BERNA, Serge. Écrits et documents. n.p. [Paris]: Éditions du Sandre, 2024. 200 p.; ill.; 31 x 21 cm.

Jean-Louis Rançon edited a delightful volume on the life and works of a little know, almost mythical figure of the Lettrist movement: Serge Berna. A delightful read. Below is an English language translation of the editor’s summary:

Little is known about the life of Serge Berna, both poet and thug. Born in Venice in 1924, he gained notoriety in Saint-Germain-des-Prés and beyond when, at the age of twenty-five, he penned the proclamation of the Death of God, which was pronounced in the middle of the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. This volume collects Berna’s writings published in periodicals (“Ur”, “Ion”, “Le Soleil noir”, “En Marge”) between 1950 and 1955. This is also the period in which Berna founded the Club des Ratés (Losers’ Club) and then actively participated in the Lettrist movement, first as a member of the full group led by Isidore Isou, then within the Internationale Lettriste with Jean-Louis Brau, Guy Debord and Gil J Wolman. These “Writing and Documents” also feature his preface to “Vie et mort de Satan le Feu” (“The Death of Satan”) by Antonin Artaud, whose manuscripts Berna had discovered, as well as some unpublished plays. Berna’s “influential novel-film” -a 78-page manuscript-collage – appears in print here for the first time, as does his correspondence with Wolman, Debord, Koenig, Mariën, Magritte, Bazin, Étiemble, Breton. His legal disputes and prison stays are also covered, until we lose all trace of his whereabouts in the 1970s.

For more details, see Francois Coadou’s excellent article (in French) dated 21 May 2024 here: https://www.en-attendant-nadeau.fr/2024/05/21/un-besoin-fou-de-vivre-serge-berna/