Urn (Garden Poem)

Ian Hamilton Finlay

DESCRIPTION

Urn (Garden Poem) by Ian Hamilton Finlay (1925-2006) is a lithograph in bright green with the text 'urn', 'umn', and 'col' repeated vertically, which reads directly 'urn' and 'column' as the second word is split to fit the uniformity of the black text. This uses the word 'column' to directly form into a column of black text with the word. 

This lithograph is part of his 'Garden Proposals' series which focused on neoclassical garden design and combining poetry via text, art, and landscapes altogether. Finlay was a well known writer, so his focus on text here is common throughout his work and his art side comes across in the uniform design that the text follows as it falls down the page. 

DETAILS
  • Artist

    Ian Hamilton Finlay

  • Date

    1986

  • Medium

    Lithograph

  • Object number

    3249

  • Dimensions unframed

    21.8 × 8.1 cm

  • Dimensions framed

    88.5 × 29.5 × 3.5 cm

  • Copyright

    © Courtesy of the Estate of Ian Hamilton Finlay

ARTIST PROFILE

Ian Hamilton Finlay CBE, 1925-2006

Although he studied at Glasgow School of Art, Finlay’s first creative success was as a writer. His discovery of concrete poetry in the 1960s was a major breakthrough in his practice and he began to produce booklets, posters, and wall-mounted works combining text and form. Major works of conceptual sculpture using text were produced by craftsmen to his specifications. Drawing on ideas from classical philosophy and the French Revolution, he began to exhibit widely and was shortlisted for the Turner Prize in 1985. His garden at Little Sparta in the Pentland Hills, begun in 1966 and now looked after by a trust, is considered to be the finest manifestation of his work.