The Impossibilists: Imps Broadsides and Manifestos Nos. 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, & 10
Portland, OR: The Impossibilists, ca. 1980s.
Seven issues of the rare ephemeral publication from the Impossibilists, a Portland, OR collective of artists and writers primarily associated with mail art. Founded by Mark Sargent and Tom Cassidy in 1977, the Impossibilists had an absurdist aesthetic and were active in a variety of creative endeavors including performance, public events, poetry, mail art, comics, graphics, manifestos and other written forms. Each issue in the set employs a different format: No. 2 a stapled pocket of printed ephemera; No. 3 a hand painted and numbered (53/100) broadside; Nos. 5 and 6 side or top stapled issues; No. 7 a hand-made envelope of postcards; Nos. 8 and 10 are bound with metal fasteners.
Contributors include Philip Whalen, Tom Savage, Susan Howard, Tom Cassidy (AKA Musicmaster & Spaceangel), Reynarda, Rhoda Mappo, Mark Sargent (AKA Animal Trust), Dundee, David H. Goodstein, Wiper Arms, Ijme, Lipps, and Marti Barrett. Two Portland writers associated with the group were Walt Curtis and Geek Love author Katherine Dunn. Near Fine overall with the occasional light crease or offsetting. Rare in the trade and few to no individual copies of these early issues found in OCLC; Ohio State University and Lewis & Clark College have collections in their archives.
Price: $750.00