I began printing in 1974, when I was one of a group of writers in Dunedin, New Zealand, who were looking for ways, and finding them, of publishing their own work and the work of others they respected. My first interest was in publishing, and the art of printing was an art I had barely heard about. The first press was an Arab treadle platen, the first type was 12pt Perpetua, and the first book was Ian Wedde’s wonderful poem Pathway to the Sea . The only photograph I have of the Arab treadle is this black and white, but the actual color of the press was bright red. All Hawk Press books are now out of print, but here is a full checklist of Hawk publications.
Ian Wedde, Pathway To The Sea, 1975.
Stephen Oliver, Henwise, 1975.
Alan Loney, dear Mondrian, 1976.
Alan Brunton, Black & White Anthology, 1976.
Graham Lindsay, Thousand-Eyed Eel, 1976.
Robert Creeley, Hello, 1976.
Rhys Pasley, Cafe Life & The Train, 1977.
Pat White, Signposts, 1977. #
Russell Haley, On the Fault Line, 1977.
David Miller, Appearance & Event, 1977.
Anne Donovan, Daddy Am I So Fine, 1978.
Joanna Margaret Paul, Imogen, 1978.
Stephen Oliver, Autumn Songs, 1978. #
Murray Edmond/Janet Paul, Patchwork, 1978.
Jeanette McCracken/Barry Cleavin, Surface Mail, 1979. #
J. C. Beaglehole, The Death of Captain Cook, 1979. #
Bob Orr, Poems For Moira, 1979.
Martin Harrison, Truce, 1979.
Bill Manhire/Andrew Drummond, Dawn/Water, 1979.
Stephen Oliver, Letter to James K. Baxter, 1980. #
Ted Jenner, A Memorial Brass, 1980.
Elizabeth Smither, The Sarah Train, 1980.
Clive Faust, Metamorphosed From the Adjacent Cold, 1980. #
Michael Harlow, Nothing But Switzerland and Lemonade, 1980.
Edgar Mansfield, 11.2.80 : On Creation, 1981.
J. C. Beaglehole, The New Zealand Scholar, 1982.
Marilynn Webb, Taste Before Eating, 1982. #
Alan Loney, Squeezing the Bones, 1983.
# = books printed for other publishers.
photograph by Robin Neate