19 Jun POETS POEMS NO. 1. 2000. THOMAS A CLARK….
Belper: Aggie Weston's Editions, 2000
21 x 15cms, 16pp, plus cards covers. An anthology of poetry chosen by Clark which includes Finlay's A LITTLE POEM TO PUT YOUR EYES TO SLEEP LITTLE.:
A
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21 Nov SOME DIAGONAL LINES TO BRIGHTEN A DESIGNATED SPACE. 2015.
Glasgow: Wax366, 2015
21.3 x 15cm, printed yellow outer folder content of two folded posters (both open to 42 x 60cm with diagonal stripes in green and yellow. A joint work with the concrete poet Clark which references the early work of Daniel Buren and Fred Sandback. VG+. Scarce.
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26 Jul SOME DIAGONAL LINES. 2015.
Pittenweem: Cairn, n.d. (2015)
10.5 x 15cm, 2pp, typographic announcement card for a joint show between Bellingham and Thomas A. Clark where the space was covered in coloured diagonal lines. VG+.
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15 Mar CERTAIN TREES. 2006
London: V&A Museum, 2006
9. 2 x 9.2cm, 2pp ornate die cut announcement on thick card for an exhibition displaying works from a wide range of concrete and visual poets including David Bellingham, Thomas and Laurie Clark, Simon Cutts, Ian Hamilton Finlay., Robert Lax, Stuart Mills and others, The card is a recreation of the cover of the 1973 book of the same title designed by Simon Cutts - which is inspired by Malevich and has red, blue plus deliberate crease lines and tied cotton. One tiny mark bottom right else VG.
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19 Aug THE BLUE SAIL. 2002.
Glasgow: WAX366, 2002
19.7 x 13cm, 64pp plus card covers. An anthology of poems by Finlay edited by Thomas A. Clark and published by David Bellingham. The works are often more traditional in format although some are concrete. VG+.
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14 Nov EXCHANGES. 1999.
Little Sparta: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1999
14.2 x 9cm, 16pp, plus oversize white card covers and floral decorated dust jacket with tipped on title label. Content of six "exchange" poems - three by Thomas A. Clark and three by Finlay where the structure is of a two line poetic phrase where the swapping of the adjectives or a noun alters the meaning in subtle manners. This:
the centuries of the oak/the sermon in the stone
becomes
the centuries of the stone/the sermon in the oak
Each is illustrated by a small painting by Laurie Clark. VG+.
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16 Aug A HIRTENLIED. 1999.
Magdeburg: Bundesgartenschau/Wild Hawthorn Press, 1999
18.5 x 17.8 (folded size), gate-fold artist's card (with double fold sides) with a drawing of a sheep's fold by Laurie Clark printed brown on light beige card stock. A proposal for a former military training ground in Germany, Finlay proposes a stone built old fashioned shipfold with gate that visitors are welcome to enter. On the stone is a title of a Salmuel Palmer etching "Folding the last sheep" (a text used by both Finlay and more often by Thomas A. Clark) and on the gate are the carved words :SHepherd's song"). The text is also found in German on the card. This is both artist's card and proposal but we have placed it (as has the Press) in the latter category). VG+.
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26 Feb 5 X 1. 1999.
Barcelona: Joan Miro Foundation, 1999
16 x 11cm, 48pp, with black boards and tipped on title label. This book accompanied the exhibition "Variations on Several Themes' and is identified often as an exhibition catalogue but this is incorrect - it is an artist's book in itself.
The first pages of the publication have a new concrete poem which is based on Christina Rossetti's devotional works, and Eugen Gomringer's Constellation form of visual poetry. The words boat, net, wind, fire, vine, flock, sun, lamb are recombined in different placings to create five different imagined scenes.
At the back of the book there is an essay by Thomas A. Clark in English who points out that the structure of the poem is from Gromringer's 5 mal 1 konstellation' and the words used are from Rossetti's "Letter and SPirit". That essay is better than I can write here so we shall leave this here although we will point out that in the late 90s religion as a subject begins to be more apparent in Finlay's work.
We have re-classified this book as an artist's book and not just a catalogue
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01 Jul FOLDS. 1998. TWO CARDS IN ENVELOPE.
Little Sparta: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1998
10 x 6.5cm, envelope with printed label content of two 3.5 x 5cm 1pp folded cards.
The first card created by Thomas A Clark and Laurie Clark reads "FOLDING THE LAST LAMB" meaning the animals have been placed in a pen. The second card by Finlay reads FOLDING THE LAST SAIL" which has a double meaning of storing a sail and/or folding a sail around a dead sailor as a form of coffin before burial at sea.Both cards are folded - adding a physicality to the metaphors by altering the cards themselves.
This is the second version of Finlay's card - previously published by the Wild Hawthorn Press in 1997 in a larger size and alone but with an acknowledgement to the Clarks. This version has both the original card and its adaption.VG+.
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21 Jul ANTHOLOGY. 1997. ONE OF ONLY 200 COPIES.
Edinburgh: Morning Star, 1997
14 x 10.5cm, blue card slipcase content of a 13.5 x 10cm, 28pp plus boards. Artist's book consisting of a number of contributions by Finlay, Harry Gilonis, Jackson Mac Low, Ian Stephen, Graham Rich, Haans Waanders, Simon Cutts, Thomas A. Clark, Pavel Buchler, David Bellingham, Richard Tuttle, Zoe Irvine, Alex Finlay, Simon Patterson, and Lawrence Weiner as well as others. One of only 200 printed. VG+.
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04 Mar 2 CONSTELLATIONS FOR A COLUMN, THE GYLE. 1994. WITH BOOKMARK.
Little Sparta: Wild Hawthorn Press, 1994
10 x 7.4cm, 8pp plus wrappers and printed dustjacket. Artist's book with a poem by Finlay and a quote from Virgil's Aeneid about sailing which regards ships as "nymphs of ocean".:
"ships
nymphs
nymphs
ships
.
bark
barque
barque
bark
VG+.
JOINT (LAID IN):
10 x 4.5cm, 2pp explanatory card ('bookmark") by Thomas A. Clark which points to the transformation of boat into wood and wood into boat as well as the classical tropes of change in gods and humans. VG+.
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23 Oct POIESIS. 1992.
Edinburgh: Fruitmarket Gallery, 1992
21 x 15cm, 8pp (single folded sheet). The programme and small poster for a group exhibition of works by a range of artists including Finlay. While not being specific to concrete and visual poetry the events (which included talks, films and workshops as well as the exhibition) - a large number of those exhibited worked in that field.
Poiesis as we all know is a definition of poetry as "anything supremely harmonious or satisfying" - which to be fair describes much of Finlay's work and motivation and is almost a definition of neo-classicism. Minor wear at folds else VG..
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