Untitled Original Manuscript Illustrated Artist's Book
by [Anonymous] "A.J
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Near fine.
- Seller
-
Silver Spring, Maryland, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
n.p.: n.p., 1970. Near fine.. Enigmatic and disquieting collection of six short stories and one 90-page novella, neatly and distinctively handwritten and illustrated in brown ink. The material veers in tone from the parodic to the surreal to the philosophically melancholic; the style incorporates a recondite vocabulary ("the pyral tarantism of being in the world") and a single consistent, insistent voice, alternating long unpunctuated Joycean streams of frantic consciousness with brief and airless sentence fragments. A perpetual undercurrent of violent sexuality surfaces as much in the settings and scenery as in the events: a car crash; a game of human chess; a blazing furnace; a slaughterhouse. The table of contents gives titles for each work, but no author's name; the bookplate, with initials "A. J.," offer the only clue to the item's creator or owner.
The authorial narration steps out of its queasy dreamtime now and then to comment on itself ("[I]t would appear that this is the whim of the authors") or to focus on a concrete and precisely dated image: "Week-end Traffic" catalogs automobile makes and models in obsessive, parodic, almost Ballardian detail - a 1931 Alfa-Romeo; a '28 Lombard, a Triumph Scorpion - and characters offer each other Passing Cloud cigarettes. But for the most part, settings are as hard to place as the book itself. Character names are almost, but not quite, real: Nish, Rogoze, Valetta, Fedor, Shad.
Illustrated with line drawings in brown pen (presumably also by the writer), with occasional accents in black, and brief captions taken from the scenes they illustrate. The execution is skilled but careful, often quoting other artwork (as in the illustration to the final story, "Communication," whose subject is the Breughel painting Dulle Griet; we see a copy of Brueghel's scene through the latticework of a window). Other illustrations appear to be carefully composed from copies or multiple tracings, giving something of the effect of a Max Ernst collage - particularly the images of a horse-headed woman and a lion-headed man, perhaps an intentional quotation from Une Semaine de Bonte. A Piranesi-esque interior gives way to a crowned woman in 20th century corset and garter belt: the Queen.
Although a precise date cannot be given, this book bears the stamp of a London bindery which operated as Bailey Bros. until a name-change in the 1970s, and references in the text place its composition after the 1930s; we estimate the date of production to be circa the late 1960s to early 1970s - though its private library feel perhaps hints at a possible earlier creation.
Bizarre and unsettling, yet also the product of an original voice. In short: a singular artist's book of unique vision. Original red morocco, with raised bands and decorative gilt stamping to spine. Top edge gilt. Black and gold patterned endpapers. 205 pages. Bookplate taped to ffep; brown geometric design with designer [?] initials ACW at lower right and "Ex Libris AJ". Gilt stamping to lower edge of back cover below paste-down: "BOUND BY BAILEY BROS. LTD." Slight chipping to leather at inside rear hinge. Light edgewear and rubbing.
The authorial narration steps out of its queasy dreamtime now and then to comment on itself ("[I]t would appear that this is the whim of the authors") or to focus on a concrete and precisely dated image: "Week-end Traffic" catalogs automobile makes and models in obsessive, parodic, almost Ballardian detail - a 1931 Alfa-Romeo; a '28 Lombard, a Triumph Scorpion - and characters offer each other Passing Cloud cigarettes. But for the most part, settings are as hard to place as the book itself. Character names are almost, but not quite, real: Nish, Rogoze, Valetta, Fedor, Shad.
Illustrated with line drawings in brown pen (presumably also by the writer), with occasional accents in black, and brief captions taken from the scenes they illustrate. The execution is skilled but careful, often quoting other artwork (as in the illustration to the final story, "Communication," whose subject is the Breughel painting Dulle Griet; we see a copy of Brueghel's scene through the latticework of a window). Other illustrations appear to be carefully composed from copies or multiple tracings, giving something of the effect of a Max Ernst collage - particularly the images of a horse-headed woman and a lion-headed man, perhaps an intentional quotation from Une Semaine de Bonte. A Piranesi-esque interior gives way to a crowned woman in 20th century corset and garter belt: the Queen.
Although a precise date cannot be given, this book bears the stamp of a London bindery which operated as Bailey Bros. until a name-change in the 1970s, and references in the text place its composition after the 1930s; we estimate the date of production to be circa the late 1960s to early 1970s - though its private library feel perhaps hints at a possible earlier creation.
Bizarre and unsettling, yet also the product of an original voice. In short: a singular artist's book of unique vision. Original red morocco, with raised bands and decorative gilt stamping to spine. Top edge gilt. Black and gold patterned endpapers. 205 pages. Bookplate taped to ffep; brown geometric design with designer [?] initials ACW at lower right and "Ex Libris AJ". Gilt stamping to lower edge of back cover below paste-down: "BOUND BY BAILEY BROS. LTD." Slight chipping to leather at inside rear hinge. Light edgewear and rubbing.
Reviews
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Bookseller
- Brian Cassidy Bookseller at Type Punch Matrix (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 43982
- Title
- Untitled Original Manuscript Illustrated Artist's Book
- Author
- [Anonymous] "A.J
- Book Condition
- Used - Near fine.
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- n.p.
- Place of Publication
- n.p.
- Date Published
- 1970
Terms of Sale
Brian Cassidy Bookseller at Type Punch Matrix
Payment by check or money order (made out to "Type Punch Matrix"), VISA, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, Paypal. All books subject to prior sale. New customers are asked to prepay. Libraries, institutions, and established customers and dealers may be invoiced. Reciprocal trade courtesies.
About the Seller
Brian Cassidy Bookseller at Type Punch Matrix
Biblio member since 2004
Silver Spring, Maryland
About Brian Cassidy Bookseller at Type Punch Matrix
Brian Cassidy Bookseller is the counterculture department of Type Punch Matrix, a rare book firm founded in 2019 by Rebecca Romney and Brian Cassidy. BCB @ TPM specializes in the avant garde in all its various guises, including: The Beats; artists' books; poetry; small journals and magazines (especially those associated with the Mimeo Revolution); modern and contemprary art; photography; music; archives and appraisals; as well as vernacular, folk, and outsider books of all kinds. We are always looking to purchase books within my areas of interest, from single titles to collections. Please inquire. We are open by appointment and are easily accessible by public transit.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Rubbing
- Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.
- Bookplate
- Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
- Top Edge Gilt
- Top edge gilt refers to the practice of applying gold or a gold-like finish to the top of the text block (the edges the pages...
- Chipping
- A defect in which small pieces are missing from the edges; fraying or small pieces of paper missing the edge of a paperback, or...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Hinge
- The portion of the book closest to the spine that allows the book to be opened and closed.
- Raised Band(s)
- Raised bands refer to the ridges that protrude slightly from the spine on leather bound books. The bands are created in the...
- Morocco
- Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...