Scope and Contents

Basmajian (30 September 1950 "“ 25 January 1990) was a Canadian poet and author. Born in Beirut, Lebanon to Armenian parents, Basmajian emigrated to Canada when he was seven years old. He was a founder of the Canadian Poetry Association, co-founder of Old Nun Publications (with Ted Plantos), and was a member of the Parliament Street Library poetry group. The Shaunt Basmajian Chapbook Award, given annually to a Canadian poet, was established in his memory. The contest ran from 1996-2008. In 1986, he was attacked with a knife and robbed while he was driving a taxi. His right lung was punctured when a robber stabbed him. -- Source of annotation: Marvin or Ruth Sackner.

Scope and Contents The ink drawing is superimposed upon a tight grid of the repetively typed word "blood." Words that are recognizable in the drawing include the following: 'the' and 'in the soul.' Basmajian was born in the Armenian Republic and migrated with his family to Canada at age 7 years. Hence, his interest in writing this poem about the Nagorno-Karabakh War. Wikipedia: It was an armed conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the small enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by the Republic of Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan. As the war progressed, Armenia and Azerbaijan, both former Soviet Republics, entangled themselves in a protracted, undeclared war in the mountainous heights of Karabakh as Azerbaijan attempted to curb the secessionist movement in Nagorno-Karabakh. The enclave's parliament had voted in favor of uniting itself with Armenia and a referendum, boycotted by the...

Scope and Contents

The backgound text is a repetitively written run-on of the word 'freedom.' -- Source of annotation: Marvin or Ruth Sackner.

Scope and Contents

The backgound text is a repetitively written run-on of the word 'freedom.' -- Source of annotation: Marvin or Ruth Sackner.

Scope and Contents

The drawing is done on a page from a book on mushrooms and includes printed drawings of mushrooms and a caption. One of the mushrooms in the drawing is titled, "Scleroderma verrucosum." The title and subject of Sackner's first published medical book was "Scleroderma," a disease of humans and unrelated to the mushroom. -- Source of annotation: Marvin or Ruth Sackner.

Scope and Contents

This book is a collection of typewritten concrete poems. -- Source of annotation: Marvin or Ruth Sackner.