IAN HAMILTON FINLAY

ARTIST’S POSTCARDS

3 BLUE LEMONS*. 1968.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
17 x 12.5cm, 2pp. The card is the first of a few that join boat names together to tell a quasi-story or visual poem. Here Anchor of Hope/ Daisy/ Good Design indicates a daisy in the ground that is well rooted - hence a "good design" and is in some way a metaphysical comment on evolution's creation. The card's title has an Asterix which leads to the note "in a tidal bowl, Peterhead" - a clarification that these are boats. Fine example.
Murray has this as Card 4.8. Murray mis-identifies (not unusual) the date here - on the back it is clearly 1968 but his Catalogue Raisonne has it as 1967.

FROM THE YARD OF THOMAS SUMMERS & CO. FRASERBURGH, SCOTLAND (FR. 64 & FR.195). 1968.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
17 x 12.5cm, 2pp. The card is one of a series that joins boat names together to tell a quasi-story or visual poem. Here Be in Time leads onto Fruitful Vine. The rhyme is by luck but together it creates an optimistic epigram and metaphor. Fine example. Murray has this as Card 4.9. Murray mis-identifies (not unusual) the date here - on the back it is clearly 1968 but the Catalogue Raisonne has it as 1967.

SEA POPPY 1. (FISHING BOAT LETTERS AND NUMBERS). 1968.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
16 x 16cm, 2pp. Black on orange card - the front of the card has a circular design made up of fishing boat letters and numbers that allow unique identification of any particular vessel typographically set by Alistair Cant on Finlay's instruction. The pattern creates both a schematic planet or the perceived circular movement in the stars as they appear to spin around the boat as night passes. Stars for sailors are essential to life - until modern methods of navigation they were the only orientation available to the crew and captain of a ship.
The title Sea Poppy refers to the yellow hornpoppy which only grows on sea shores - again a clear nautical reference.
This design and others like it was used by Finlay in different formats including wall works, object multiples, printed posters and cards.

SEA POPPY 2. (FISHING BOAT NAMES). 1968.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
16 x 16cm, 2pp. Green on blue card - the front of the card has a circular design made up of fishing boat names typographically set by Alistair Cant on Finlay's instruction. The pattern creates both a planet or the movement in the stars as they appear to spin around the boat as night passes. Stars for boats are essential to allow passage - until modern methods of navigation they were the sailor's only orientation. The choice of the boat names chosen by Finlay reinforces that - all have the word STAR in them e.g. Morning Star, Day Star, Fortune Star and so on.
This is the second of two cards with a similar intent - the other uses the letters and numbers of the boats - here the attractive names people give their vessels are used instead.
The title Sea Poppy refers to the yellow hornpoppy which only grows on sea shores - again a clear nautical reference.
This design and others like it was used by Finlay in different formats including wall works, object multiples, printed posters and cards.

THE LAND’S SHADOWS. 1968.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
9.8 x 25cm, 2pp. Finlay in many of his early cards finds the spaces between banks of canals, or between features of the landscape irresistible. Here the words THE LAND'S SHADOWS in red are split with four others in a different colour which read Drift Trawl Ring Seine. Words associated with sailing are thus flanked by the dark areas of the landscape (from hills or banks - one does not know) hence painting a picture using words. VG. Murray 4.12.

FROM ‘THE ILLUMINATIONS OF FISHING NEWS”. 1968

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
12.5 x 6.8cm, 2pp. The card is the one of a series that reproduce phrases found in journals and newspapers together to tell a quasi-story or visual poem. Here Ocean Starlight (a boat's name) towed off rocks presumably is a story of a rescue but Finlay's appropriation turns this into a magical event involving light on water. The use of the word "illuminations" also reflects this meaning as well as amusingly suggesting that Fishing News is full of insights.
Murray has this as Card 4.13. Fine.

FROM ‘THE TA MYOIKA OF FISHING NEWS”. 1968

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
12.5x 6.8cm, 2pp. The card is the one of a series that reproduce phrases found in journals and newspapers together to tell a quasi-story or visual poem. Here the headline "Zephyr joins Avoch Fleet" is on the surface a tale of a new acquisition by a company of boats - but of course it also can be read as the good fortune of a sail boat fleet catching a good wind. Murray has this as Card 4.14. Fine.

NET/PLANET. 1968.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1968
16.8 x 12.4cm, 2pp. The card show various forms of nets used by different types of fishing boats around a invisible circle and the final word is Planet - referencing the missing circle and the fact such nets are used all around the globe. The obvious joke also being that the word planet ends in NET - and that we are all linked in a single global eco-structure. Planet is also in a lighter tone of black than the others.
Murray has this as Card 4.16. Murray mis-identifies (not unusual) the date here - on the back it is clearly 1968 but the Catalogue Raisonne has it as 1969.

3 NAMES OF BARGES. 1969.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1969
16.5 x 12cm, 2pp. The card has a reproduced drawing by Margot Sandeman of boats and overlaid is a text which lists three names OF barge - Ethel Maud, Lapwing, Spinaway C and the four name FOR barges - Bramble, Titch, Typhoo, Prettypolly. The former are presumably existing names, the latter names that Finlay would like to allocate.
Murray has this as Card 4.18.

Margot Sandeman

POINT-TO-POINT. 1969.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1969
16.5 x 12cm, 2pp. The card has a reproduced drawing by Margot Sandeman of boats and overlaid is a text which lists nine names of boats. The names are all middle class girl's names and Finlay has designated them as an "Homage to John Betjeman" a poet who often muses on unrequited love affairs with pretty girls . (Betjemin reputedly also said on this death bed: "I wish I'd had more sex." but that could be untrue but it does hint at the longing after flesh that these names infer.
POINT-TO-POINT is a form of racing in both horse racing and sailing. It hints at competition, young women on horseback and love as a competition.
Murray has this as Card 4.19.

4 SAILS. 1969.

Dunsyre: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1969
14.4x 13.6cm, 2pp. The card reproduces a sand-blasted glass work by Finlay against a view of small boats in a harbour. The text is made up of poetic texts where boat letter registrations of harbours inspire each phrase with the registrations letters in capitals, the rest lowercase - such as roSY fAr blacK, PatcheD BroKen fAded, Green FainteR LoatH and lucKY fuLl. Photograph by J.w. Lucas. The first photographic card by Finlay and also the first to show a three dimensional work. Murray 4.20.

STANDING POEM 4 (POLE/NIGHT). 1969.

Woodchester: Opening Press, 1969
23 x 46cm folded to 23 x 12cm. (with six vertical folds). Printed at the Glevum Press in an edition of 500 numbered copies. Finlay's fourth Standing Poem, published as Opening Number 3, edited by his then friend John Furnival.
The card is folded several times - if unopened it shows the title words Pole and Night - an indication of steerage via the stars and internally, once standing open, various words associated with STAR are found including lobstar, hound-star, lonestar, sadstar, crossed star, telestar and eveningstar amongst others (one is reminded of David Bowie's final record Blackstar that also plays a similar word game although the two are obviously not related) -the letters C A T C H are also found amongst the words - associating the layout of letters with a net to secure the fishing boat's target of fish.
Very good +. Scarce. Murray 4.17