An essential characteristic of concrete poetry is that it is created using letters (words/phrases) in conjunction with the typographical space surrounding them. In contrast, visual poetry is a fusion of typography and graphics, with language elements supplemented by “externalinguistic” elements such as photos, drawings, objects, and actions. This shift towards materials used by poets took place earlier in the Netherlands – starting in 1968 with Hans Clavin – compared to many other countries.
Pier van Dijk and Robert Joseph
(excerpt from “Actions 1979”)
After 1975, the activities of most visual poets began to decline. An exception to this were the artist Robert Joseph and poet/artist Pier van Dijk, who, being more cautious in their poetic development, were equally active until the early 1980s. For them, poetry evolved into “total poetry”, a fusion of auditory and visual poetry.
Van Dijk has been writing poetry since 1961, painting since 1963, and creating and performing visual poems since 1971. He has referred to his work as “total art” since 1979. Joseph has been creating concrete poetry since 1966 and visual poetry since 1967. In 1971, the collection “Zie-po-eie (26 visual poems 1965-1970)” was released by De Tafelronde Antwerp (print run: 250). This collection consists of 23 concrete poems, two of which feature objects (first published in 1967 and 1969), and a photographic documentation of a “action poem”. In 1972, the publication “The visual triangle” was released, exploring the relationship between words, reality, and images in his poems. Joseph has referred to his work as total poetry since 1976: his aim is to encapsulate the “totality” of life.
www.ftn-books.com has npw the scarce Kunmstcentrum Badhuis catalog from 1980 available.
