16.03.1974
Dear Thomas, thanks for the card & & everythings O.K.!... will also be in a green coat, / see other pages / ... raincoat without rain / we Hope so /. Herta will smile at my left / or right See you very soon - at - Airport !
raincoat
1972
108 x 147 mm
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ZERO-TEXTS (1971-72) by Endre Tót
Graz (Austria): Studentenhaus Leechgasse 24 der katholischen Hochschulgemeinde publisher, 1974.
24 unnumbered pages, 290 x 206 mm, stapled binding, offset printing in black and white.
English.
600 copies.
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Catalog published for the exhibition "Endre Tot - Zero-texts", January/February 1974, Graz (Austria).
(See imprint "Katalog zur Ausstellung, Endre Tót - Zero-texts, Jänner/Februar 1974, Studentenhaus Leechgasse 24 der katholischen Hochschulgemeinde Graz".
On the 4th cover of our copy, a handwritten dedication in blue ballpoint pen from Endre Tót to Jean Sellem (founder of the St.Petri gallery in Lund, Sweden) signed and dated 8.09.1975 "For Jean".
26 APR 1974
Dear Thomas,
Wonderful! Very well done! I'm particularly pleased that the perforation is successful!
Thank you very much ! !
Otherwise, they arrived in good condition, and as you requested, I signed them and am sending them back to you by additional mail/50 pieces/.
On your envelope, they also stamped ZEROPOST, in Hinwill. Perhaps you could omit the normal stamp.
I'll be sending a sheet to Flash Art in a few days - they've offered me 2 pages for the extra issue of Eastern EUROPA.
Now I ask you this: Try sending me a letter with the following address:
So, with ZeroCode, my address, please put a stamp ZEROPOST on it, not a normal stamp. I think /!/ it'll come back to you, if you send me something then, put it in.
Endre Tót
0-0000 0oooooooo
0oooo o. 00.
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ZEROPOST
Es ist wunderschön gemacht!Geneva: Edition Howeg & Ecart Sheet of postage stamps.
Sheet size 298 x 213 mmEdition of 1000 + 50 signed and numbered copies.
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In 1976, a second edition was printed in green, also in a run of 1,000 copies, 50 of which were signed and numbered.
There is a third version in light green (see ALMANACH ECART, page 141) with 50 signed and numbered copies.Wunderschön!
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● In a letter* from John Armleder sent to Endre Tót, we read that the edition of "Giant Zero" was printed in 50 copies numbered 001 - 050, signed by Tót and 450 copies numbered 051 - 500, unsigned. Information not mentioned on the postcard**.
● In the same correspondence, the Layout of this Giant Zero is published, which was still called "Great Zero". In a letter sent a few days later, Endre Tót asked John Armeleder to change "Great" to "Giant".
*Extract from a letter sent on 3 VII 1974 and published in the fascicule "ENDRE TÓT. CORRESPONDENCE WITH JOHN ARMLEDER. ECART GENEVE" See below.
**See images in accordion
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CORRESPONDENCE WITH JOHN ARMLEDER
Geneva: Ecart, John Armleder publisher 1974 (August).
82 unnumbered pages, semi-rigid cover, glued square-back binding, reinforcing ribbon, 292 x 206 mm; facsimile booklet, offset printing in black and white, some illustrations in color.
Printers: Patrick Lucchini and David Macintosh.
Edition of 500 numbered copies, including 50 numbered and signed by Tót and Armleder on the title page, with several original stamp impressions by the 2 artists. *
Our copy is dedicated to the publisher Thomas Howeg.English, French, German.
*See additional information.
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This booklet contains the correspondence between Endre Tót and John Armleder in preparation for Endre Tót's exhibition at Ecart in June-July 1974. It serves as the exhibition catalog.
On title page: "CE FASCICULE A ETE TIRE À 500 EXEMPLAIRES NUMÉROTES DE 1 À 500 DONT LES 50 PREMIERS ONT ETE SIGNES ET TIMBRES PAR ENDRE TOT & JOHN ARMLEDER CETTE COPIE EST L'EXEMPLAIRE - - No. 031
On page 2 it says "CE FASCICULE A ETE IMPRIME EN OFFSET PAR PATRICK LUCCHINI ET DAVID MACINTOSH DANS LES ATELIERS D'ECART EN VUE DE L' EXPOSITION ENDRE TOT EN JUIN ET JUILLET 1974 A ECART,6 PLANTAMOUR, GENEVE, "
Concerning the stamps, they are mentioned in the last letter published at the end of the book, dated August:
I would like the 50 first copies to be signed by us-two & stamped by us-two as well.
(Extract from a letter sent by Armelder to Tót on 3.VII. 1974, reproduced in the booklet CORRESPONDENCE WITH JOHN ARMLEDER).
Page 3 of our numbered copy 031/50 features 10 original stamps* (9 in black ink, 1 in green ink) by Endre Tót and his signature in blue ballpoint pen on the left; 10 original stamps (9 in blue ink, 1 in red ink) by John Armleder and his signature in blue ballpoint pen on the right; at the top of the page, a dedication dated 1976 and addressed to Thomas Howeg in ballpoint pen, "Für Thomas Happy new Year 1976".
* READ IT STANDING AND ALOUD, DOCUMENTS MAKE ME CALM, WHY DO I STAMP?, I AM GLAD IF I CAN STAMP- Endre Tót- (center his portrait), IFYOUREADTHISIWILLLOVEYOU, hey! Look! 0'm here again, EVERGREEN STAMP BY ENDRE TÓT (green ink), zer0kay, ZERO-STAMP by ENDRE TÓT (with a 0 in the center of the stamp), TÓTalMAIL.
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Night visit to the National Gallery
Devon (UK) & Mexico: Beau Geste Press, 1974.
20 unnumbered pages, semi-rigid cover, stapled binding, 106 x 180 mm; full-colour offset print.
Printed in Devon on Nimrod Cartridge, autumn 1974 by Takako SaitoEdition of 500 copies.
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The brochure is a reworking of London's National Gallery's "A brief visit to the National Gallery"(see image below), published in 1971. Endre Tót has used exactly the same layout as the brochure, but has replaced the reproductions of the works with solid colors.
To achieve this result, Endre Tót probably used at least 2 copies of the original brochure in order to hijack the title.He also altered the position of the binding edge, changing the opening direction of the booklet, which was originally leafed through from left to right. After Tót's intervention, it now flips up and down like an ephemeris.
A BRIEF VISIT TO THE NATIONAL GALLERY
In Alice Motard's fine book on Éditions Beau Geste Press ( Éditions les presses du réel, 2020), a text by Polly Gregson entitled Beau Geste Press: Imprimeurs et imprimés describes the summer of 1974:
Summer passes without much activity at La Presse. In autumn, Takako prints Night Visit to the National Gallery, a book by Hungarian conceptual artist Endre Tót.
Few people have had the chance to enter one of the world's most popular museums in the middle of the night. Endre Tót is probably not one of them, but in this guide he evokes the atmosphere of a nocturnal visit with verisimilitude and humor, aided by the skill of Takako Saito, whose prints perfectly capture the flickering light of street lamps and passing shadows.
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TÓTal questions by TÓT /1974/
Köln: Edition Hundertmark, 1974.
16 unnumbered pages, semi-rigid cover, stapled binding, 210 x 148 mm; black-and-white offset printing.
Edition of 300 signed copies.
There is a second edition (1981) of 600 copies, also published by Hundertmark.Our copy contains a handwritten dedication by the artist, in blue ballpoint pen, in English "GLADLY DEDICATED TO Jörn" *, signed Endre.
*We do not yet have information on his identity.
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This book is the first in a series of 5 notebooks published by Hundertmark from 1974 to 1980. This was followed by notebooks by JIRI VALOCH (1976), GEORGE MACIUNAS (1976), BERNHARD JOHANNES BLUME (1978) and CLAUS BÖHMLER (1979),
Facsimile printing of a selection of returned questionnaires completed by Endre Tót. In 1974, Endre Tót sent forms from Budapest to be completed by the following people:
Marina Abramovic, anonymous c/o Marylin Monroe (probably Endre Tót himself), George Brecht, Jacques Charlier, Herve Fischer, Ken Friedman, Dick Higgins, Pierre Restany, Takako Saito, Mieko Shiomi, Wolf Vostell, no reply from Marcel Duchamp (Died 1968).*.
*Description found on page 181 in catalog:10 Jahre EDITION HUNDERTMARK 1970 - 1980 BERLIN - KÖLN Ausstellung in der DAAD-Galerie, Berlin March 12 - April 13 1980, Publisher: Berliner Künstlerprogramm des Deutschen Akademischen Austauschdienstes (DAAD)
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Neither Endre Tót nor Thomas Howeg remembered this edition. It is mentioned in a publication entitled HOWEG BY ECART, which served as the catalog for the "Gerz, Vostell, Armleder, Breloh" exhibition in Geneva. We found it on the Editions Ecart website. It's a cardboard case measuring 190 x 133 x 7 mm, on which Howeg's publications are listed by publication date. It contains 4 booklets by the artists mentioned above, plus a card listing Howeg's publications on the front. On the reverse, details of the exhibition(Breloh, Gerz and Vostell at Galerie Ecart from October 30, 1975 to November 21 of the same year), in which it is also stated that this case was printed in an edition of 500 copies, including 50 head copies signed by the artists. All copies are stamped in red on the front with the word "BELEG"
COLOURED DAYS with an edition of 1,000 signed copies. Thomas Howeg tells us that only a few prototypes were printed. However, he can't say how many, perhaps 25, 50. We have 3 copies in our possession, as well as the original typescript of the text written by Endre Tót and the letter tracing part of its development (see additional information below the images).
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22.3.74 COLOURED DAYS OF THOMAS HOWEG IN BUDAPEST BY Endre Tót
The first time Tót mentions this edition is on an undated postcard, probably from March 1974. On the front, a black-and-white photo of the Chain Bridge (Széchenyi lánchíd) and its surroundings, on which Tót has drawn a line in blue pen across the bridge, which then branches off to the right.
COLOURED DAYS OF THOMAS HOWEG IN BUDAPESTCOLOURED DAYS OF THOMAS HOWEG IN BUDAPEST BY Endre Tót
Über die Tage:
Also, wie wir besprochen haben: auf DIN-A/5 Karton. Den beigegebenen Text* also verkleinern auf A/5. Der Filzstift ist wirklich eine gute Idee: und ausser den Wegen bemale bitte noch die Vierecke:🟦 BLUE DAY
🟥 RED DAY
🟩 GREEN DAY
/ den schwarzen Tag habe ich in blau umgewandelt/ Die andere Seite der Karte so wie wir besprochen haben, den Stadtplan müsste vielleicht stärker grau sein, den zu helles grau wird nicht sichtbar sein wegen des Textes. /Siehe mein I AM GLAD ...Booklet - das hätte auch stärker grau sein sollen, man kann es kaum sehen/-0.K.?
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00.Mai.1974
(...) Thank you for your letter and the days spent in Budapest, it sounds good. Maybe you could fold them in the middle so they don't break (...)
Your editions are very successful here in Budapest. Especially things by Vostell. Everyone knows him /of course, my fishmonger friend doesn't/.
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one dozen rain p0stCars 1971-73
Stuttgart (West Germany) reflection press, Nr.26, Albrecht publisher, 1974.
12 postcards (format: 105 x 148 mm) and one flyer on fine light-blue paper (format 94 x 147 mm) in an envelope (format 114 x 162 mm); 1-color offset printing (purple).
The number of copies published is unknown. According to Endre Tót (visit on September 25, 2023), the edition should have exceeded 100 copies.
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The title is stamped in green ink on the back of the envelope. The flyleaf gives the publisher's details, the title of the edition, the numerical list of postcards and their respective titles: 1 . your rain-my rain 2. old rain- new rain, 3. left rain- right rain, 4. normal rain- tót rain 5. inside-rain 6 . corner-rain 7. isolated-rain 8. rival-rain 9. horizon-rain 10. zero-rain 11. sex-rain by Endre Tót 12. I am glad when I can type rains".There are copies with the color of the envelope, sometimes with several impressions of Tót's stamps, sometimes signed, sometimes not.
In our copy, the cards your rain my rain, normal rain and horizon rain are signed on the back by Endre Tót.
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1/2 dozen incomplete visual informations: on A. Warhol's paintings, ladies' festival at the B.P.R.A., Arabian politicians, essential English, new B.A. president Mr. T. Hodges, anonymous lovers and others (1971-74)
Budapest: self-publishing, 1974.12 pages, 210 x 155 mm; black and white offset printing.
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Nous avons retenu deux images de ce livre. Elles sont très semblables: chacune est encadrée par un rectangle aux bordures noires accompagné d’une légende. Le contenu de ces deux légendes a retenu notre attention ; en effet, au regard du cadre vide, il apparait énigmatique. Le style d’écriture employé ainsi que le thème du contenu produisent un sens qui échappe. Voici l’image (fig.1) du premier rectangle dont le titre est « ESSENTIAL ENGLISH » accompagné de sa legende, que nous retranscrivons ci-dessous:
This is a picture of a classroom. There is one teacher in the picture. That is the teacher. There are two boys in the picture. That is the door. Those are windows. There is one door and there are two windows. The door is closed. One window is open; the other window is closed. There is a clock on the wall. There is a table in the classroom. There are flowers on the table. There is an inkpot on the table. The teacher is near the table. One boy is near the teacher; the other boy is near the window. There are two pictures on the wall. One picture is near the door; the other picture is near the window.
La seconde image (fig.2) comporte la légende suivante: From left to right: anonymous lover, anonymous lover, Stephen Bann, Reg Gadney, Frank Popper, Phil Steadman and Citroen in Paris.
Le premier texte est une description dont les phrases courtes et claires, structurées méthodiquement par la répétition de termes, nous a évoqué le style de Samuel Beckett. Le second texte est un assemblage de termes hétéroclites qui ne forment aucune phrase. Il se structure comme un rébus ou un jeu d’écriture en associations libres. Il comporte ainsi deux fois « anonymous lover », puis les noms de trois personnes et la marque « Citroen ». L’ensemble est très singulier. En avançant dans nos recherches, nous avons dans un premier temps, découvert qu’ Essential English est un manuel pour apprendre l’anglais, dont le titre complet est : Essential English for Foreign Students. Il a été rédigé une première fois par C. E. Eckersley en 1953.Une seconde version revue et augmentée a paru dans les années 60. Nous l’avons retrouvée en ligne. Elle contient une des images (fig 1) qu’ Endre Tót a détourné en effaçant le contenu visuel des cadres. Associée à nouveau à sa référence visuelle, le sens de la légende est recadré. Ainsi figé il perd son riche pouvoir d’associations.
Veuillez cliquer sur le point noir du Flipbook ci-dessous pour la découvrir.Concernant la seconde legende, nous avons retrouvé l’image que Endre Tót a effacé, dans l’ouvrage British Art Studies, Issue 12, published 31 May 2019, page 74, Figure 56. Veuillez cliquer sur le point noir du Flipbook ci-dessous pour la découvrir.