documentation by the Fluxus affiliated artist Mieko Shiomi where she wrote to participants the world over to create nine "global events" between 1965 and 1975. Each section has the original request and often a map showing the individual artist's response to Shiomi's letter.
A nice book to which Finlay contributed thus:
Spatial Poem No. 1 Word event 4 - "funnelwhelk" on the mantelpiece in the kitchen of Richard Morgan's house (known as eastview") Strathmiglo Fine, Scotland;
Spatial Poem No. 2 Direction event 4 - a concrete poem:
north south
no moon
fish pond
hot milk
in Ardgay, Scotland
After that Finlay did not involve himself in the later global events.
VG+ example of an increasingly difficult to find book.
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Penland: Jargon Society, 1973.
16.7 x 10cm, 48pp. Original pictorial wrappers. A memorial publication for Lorine Niedecker who had died 3 years earlier. Each of 32 poets contributed a work to the book. Finlay who had published her poetry book "My Friend Tree" as the first ever Wild Hawthorn Press book contributed the back cover image of "SONG/ WIND/WOOD" which honours here Niedecker's love for nature.
Jonathan Williams edited this small delight and there are poems by dsh, Gael Turnbull, John Furnival and others. VG condition.
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London: LA Wallrich Books, n.d. (1971)
22 x 14cm, 400 (including wrappers - a book dealer's catalogue only notable for the cover design by Finlay of Homage to Jonathan Williams. Finlay is thanks for the contribution by the publisher. The internal pages list books available for purchase but here the page listing Finlay has been torn out neatly. It does not really matter - with that exception this is in VG condition.
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Epping: The Ember Press, 1972
21 x 15cm, 168pp. Original card covers. A single number of this poetry review - there is an article on Scottish poetry which fails to mention Finlay while claiming McDiarmid is the greatest (then) British living poet - something which must have thrilled Finlay given they had fallen out in the 60s. The cover however reproduces Finlay and Ron Costley's GOURD. A discussion on Gourd can be found in the print section of this Finlay website.
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Nottingham: Trent Bookshop, 1971)
20.4 x 16.5cM,, 48pp. with colour pictorial wrappers. A double number of this poetry/art magazine edited by Stuart Mills and Simon Cutts - this issue was the last published. and has concrete works by a number of artists/poets but mostly Finlay and Cutts the issue reprints a long letter from lawyers acting against Finlay in the Times Literary Supplement 25.9.69 relating to his legal action against Fulcrum Press and has Finlay's reposte to the letter (only published here we believe) including "If you were a poet, and President Nixon decided to publish you, would you support the Vietnam War?" Seven other poems by Finlay are reprinted and other letters and articles discuss him. A rather nice publication which sadly ended with this high point.
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London: National Poetry Centre, 1971
25.5 x 20.5cm, 6pp (recto only). The programme for this evening debate on "British Modernism, fact or fiction" between Bob Cobbing and Edward Lucie-Smith. The publication consists only of 5 sheets of stapled images of works by Ian Hamilton Finlay, John Furnival, dsh, Bob Cobbing, and one unidentified work and a cover. This is a very scarce item in VG+ condition.
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Nottingham: Tarasque Press, 1970
26 x 20cm, 1pp. Small broadside issued by The Trent Bookshop/Tarasque Press (formed by Stuart Mills and Martin Parnel in 1964) which had a different poet in each issue. This number consists of one line poems by Finlay although he is not credited.
Faint grease stains else VG+.
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Nottingham: Tarasque Press, 1970
26 x 20cm, 1pp. Small broadside issued by The Trent Bookshop/Tarasque Press (formed by Stuart Mills and Martin Parnel in 1964) which had a different poet in each issue. This number has the Weed Boat Masters (sic) Ticket Preliminary test (Part One) - a faux examination where all of the questions appear to be about boats and fishing but have a humorous twist eg
6. Comment on the statement' (sic) "A ship is not a shoe sealed for seafaring'.
The "part two" of the test was published by Finlay's Wild Hawthorn Press as an artist's book in 1971 but this "first part" is an extremely rare item in VG+ condition.
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London: Penguin Books, 1970
18 x 11cm, 254pp. Original card wrappers. The fourteenth of the Penguin series of anthologised plays - here notable for the inclusion of two plays by Ian Hamilton Finlay written in the mid 60s although here given a copyright of 1970. The first Walking Through Seaweed is a coming of age discussion between two young girls where the tricky act of balancing on wet seaweed is a metaphor for learning how to be an adult. The Estate Hunters is a series of scenes between father and son who go fishing but the son disappoints (as always). The two plays were also published translated into German in the book … "Und alles blieb wie es war: vier einakter" from 1966. The foreword to the book is by Edwin Morgan. VG+
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Exeter: Form Magazine, 1969 24 x 24cm, 36pp (self cover). This single number from series of magazines edited by Philip Steadman, Mike Weaver and Stephen Bann - here the tenth number which contains an article by Bann - "The Aesthetic of Ian Hamilton Finlay" which reproduces 6 b/w images by Ronald Gunn and two b/w lithogr[ahs. The number also has an article on Jiri Valoch. VG+. ...
Munchen: Akzente 1969
22.3 x 14.4cm, 120pp plus card covers. Original contribution by Finlay ( diary entries) translated into German. Four b/w plates of installations from Stoneypath and 3 other works in b/w. The entire number of this journal was dedicated to experimental poetry in the UK and includes others such as Bob Cobbing. Stevie Smith, Sylvia Plath, Adrian Mitchell and others. Slight stains to wrappers else VG.
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