Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror. The poem with original prints by: Richard Avedon, Elaine de Kooning, Willem de Kooning, Jim Dine, Jane Freilicher, Alex Katz, R.B. Kitaj, Larry Rivers; together with a foreword by the poet, a recording of his reading of the poem, & on the album an essay by Helen Vendler.

San Francisco (Arion Press), 1984.. (2), 27, (3)ff. All contents loose, as issued. 8 original prints hors texte, each signed and numbered in pencil, including 1 photograph by Richard Avedon (continuous-tone offset lithograph); 4 lithographs, of which 3 printed from the stone (Elaine de Kooning, Willem de Kooning, Jane Freilicher) and 1 from a metal plate (Alex Katz); 1 woodcut (Jim Dine); 1 softground etching with aquatint (R.B. Kitaj; printed by Aldo Crommelynck), 1 photogravure etching with hand-coloring (Larry Rivers; printed at Universal Limited Art Editions). Print and text dimensions: 450 mm. (ca. 17 3/4 inches) in diameter. 33-1/3 r.p.m. phonograph record of Ashbery reading the poem, in album with liner commentary by Helen Vendler. Title-page and record album both with reproductions of the Parmigianino self-portrait. Folio. Publishers polished steel canister, with inset convex mirror on the lid. Edition limited to 175 hand-numbered copies (25 hors de commerce), signed in the colophon by Andrew Hoyem, printed on uncut Twinrocker paper. Foreword written for this edition by John Ashbery, signed by him in pencil at the conclusion. The enigmatic Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror (1523-1524) by the Italian mannerist artist Parmigianino was the inspiration for John Ashberys 1973 poem of the same name. This highly original version of the poem uses a round format and is housed in a metal film canister containing a convex mirror. The eight artists who provided the illustration were all old friends of Ashbery from the New York art world.Their choices of image were as varied as their styles and personalities. Three artists (Avedon, Elaine de Kooning and Rivers) portrayed Ashbery, while two (Dine and Kitaj) portrayed themselves. The remaining artists provided a portrait of a woman (Katz), a still life (Freilicher), and an abstraction (Willem de Kooning) (Robert S. Johnson). Very slight dent on the edge of the canister lid. All contents in very fine condition.