Wyndham Le wis
‘The most fascinating personality of our time.’ – T.S. Eliot
Journey into Barbary Travels across Morocco
198mm
‘Lewis was one of those high-powered, controversial and prophetic figures to whom no one can react with indifference... His eye for the comic surface of things is marvelous.’ – Philip Toynbee, Observer
Travels across Morocco
n the spring and summer of 1931, Wyndham Lewis travelled to the westernmost part of the Berber heartland in Morocco, known traditionally as ‘Barbary’. Wanting to avoid what he called ‘the Baedekered blight’ of Anglo-American tourism, he set out for the majestic High Atlas mountains with pens and watercolours to record, in words and images, the rich traditional culture and changing face of the wild, isolated Berber tribes who carved a harsh life out of Morocco’s remotest regions. The result is a blend of two arts, the literary skill of a detached and humorous observer, mixed with the drawings of one of the twentieth century’s most exciting and original artists. Through the eyes of a creative genius, Journey into Barbary is both an inimitable portrait of Morocco and one of the first truly modern accounts of a country that had for so long remained an enigma to generations of travellers.
Wyndham Lewis
I
new Foreword by
travel writing / history
C.J. Fox
129mm
22mm
129mm
Original, ferociously witty, controversial, Wyndham Lewis (1882– 1957) is celebrated as a painter – co-founder of the Vorticist movement – and writer. His most well-known novels include The Revenge for Love and Tarr, as well as a major work of fiction, The Human Age. He served in France during World War I and his subsequent paintings of war earned him a place as one of the early twentieth century’s most dynamic artists. C.J. Fox, for some time a book reviewer for The Independent and other British publications, has been involved in editing several collections of Wyndham Lewis’s writings, including (with Walter Michel) Wyndham Lewis on Art.
‘Bears witness to Lewis’s vigorous admiration for the character and culture of the Berbers... and to Lewis’s unconventional vision brought to bear on landscape, architecture and human beings.’ TLS ‘Lewis was one of those high-powered, controversial and prophetic figures to whom no one can react with indifference. ... But his eye for the comic surface of things is marvellous.’ Philip Toynbee, Observer ‘The most fascinating personality of our time.’ T.S. Eliot
Sheikh’s Wife by Wyndham Lewis, 1939 (copyright The Wyndham Lewis Trust, reproduced with kind permission ING Commercial Banking) Sheikh’s Wife by Wyndham Lewis, 1939 (copyright The Wyndham Lewis Trust, reproduced with kind permission ING Commercial Banking)
Sheik’s Wife by Wyndham Lewis, 1936 (copyright The Wyndham Lewis Memorial Trust, reproduced with kind permission ING Commercial Banking).
Tauris Parke Paperbacks is an imprint of I.B.Tauris. It is dedicated to publishing books in accessible paperback editions for the serious general reader within a wide range of categories, including biography, history, travel, art and the ancient world. The list includes select, critically acclaimed works of top quality writing by distinguished authors that continue to challenge, to inform and to inspire, These are books that possess those subtle but intrinsic elements that mark them out as something exceptional. The Colophon of Tauris Parke Paperbacks is a representation of the ancient Egyptian ibis, sacred to the god Thoth, who was himself often depicted in the form of this most elegant of birds. Thoth was credited in antiquity as the scribe of the ancient Egyptian gods and as the inventor of writing and was associated with many aspects of wisdom and learning.
JOURNEY INTO BARBARY Travels across Morocco Wyndham Lewis Edited and with a new foreword by C.J. Fox
TPP TA U R I S PA R K E PA P E R B A C K S
This book is dedicated to Froanna who also made the journey New paperback edition published in 2013 by Tauris Parke Paperbacks An imprint of I.B.Tauris and Co Ltd 6 Salem Road, London W2 4BU 175 Fifth Avenue, New York NY 10010 www.ibtauris.com Distributed in the United States and Canada Exclusively by Palgrave Macmillan 175 Fifth Avenue, New York NY 10010 This edition published in 1987 by Penguin Books Copyright © 1984, 1987, 2013 The Wyndham Lewis Memorial Trust Copyright introduction and notes © 1983 C.J. Fox Copyright foreword © 2013 C.J. Fox Cover image: Berber Horseman by Wyndham Lewis (reproduced with kind permission David Gault) The right of Wyndham Lewis to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by The Wyndham Lewis Memorial Trust in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or any part thereof, may not be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. ISBN: 978 1 78076 352 1 A full CIP record for this book is available from the British Library A full CIP record is available from the Library of Congress Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: available Printed and bound in Sweden by Scanbook