Trois Coups
Paris: Editions Herscher, 1983. 1st Edition. Small quarto, publisher’s stiff photo-illustrated paper wraps.
First edition of French high wire artist Phillipe Petit’s memoir, inscribed by him to Reverend James Parks Morton, dean of New York's Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. A self-described "poet of the sky," Petit began tightrope walking as a teenager and gained notoriety for his early illegal stunts, including walking between the towers of Notre Dame and the pylons of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. He became a global sensation in 1974 after executing an unauthorized high-wire walk between the Twin Towers in New York, spending forty-five minutes suspended 1350 feet above ground. The book details Petit's feats in Paris, New York, and Australia, with details of each wire installation, a biographical timeline, and photos, including a frontispiece portrait by Henri Cartier Bresson. As the dean of New York's Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, Morton named Petit artist-in-residence in 1982 in an ongoing effort to reinvigorate fundraising and activity around the then-unfinished building. Petit claimed he viewed the role as part of a long lineage, echoing medieval rope walkers who rigged their wires between church towers and cathedral spires. Inscribed to title page: "To James, those ‘three crimes,’ / [illegible erasure] / before we met – / Hoping for many more, together. / Philippe / July 4th 1990 Paris." Text in French. Minor edgewear to wraps. Near fine. Item #11325
$200.00