New Beowulf edition in the works

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New Beowulf edition in the works

1icewindraider
Giu 5, 2022, 3:22 pm

Apparently illustrated by Carlos Calvo. I saw this on Facebook. Mr. Calvo states:

"I’m working on Seamus Heaney’s translation of ‘Beowulf’ for the Folio Society, and the lessons learned on Great Pucklands are in the forefront of my mind as I make my first fully rendered studies. Everything about the Beowulf story and the time of its writing feels iconic and well traversed, and so I’m submerging myself in deeper layers of imagination, to make the imagery completely anew.”

He references his instagram, but I'm not on instagram.

2Shadekeep
Modificato: Giu 5, 2022, 5:12 pm

>1 icewindraider: I'm down for another FS edition of Heaney's Beowulf translation, since I don't have their previous one. What is the artist's Instagram identity? It appears to be a not uncommon name.

3SF-72
Giu 5, 2022, 3:57 pm

I haven't been able to find this artist by name or the quote. Does anyone have a link to where one can see some of his work? I'd really like to see his style to get an idea of whether this is likely to appeal to me or not. I already have two FS editions and the recent (gorgeously) illustrated Easton Press, as well as paperback editions with annotations and the original text, so this new one would really have to be visually appealing to me for me to feel the need to buy yet another copy of Beowulf. Still, it's always interesting when there's a new nice edition.

4cronshaw
Giu 5, 2022, 4:01 pm

How exciting! While the binding design of Folio's last Beowulf edition was striking, the illustrations (mostly borders) never grabbed me. Fingers crossed for this edition :)

5cronshaw
Giu 5, 2022, 4:03 pm

P.S. I hope it is bilingual, with facing pages of English Old and modern.

6gmacaree
Giu 5, 2022, 4:07 pm

If they manage to improve on the previous one, I'll be surprised

7assemblyman
Giu 5, 2022, 4:51 pm

I’m assuming this will be an LE as a reissue of the previous SE/Fine Edition would of been the obvious route if they were going to release another SE. It will be interesting to see how they do this but I still hope to get the previous edition some day.

8abysswalker
Giu 5, 2022, 5:44 pm

>1 icewindraider: and for others interested, here is the artist and the post in question. With credit to the original poster from the Facebook group.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CeX_cYDsvY9/

(Note that there are three images in the post above. You need to click the little arrow embedded on the right side of the image to see the others. Also, if you click that link directly in a browser, you probably shouldn't need to be logged in using an instagram account, but Instagram is unpredictably annoying about trying to get you to sign in/up.)

https://www.instagram.com/hicksjenkins/

I cannot say I am personally excited with this stylistic direction. I much prefer the archaic style of the original standard/fine edition. But I will withhold judgment until I see the final result.

9Shadekeep
Giu 5, 2022, 6:56 pm

>8 abysswalker: Hurm, I'm with you. I hope the art works in the final version, but stylistically it's a departure from what I personally would prefer. Reminds me a little of Odilon Redon, which isn't a bad thing, but again will have to see how it meshes with the story. The "bird plate" photo on the artist's account has a bit more of a period vibe, so they may pull it off.

10Lady19thC
Giu 5, 2022, 7:33 pm

I missed out on the SE and hope that this is SE not LE so I may add it to my collection.

11SF-72
Giu 6, 2022, 5:09 am

>8 abysswalker:

Thank you. I must say that what I see isn't appealing to me, but then he clearly varies his style depending on the project, so who knows.

12dlphcoracl
Giu 6, 2022, 7:13 am

Carlos Calvo's art is indeed interesting but, based upon the small Instagram sample, wildly inappropriate for the FS Seamus Heaney translation of Beowulf. Reminds me on the god-awful abstract illustrations the Arion Press used to desecrate important poetry collections by Elizabeth Bishop and Jorie Graham. Why would anyone who owns the original FS Beowulf (Seamus Heaney) edition feel compelled to buy this one?

13coffeewithastraw
Giu 6, 2022, 9:15 am

>11 SF-72: >12 dlphcoracl: agree. I will continue to hunt for the original at a reasonable price while not holding my breath.

14folio_books
Giu 6, 2022, 9:20 am

>13 coffeewithastraw:

It is just possible some owners of the SE might be tempted to "upgrade" to the LE and cast the SE afloat on eBay. It would take a lot to convince me to part with the original.

15JustinLey0
Giu 6, 2022, 9:25 am

Questo utente è stato eliminato perché considerato spam.

16coffeewithastraw
Giu 6, 2022, 9:30 am

>14 folio_books: Hope springs eternal!

17red_guy
Modificato: Giu 6, 2022, 9:39 am

A Carlos Calvo commented on one of the images, but the illustrator is definitely Clive Hicks-Jenkins. Here is his website:

http://www.hicks-jenkins.com/

18folio_books
Giu 6, 2022, 9:54 am

>17 red_guy:

That's more like it! The finished designs might be interesting. Interesting enough to make me abandon the current SE? That's a lot of ground to make up.

19Shadekeep
Giu 6, 2022, 10:02 am

>17 red_guy: That does have potential. I like the illustrations for The Green Knight shown on his site. I personally think those would look even better in greyscale, so the work for Beowulf could be quite good indeed.

20Dr.Fiddy
Giu 6, 2022, 10:33 am

I have the original FS Seamus Heaney edition, so I'm not looking for a new one. But I guess it could be of interest for the ones who don't have the original one... 💁

21red_guy
Giu 6, 2022, 12:00 pm

I think the new illustrations may well outshine those of the previous edition, although I doubt if the overall production of the book will be in the same class. I have no idea why I did not snaffle it when it was half price ... (ditto Isabella Bird).

22Kainzow
Giu 6, 2022, 12:13 pm

>21 red_guy:
At the time I had to choose between a Napoleon set and Beowulf and I chose the former. Damn.

And has the Isabella Bird ever been discounted by more than 20%?
I've just bought it full price before it goes out of print. 😅

23red_guy
Modificato: Giu 6, 2022, 12:43 pm

I'm afraid so: I think Isabella was £40-something (£47?) in The Last Great Sale Half Price of 2020 or 2021.

I know I had guzzled up so much that I thought I just could not decently add one single other book to my basket even though people on here were swooning about it. I expect someone will be along soon to gloat.

24Jayked
Giu 6, 2022, 12:31 pm

Where are all the new readers of Beowulf to come from, since it hasn't been compulsory reading in most universities for years? Most "experts" are more likely to shed copies than acquire more. I've pared down to Klaeber, ASPR, Magoun, a translation by my old prof, and the FE Folio, which is now my go to, and will continue to be.

25Shadekeep
Giu 6, 2022, 12:42 pm

>24 Jayked: I think the continuing rise in interest in fantasy fiction and folklore has sustained interest in Beowulf, even for those where it doesn't form a part of the curriculum. And there have been several notable retranslations of it, which helps keep interest fresh.

26red_guy
Modificato: Giu 6, 2022, 12:55 pm

I'm surprised nobody has come out with a nice edition of the Tolkien version, which would sell well, whatever its merits.

27Jayked
Giu 6, 2022, 1:33 pm

I should have made it clear I was talking about side-by-side editions. With Chaucer they have value because the translation casts light on the original, which is reasonably close in grammar, prosody and vocabulary. Not so Beowulf.