Letterpress on paper
Tate Collection
Works with images
General Collection
Other Men’s Flowers
Collection
<a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/stuart-brisley-813" aria-label="More by Stuart Brisley" data-gtm-name="header_link_artist" data-gtm-destination="page--artist">Stuart Brisley</a>
Presented by Charles Booth-Clibborn in memory of Joshua Compston 1997
abstraction
non-representational
text
<p><i>Other Men's Flowers</i> is a portfolio of text-based prints by fifteen London artists curated by Joshua Compston (1970-96). It was printed by Thomas Shaw and Simon Redington and published by Charles Booth-Clibborn under his imprint, The Paragon Press. Compston took the title, <i>Other Men's Flowers</i>, from an anthology of wartime poetry compiled by Field-Marshal Viscount Wavell (1883-1950) of the same title (published 1944). Wavell had derived the phrase from a well-known quotation attributed to French moralist Montaigne (Michel Eyquem de Montaigne, 1533-92), 'I have gathered a posie of other men's flowers and nothing but the thread which binds them is my own' (quoted in Cooper, p.115). Montaigne's original sentence, published in his <i>Essais</i> (<i>Essays</i>) in 1580, provided an apparently modest disclaimer, anticipating criticism of the originality of his ideas. For Compston, it provided an apt poetic metaphor for the role of the curator. <i>Other Men's Flowers </i>was launched at a party on 23 June 1994 in a derelict sawmill close to Hoxton Square, East London, a centre for young British artists at that time. Compston wrote in his press release: The project has produced an exciting and innovative publication that intrinsically embodies the elegant but underused printing technique of letterpress … that has allowed and encouraged many hitherto solely image-based artists an opportunity to operate within the realms of 'copy writing', providing them with a platform from which to sound off any phrase, slang discovery, polemical essay or related literary form … the participants produced works that responded to the given brief of a letterpress printed text piece. (Quoted in Cooper, p.116.) Letterpress is a form of relief printing in which paper is pressed, by either a large flat plate or rollers, onto previously inked type. In the event, nine of the fifteen participants adhered to Compston's letterpress brief. Of the remaining six, four produced screenprint images, one a lithograph and one a monotype. The individual artists used different types of paper, all of the same size, some working in landscape and others in portrait format. The portfolio was produced in two slightly different editions. The 'book' edition, of one hundred copies plus twenty artist's proofs, consists of fifteen prints, three title pages and a colophon page signed by all the artists, presented in a box. Tate's copy is number twelve in this edition. The 'portfolio' edition of fifty, plus twenty artist's proofs, differs only in that the prints are individually signed. The three title pages were designed by Compston and contain the following: the title words in large blue capitals, the words 'An Introduction to Other Men's Flowers' above a drawing of a pointing hand in the style of an Edwardian cartoon, the words 'Please Keep Out/ Foot &amp; Mouth Precautions' in large red capitals copied from a National Union of Farmers poster of the 1960s. The colophon page, on which the artists, curator, printers and publishers are named and the editions described, bears the circled logo 'OMF' in red. This logo is a typical Compston mechanism and imitates his personal 'FN' (Factual Nonsense) logo. Compston set up Factual Nonsense, his gallery and project space, in Shoreditch, London in October 1992, shortly after graduating in art history from the Courtauld Institute in London. Aiming to establish a cultural revolution of some kind, he intended his space to be 'a forum for all elements disenchanted with the laxity and ennui of current thinking' (quoted in Cooper, pp.39-42). He befriended many members of the group of young British artists (or yBas) whose work was just coming to prominence in London at that time. Between 1993 and his tragically premature death in 1996 at the age of twenty-five, he organised exhibitions and performative day events in Hoxton Square, as well as commissioning the pages of <i>Other Men's Flowers</i> from his artist friends.</p>
paper print letterpress
[no title]
image: 612 × 470 mm
Presented by Charles Booth-Clibborn in memory of Joshua Compston 1997
<p><i>Other Men's Flowers</i> is a <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/p/portfolio" title="Glossary definition for 'Portfolio'"><span>portfolio</span></a> of text-based <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/p/print" title="Glossary definition for 'Print'"><span>prints</span></a> by fifteen London artists curated by Joshua Compston (1970-96). It was printed by Thomas Shaw and Simon Redington and published by Charles Booth-Clibborn under his imprint, The Paragon Press. Compston took the title, <i>Other Men's Flowers</i>, from an anthology of wartime poetry compiled by Field-Marshal Viscount Wavell (1883-1950) of the same title (published 1944). Wavell had derived the phrase from a well-known quotation attributed to French moralist Montaigne (Michel Eyquem de Montaigne, 1533-92), 'I have gathered a posie of other men's flowers and nothing but the thread which binds them is my own' (quoted in Cooper, p.115). Montaigne's original sentence, published in his <i>Essais</i> (<i>Essays</i>) in 1580, provided an apparently modest disclaimer, anticipating criticism of the originality of his ideas. For Compston, it provided an apt poetic metaphor for the role of the curator. <i>Other Men's Flowers </i>was launched at a party on 23 June 1994 in a derelict sawmill close to Hoxton Square, East London, a centre for <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/y/young-british-artists-yba" title="Glossary definition for 'Young British Artists (YBA)'"><span>young British artists</span></a> at that time. Compston wrote in his press release: 

</p><p>The project has produced an exciting and innovative publication that intrinsically embodies the elegant but underused printing technique of letterpress  that has allowed and encouraged many hitherto solely image-based artists an opportunity to operate within the realms of 'copy writing', providing them with a platform from which to sound off any phrase, slang discovery, polemical essay or related literary form  the participants produced works that responded to the given brief of a letterpress printed text piece. (Quoted in Cooper, p.116.)

</p><p>Letterpress is a form of relief printing in which <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/p/paper" title="Glossary definition for 'Paper'"><span>paper</span></a> is pressed, by either a large flat plate or rollers, onto previously inked type. In the event, nine of the fifteen participants adhered  to Compston's letterpress brief. Of the remaining six, four produced <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/s/screenprint" title="Glossary definition for 'Screenprint'"><span>screenprint</span></a> images, one a <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/l/lithography" title="Glossary definition for 'Lithography'"><span>lithograph</span></a> and one a <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/m/monotype" title="Glossary definition for 'Monotype'"><span>monotype</span></a>. The individual artists used different types of paper, all of the same size, some working in landscape and others in portrait format. The portfolio was produced in two slightly different <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/e/edition" title="Glossary definition for 'Edition'"><span>editions</span></a>. The 'book' edition, of one hundred copies plus twenty artist's proofs, consists of fifteen prints, three title pages and a colophon page signed by all the artists, presented in a box. Tate's copy is number twelve in this edition. The 'portfolio' edition of fifty, plus twenty artist's proofs, differs only in that the prints are individually signed. The three title pages were designed by Compston and contain the following: the title words in large blue capitals, the words 'An Introduction to Other Men's Flowers' above a <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/d/drawing" title="Glossary definition for 'Drawing'"><span>drawing</span></a> of a pointing hand in the style of an Edwardian cartoon, the words 'Please Keep Out/ Foot &amp; Mouth Precautions' in large red capitals copied from a National Union of Farmers poster of the 1960s. The colophon page, on which the artists, curator, printers and publishers are named and the editions described, bears the circled logo 'OMF' in red. This logo is a typical Compston mechanism and imitates his personal 'FN' (Factual Nonsense) logo. 

</p><p>Compston set up Factual Nonsense, his gallery and project space, in Shoreditch, London in October 1992, shortly after graduating in art history from the Courtauld Institute in London. Aiming to establish a cultural revolution of some kind, he intended his space to be 'a forum for all elements disenchanted with the laxity and ennui of current thinking' (quoted in Cooper, pp.39-42). He befriended many members of the group of young British artists (or yBas) whose work was just coming to prominence in London at that time. Between 1993 and his tragically premature death in 1996 at the age of twenty-five, he organised exhibitions and <a class="glossarylinktopopup" data-gtm-destination="article-page" data-gtm-name="body_text_link" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/learn/online-resources/glossary/p/performance-art" title="Glossary definition for 'Performance art'"><span>performative</span></a> day events in Hoxton Square, as well as commissioning the pages of <i>Other Men's Flowers</i> from his artist friends. <br/> <br/>Stuart Brisley's contribution was printed by letterpress in portrait orientation on thick, tan-coloured paper. It is a column of apparently random clusters of numbers separated by punctuation marks (* ; , . : ' ( ) - ) and the letters 'np' or, occasionally, 'npl, or 'nc'. Below the column, the Marxist slogan 'Working men of all countries, unite!' appears in red type. All the script has the appearance of having been executed on an old-fashioned manual typewriter, in keeping with the somewhat old-fashioned revolutionary resonances of the political sentiment. (German economic and political philosopher Karl Marx, 1818-83, and his collaborator Frederick Engels, 1820-95, wrote <i>The Communist Manifesto</i>, from which such slogans originate, in 1848. The 'International Working Men's Association' was founded in London in 1864.) Stuart Brisley has been making performance-related work with a strongly left-wing political slant since the 1970s.

</p><p><b>Further reading:<br/></b>Jeremy Cooper, <i>no FuN without U: the art of Factual Nonsense</i>, London 2000, pp.89, 114-21 and 221<br/><i>Stuart Brisley: Black</i>, exhibition catalogue, South London Gallery, London 1996<br/><i>Stuart Brisley: A Retrospective</i>, exhibition catalogue, Institute of Contemporary Arts, London 1981

</p><p>Elizabeth Manchester<br/>June 2002<br/></p>
Summary
2005-09-15T00:00:00
summary
SHORT_TEXT
abstraction non-representational text