Thursday 19 March 2015

Semina Culture - Wallace Berman & His Circle


Republication of the book that accompanied an exhibition in 2005 about Wallace Berman and his circle of friends, the title comes from his Semina art-book-zine ('57-'64). There are brief biographies of the people involved and examples of their work. Like the Beat scene itself, it looks very much like the early days of many things now taken for granted as 'underground/alternative' culture. Post-war art-making, poetry-writing folk living the flip side of the comfy nuclear family all-American dream/nightmare. Whilst some, such as Dennis Hopper and Allen Ginsberg (featured in Semina) rose to fame in different ways, Berman stayed beneath the radar - too 'alternative' and eclectic in his vision, perhaps, and too busy doing his thing to worry much about 'making it'. 




Untitled, 1963




Mz. Bell, Jean Connor, 1969

Untitled, Bobby Driscoll, 1964

Berman by Edward Hopper

Untitled, Dean Stockwell, 1963 

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