Beautiful Objects

Born in Sydney – to celebrated writers Charmian Clift and George Johnston – and brought up in Greece, Martin Johnston’s experience of two languages and two cultures led him to produce a body of work that is both very Australian and quintessentially European. 


This selection includes his two previously published volumes, some of his early poems and Greek translations and the work he produced in the period before his death in 1990. It shows the range of Martin’s voice, the clarity of his perception, and the breadth of his passions.


‘Martin was a dear friend: kind, shy, witty, erudite, charming and endlessly generous. We were lucky to have him among us; we shall never see his like again.’  — John Tranter


‘Johnston’s profound and richly allusive poetry is the zenith of an unrivalled intellect.’ — Gig Ryan