Gus Ferguson

{{Short description|South African poet and publisher (1940–2020)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{Infobox writer  | name = Gus Ferguson | image = | image_size = 200px | birth_date = {{birth date|1940|7|1|df=y}} | death_date = {{death date and age|2020|12|27|1940|1|1|df=y}} | birth_place = Selkirk, Scotland | death_place = South Africa | occupation = Publisher, poet, pharmacist | nationality = South African | magnum opus = | influences = | influenced = }}

'''Hugh "Gus" Ferguson''' (1 July 1940 – 27 December 2020)<ref name="Old poets never die, they simply decompose">{{Cite web|date=2021-01-11|title=Gus Ferguson: Old poets never die, they simply decompose|url=https://www.litnet.co.za/gus-ferguson-old-poets-never-die-they-simply-decompose/|access-date=2021-08-13|website=LitNet}}</ref> was a South African poet, small publisher, cartoonist, and pharmacist.

== Career == Although a pharmacist by profession, Ferguson was best known as a prolific independent publisher of South African poetry, primarily through his imprint Snailpress, based in Cape Town.<ref name=JRB>{{Cite web|date=2020-12-27|title=Gus Ferguson, 1940—2020, RIP|url=https://johannesburgreviewofbooks.com/2020/12/27/gus-ferguson-1940-2020-rip/|access-date=2021-08-13|website=The Johannesburg Review of Books|language=en-US}}</ref>

Through Snailpress, and sometimes in collaboration with other presses, Ferguson published over 100 collections, many by notable South African poets, including Douglas Livingstone, Tatamkhulu Afrika, Ingrid de Kok, Patrick Cullinan, Don Maclennan, Jonty Driver, Isobel Dixon, Finuala Dowling, and Rustum Kozain.<ref name="English Academy">{{Cite web|title=Gus Ferguson to Receive Gold Medal from the English Academy|url=http://bookslive.co.za/blog/2009/07/30/gus-ferguson-to-receive-gold-medal-from-the-english-academy/|access-date=2021-08-13|website=Sunday Times Books LIVE @ Sunday Times Books LIVE|date=30 July 2009|language=en}}</ref><ref name="Old poets never die, they simply decompose" />

Ferguson was also the founder and publisher of ''Slugnews'', a literary magazine that ran for 30 issues from 1989 to 1994, and subsequently ''Carapace'', a poetry magazine that ran for 104 issues until 2015. As such, he has been described by Ben Williams, publisher of ''The Johannesburg Review of Books'', as "South Africa's Atlas of poetry".<ref name="English Academy" />

Ferguson's own cartoons and poetry were published widely, including in more than a dozen books. He won various poetry and publishing prizes, among which were the AA Via Award, the Eleanor Anderson Special Award and the Molteno Medal. In 2009 he was awarded the English Academy of Southern Africa's Gold Medal for distinguished service to English literature.<ref name="English Academy" />

== Personal life == Ferguson was born in 1940 in Selkirk, Scotland, but in 1949 moved with his parents to South Africa, where he was raised in Harrismith, Durban, and finally Cape Town, where he spent his adult life with his wife and three children.<ref name="Old poets never die, they simply decompose" /> He was an avid cyclist, completing over twenty Cape Town Cycle Tours.<ref name="Old poets never die, they simply decompose" /> He died on 27 December 2020.<ref name=JRB /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Moffett |first=Helen |date=2020-12-29 |title=Maverick Citizen: Obituary: Gus Ferguson, 1940-2020, kind mentor for a generation of southern Africa poets |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2020-12-29-gus-ferguson-1940-2020-kind-mentor-for-a-generation-of-southern-africa-poets/ |access-date=2020-12-29 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref>

==Bibliography== *''Snail Morning'': ''Poems'' (1979) * ''Doggerel Day: Poems and Drawings'' (1982) * ''Carpe Diem: Poems & Drawings'' (1992) *''Icarus rising: Selected Poems'' (1994) * ''The Herding of the Snail: An Adaptation in Verse'', with pictures by Niki Daly (1995) * ''Light Verse at the End of the Tunnel: Poems, prose & drawings'' (1996) * ''Love Amongst the Middle-Aged and Other Cartoons'' (1997) * ''Stressed-Unstressed: Selected Poems and Drawings'' (2000) *''Arse poetica: Musings on Muse Abuse: Prose, oems, drawings, intertextualities'' (2003) *''Waiting for Gateau'' (2004) *''Dubious Delights: of Aging and Other Follies'' (2006) *''Holding Pattern: Poems & drawings'' (2009)

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2020-06-01-unlocked-poems-for-critical-times-series-two-part-five/ Unlocked: Poems for Critical Times (Series Two, Part Five) on Gus Ferguson] *{{YouTube|2WKTqUd8HRA|Video of Gus Ferguson reading his poetry}} *{{YouTube|0YPhflNOv98|Video of Gus Ferguson reading children's poetry}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080303111931/http://carapace.book.co.za/ Carapace Literary Journal] *[http://southafrica.poetryinternationalweb.org/piw_cms/cms/cms_module/index.php?obj_id=5369/ South Africa Poetry International Web : Gus Ferguson's tribute to Tatamkhulu Afrika] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111003091347/http://southafrica.poetryinternationalweb.org/piw_cms/cms/cms_module/index.php?obj_id=5369/ |date=3 October 2011 }} *{{cite web|url=https://www.cape300foundation.org.za/archives-awards.htm|title=The Cape Tercentenary Foundation Medal}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Gus}} Category:1940 births Category:2020 deaths Category:Recipients of the Molteno medal Category:South African cartoonists Category:South African people of Scottish descent Category:South African male poets