From the Poetry Archives: Larry Eigner

George Hart and Jennifer Bartlett edited a wonderful portfolio of Larry Eigner’s letters in our December 2014 issue, and it prompted us to dig into our own archives to see what we could find! Take a look:

Larry Eigner first appeared in Poetry in September 1962. For his first publication, Eigner filled out the blue biographical sheet and sent the photo above. Here is the first poem in the suite of six in that issue:

As Hart mentions in his introduction to the letters, the September 1962 issue not only published poems by Eigner, it also included a review by Galway Kinnell of Eigner’s On My Eyes. “I like this book very much, for its closeness to things, its sense of their mystery and realness,” Kinnell’s review begins. The section Hart quotes about Kinnell’s reservations appears on the third page of the review:

In his June 17, 1964 letter to Cid Corman, Eigner writes about five poems that will be forthcoming in Poetry. Those poems appeared in the February 1965 issue, beginning with “[the baby cries he]”:

Hart’s introduction mentions the importance of Eigner’s Royal typewriter. The addenda sheets below show that typewriter in action, as well as Eigner’s myriad publications. The second addendum is from Eigner’s last appearance in the magazine, in November 1969.

That last poem, “#292,” reads in its entirety:

in the air   the slant snow
the bird rising away
from the wild and bare tree

And there’s more! Check out Eigner’s other appearances in Poetry in January 1964, April 1966, April 1967, March 1968, and January 1969. You can also read about how Eigner has been an influence on Jennifer Bartlett's own poetry in “Poetry & Disability: An Exchange” in our December issue.