Originally published by Black Sparrow Press in 1975, and long out of print, The Vermont Notebook combines the writing of the American master John Ashbery with the ink drawings of Joe Brainard (1942-1994). This is Ashbery at his wacky best, from long lists that seem to make some sense, to short lists that seem to make no sense, to made-up diary entries. Here we find Joe Brainard's version of Americana. Combined, there is a wonderful innocence to this book that is found in the work of both of these artists. Joe Brainard's popularity is soaring to new heights as the traveling retrospective of his career captivates museum-goers throughout the United States, and this publication will be a valuable addition to the available publications of his work.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
"Did I know you, split-levels? What it's like to inhabit your dangerous divided spaces with views of celery plantations?" Long listed on the pages dedicated to "other books by John Ashbery" but largely unobtainable, The Vermont Notebook, the poet's wonderful 1975 collaboration with artist Joe Brainard (1942-1994), is finally seeing accessible print. Nearly 50 page-sized pen-and-ink drawings are matched with diary-like prose pieces, pairings that remain offhandedly perfect.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
About the Author
Joe Brainard grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and moved to New York at the age of 20 in 1961. A writer and visual artist, he is associated with the New York School poets, many of whom collaborated with him. His early paintings and collages show the influences of Jasper Johns, Andy Warhol, and Joseph Cornell, but his work soon distinguished itself with its combination of lyricism, wit, and congeniality. He died in 1994. A retrospective of his work organized by the Berkeley Art Museum will be on tour in the United States through 2002.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ashbery and Brainard,
By Robin Friedman (Washington, D.C. United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER) (VINE VOICE) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Vermont Notebook, The (Paperback)
In 1975, the American poet John Ashbery published "Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror." This difficult book established Ashbery's reputation as a major American poet. The book received the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Pulitzer Prize.
Ashbery published another book in 1975 which did not receive any accolades. This was a short book, "The Vermont Notebook" published with drawings by the American artist, Joe Brainard (1942 -- 1994) who had been born in Tulsa but had long called New England home. "The Vermont Notebook" was published by Joe Martin and Black Sparrow Press -- Martin would achieve fame as the publisher of Charles Bukowski -- although portions of the book had appeared earlier in little magazines. "The Vermont Notebook" quickly became an obscurity in the stream of Ashbery's poetry. In 2001, this little book was republished in the edition I am reviewing here. In 2008, "The Vermont Notebook" was included in the Library of America's collection of Ashbery's collected poems, 1956 -- 1987, guaranteeing the work's accessibility for future readers. The collaboration between Ashbery and Brainard is pure delight. Ashbery wrote "The Vermont Notebook" while taking a bus trip through New England. The book is written in a free-flow spontaneous style, a type of "spontaneous prose" that Jack Kerouac and other beat writers had attempted some years earlier. The book also has elements of a collage as Ashbery lifed passages and paragraphs from earlier writings by himself and by others. The several paragraphs at the end of the book, for example, which discuss conservation efforts at the Marine Ecology Station in Marco, Maine, are taken from an article titled "Fishing improves at Marco." The book flits from one subject to another with lightness, wit, and free association. It begins with a simple reference to "The climate, the cities, the houses, the streets, the stores, lights,people." It then proceeds with increasingly long lists of places, scenes, businesses, people, games, crimes, and other things and activities that Ashbery loosely associates with New England. It is Walt Whitman but with an airy touch. This is followed by musings of different subjects, with no rigorously logical order, from Ashbery comparing himself to "a dump", to ruminations on Charles Ives, to travel, nature, small towns, shopping malls,love, sex, a poodle parlor, nature, suburbia, cigarettes, postcards to friends and much else. The work includes a short poem called "The Fairies Song" which captures much of the feel of the volume. It concludes: "We dance on hills above the wind And leave our footsteps there behind. We raise their tomatoes. The clear water in the chipped basin reflects it all: A spoiled life, alive, and streaming with light." Joe Brainard's drawings, which appear on almost every page are the perfect complement to Asbery's musings. In their simple and frequently prosaic character, Brainard offers an earthy commentary on Ashbery's fancy. Brainard gives the reader simple rural scenes, the sun and the rain, farms, items of old clothes, the poodle, a naked man, lovers kissing. Besides flowers, fish, fishermen, and farms, Brainard offers a drawing of a commode and of the door to a men's room. Brainard's drawings and Ashbery's text intertwine to create a work of whimsy and gaiety. Many readers have difficulty with Ashbery's "Self-Portrait" and the other volumes of poetry for which he is famous. But it is difficult to avoid being enchanted by this little, formerly obscure little book. In its deftness and lightness of touch, together with Brainard's drawings, this book is an accessible introduction to Ashbery and his art, even for readers who are puzzled by the bulk of his other poetry. Robin Friedman
3.0 out of 5 stars
Slight,
By
This review is from: Vermont Notebook, The (Paperback)
I'm not sure the other reviewer quite conveys this book's split personality. Like two musicians riffing independently (but within earshot), sweet and dry, Brainard's plain yet lyrical images in their very artlessness both emphasize and soften the dry Ashberian tang of this distinctly unidyllic text, that includes penises, boogers, chainstores' ruthless discounting practices, pop songs 'of the day' and much bland maundering. Sure, they had a good holiday, but it's the art that makes it and it's because of the pictures I'm not parting with my Black Sparrow copy (for Friends of Joe, they're still available, folks!); the Library of America simply doesn't do them justice
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