Culture Now: Charles Verey Discusses Dom Sylvester Houédard

Biographer Charles Verey and curator Nicola Simpson discuss the influence of the Benedictine monk, scholar and concrete poet Dom Sylvester Houédard, exploring his rich contribution to the culture of the 1960s.

Charles Verey trained at Slade School (1959 -1963). He was introduced to Dom Sylvester Houédard in 1965 by Bob Cobbing at a poetry symposium in Nottingham. Between 1966-69 Charles organised exhibitions with Dom Sylvester, John Furnival and Ken Cox, at Arlington Mill in Gloucestershire. Since 1971 he has been associated with Beshara, as a student and Trustee. Since 1977, Charles has worked as a furniture maker and designer. He has been working on a biography of Dom Sylvester Houédard for the past six years and is currently jointly editing a book of talks given by Dom Sylvester in the context of Beshara, in the last years of his life. 

Nicola Simpson is editor of The Cosmic Typewriter, The Life and Work of Dom Sylvester Houédard (Occasional Papers, 2012) and curator of The Cosmic Typewriter exhibition and symposium (South London Gallery, 2012) and The Yoga of Concrete (Norwich University of the Arts, 2010). Her research interests focus on the influence of Zen and Vajrayana Buddhism on British Conceptual Art of the 1960s and 1970s.