8 colour photos of the concert pianist Suzanne Bradbury taken by Tanya Ury in the summer of 1999 portray Suzy rehearsing at the palace of the Archduke Luis Salvador, Son Marroig, Mallorca. These pictures, shot within a few seconds, specifically demonstrate hand movement over the piano keys. The images, hang edge-to-edge on a wall reading from left to right. Hand-written poetic texts by Tanya Ury (on music paper), accompany the images. The eight similarly framed but narrower text photos, hang (also edge-to-edge) directly beneath the portraits. A final smallest photo, the title, hangs beneath the last text to the right.

The title (and text) suggest that Suzanne might be playing Chopin's Sonata in C (minor) - Chopin is part of Bradbury's repertoire but in the summer of 2000, she also performed a sonata by the late Peter Ury (Tanya's father), at Son Marroig. In the background of the photographs, the concert hall is empty; reflected in the wing of the grand piano a motionless Mediterranean landscape can be seen.

***

Tanya Ury’s written poetry may be regarded as “concrete” because of its visual design, and unconventional aural effect when spoken - the texts thereby gain in dimension beyond accepted meaning.

Ury has also created other artworks that might be considered visual poetry. Moving Message 1992, incorporates an LED sign displaying the words: you are why; wrestlewithyourangel 2001, is a neon sign produced together with the neon sign neonazi 2001; the title of a double photo portrait lesser is me more or less 2003 plays on the name of the German Post-Impressionist Lesser Ury, as does the title of a further double portrait or else 2007, which refers to the German writer Else Ury. The title of a third photo-portrait Beelzebularin 2005 (in the Promised Land series) reveals itself to be an anagram of the biblical Bezalel Ben Uri. half dimensional - semi detached 2010, combines the first of the half dimensional poems with the photograph semi detached.

Concrete poetry in the series:

femiNINIty – femininiation 1984 & 2011
moving message 1992
Word-fore-play - Recipe for Love 1995
Sonata in Sea 1999-2000
wish 2000
wrestlewithyourangel 2001
neonazi 2001
Poker Poems 2003
elle la poésie 2003
lesser is me more or less 2003
Beelzebularin 2005
Un 2006
or else 2007
half dimensional poems 2009-2011
half dimensional - semi detached 2010
cement 2011 -
on a mat appear 2011 -
Lost Poems 2011
weißer neger (white nigger) 2011
powdercake 19.12.2004 & 15.5.2011
informed 2011
concrete party 2011
oral call 2011
cross word 2011-2012
toned poems 2011-2012
two toned 2012