[CONCRETE POET'S AUTO-BIBLIOGRAPHY, 1970-1971]. Lieferbare multiples, Mappen, Bücher, Kataloge, Plakate

Hannover: Totalkunstbetrieb Timm Ulrichs, 3 Hannover 1, Postfach 6043, 1971. Very good. 2 mimeograph sheets (295 x 210) printed in blue, folded twice (vertically and horizontally). Fading along fold, slightly age-toned). Preserved in a mylar sleeve. Rare: not in KVK or OCLC. This mimeographed list is one of the EARLIEST bibliographies of Ulrichs' graphic work, compiled (and originally typed?) by the artist himself as a vehicle of sale, and remains of the greatest interest to Ulrichs scholars and students of Concrete Art. We have not been able to determine if this "Liste" has been reprinted or reproduced in any form. We have handled Ulrichs' "List 2" and the present list, issued sometime afterwards, differs significantly from it. In our copy, five items are marked with a red arrow in red ink.

In a conscious (and characteristic) gesture of rejection, Urichs completely withdrew from the art market in the 1970s, and thus the present leaflet would have been rendered obsolete within only a few years. Why was it saved? If Ulrichs compiled a "Liste" that preceded this one, we have been unable to locate a copy of it.

Ulrichs' concrete art and early performances are of real significance in avant-garde art in the 60s and 70s, and yet his entire oeuvre is not completely known. The present document, which dates from ca. 1971, certainly broadens our understanding of his earliest graphic work, and how Ulrichs sought to sustain himself as an artist while remaining "outside" the art market. The descriptions are extremely detailed (with asking prices) and "neu" works are so indicated. Valuable and otherwise unknown information is given; for instance, Ulrichs states that copies of his "Beschriebene Blatter: kurze Prozesse totaler Poesie & totalen Theaters" are available "FREE with large orders (as long as supply lasts)." -- NB: there is a copy of Ulrichs' "Beschriebene Blatter" in the Metropolitan Museum of Art Watson Library.

Ulrichs' work is widely respected as an "artist's artist." Born in Berlin in 1940, Ulrichs has created concrete poetry, staged performances and "actions," and made object art of a unusually broad array of media. In bestowing the 2020 Käthe Kollwitz Prize, the Akademie der Künste in Berlin gave the following statement: "Ulrichs is an artist, former university teacher, and critical observer of the scene, who has lived a non-conformist existence outside of the mainstream and the art market. His political action serves as an example to a younger generation." (Source: ARTFORUM 7/4/2020).