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ONTARIO SCENE
Alphabet (1960-1972)
In London, James Reaney, poet and professor of English at University of Western Ontario, launched his influential magazine Alphabet. In 1963, Reaney published the first of two books under the Alphabet Press imprint. The first was The Dance of Death at London, Ontario (1963), a collaboration between the artist Jack Chambers and James Reaney.
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Alphabet. No 2, July 1961. Edited by James Reaney. |
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James Reaney's Alphabet magazine was dedicated to exploring the "iconography of the imagination". Alphabet appeared in 19 issues between 1960 and 1972. A student of typography, Reaney hand-set many issues of his magazine, and printed the magazine on a platen press.
Cover reproduced by permission of James Reaney.
 | James Reaney and Jack Chamber. The Dance of Death at London, Ontario. London, [Ont.]: Alphabet Press, 1963. |
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Cover reproduced by permission of James Reaney.
Gryphon Press (1965-1972)
From the beginning of the decade to its close, the number of Ontario small presses grew at an exponential rate, a phenomena which was mirrored across Canada. Windsor laid claim to a group of poets who were associated with the little magazine Mainline which was edited by members of the faculty at the University of Windsor: Dorothy Farmiloe, Len Gasparini, Richard Hornsey, and Eugene MacNamara. The publishing offshoot of the magazine was Gryphon Press.
 | 21 x 3: Poem. Dorothy Farmiloe, Len Gasparini, and Eugene McNamara. Windsor, Ont.: Gryphon Press, 1967. |
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Gryphon Press evolved from the University of Windsor-based little magazine Mainline. During its six-year existence, Gryphon Press was the primary publisher for Windsor poets.
Cover reproduced by permission of Gryphon Press, ed. Dorothy Farmiloe, Len Gasparini and Eugene McNamara.
Quarry Press (1965- )
In March 1965, Tom Eadie announced in issue 14 of Quarry Magazine, the student literary magazine of Queen's University, that the issue in hand “marked the end of an era”. No longer would it serve exclusively as the student magazine; it would become a quarterly and would open its pages to writers from across Canada. Also that year, the editors decided to launch a book with the Quarry Press imprint: The Beast With Three Backs (1965), a collection of poems by Tom Eadie, Tom Marshall and Colin Norman.
 | Quarry. Vol. 14, 1965. Edited by Tom Eadie. |
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Until 1965, Quarry had served for 13 years as the annual student literary magazine of Queen’s University. In 1965, editor Tom Eadie strove to raise the standards of the magazine; and, Quarry has remained an important literary magazine in Canada ever since.
Cover reproduced by permission of Tom Eadie.
 | Tom Eadie, Tom Marshall, Colin Norman. The Beast With Three Backs. Kingston, Ont.: Quarry Press, [1965] |
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Designed by Battey-Pratt and illustrated by Ralph Allen.
When Quarry emerged as a professional literary magazine, magazine editors Eadie, Marshall and Norman launched the Quarry imprint. This is the first book from the Press.
Courtesy of The Ralph Gustafson Poetry Collection. The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, McGill University.
Cover reproduced by permission of Tom Eadie, David Helwig (Literary Executor for Tom Marshall) and Colin Norman.
 | Gail Fox. Dangerous Season. Kingston: Quarry Press, 1969. |
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Quarry Press, like many small presses, reflects a community or place; the place is Kingston during the Press’s 35-year history and the people are Stuart McKinnon, Tom Marshall, Gail Fox and Alan Brown.
Cover reproduced by permission of Fred Cogswell.
Quarry Press Broadsides
Dorothy Livesay. Post-Operative Instructions. Kingston, [Ont.]: Quarry Press, 1970. Broadside.
Oberon Press (1967- )
During the early 1960s, the Ottawa literary scene was diffuse until, in 1967, Michael Macklem launched Oberon Press. Publishing a wide spectrum of Canadian poets and novelists, Oberon remains one of only a few presses which survived the 1960s. Although editor and publisher Macklem designed many Oberon books, during the period under review in this exhibition, a number of Oberon books were printed and designed by The
Coach House Press.
 | Michael Macklem. God Have Mercy: The Life of John Fisher of Rochester. Ottawa: Oberon Press, [1967]. |
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Since 1967, Michael Macklem has been both the publisher and designer of Oberon's books.
Cover from God Have Mercy by Michael Macklem reproduced by permission of Oberon Press.
 | David Helwig. Figures in a Landscape. Ottawa: Oberon Press, 1967. |
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Cover from Figures in a Landscape by David Helwig reproduced by permission of Oberon Press.
David Adams Richards. The Coming of Winter. [Ottawa]: Oberon, 1974.
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