It’s Fine Press Friday!
Seven Poems pairs poetry by Carl Sandburg and original copperplate etchings by American artist Gregory Masurovsky, designed by the then-director of Associated American Artists, Sylvan Cole Jr., in New York in 1970. It was printed in Paris in a series of unbound gatherings by Pierre Jean Mathan in Times New Roman (designed by Stanley Morison and Victor Lardent) in an edition of 190 copies, with our copy being one of 150 copies on Rives BFK paper. The etchings were printed at Atelier Georges LeBlanc.
Three-time Pulitzer Prize winner Carl Sandburg was a prolific voice in American poetry from the early to mid-20th century and enjoyed a level of fame usually associated with Hall of Fame athletes and entertainers due to the popularity of his straightforward, layperson-appropriate poetry. This collection is a compilation of poetry from throughout Sandburg’s career, and Masurovsky’s etchings mirror these sentiments. The images are deceptively simple and uncomplicated, matching their accompanying poetry with surreal imagery, while the unbound nature of the collection invites readers to rearrange the order of the poetry. Readers can gather different meanings by reordering the poetry to their hearts’ delight.
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-Emily, Special Collections Writing Intern