[INSCRIBED] The Epitaphs /Gli Epitaphi

Napoli [Naples]: Edizioni Morra, 1977. First Edition, First Printing.

INSCRIBED by Dick Higgins on the front end paper: "For Harry & Marion--as ever. Dick Higgins." Dated 11.V.1978.

Scarce publication by Fluxus artist Dick Higgins (1938-1998) featuring epitaphs that he painted on terra cotta jars. The collection was shown at Studio Morra in Naples in September 1977. He says in the introduction that he composed most of the epitaphs himself, but acknowledges "a few trope folk or literary sources (eg., Erik Satie)."

There's a mixture of the funny and cruel among the epitaphs. For example: "I wanted quiet but this is a little too quiet." Or this: "If she had lived on would anyone have noticed?" Almost all text is in both English and Italian, although Higgins uses other languages here and there. The frontispiece features a black-and-white photo of a jar with an epitaph.

The recipients of this copy were Higgins's friends Harry Smith (1936-2012) and Marion Petschek Smith (1937-1995). Harry was a poet, promoter of small presses, and cofounder of the Pushcart Prize for Poetry. Marion was a psychologist.

Copies of "The Epitaphs" are scarce in the antiquarian book market, signed copies even more so.

PHYSICAL DETAILS: Oblong Small Quarto (9 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches; 240 x 166 mm), unpaginated (92 pages), in printed card wrappers (soft cover).

CONDITION: Some soiling to covers, a bit of edge wear, and light creasing to page corners. Very Good or better.