Tilt: The Black-Flagged Streets
by Campbell, Ken
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Fine in Fine Slipcase
- Seller
-
Portland, Maine, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
'Tilt' was the widest-cast net so far, bringing the most disparate things together. I wrote a poem called 'Storm Song' in Canada in 1981, after listening to a sung account of a maritime disaster on one of the Great Lakes (The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, I think it was). I also had in mind the vertiginous steps of flagstones up to the old cathedral at Whitby and the black flag of anarchy and disturbance. I had found some old mounted lino blocks which were random-sized squares, black flags of different sizes, and some Albertus type, rather beaten up.
While in Zürich I walked into the Museum Rietberg and up to a statue of Shiva, with limbs hanging out in funny angles, and lightning in his/her hair, all in a big wheel of fire. I can remember the statue saying to me, 'I'm coming into your book.' I thought, what the hell has Shiva got to do with this book about a 'Storm Song' and the Whitby steps and black flags? And I thought, well, I'll do as I'm told, as ever. The following morning at breakfast I drew the figure of Shiva, with breasts, and realised it was a puppet that I was going to dismantle. I made a puppet out of zinc pieces; it is disassembled from the right-hand page by repeatedly having a piece of its body nominated by a decorative silver star. Each piece is removed and replaced on the left-hand page. Alongside this cycle of nomination, removal and redisposition, the poem accumulates line by line. In this way Shiva is removed from the wheel of fire of the material world on the right, and repositioned and rebuilt in a calmer place on the left.
Each new line of the poem is revealed between black flags, the flags being arranged to suit the disposition of the line that they enclose. A decorative border is used to re-affirm the rectilinear nature of the page to counter what I did to the cover, which was to make it tilted and disturbed.
A line in the poem refers to 'the kingly fisher of men'. A Christ or Osiris figure perhaps, but I discovered that Halcyon, the kingfisher, mythically made its nest on stormy waters, thus calming them. This seemed to complete the circle proposed by the poem.
I also discovered, as an act of necessity, an odd process which I have called offset letterpress. To enable a previously printed coloured element to show better through a recently-applied dark solid, I immediately ran the wet page through the press again after having wiped the solid plate clean. This removed ink from where it sat on the underlying image but not from where it was sitting in the virgin paper.
The statue of Shiva that spoke to me had, unbeknownst to me at the time, been a childhood obsession of our Zurich hostess. The statue in the Museum Rietberg was accompanied by a dancing girl, who appears at each end of this book." Minimal shelf/edge wear to slipcase, else tight, bright, and unmarred. Quarterbound, black cloth spine, printed paper boards, non-square boards and square textblock; slipcase matches boards. 8vo. np [62pp]. Illus. (color plates). Numbered limited edition of 80, this being VI of VI [AP copies. Signed by the artist. Inscribed to family member in 2008].
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Details
- Bookseller
- Lux Mentis, Booksellers (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 9565
- Title
- Tilt: The Black-Flagged Streets
- Author
- Campbell, Ken
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine in Fine Slipcase
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- Limited Edition
- Publisher
- Ken Campbell
- Place of Publication
- London
- Date Published
- 1988
- Weight
- 0.00 lbs
Terms of Sale
Lux Mentis, Booksellers
U.S. postage is $6.50 for the 1st title/volume and $2.00 for each additional title/volume and are sent Media Mail, Insured (except for sets and oversized items, which are calculated on a per order basis). Express mail, overseas rates and special handling are available on request. Payment is expected in advance by all but institutional buyers unless arrangements are made in advance. All orders are shipped via the United States Post Office or FedEx unless otherwise requested. Maine residents must add 5.5% sales tax unless a resale or tax exemption certificate is sent. Items are returnable within 10 days if not as described for full refund. Any other return is handled on a case by case basis, our goal being the complete satisfaction of all parties involved. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact us at http://www.luxmentis.com.
About the Seller
Lux Mentis, Booksellers
About Lux Mentis, Booksellers
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Plate
- Full page illustration or photograph. Plates are printed separately from the text of the book, and bound in at production. I.e.,...
- Inscribed
- When a book is described as being inscribed, it indicates that a short note written by the author or a previous owner has been...
- 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....
- Tight
- Used to mean that the binding of a book has not been overly loosened by frequent use.
- Offset
- A technique of printing where the inked image or text is ...
- New
- A new book is a book previously not circulated to a buyer. Although a new book is typically free of any faults or defects, "new"...
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...