Poet Poster

William F. Wolff

San Francisco Bay Area artist William Wolff was primarily known for his large, abstract woodcuts meditating on themes of religion and the human condition. He made several portraits of other artists, as well as writers and friends. Here, he depicts friend, publisher, and Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, lion of the San Francisco subversive arts scene of the 1950s and still active today. He also founded in the iconic 'City Lights Bookstore' in San Francisco North Beach neighborhood in 1953 as both a publishing house and a storefront bookshop/gallery.

In May of 1985, the same month as the event advertised in Wolff’s poster, Ferlinghetti published his speech “The Publisher as Enemy of the State,” originally written for the Bay Area Book Review Awards, in the publication 'Poetry Flash.' He wrote it in regards to his long and storied experience as a publisher of controversial works, and in particular to being put on trial in 1957 with charges of obscenity for his publication of Allen Ginsberg’s Howl.

This large woodcut was created (in an edition of only two impressions) for an evening of poetry written and read by Ferlinghetti, works that dealt with art. Being an accomplished artist himself, Ferlinghetti often wrote poetry relating to the visual arts, finding inspiration in the collective creativity of San Francisco artists. The event took place on May 5, 1985 at the F.J. Michaels Gallery in San Francisco.