Accession Number2004/2.80.1
TitleAh! This life is so everyday
Artist(s)Patrick CaulfieldArtist NationalityBritish (modern)Object Creation Date1973Medium & Supportscreenprint on paperDimensions 16 1/8 in x 14 3/16 in (41 cm x 36 cm);24 in x 22 1/16 in (61 cm x 56 cm)
Credit LineGift of Jack A. and Noreen RounickSubject matterThe first of twentiy-two images, this print is included in a book of poems by the French poet and art critic Jules Laforgue accompanied by screenprints by British Pop artist Patrick Caulfield. Admired by the artist, Laforgue was a nineteenth-century symbolist poet who was one of the inventors of
vers libre or "free verse" poetry. This new form of poetic verse relied on the phrase as a unit rather than constraining the poetic verse to set numbers of syllables. Laforgue’s poetry became important for later poets like T.S. Eliot because of its blending of observations of everyday life with poetic associations. In this book, Caulfield used the long-dead poets verses as inspiration for twenty-two scenes, created in colorful screenprint. Of these prints, Caulfield noted that “They are not illustrations but complementary images. There are few visually descriptive lines in Laforgue. The images suggest the things I have imagined the poet seeing when he wrote the poem…”
Physical DescriptionThis screenprint is in two colors: black and blue. In an abstract blue form, there are three small abstract depictions of birds flying. The rest of the image is solid black, creating an impression of looking out a curtained window.
Primary Object Classification Print Primary Object Typecolor printCollection AreaModern and ContemporaryRightsIf you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit
http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Keywords
Pop (fine arts styles)
artists' books (books)
birds (motifs)
poetry
portfolios (groups of works)
screen prints
windows