signed first edition
1981 · Santa Barbara, CA
by Mudd, Harvey; Ken Price (illustrator)
Santa Barbara, CA: Arabesque Books, 1981. First edition. Fine. A Fine copy of this modern art book. One of 150 numbered copies (this 116), housed in the original publisher's slipcase with folding map portfolio, housing the loose folded folio sheets. Complete with the 20 original serigraph prints done by Gary Lichttenstein, two of which are signed by Ken Price (and numbered according to this limitation). Two small booklets lain in: "A Note on the Text and Images" and "A Note on the Printing."
Environmentalism meets poetry in Harvey Mudd's ode to Los Angeles, The Plain of Smokes. In his third book of poetry Mudd engages with Wordsworth, Philip Marlowe, Elizabeth Browning, while traversing a cityscape filled with freeway overpasses and billboards and smog. Accompanying the nostalgic and celebratory verse are prints bursting with the vivacity and kitsch of 1980s. Sculptor and artist Kenn Price, a core member of the LA art scene (alongside Ed Ruscha) that boomed after the 1960s, created the prints. While predominantly black and while images, sudden interruptions of vibrant colors seem to radiate southern California heat. A Contemporary LA Times review describes the book thusly: "The result is a remarkable package, stimulating wherever it is not stunning, a combination of urban sensitivity, accessible imagery and rare bookmaking care.". Fine. (Inventory #: 6587)
Environmentalism meets poetry in Harvey Mudd's ode to Los Angeles, The Plain of Smokes. In his third book of poetry Mudd engages with Wordsworth, Philip Marlowe, Elizabeth Browning, while traversing a cityscape filled with freeway overpasses and billboards and smog. Accompanying the nostalgic and celebratory verse are prints bursting with the vivacity and kitsch of 1980s. Sculptor and artist Kenn Price, a core member of the LA art scene (alongside Ed Ruscha) that boomed after the 1960s, created the prints. While predominantly black and while images, sudden interruptions of vibrant colors seem to radiate southern California heat. A Contemporary LA Times review describes the book thusly: "The result is a remarkable package, stimulating wherever it is not stunning, a combination of urban sensitivity, accessible imagery and rare bookmaking care.". Fine. (Inventory #: 6587)
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