The circle cover design

Poetry and Audience

Exploring the evolving design of the pioneering Poetry and Audience magazine. An online exhibition from Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

Poetry and Audience 6th November, 1953. Editor: Ralph Maud. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

Hubert Dalwood's logo

Poetry and Audience 11th October 1957. Editor: James Simmons. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

The circle cover design

Poetry and Audience 6th October, 1961. Editor: Ben Sherriff. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

An experimental pamphlet cover

Poetry and Audience Pamphlets Number 2: Poems by John Quail. 1965/66/69. Editor: Roderick Wilson.. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

The design continues to evolve

Poetry and Audience 29th November, 1963 Editor: Jeffrey Wainwright. 1965/66/69. Editor: Roderick Wilson.. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

Stencilled lettering for volume 13

Poetry and Audience 15th October, 1965. Editor: Brian Oxley. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

Precision line work and impressionistic styles clash in volume 20

Poetry and Audience Volume 20 Issue 2. Editor: Brian Oxley. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

Mary Outram's illustration in volume 23

Poetry and Audience Volume 23 Issue 1. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

Andy Arnold’s satirical cover design for volume 26

Poetry and Audience Volume 26 Issue 1. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

The Grass’s Time by John Glover, Northern House

Northern House Pamphlet Poets: The Grass's Time

Poetry and Audience The Grass’s Time. One of a selection of cover pages from the magazine Poetry and Audience, part of the archives held in Special Collections at Leeds University Library.

This is another recognisable front cover first used in October 1961. It shows the bold, bright, crisp and clean circle design which was used for the next two years.

The use of a more costly coloured lithography process marked the increasing profile of the magazine. The colours of the design changed periodically, including blue, pink, purple and the ochre seen here.

The now-printed title is encased within a coloured circle, with the editorial board presented underneath.

However, issue numbers and dates were sometimes written on, and any mistakes crossed off, reminding us of the essentially amateur running of the publication. At this time it was still came out weekly and was compiled by students, with minimal intervention from the Gregory Fellow W. 'Bill' Price Turner, or the School of English.

Ben Sherriff's editorial highlights his perceived non-partisan ethos of the magazine. He stated that:

'In choosing the poems we have no political, religious or moral axe to grind' and states that the magazine's tradition 'of publishing six poems a week for the price of a penny has been maintained unbroken'.

CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE