Charles Henri Ford Exhibit

Through the Eyes of Poets: Charles Henri Ford’s View of the 20th Century showcases the many publications Ford produced throughout his life as a poet, editor, filmmaker, and photographer.

Charles Henri Ford was a surrealist poet from Mississippi who founded and co-edited the experimental little magazine Blues: a Magazine of New Rhythms (1929-30) and the avant-garde publication View (1940-1947). Ford joined the ex-patriot community in 1930s Paris where he and co-author Parker Tyler published what would become known as one of the first modern gay novels, The Young and Evil. Though he lived a nomadic lifestyle with his partner, the Russian painter Pavel Tchelitchew, Ford made his home in New York in the 1940s and launched View. View featured on its covers European artists such as Max Ernst and Marcel Duchamp and poetry by Wallace Stevens and William Carlos Williams. Ford published fifteen books of poetry, a novel, and a book of photographs. Ruth Ford, the well-known actress and model, was Charles’ sister.

The exhibit is on display Monday-Friday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. in McCain Library and Archives 305. If you have questions about the exhibit, contact Special Collections at 601.266.4345.