Gil J. Wolman
Encyclopedia
Gil Joseph Wolman was a French
artist, born in Paris
in 1929 and dying there in 1995. His work encompassed painting, poetry and film-making. He was a member of Isidore Isou
's avant garde Letterist movement in the early 1950s, then becoming a central figure in the Letterist International, the group which would subsequently develop (without Wolman himself) into the Situationist International.
, he devised the notion of the 'megapneume': while lettrism was based upon the letter, megapneumes were based upon the breath. Second, in film, he produced L'Anticoncept, the work for which he is now primarily remembered. The film was shown for the first time on 11 February 1952 at the 'Avant-Garde 52' cinema club. It consisted of blank illumination projected onto a weather balloon, accompanied by a staccato spoken soundtrack. The film was banned by the French censors on 2 April 1952—when the Letterists visited the Cannes Film Festival
the following month, they were forced to restrict the audience to journalists only. The text of the soundtrack was published in the sole issue of the Letterist journal Ion (1952; reprinted Jean-Paul Rocher, 1999), and later reissued in a separate edition augmented with associated texts (Editions Allia, 1994). Ion also included the text of Guy Debord
's film Howls for Sade, which was dedicated to Wolman and featured his voice in its own soundtrack.
(literally 'diversion') signified the deliberate re-use of plagiarised material for a new and usually subversive purpose. The dérive ('drift') was a process of aimlessly wandering through urban environments in order to map their psychogeography
.
In 1955, Wolman wrote Why Lettrism?, also with Guy Debord, published in Potlatch no. 22. The following year, he represented the Letterist International at the World Congress of Artists in Alba, Italy
. This conference established important links between the Letterist International and those figures (primarily Asger Jorn
and Pinot-Gallizio of the International Movement for an Imaginist Bauhaus
) who would soon afterwards be joining forces with it to form the Situationist International. Wolman himself, however, never made it as far as the Situationist International. He was officially excluded from the Letterist International on 13 January 1957, just six months before the creation of the new group, the exclusion being announced in obituary format in Potlatch no. 28. Debord seems to have been the driving force behind the exclusion, which did cause some consternation among his colleagues. Even Michèle Bernstein
, Debord's wife at the time, has stated that she did not understand why Debord took so suddenly against Wolman. Jean-Michel Mension
, an early member of the Letterist International, recalls that "Gil was reticent, sweet—an incredibly sweet guy. I don't think I ever heard him actually raise his voice, except occasionally, except when he was reciting his poetry, but that was different. Everyone loved Gil." He also could not understand why Debord had excluded him, and observed: "I think Wolman, in Guy's eyes, was a truly extraordinary artist, clearly superior to the other artists in the Letterist International. Personally, I've never believed in the exclusion of Gil.". Ralph Rumney
, an early member of the Situationist International, speculated that the real reason behind the exclusion was that Wolman and his wife, Violette, had just had a child: "Guy, and Michèle for that matter, had an absolute horror of domesticity and babies in particular. They were trying to experiment with new ways of living, which for Guy meant total sexual freedom. Wolman's happy family life could not be tolerated."
In 1998, the magazine "Poézi Prolétèr" (No.2), directed by Katalin Molnar and Christophe Tarkos, published an article on Wolman including several of his texts gathered under the title "Introduction of the word". Although often seen simply as a side-kick of Guy Debord, he is now regarded, along with Robert Filliou
, as one of the more influential artists of his day. Wolman, however, did not subscribe to Filliou's "genius without talent", but rather said that "genius is what we all have when we stop improving one thing in order to make something else. When we only refuse to have talent" (1964).
Several of Wolman's audio recordings were published through Henri Chopin
's journal, Ou; and an l.p., L'Anticoncept, was issued in 1999 by Alga Marghen, which gathered together various sound works from 1952 to 1972. A volume of his uncollected writings was published in 2001 by Editions Allia, Défense de mourir.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
artist, born in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1929 and dying there in 1995. His work encompassed painting, poetry and film-making. He was a member of Isidore Isou
Isidore Isou
Isidore Isou , born Ioan-Isidor Goldstein, was a Romanian-born French poet, film critic and visual artist...
's avant garde Letterist movement in the early 1950s, then becoming a central figure in the Letterist International, the group which would subsequently develop (without Wolman himself) into the Situationist International.
Lettrism
Wolman joined the Letterists in 1950, although he quit the group only two years later. His first published work appeared in the 1950 first issue of their journal Ur, where his 'Introduction to Wolman' would set the scene for later creations: "In the beginning, there was Wolman"! While still in the group, Wolman would make two major contributions. First, in sound poetrySound poetry
Sound poetry is an artistic form bridging between literary and musical composition, in which the phonetic aspects of human speech are foregrounded instead of more conventional semantic and syntactic values; "verse without words"...
, he devised the notion of the 'megapneume': while lettrism was based upon the letter, megapneumes were based upon the breath. Second, in film, he produced L'Anticoncept, the work for which he is now primarily remembered. The film was shown for the first time on 11 February 1952 at the 'Avant-Garde 52' cinema club. It consisted of blank illumination projected onto a weather balloon, accompanied by a staccato spoken soundtrack. The film was banned by the French censors on 2 April 1952—when the Letterists visited the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
the following month, they were forced to restrict the audience to journalists only. The text of the soundtrack was published in the sole issue of the Letterist journal Ion (1952; reprinted Jean-Paul Rocher, 1999), and later reissued in a separate edition augmented with associated texts (Editions Allia, 1994). Ion also included the text of Guy Debord
Guy Debord
Guy Ernest Debord was a French Marxist theorist, writer, filmmaker, member of the Letterist International, founder of a Letterist faction, and founding member of the Situationist International . He was also briefly a member of Socialisme ou Barbarie.-Early Life:Guy Debord was born in Paris in 1931...
's film Howls for Sade, which was dedicated to Wolman and featured his voice in its own soundtrack.
First Letterist International
In June 1952, Wolman and Debord formed the Letterist International, which, with Jean-Louis Brau and Serge Berna, would officially split from the main group that December. Wolman contributed several texts to the Letterist International's own bulletin, Potlatch; and, with Debord, he co-authored some of its most important texts, published in the Belgian surrealist review Les Lèvres Nues (Naked Lips). These included 'A User's Guide to Détournement' and 'Theory of the Dérive' (both 1956). The term détournementDetournement
A détournement is a technique developed in the 1950s by the Letterist International, and consist in "turning expressions of the capitalist system against itself." Détournement was prominently used to set up subversive political pranks, an influential tactic called situationist prank that was...
(literally 'diversion') signified the deliberate re-use of plagiarised material for a new and usually subversive purpose. The dérive ('drift') was a process of aimlessly wandering through urban environments in order to map their psychogeography
Psychogeography
Psychogeography was defined in 1955 by Guy Debord as "the study of the precise laws and specific effects of the geographical environment, consciously organized or not, on the emotions and behavior of individuals." Another definition is "a whole toy box full of playful, inventive strategies for...
.
In 1955, Wolman wrote Why Lettrism?, also with Guy Debord, published in Potlatch no. 22. The following year, he represented the Letterist International at the World Congress of Artists in Alba, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. This conference established important links between the Letterist International and those figures (primarily Asger Jorn
Asger Jorn
Asger Oluf Jorn was a Danish painter, sculptor, ceramic artist, and author. He was a founding member of the avant-garde movement COBRA and the Situationist International...
and Pinot-Gallizio of the International Movement for an Imaginist Bauhaus
International Movement for an Imaginist Bauhaus
The International Movement for an Imaginist Bauhaus was a small European avant-garde artistic tendency that arose out of the breakup of COBRA, and was initiated by contact between former COBRA member Asger Jorn and Enrico Baj and Sergio Dangelo of the Nuclear Art Movement.-Timeline:*December 1953:...
) who would soon afterwards be joining forces with it to form the Situationist International. Wolman himself, however, never made it as far as the Situationist International. He was officially excluded from the Letterist International on 13 January 1957, just six months before the creation of the new group, the exclusion being announced in obituary format in Potlatch no. 28. Debord seems to have been the driving force behind the exclusion, which did cause some consternation among his colleagues. Even Michèle Bernstein
Michèle Bernstein
Michèle Bernstein is a French novelist and critic, most usually remembered as a member of the Situationist International from its foundation in 1957 until 1967, and as the wife of its most prominent member, Guy Debord.-Early years:...
, Debord's wife at the time, has stated that she did not understand why Debord took so suddenly against Wolman. Jean-Michel Mension
Jean-Michel Mension
Jean-Michel Mension was a French radical active in the Lettrist International, from which he was expelled as "merely decorative", and the Ligue Communiste....
, an early member of the Letterist International, recalls that "Gil was reticent, sweet—an incredibly sweet guy. I don't think I ever heard him actually raise his voice, except occasionally, except when he was reciting his poetry, but that was different. Everyone loved Gil." He also could not understand why Debord had excluded him, and observed: "I think Wolman, in Guy's eyes, was a truly extraordinary artist, clearly superior to the other artists in the Letterist International. Personally, I've never believed in the exclusion of Gil.". Ralph Rumney
Ralph Rumney
Ralph Rumney was an English artist, born in Newcastle Upon Tyne.In 1957 lifelong conscientious objector Rumney was one of the co-founders of the London Psychogeographical Association. This organization was, along with COBRA and the Lettrist International, involved in the formation of the...
, an early member of the Situationist International, speculated that the real reason behind the exclusion was that Wolman and his wife, Violette, had just had a child: "Guy, and Michèle for that matter, had an absolute horror of domesticity and babies in particular. They were trying to experiment with new ways of living, which for Guy meant total sexual freedom. Wolman's happy family life could not be tolerated."
Second Letterist International
Following his exclusion, Wolman continued to develop his own work, and he re-established links with the original Letterist movement. In 1964, however, he split again from Isou's group, to establish the short-lived Second Letterist International with Jean-Louis Brau and François Dufrêne; thereafter, Wolman worked largely in isolation. He devised Scotch Art in 1963, a process which consists in tearing off bands of printed matter and using adhesive tape to reposition them on fabrics or wood. He later developed "dühring dühring", "decompositions" and finally "depicted painting".In 1998, the magazine "Poézi Prolétèr" (No.2), directed by Katalin Molnar and Christophe Tarkos, published an article on Wolman including several of his texts gathered under the title "Introduction of the word". Although often seen simply as a side-kick of Guy Debord, he is now regarded, along with Robert Filliou
Robert Filliou
Robert Filliou was a French Fluxus artist, who produced works as a filmmaker, "action poet," sculptor, and happenings maestro....
, as one of the more influential artists of his day. Wolman, however, did not subscribe to Filliou's "genius without talent", but rather said that "genius is what we all have when we stop improving one thing in order to make something else. When we only refuse to have talent" (1964).
Several of Wolman's audio recordings were published through Henri Chopin
Henri Chopin
Henri Chopin was an avant-garde poet and musician.-Life:Henri Chopin was a French practitioner of concrete and sound poet, well-known throughout the second half of the 20th century...
's journal, Ou; and an l.p., L'Anticoncept, was issued in 1999 by Alga Marghen, which gathered together various sound works from 1952 to 1972. A volume of his uncollected writings was published in 2001 by Editions Allia, Défense de mourir.
External links
- Wolman, Lettrism, Sound Poetry and Beyond Radio Web MACBA podcast reconstructing the link between Lettrism, sound poetry, and the work of some isolated but fundamental figures.
- Gil J Wolman. I am immortal and alive Monographic exhibition on the work of Gil J Wolman, MACBA (2010)
- "Wolman in the Open" An essay by Frédéric Acquaviva