Congrats to Denise Enck, winner of Bukowski poster by Joan Gannij

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of Charles Bukowski’s passing, we have raffled off a limited-edition commemorative poster by Joan Gannij – donated by the photographer.

Congratulations to our winner:

Denise Enck (Bellingham, Washington)

NOTE: To purchase a signed copy of the limited-edition poster for just $20 (plus shipping and handling), send an email to Joan Gannij  — joangannij@gmail.com.

ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHER: Born in New York City, raised in L.A., and based in Amsterdam since 1987, Joan Gannij started her career as a photojournalist, freelancing for the LA Times, Los Angeles magazine, and many other publications. Her pictorial interviews with Henry Miller and Mohammad Ali, along with a syndicated radio program “Off the Record” (interviewing guests like Leonard Cohen and Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez, and John Lennon) gave her a reputation as a pop culture provocateuse.  It was ”by accident” that she crossed paths with Charles Bukowski, when asked by a friend to shoot photos to accompany his Rolling Stone interview. One photographic encounter led to another, and then a few more. Bukowski was touched when she gifted him with a box of photographs and appointed her his ”official book jacket photographer.” Her candid portraits Bukowski have appeared on his book translations around the world: from Israel and Iran to Finland and Japan. Visit her at joangannij.com.

Enter to win Charles Bukowski poster by Joan Gannij

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of Charles Bukowski’s passing, we are raffling off a limited-edition commemorative poster by Joan Gannij – donated by the photographer.

If you’d like your name entered into the drawing, just send an email with your contact info to silver@silverbirchpress.com with HANK POSTER in the subject line. We’ll pick a name from the hat on Sunday, March 9, 2014.

Stay tuned for a week of giveaways as we count down to the 20th Anniversary of Hank’s departure and pay tribute to the great writer!

NOTE: To purchase a signed copy of the limited-edition poster for just $20 (plus shipping and handling), send an email to Joan Gannij  — joangannij@gmail.com.

Bukowski Tribute: American Book Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

The American Book Center in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, is commemorating the 20th anniversary of Charles Bukowski‘s passing with events and activities to honor the beloved author — including a tribute window with photographs by Joan Gannij.

March 9, 2014: Opening of an exhibit featuring Bukowski photographs by personal photographer Joan Gannij. During the event,  Henk van der Does will interview Gannij about her friendship with Bukowski, and the photographer and others will read from Bukowski’s work. Gannij will sign copies of her limited-edition commemorative poster — available for sale at the ABC store — and visitors can take selfies with a life-sized photo of Bukowski. For more information, visit the American Book Center.

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of Charles Bukowski’s passing,  Joan Gannij is offering her portrait of the author in a limited-edition poster, signed by the photographer for just $20 (plus shipping and handling). Available starting March 9, 2014, this collector’s item belongs in every Buk lover’s home! To place your order, send an email to Joan Gannij — joangannij@gmail.com.

ABOUT JOAN GANNIJ: Born in New York City, raised in L.A., and based in Amsterdam since 1987, Joan Gannij started her career as a photojournalist, freelancing for the LA Times, Los Angeles magazine, and many other publications. Her pictorial interviews with Henry Miller and Mohammad Ali, along with a syndicated radio program “Off the Record” (interviewing guests like Leonard Cohen and Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez, and John Lennon) gave her a reputation as a pop culture provocateuse.  It was ”by accident” that she crossed paths with Charles Bukowski, when asked by a friend to shoot photos to accompany his Rolling Stone interview. One photographic encounter led to another, and then a few more. Bukowski was touched when she gifted him with a box of photographs and appointed her his ”official book jacket photographer.” Her candid portraits Bukowski have appeared on his book translations around the world: from Israel and Iran to Finland and Japan.

Signed, Limited-Edition Bukowski Poster by Joan Gannij

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of Charles Bukowski’s passing, famed Bukowski photographer Joan Gannij is offering her portrait of Hank in a limited-edition poster, signed by the photographer for the bargain price of just $20 (plus shipping and handling). Available starting March 9, 2014, this collector’s item honors the great author — and belongs in every Buk lover’s home! To place your order, send an email to Joan Gannij — joangannij@gmail.com.

the silver mirror, poem by Charles Bukowski, painting by Jocelyne Desforges, after a photo by Joan Gannij

the silver mirror (Excerpt)
by Charles Bukowski

she pulls a large silver mirror
from her purse
and starts to pencil her eyebrows.
the left eye is bruised where she
fell several nights ago.
the afternoon sun comes through the
blinds behind her…
the afternoon sun seeps through her
red-brown hair. quickly she crosses
her legs, swings her foot up and
down. she drops the silver mirror
back into her purse, looks up at me –
her eyes very large and the palest
green that I have ever seen, and
down through Georgia and New Orleans
and up in Maine
the whole world is caught in her glance
and at last
the universe is
magnificent.

***
“the silver mirror” appears in Charles Bukowski‘s collection What Matters Most is How Well You Walk Through the Fire.

Illustration: “Georgia & Hank,” a painting by Jocelyne Desforges, after a photo ©Joan Gannij, appears in the Silver Birch Press Bukowski Anthology, available at Amazon.com.

Editor’s Note: According to Charles Bukowski’s Scarlet, a memoir by Pamela “Cupcakes” Wood, Charles Bukowski wrote “the silver mirror” for Georgia Peckham-Krellner, who was with Cupcakes the night she first met Bukowski. Find the fascinating Charles Bukowski’s Scarlet at Amazon.com.

Writing, Poem by Charles Bukowski

Photo Credit: Charles Bukowski (1988) © Joan Gannij, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. For prints of this photo, visit the photographer at her website here. Postcards of the above image are available at Skylight Books in Los Angeles and at City Lights Books in San Francisco.

***

WRITING

Poem by Charles Bukowski

often it is the only 
thing 
between you and 
impossibility. 
no drink, 
no woman’s love, 
no wealth 
can 
match it. 
nothing can save 
you 
except 
writing. 
it keeps the walls 
from 
failing. 
the hordes from 
closing in. 
it blasts the 
darkness. 
writing is the 
ultimate 
psychiatrist, 
the kindliest 
god of all the 
gods. 
writing stalks 
death. 
it knows no 
quit. 
and writing 
laughs 
at itself, 
at pain. 
it is the last 
expectation, 
the last 
explanation. 
that’s 
what it 
is.