book - they knew what they wanted: poems and collages

John Ashbery is known foremost as a poet, but he has been creating collages for nearly as long as he’s been writing poetry. He began working in the medium when he was an undergraduate at Harvard, more than seventy years ago. Now, for the first time ever, this volume compiles a comprehensive selection of Ashbery’s collage work, accompanied by a selection of collage-related poems. Like his poetry, Ashbery’s collage work combines art historical and pop culture references, creating often humorous juxtapositions.