Quotes by Ian Hamilton Finlay - Page 1

The present order is the disorder of the future.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Disorder
Order
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I am not a modern man, I am just a wee old fashioned one.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Men
Marijuana
Modern
Modern Man
Wee
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Certain gardens are described as retreats when they are really attacks.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Certain
Garden
Retreat
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As a friendly one. I would still like to write concrete poems, but I can only do it sometimes.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Concrete
Friendly
Sometimes
Writing
Poems
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I am always a beginner. I only try to include different parts of life; the pastoral, the tragic, et cetera.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Different
Past
Tragic
Trying
Life Always I Am
Beginner
Different Parts
Life I Am Always
Include
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No, I don't make my work in order to challenge or confuse other people's expectations - I only do what I find natural.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Expectations
Order
People
Confuse
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Little Sparta is a garden in the traditional sense. It is perhaps not like other modern gardens, but I think that other times would have had no difficulty with it.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Difficulty
Garden
Sparta
Thinking
Traditional
Traditional Sense
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But I can only write what the muse allows me to write. I cannot choose, I can only do what I am given, and I feel pleased when I feel close to concrete poetry - still.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Concrete
Given
Muse
Writing
Pleased
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Well, probably I was fed up with concrete poetry. There was a lot of bad concrete poetry and besides, it was confused with visual poetry which was completely different.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Concrete
Confused
Fed Up
Visual
Besides
Fed
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For me concrete poetry was a particular way of using language which came out of a particular feeling, and I don't have control over whether this feeling is in me or not.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Concrete
Feelings
Language
Way
Particular Way
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I came to these mediums through having the garden, and of course, people who have designed gardens have always worked in collaboration, and never made their own inscriptions.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Collaboration
Garden
Mediums
People
Always People Never
Designed
People Always Never
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What you compose with is neither here nor there, you compose with words, or you compose with stone plants and trees, or you compose with events; the Sheriff's officer, or whatever.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Events
Stones
Tree
Compose
Sheriff
Neither
Nor
Officer
Plants
Stone
Trees
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People have always found me challenging - I don't know why, when I am only being myself. I don't understand why they find me so annoying but they do. It is pity, but that is how it is.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Annoying
Being Myself
Challenges
People
Pity
Myself I Am Me
Myself Always I Am
Challenging
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But at the beginning it was clear to me that concrete poetry was peculiarly suited for using in public settings. This was my idea, but of course I never really much got the chance to do it.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Chance
Clear
Concrete
Ideas
Settings
Beginning
Course
Suited
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My position is that since the non-secular status of my garden is not recognised by the law; by the world of the public, then the garden can only be private. So, I closed the garden to the public.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Garden
Law
World
Closed
Recognised
Status
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If the work is pure then you have to think it could be understood. If it is not understood it doesn't mean that your work is not accessible. It doesn't worry me, but, of course, I would be pleased if people liked my work.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Mean
People
Pure
Thinking
Understood
Worry
Work Me People
Work Your Me
Accessible
Pleased
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However, I don't feel the world is looking over my shoulder when I am working - I never think about this at all. What I think about is trying to make my work pure, and if it is pure then it can be accessible. It is quite straight forward really.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Pure
Thinking
Trying
World
Work World I Am
Accessible
Straight
Shoulder
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I have often said that just as the French revolution, for instance, understood itself through antiquity, I think our time can be understood through the French revolution. It is quite a natural process to use other times to understand your own time.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Antiquity
French Revolution
Instance
Our Time
Revolution
Understood
Time Use Your
French
Natural Process
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But you have to understand that I consider myself a very modest artist, or whatever, and not of importance really at all - it is quite embarrassing to me to be asked my opinion about things. I am only a wee Scottish poet on the outside of everything.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Artist
Embarrassing
Importance
Marijuana
Modest
Opinion
Poet
Scottish
Myself I Am Me
Myself Me I Am
Wee
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The same sort of thing happened in my dispute with the National Trust book: Follies: A National Trust Guide, which implied that the only pleasure you can get from Folly architecture is by calling the architect mad, and by laughing at the architecture.
Ian Hamilton Finlay / Poet
Architecture
Architect
Calling
Folly
Implied
Laughing
Mad
Pleasure
Dispute
Follies
Guide
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Ian Hamilton Finlay Quotes - Page 1

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