Joyce, James — Robert Motherwell | The Arion Press Ulysses, limited edition signed by Motherwell

Joyce, James — Robert Motherwell

Ulysses. San Francisco: Arion Press, 1988

Large 4to (232 x 244 mm). Printed in Perpetua on Johannot wove paper, illustrated with 40 etchings, 20 printed in colors, by Robert Motherwell; stray, tiny faint spot on top edge, else very fine. Original alum-tawed white pigskin over flecked blue silk boards, spine lettered in blue. Cloth folding case.

Limited edition, no. XVII of 25 hors commerce from a total edition of 175 (150 numbered copies for sale), boldly signed by Motherwell on limitation page.

The immense Arion Ulysses, at least as impressive as the more famed Limited Editions Club example illustrated by Matisse and a masterpiece of modern fine press. Motherwell named his foundation Dedalus, after a Joyce character.

“Joyce is permanently on my mind. For over forty years I have dedicated pictures to him and taken titles from him. The title for “The Homely Protestant”, which is from 1948 and one of my most important pictures comes from Joyce. The Surrealists used to say, if you’re stuck for a title, take a book, it must be your favorite book. Close your eyes and open it at random. Put your finger on the page and use that as the title. I was stuck with that picture. I didn’t know what it was even though I knew it was very abstractly a figure with a certain quality. When I put my finger on the words, “The Homely Protestant,” I thought, of course, it’s a self-portrait” (Motherwell on Joyce).