Ici repose
€400.00
*Ici repose* is a characteristic Fata Morgana publication, bringing together the poetic voice of Claude Sernet with a frontispiece and, in the deluxe copies, an original colour etching by Jacques Hérold. It belongs to that discreet yet highly charged category of books in which text and image do more than merely coexist: they deepen one another. The restrained format, issued loose in wrappers with flaps, perfectly suits the Montpellier press aesthetic of the 1960s. Sernet, whose poetry often maintains a tone of inward tension, finds here an especially apt visual counterpart in Hérold. The latter brings with him the legacy of Surrealism, though in a concentrated graphic form. The result is a bibliophilic edition in which modern poetry and artists’ printmaking meet with rare elegance. The Arches copies with signed etching make the book all the more desirable for collectors.
Quantity
Sernet, Claude
Hérold, Jacques
Ici repose
1967 | Montpellier | Fata Morgana
A restrained yet remarkably well-positioned Fata Morgana edition, in which Claude Sernet and Jacques Hérold meet within a bibliophilic object of great sensitivity. The combination of deluxe issue, signed etching, and author’s signature makes this copy especially compelling.
*Ici repose* is a characteristic Fata Morgana publication, bringing together the poetic voice of Claude Sernet with a frontispiece and, in the deluxe copies, an original colour etching by Jacques Hérold. It belongs to that discreet yet highly charged category of books in which text and image do more than merely coexist: they deepen one another. The restrained format, issued loose in wrappers with flaps, perfectly suits the Montpellier press aesthetic of the 1960s. Sernet, whose poetry often maintains a tone of inward tension, finds here an especially apt visual counterpart in Hérold. The latter brings with him the legacy of Surrealism, though in a concentrated graphic form. The result is a bibliophilic edition in which modern poetry and artists’ printmaking meet with rare elegance. The Arches copies with signed etching make the book all the more desirable for collectors.
€400
Condition Report:
In-Depth Study
References & Bibliography
Format
In-8 (Octavo) approx. 20 × 26 cm
Edition Particulars
One of 60 copies among the 80 deluxe Arches issues, with a signed and justified original colour etching; copy signed by the author on the justification page.
Print Run
420
Copy Number
No. 70
Paper
Arches
Inscription
Signed by the Author,Signed by the Illustrator
1
Edition Particulars:
We welcome private inquiries, collaborations with institutions, and acquisition requests. Each message is treated with discretion and respect. We welcome private inquiries, collaborations with institutions, and acquisition requests.
1
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Condition Report:
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Product DETAIL
The title suggests a poetic meditation on rest, absence, memory, and the proximity of death. The volume most likely centres not on narrative development but on a sequence of poems or brief lyrical units in which an inward voice speaks out of loss, silence, or reflection. The book is set not in a concrete narrative environment but in a mental and emotional space. Its core seems to lie in the tension between presence and erasure, between what still speaks and what has already fallen silent. The reader is thus led through a compact, concentrated poetic world in which every formulation carries weight. Jacques Hérold’s frontispiece reinforces that meditative and faintly troubling tone. The overall atmosphere is grave, restrained, and modern, with affinities to postwar lyric poetry and a Surrealist sensibility.
Zürn, Unica · Bellmer, Hans
Sombre printemps. Traduit de l’allemand par Ruth Henry et Robert Valançay.
This large and sumptuous edition of Sombre printemps brings together one of Unica Zürn’s most haunting texts and an original burin frontispiece by Hans Bellmer. Issued by Pierre Belfond as the French translation of Dunkler Frühling, it appeared when Zürn’s name had become inseparable from Bellmer’s. That proximity is not merely biographical here; it shapes the entire aura of the book, in which text and image seem to emerge from the same disturbed inner world. The deluxe issue, printed on vélin d’Arches and accompanied by an additional proof on japon nacré, gives the volume a distinctly bibliophilic status. Bellmer’s signed frontispiece does not simply decorate the text, but stands as a visual counterpoint to Zürn’s claustrophobic prose. The publication is all the more poignant for having followed so closely upon Zürn’s death, as though the book became both tribute and posthumous memorial. Within the Cahiers du Regard, it ranks among the most charged and desirable collaborations. For the collector, this copy unites literary intensity, surrealist resonance, and exceptional material refinement.
Ill Book
€1,400
Bouvier · Bellmer, Hans
Les Mystères du Confessionnal
A rare illustrated book that explores the decadence and sensual darkness of Catholicism. Hans Bellmer's engravings transform Bouvier's texts into a graphic exploration of forbidden desires. This work, situated at the intersection of literature and art, reveals a unique symbiosis between the provocative texts on the dark side of religion and Bellmer's unsettling, surrealist aesthetic. Bellmer's nine original burin engravings unveil a world of physical and psychological ambiguity and attest to his mastery as a printmaker and his fascination with the human form in all its distortions. The book is a testament to the subversive power of the illustrated edition and the way art and literature can reinforce each other to create an unforgettable statement.
Ill Book
€4,000
Tzara, Tristan · Delaunay, Sonia
Le Cœur à gaz
This spectacular bibliophile edition of *Le Cœur à gaz* merges poetry and avant-garde theatre in a visually striking object. Illustrated with twelve lithographs by Sonia Delaunay, including seven full-page plates, it showcases the collaboration between Dadaist poet Tristan Tzara and modernist artist Delaunay. The prints are based on her 1923 costume designs, evoking the radical spirit of the time.
Ill Book
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Garnier, Pierre · Finlay, Ian Hamilton · Gomringer, Eugen · Mon, Franz · Rühm, Gerhard · Kolář, Jiří · Spatola, Adriano · Williams, Emmett · Morellet, François · Kriwit, Ferdinand · Ulrichs, Timm
Führ 4 für vier
*Führ 4 für vier*, published in 1969, is an iconic collaborative work that completely blurs the boundaries between concrete poetry and concrete art. Edited by Jürgen Brenner and Kurt Weidemann, this large-format book-object brings together an international selection of the most important avant-garde voices of the 1960s. The work is not merely an anthology but a tactile and visual experiment where transparent sheets, serigraphs, and typographic compositions overlap. Featuring contributions from major figures such as Ian Hamilton Finlay, Eugen Gomringer, and François Morellet, it functions as a total work of art questioning the structural essence of language and form. The edition was strictly limited, and each copy was personally signed by all participating artists, confirming its status as a historical document. For the collector of concrete art and conceptual publications, this is an absolute cornerstone. Its physical execution as a blockbook with silver accents reflects the machine-like and minimalist aesthetics of the era.
