Mark Morrisroe: Mark Dirt

by Lia Gangitano, Ramsey McPhillips (Text), Mark Morrisroe (Illustrator)

The photographs of Mark Morrisroe (1959–1989) are steeped in fragility, both as material objects scored and pockmarked by the vicissitudes of time, and as forlorn commemorations of brief moments in all too brief lives. In this sense, the photographs are also objects of ephemera, of a piece with Morrisroe’s equally fragile magazines, collages and drawings, which this volume compiles for the first time. Containing much previously unpublished work, Mark Dirt includes spreads from Morrisroe’s punk zine Dirt (“he sort of invented the Boston punk scene,” Jack Pierson later recalled of his former lover), as well as correspondence and notes by the artist, sketches and even his last will and testament. All of these documents have been assembled by Morrisroe’s longtime partner Ramsey McPhillips, and represent the most complete survey of the artist’s non-photographic works.

40 pages, Paperback

First published July 31, 2012

Reviews

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

The creative in me reveled in Morrisroe's seemingly boundless artistic energy and output, the collector of ephemera eagerly pored over the numerous high quality reproductions of letters, notes, scraps, and writing drafts (alongside reproductions of his famous portraits and photography), the amateur archivist in me wished for a bit more information simply for some context to this kaleidoscopic array of material. But overall this is a beautifully produced volume, compiled and featuring short essay by people who both cared for the artist himself and are attentive in regards to his future legacy. Now I crave a copy for myself.