© The contents of this finding aid are the copyright of the University of Chicago Library
© 2009 University of Chicago Library
The LVNG Records were processed and preserved as part of the "Uncovering New Chicago Archives Project," funded with support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
The collection is open for research.
When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: LVNG. Records, [Box#, Folder#], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library
LVNG is an independent journal that features poetry, fiction, essays, and art. The first issue of LVNG was published in the fall of 1990 at Kenyon College. Michael O'Leary and Jay Sullivan, the journal's founding editors, collected poetry and artwork from friends in both Detroit and Chicago. The two assembled eighty copies of the thirty-six page inaugural issue and circulated it among friends and colleagues. The name of the journal was taken from a favorite song of both editors, "The Lung" by Dinosaur Jr., and was also an abbreviation of Living and Loving.
Influenced by traditional gift-giving economies and communities, O'Leary and Sullivan were committed to the free distribution of LVNG. Peter O'Leary joined the founders as an editor and helped with the dissemination of LVNG into Detroit and Chicago cafes, bookstores, and record stores.
Beginning in 2001, LVNG was published by Flood Editions, a small non-profit press founded by Michael O'Leary and Devin Johnston. Available online and in communities across the country, LVNG's primary purpose is "to provide a location for the ideas and aspirations of a collection of writers." The journal's unorthodox and informal distribution method - placing copies of LVNG in buses and trains, grocery stores and doctor's offices - offered people an opportunity to read contemporary poetry without having to purchase a poetry magazine. Later joined by Peter O'Leary and Joel Felix, LVNG produced eleven issues, the last of which appeared in 2004.
Michael O'Leary received a B.A. (1993) in Greek and Latin from Kenyon College, which later awarded him membership to Phi Beta Kappa, and a B.S. in Civil Engineering (2004) and Ph.D. in Materials Engineering (2008) from the University of Illinois at Chicago. In 1993 he moved to Chicago, where he worked for Morningstar, a financial publishing company. He later became the Associate for External Relations in the Humanities Division at the University of Chicago. He was a writing consultant for the Franke Family Foundation where he co-authored a novelization of a family history published by The University of Chicago Press. With Jay Sullivan, and later joined by Peter O'Leary and Joel Felix, he co-founded LVNG, a free poetry, fiction, and art magazine focusing on Midwest authors and artists. He also served as an editor for Chicago Review and Kenyon Review. O'Leary works as an engineer in Chicago.
Peter O’Leary received a B.A. (1990) with honors in English Literature from the College at University of Chicago, and a M.A. (1994) in Divinity from the University of Chicago Divinity School, and a Ph.D (1999) in Divinity from the University of Chicago Divinity School specializing in Religion and Literature. In 1992, O’Leary met poet Ronald Johnson, who became his mentor until Johnson’s death in 1998. Johnson appointed O’Leary to be his literary executor. This charge resulted in two books: To Do As Adam Did: Selected Poems (Talisman House, 2000) and The Shrubberies, a collection of last poems (Flood Editions, 2001). In 1994, O’Leary traveled to Greece and visited the holy island of Patmos where Orthodox iconography was discovered. He also spent a year living in Vienna in 1997-1998. O’Leary resides in Chicago and is a teacher at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Jay Sullivan attended Kenyon College with Michael O'Leary. He is a lawyer in Boston.
LVNG is a free journal featuring poetry, fiction, essays, and art. The LVNG Records contain poetry and short story submissions, correspondence, mock-ups, galley proofs, photographs, visual designs, event posters, published issues, supplements and pvlmonar, and newspaper articles. These records document the literary and business aspects of LVNG, its editors, and contributors.
The LVNG Records are divided into six series: Series I, Administrative and Correspondence; Series II, Drafts, Proofs, and Mock-ups; Series III, pvlmonar and Supplements; Series IV, Manuscripts and Submissions; Series V, Photographs and Publicity; Series VI, Newspapers and Oversize;
Series I, Administrative and Correspondence, is arranged chronologically and includes letters from readers complimenting LVNG publications, order requests for journal copies, emails between the editors, invoices and other administrative correspondence. There are personal letters to Jay Sullivan from Michael O'Leary as well as correspondence to Michael O'Leary from close friends. Also included is a mailing list of LVNG contributors and buyers. Administrative and financial contain order receipts, invoices, and postage receipts. See Series II, IV, and V for correspondence kept with drafts and manuscripts.
Series II, Drafts, Proofs and Mock-ups, contains drafts, proofs, mock-ups and other material related to each LVNG issue. There are hand-written notations and critiques concerning drafts and proofs as well as artwork and visual designs. There is also a sketchbook of charcoal drawings. See Series IV for original submissions of manuscripts, artwork, and visual designs.
Series III, pvlmonar and Supplements, contains drafts, proofs, published issues, and other material of the poems and published supplements of LVNG. Authors and artists include Marton Koppany, John Taggart, and John Tipton.
Series IV, Manuscripts and Artwork, contains manuscripts and artwork submitted by authors and artists. Arranged alphabetically by last name. Unnamed artwork and manuscripts are grouped within folders labeled "Unidentified." See Series I for manuscripts kept with correspondence. See Series II for additional manuscripts and artwork.
Series V, Photographs and Publicity, contains event posters and photographs from LVNG and poetry events, as well as personal photographs of Jay Sullivan, Michael O'Leary, and friends.
Series VI, Oversize and Publications, contains Chicago based publications, the Reader, a free weekly publication, Letter eX, a free poetry newsmagazine, the Chicago Cultural Issue of Midnight Mind, and oversize LVNG supplements. Also included are stamps and a painting of the LVNG founders by an unknown artist.
The following related resources are located in the Department of Special Collections: