Violet String Bird

Violet String Bird © Steen Espersen, 1972

To continue my miniseries of Steen Espersen’s art, my choice falls on a quirky bird. Steen had considerable humour and showed it in a series of birds. They were ‘portraits’ or caricatures of musician friends. He presented me with this, shortly after I’d joined the Group of Alternative Music, a group of mad musicians that investigated contemporary music and experimented with flux and improvisation. The group included several Danish composers. The concerts often took place in unusual venues, from boats and harbours to art galleries and the odd decommissioned church.  

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© HMH, 2020