Concrete poetry is an arrangement of linguistic elements in which the typographical effect is more important in conveying meaning than verbal significance. It is sometimes referred to as visual poetry, a term that has now developed a distinct meaning of its own. Concrete poetry relates more to the visual than to the verbal arts although there is a considerable overlap in the kind of product to which it refers. Historically, however, concrete poetry has developed from a long tradition of shaped or patterned poems in which the words are arranged in such a way as to depict their subject.
"Constantinople", a 'ferro-concrete poem' from Tango with Cows by the Russian Futurist Vasily Kamensky, 1914
George Herbert's "Easter Wings" (1633), printed sideways on facing pages so that the lines would call to mind angels flying with outstretched wings
Ian Hamilton Finlay sculpture in Stuttgart, 1975; the word schiff (ship) is carved in reverse and can only be decoded when it floats reflected on water
Easter Wings is a poem by George Herbert which was published in his posthumous collection, The Temple (1633). It was originally formatted sideways on facing pages and is in the tradition of shaped poems that goes back to ancient Greek sources.
"Easter Wings" in the 1633 edition of The Temple
A copy of the manuscript written for presentation to the Cambridge University press in 1633
