(VAN VLIET, DON aka CAPTAIN BEEFHEART) (CORBIJN, ANTON). Van Vliet, Don, Jan Van Vliet, Anton Corbijn & Ben Watson.
Los Angeles: Artist Ink Editions, 2003. First Edition 1/1500 Deluxe. 4to. Linen Over Boards, Slipcased. Artist Monograph. As New/No Jackets - As Issued. 88 + 96pp, 1 audio CD + 1 DVD, profusely illustrated in color and b&w. Designed by Tim Eames. "Don Van Vliet aka Captain Beefheart was a visual artist before he was a musician. As a young child he drew serious accolades for his animal sculptures and was offered a scholarship to study in Europe. His parents declined; and while continuing to create in the visual medium, he turned his attention to music, within ten years forming the first incarnation of the legendary experimental outfit Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band. The following fifteen years are music history. But in 1983 Van Vliet retired from music to pursue painting and drawing, the focus of this extraordinary boxed set. "Riding Some Kind of Unusual Skull Sleigh" (named after a painting the artist completed in 1987) provides an opportunity to own one of his original, signed color etchings. Executed on paper and cataloged as "Untitled (Self-Portrait)", the work measures 6 5/8 x 9 ½". The paper itself measures 7 7/8 x 10 ½". Van Vliet produced only 1,500 copies of the piece, one for each individually numbered copy of this Artist Ink Edition. A deluxe 9 ¼ x 12 ¾ x 2 ¾" slipcase carefully houses the etching as well as two museum-quality books, a CD, and a DVD. The first book, entitled "Riding Some Kind of Unusual Skull Sleigh" (88 pages), is a monograph of sorts, containing an essay by art historian Ben Watson and full-color reproductions of sixty of Van Vliet's paintings and drawings - some of them previously unpublished. The second book, entitled "Splinters" (96 pages), features portrait photos of the artist by Anton Corbijn, along with a selection of personal archival material supplied by Don and Jan Van Vliet - including family snapshots, newspaper clippings, drawings, and sketches. None of this material has heretofore been seen. The CD features the artist reading eleven of his previously unreleased spoken-word pieces spanning 1977-1999, which are also reprinted in the Splinters book. The DVD features "Some YoYo Stuff", a 1994 filmed observation by Anton Corbijn. "Riding Some Kind Of Unusual Skull Sleigh is available only as an individually numbered limited edition of 1,500 copies". A brand new, pristine example of this remarkable undertaking still sealed in the publisher's original shipping carton. 0-7379-0284-1
Inventory Number: 027723
