Wallace Berman

On the 40th anniversary of the artist's death at age 50, this retrospective volume surveys the entire oeuvre of Wallace Berman (1926-76) from the late 1940s until 1976. Berman intersected with several intriguing cultural moments, starting with his first Los Angeles solo show in 1957 at Ed Kienholz and Walter Hopps' Ferus Gallery. He also participated in an important 1966 group exhibition in London at the legendary Robert Fraser Gallery, whose other artists included Richard Hamilton, Bruce Conner and Peter Blake--who put Berman's face among the notable crowd in his cover for the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."

"Speaking in Tongues presents a unique account of how language has been employed in the theatre, not simply as a means of communication but also as a stylistic and formal device, and for a number of cultural and political operations. The use of multiple languages in the contemporary theatre is in part a reflection of a more globalized culture, but it also calls attention to how the mixing of language has always been an important part of the functioning of theatre." "The book begins by investigating various "levels" of language - high and low style, prose and poetry - and the ways in which these have been used historically to mark social positions and relationships. It next considers some of the political and historical implications of dialogue theatre, as well as theatre that literally employs several languages, from classical Greek examples to the postmodern era. Carlson treats with special attention the theatre of the postcolonial world, and especially the triangulation of the local language, the national language, and the colonial language, drawing on examples of theatre in the Caribbean, Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Finally, Carlson considers the layering of languages in the theatre, such as the use of supertitles or simultaneous signing." "Speaking in Tongues draws important social and political conclusions about the role of language in cultural power, making a vital contribution to the fields of theatre and performance."--Jacket.

This collection contains facsimile copies of all pages of all issues of Semina. Semina 1 (Los Angeles, 1955; edition of 150), "First and final printing" ; Semina 2 (Los Angeles and San Francisco, December 1957), "handset with miscellaneous available type and papers" ; Semina 3: Peyote poem (San Francisco, 1958; edition of 200); Semina 4 (San Francisco, 1959), "Type handset on beat 5 x 8 Excelsior handpress" ; Semina 5: Mexico issue (San Francisco, Winter 1959; edition of 350) ; Semina VI: The clown (Larkspur, 1960; edition of 335), "Type handset on warped 5 x 8 inch handpress") ; Semina 7: א [Aleph], A gesture involving photographs, drawings & text (Larkspur, 1961; edition of 200) ; Semina 8 (Los Angeles, 1963; edition of 149) ; Semina 9 (Los Angeles, Summer 1964; unspecified edition).