Artists and poets: correspondence, writings, and ephemera
The activities of Ken and Ann Mikolowski and their Alternative Press created a sense of community among the artists whose work the Press distributed. The Artists and Poets Series illustrates this high degree of connection between and among the artists.
This series is the largest of the collection, taking up 14 linear feet. The largest sub-series consists of correspondence from the Mikolowskis' close friends such as Donna Brook, Morgan Blair (Faye Kicknosway), Kenward Elmslie and Sue Pickard. Of the numerous correspondents, some of particular note are Robert Bly, Andrei Codrescu, Robert Creely, Allen Ginsburg, Donald Hall, Anselm Hollo, Bradley Jones, Norman Mailer, Ron Padgett, Robert Sestok, John Sinclair, Patricia Söderberg and Anne Waldman. By far the most voluminous is the Jim Gustafson sub-series, which includes incoming and outgoing correspondence, printed materials, writings, and ephemera.
The variety of materials in this series reflects that there was little distinction between business and friendship. Propositions for collaboration and event announcements are intermingled with family photos and birth announcements. The correspondence is often accompanied by original poems that were created for potential poetry postcards or bookmarks. Some artists and presses, such as the Cold Mountain Press of Austin, Texas also sent their own poetry postcards to the Alternative Press. Other notable items in the series include: Hanuman Press material; press clippings for poetry readings and exhibits openings; longtime Detroit sportswriter Joe Falls' unpublished mystery novel Supreme Justice ; Detroit poet Judith Goren's piece "Detroit Suburb, 1967" about the Detroit Riots/Rebellion; and a position paper by writer Clayton Eshleman.
The vibrancy of the artistic life of the Cass Corridor and the place of Wayne State University in the community is well-reflected in this series. The turbulent social and political climate of the United States in the 1970s and 1980s is also central to much of the material in the Artists and Poets series, from John Sinclair's correspondence from jail, to Vietnam protest material, to the Urbations' performance schedules.