‌
FairArt Logo

Mondo Scripto 2018

Ten hand-signed Bob Dylan prints of handwritten lyrics form 'Mondo Scripto 2018', published by Washington Green in October 2018 in editions of 495. Each sets a song beside a pencil drawing, and a boxed set of the ten, a 16-part 'Knockin' On Heaven's Door' portfolio and a book and print complete the release.

All Mondo Scripto 2018 Works By Bob Dylan (13)

Significance & Analysis

'Mondo Scripto' was the first time Dylan's songwriting and his drawing met on one sheet: a song written out by hand beside a drawing made to go with it. The prints went on sale on 5 October 2018, days before the originals were shown at Halcyon Gallery in London from 9 October to 30 November.

The handwritten versions are not straight transcriptions. For the project Dylan rewrote lines in several songs, among them 'Knockin' On Heaven's Door' and 'Tangled Up in Blue', so a sheet can differ from the recorded lyric. He is known for changing his words in performance, and these sheets carry that habit onto paper.

The drawings respond to the songs in different ways. For 'Like A Rolling Stone' Dylan drew Napoleon after Jacques-Louis David's 1812 portrait, a figure the song itself names in the line about "Napoleon in rags".

'Knockin' On Heaven's Door', written for the 1973 film 'Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid', went further than the rest. In the exhibition it was illustrated line by line, and that sequence of drawings was editioned as a 16-part portfolio alongside the song's single print.

Before and after

Dylan's earlier editions, from 'The Drawn Blank Series' to 'The Beaten Path', reproduced his paintings and drawings. 'Mondo Scripto' turned the editions towards his songs. He returned to the idea two years later with 'Mondo Scripto 2020', six more songs, all released between 1963 and 1966.

What Paper and Sheet Size Do the Mondo Scripto 2018 Prints Use?

Each print is on 300gsm Somerset paper with a deckle edge, carrying an impressed plate mark and an embossed logo. The sheet measures about 74 x 45 cm, and a framed print measures 102.9 x 74.9 cm. Each of the ten single prints is an edition of 495, with 65 artist's proofs.

Which Songs Are in the Mondo Scripto 2018 Boxed Set?

All ten of the single prints, kept together in their original box: 'All Along The Watchtower', 'Blowin' In The Wind', 'Forever Young', 'It's All Over Now, Baby Blue', 'Knockin' On Heaven's Door', 'Lay, Lady, Lay', 'Like A Rolling Stone', 'Maggie's Farm', 'Mr. Tambourine Man' and 'The Times They Are A-Changin''. The set was offered unframed in the box or as a framed set of ten.

How Is the Knockin' On Heaven's Door Portfolio Different From the Single Print?

The single 'Knockin' On Heaven's Door' print is one sheet from the edition of 495, carrying the lyrics and one drawing. The portfolio is a separate edition of 295 in 16 parts. It was offered unframed as a portfolio set of 16 or framed as a set of 16.

What Is the Mondo Scripto Book and Print?

It pairs a linen-bound copy of the exhibition catalogue with a print, presented together in a linen-bound solander case with a certificate of authenticity. The catalogue reproduces the wider project, around 60 songs, far more than the ten editioned as single prints.