Ficus Strangulensis Collection
A Guide and Inventory
Spec.rare.cms.314

Guide Compiled by Kathryn Bross

INTRODUCTION

Ficus strangulensis [Forrest A. Richey, 1942-] is an experimental writer, word artist, and visual poet, who has worked in a wide variety of media and methods. He published a journal called Transmog starting in 1991, which was published through much of that decade. This collection focuses on one aspect of his work, his cut up texts and images, and includes the originals of these works, ca. 1995-2002, mostly in notebooks. It also includes drawings, texts, some correspondence and other materials.

Overview of the Collection:

Repository:	Rare Books and Manuscripts Library
Identification:	Spec.cms.314
Creator:	Forrest A. Richey
Title:	Ficus Strangulensis Collection
Dates:	1995-2002
Quantity:	10 Boxes
Description:	This collection focuses on one aspect of his work, his cut up texts and images, and includes the originals of these works, ca. 1995-2002, mostly in notebooks. It also includes drawings, texts, some correspondence and other materials.

Images: Group 1 (more at end)

Folder 17	Folder 18	Folder 19	Folder 19	Folder 20	Folder 20
Folder 22	Folder 23	Folder 24	Folder 26	Folder 26	Folder 27
Folder 28	Folder 28	Folder 30	Folder 30	Folder 31	Folder 33

Box and Folder Listing:

Box 1

Folder Numbers 1-6

Spiral notebook dated August 11, 1995 to September 9, 1995 titled Picture Pasteups contains mostly cut up human images and cut up texts
Spiral notebook dated September 9, 1995 to September 30, 1995 contains texts and images cut up mostly images of humans
Spiral notebook dated October 1995 to November 18, 1995 contains text and image cut ups, mostly humans used as subject matter
Spiral notebook dated October 14, 1999 to November 25, 1995 contains cut up texts and images in collages
Spiral notebook dated November 25, 1995 to December 23, 1995 contains cut up text and images from multiple sources, human subject matter
Spiral notebook dated March 9, 1996 to July 26, 1996 contains collages of cut up images of women in undergarments at beginning and collages of newspaper clippings of text and images at end

Box 2

Folder Numbers 7-15

Spiral notebook dated August 3, 1996 to August 23, 1996 contains collages of cut up text and images and black marker
Spiral notebook dated August 23, 1996 to September 1, 1996 contains collages of text and images of people or animals and sometimes uses stamps
Spiral notebook dated September 7, 1996 to September 28, 1996 contains collages of cut up text and images, multiple pages of black marker only, using cut up of baby’s face multiple times
Spiral notebook dated September 28, 1996 to October 26, 1996 titled “till I run out of pages” contains image and text collages and uses black marker
Spiral notebook dated November 1, 1996 to November 22, 1996, contains image and text collages, ending contains handwritten pieces
Spiral notebook dated November 28, 1996 to December 5, 1996, contains text cut ups, and text cut ups with stamps in collage pieces
Spiral notebook dated December 12, 1996 to December 26, 1996, contains image and text collages of black marker and cut up text and images and handwritten pieces in black marker
Spiral notebook dated December 26, 1996 to December 26, 1996, contains drawings of faces and writing in black marker and red pen
Spiral notebook dated December 26, 1996 to January 1, 1997, titled “5 More”, contains image and text collages, using same face with different text in multiple pieces, end is black and white text on nature images

Box 3

Folder Numbers 16-22

Spiral notebook dated January 1, 1997 to January 1, 1997, tilted “5 More”, contains cut up text placed on images and two pieces titled “Anthropology Made Simple”
Spiral notebook dated January 1, 1997 to January 3, 1997, contains texts from multiple sources on background images or other texts, many pages titled such as “Rosa’s Diary”, “related to him”, and “HIS ISSUE”
Spiral notebook dated March 14, 1997 to July 19, 1997, contains collages of text images and stamps of heads and letters, handwritten pages in black marker
Spiral notebook dated July 18, 1997 to December 20, 1997, written on inside cover “Liddle Ficus Ms. Wrenn’s 48th Grade Blossom Middle School 1997”, contains cut up black and white text on background images, certain pages with handwritten notes
Spiral notebook dated January 8, 1998 to April 10, 1998, contains cut up black and white text on background images, faces drawn in pencil
Spiral notebook dated April 10, 1998 to May 24, 1998, titled “Ficus Stuff”, contains cut up black and white text on background image, handwritten page titled “Story Concept”
Spiral notebook dated May 24, 1998 to June 26, 1998, on inside cover “Forensic Anthropologist”, contains cut up black and white text on background images, pencil scribbles on multiple pages

Box 4

Folder Numbers 23-31

Spiral notebook dated June 30 1998 to July 5, 1998, titled “Ficus”, contains cut up texts on background images, most black and white images, text collages
Spiral notebook dated July 5, 1998 to August 2, 1998, titled in French “Danse Evide” which translates to “Dance Hallowed Out”, cut up texts on background images, handwritten description of “Journal Project”
Spiral notebook dated August 3, 1998 to August 20, 1998, contains cut up texts on background image or surrounded by stamps
Spiral notebook dated September 4, 1998 to September 12, 1998, marker on cover and several pages, cut up texts on background images or text, inside of back cover is handwritten notes
Spiral notebook dated September 12, 1998 to October 2, 1998, contains cut up texts on background image, some pages cut up text with maps as background
Spiral notebook dated October 3, 1998 to October 16, 1998, contains handwritten pieces titled “Occasioned by Discovery” “Ficus’ Law” “afraid of begin afraid afraid of being” and others untitled, cut up text on background images
Spiral notebook dated October 16, 1998 to November 21, 1998, titled “Cut-ups” with “The Deep Dark Secret…? Fish yawn in utter darkness! Naw, I must kill you.” Written on cover, cut up text on image backgrounds, some handwritten pages
Spiral notebook dated November 21, 1998 to December 26, 1998, titled “cut-ups”, contains handwritten “Prince Anatomy”, cut up text on background images or stamps
Spiral notebook dated January 8, 1999 to February 6, 1999, titled “Ficus Cut-Ups e&tc”, contains cut up text on background images, pages handwritten

Box 5

Folder Numbers 32-39

Spiral notebook dated February 6, 1999 to March 4, 1999, titled “Ficus Cuts Up”, contains cut up text on background images, many images black and white, stamps used on certain pages
Spiral notebook dated March 4, 1999 to March 19, 1999, titled “Ficus’ Cutups & (?) lame (!) Philos”, cut up text on background images, cut outs with parts blacked out with black marker
Spiral notebook dated March 19, 1999 to April 4, 1999, titled “Ficus (watta cut-up!)”, cut up text on background image or alone, some text taken from “Columbus Bible”
Spiral notebook dated April 2, 1999 to April 24, 1999, titled “Ficus Cut Zup (optionally also other stuff)”, contains cut up text on background images that are mostly black and white, more text from “Columbus Bible”
Spiral notebook dated April 20, 1999 to May 14, 1999, titled “Ficus de Cutup Cutz Again Yee Haw!!”, contains cut up text on background images or other texts, a lot of images of trees and nature
Spiral notebook dated May 14, 1999 to May 31, 1999, titled “Cut-Ups d’Ficu”, contains cut up text on background images, many pages titled such as “forking sands” and “Maine to Texas” etc.,
Spiral notebook dated may 31, 1999 to June 17, 1999, titled “Ficus’ Cut-Ups”, contains cut up text on background images, other texts or stamps,
Spiral notebook 10”x 8”, dated June 1999, titled “Calder-esque faces”, contains faces drawn in charcoal

Box 6

Folder Numbers 40-47

Spiral notebook dated June 17, 1999 to June 25, 1999, titled “Ficus’ Cuztup”, paint handprint on cover, cut up text on background images or stamps, notes made about origin of text on pgs. 3 and 5
Spiral notebook dated June 25, 1999 to June 27, 1999, titled “Cut-Ups”, contains cut up text on background images at the beginning and faces drawn in charcoal
Spiral notebook dated June 27, 1999 through July 5, 1999, titled “CUTS THE REST FOR REST AR REST”, stamps on cover, contains cut up text on background image alone, some images upside down, a lot of images cut out in a similar shape
Spiral notebook dated July 8, 1999 to July 11, 1999, titled “Ficuts”, paint handprint on cover, contains cut up text on background images, many pages titled, some notes about origin of text from John M. Bennett’s work
Spiral notebook dated July 15, 1999 to July 23, 1999, titled “FICUS’ CUTUPZ”, paint handprint on cover and notes about “The Calvin” pieces and pg. 30 and 31, contains cut up text on background images
Spiral notebook dated July 23, 1999 to July 31, 1999, paint handprint and notes on cover, contains cut up text on background images, many pages subject matter is Biblical
Spiral notebook dated August 5, 1999 to August 20, 1999, titled “Texts, etc by Ficus”, paint handprint and notes about contents of notebook on cover, cut up texts on background images, handwritten notes on contents on certain pages
Spiral notebook dated August 20, 1999 to September 11, 1999, titled “FICUS’ CUT-UPS etc”, paint handprint and note about pg 12 on cover, cut up texts on background images or other texts

Box 7

Folder Numbers 48-56

Spiral notebook dated September 11, 1999 to October 9, 1999, titled “Ficus’ Cut Ups (etc)”, hand print in black marker on cover and text reading “Rooted in nightmarish Rupture--- Gaspish”, contains cut up texts on background images, last page is calligraphy
Spiral notebook dated October 8, 1999 to October 29, 1999, titled “Ficus’ Cuts the rest FOR REST”, paint handprint on cover with cut up text, contains cut up texts on background images or stamps, on inside cover cut up artwork by Katherine Bowling, pgs 3-8 letters forming one word
Spiral notebook dated October 20, 1999 to November 21, 1999, titled “Ficus s. Cut-ups”, paint handprint on cover, cut up texts some on background images, handwritten “UPSTUM SETTIC (TANK):
Spiral notebook dated November 23, 1999 to November 28, 1999, titled “Thousand-Gallon Dressing”, paint handprint and pencil on cover, cut up texts some on background images or other texts, handwritten “Dere Posterity”, pencil drawings on opposite pages
Spiral notebook dated November 28, 1999 to December 12, 1999, titled “Cut- ups”, paint handprint on cover, cut up texts on background images, handwritten notes about pg. 29
Spiral notebook dated December 17, 1999 to December 21, 1999, titled “Ficus’ Cut-ups”, paint handprint on cover, dedication to Allen and Elaina, cut up texts on background images or other texts, pg.17 text on map of West Virginia
Spiral notebook dated January 1, 2000 to January 8, 2000, titled “Ficus’ Cut-ups”, contains cut up texts on background images or stamps, note on pg. 1 note on text taken from G. Stein, pg.2 note written to G. Stein
Spiral notebook dated January 8, 2000 to February 12, 2000, titled “FICUS’ Cut-ups”, paint handprint on cover, contains cut up text on background images, pg 1 notes on haiku of John M. Bennett’s poetry
Spiral notebook dated February 13, 2000 to March 11,2000, titled “Ficus”, paint handprint on cover, contains cut up texts on background images, pg 28 notes on poetry interpretation

Box 8

Folder Numbers 57-65

Spiral notebook dated March 18, 2000 to April 14, 2000, titled “Ficus Cutzz Up”, paint handprint on cover, contains cut up texts on background images or other texts, pg 5 handwritten
Spiral notebook dated April 16, 2000 to May 13, 2000, titled “FICUS’ Foldspndl mutil 25 ov’em”, paint handprint on cover, contains cut up texts on background images, some handwritten notes on origin of texts and content
Spiral notebook dated May 19, 2000 to May 29, 2000, titled “FICUS’ cut-ups”, paint handprint on cover, contains cut up text on background images, at end texts on black and white backgrounds
Spiral notebook dated June 9, 2000 to July 7, 2000, titled “FICUS CUTUPS, etc 2000”, paint handprint on cover, contains cut up texts most on black and white backgrounds, handwritten notes on origin of texts and content, pg 33 text on music notes
Spiral notebook dated July 14, 2000 to July 29, 2000, titled “Ficus Cutzz Up”, stamp and red text reading “Señor Tijeras” on cover, contains cut up texts on background images, handwritten notes about origin of graphics and text pgs. 1 and 2, handwritten note pg.37
Spiral notebook dated August 4, 2000 to September 3, 2000, titled “Seńor Tijeras Cutzz-upzz etc: a sort of death for the original texts and rebirthing varying orthogonalitites”, stamps and text reading “(Ficus stranguleusis) an Edzz Egghead on cover, contains cut up texts on background images, many notes about origin of certain texts
Spiral notebook dated September 3, 2000 to November 10, 2000, titled “THIS IS A TESTAMENT TO THE UNMENTIONABLE POLITICAL SYSTEM OF AMERIKA”, stamps and text on cover, contains up out text assembled on page, some cut out text on black and white background images pg. 24 handwritten note
Spiral notebook dated November 25, 2000 to June 5, 2001, titled “Ficus Cuts up, philosopleises, etc., etc., etc.,” marker outline of hand on cover, contains cut up text alone or on background image, a lot of notes about origin of texts or response to specific page, text taken from STAR magazine pgs 14-16
Spiral notebook dated June 5, 2001 to July 29, 2001, titled “Cutupzz”, contains cut up text alone or on background images, many images in black and white, uses less text per image, handwritten notes and some titles on certain pages, a lot of text taken from a collaboration between John M. Bennett’s and The Baron

Box 9

Folder Numbers 66-73

Spiral notebook dated July 31, 2001 to September 9, 2001, titled “Cutups”, contains cut up texts on mostly colorful background images, black and white cutups titled “Interstices”, handwritten notes about origin of texts
Spiral notebook dated September 26, 2001 to April 11, 2002, contains cut up texts on background images, pg 3 text collage titled “yr dance hoses”, handwritten notes about dates when pages scanned
Spiral notebook dated April 11, 2002 to September 27, 2002, contains cut up texts alone or on background images, notes about scanning and origin of texts, pgs 16-17 text collages, pgs 42-49 cowboy/ western focus subject
Spiral notebook dated September 15, 2002 to December 16, 2002, cut up text alone or on background images, pg 22 “Haiku Structure 0.1”, cut up text forming haikus
Original copies of two text cut ups, one titled “Strangle Sandwiches” and dated 2002, second dated July 1, 2002
Package from Forrest A. Richey (Ficus strangulensis) containing the scissors used for 99+% of the cutups in spiral notebooks
Printed “Recipes for Art and Craft Materials” written and illustrated by Helen Roney Sattler, notes made on pgs 33 and 8-
Correspondence between John M. Bennett and Forrest A. Richey (Ficus strangulensis) in regards to the items donated to the collection

Box 10

Dancing with the Dead: The Music of Global Death Rites. Priscilla Suckey ed. New York: Ellipsis Arts, 1998. Book and CD Gamboa, Federico. Suprema Ley. Mexico: Gomez de la Puente, 1920 Robb, Louis A. Engineer’s Dictionary: Spanish-English and English-Spanish. New York: John Wiley & Sons, INC., 1944. Savory, Theodore. The Art of Translation. Philadelphia: Dufour Editions, 1960.

Folder Number 74