My friend Lawrence Upton, who has died aged 70, was a leading figure in the British poetry revival of the 1960s and 70s, as a poet, publisher, sound artist, graphic artist and performer. In the 70s he was involved in Poets Conference, the Association of Little Presses, Writers Forum and the Poetry Society (serving as the society’s deputy chair from 1974 to 1978).
Lawrence was born in London, studied English literature and history at Kingston Polytechnic, and completed a master’s in English and American literature at King’s College London. He supported himself through teaching jobs (and by 1992 was head of academic computing at Carshalton College), but simultaneously, during the 70s, established himself as a sound poet. Between 1976 and 1979 he performed with PC Fencott and cris cheek in the sound poetry performance group jgjgjg across Europe and then, after 1979, as a solo performer in the US and Canada.
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