This small archive of correspondence between Giorno Poetry Systems and the band Coil — Peter “Sleazy” Christopherson and John Balance aka Geff Rushton aka Geoffrey Burton — begins with Giorno soliciting a contribution for the album A Diamond Hidden in the Mouth of a Corpse. Soon, however, it begins to document Giorno’s urgent response to the developing AIDS crisis. Giorno founded the Aids Treatment Project in 1987 in order to help raise funds and provide compassionate treatment for those suffering from HIV. These documents are thus important not just in mapping the relationships between William Burroughs, John Giorno, and other figures but in detailing early efforts to combat the devastation wrought on the artistic and literary community by AIDS.

1985.05.13 John Giorno to Geff Rushton

1985.12.24 John Giorno to COIL

1986.02.22 John Giorno to COIL

1986.10.02 John Giorno to COIL

1987.03.15 John Giorno to COIL

1987.10.07 John Giorno to COIL

1988.06.13 John Giorno to COIL

1991.08.24 John Giorno to COIL page 1

1991.08.24 John Giorno to COIL page 2

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report (Draft)

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 1

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 2

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 3

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 4

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 5

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 6

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 7

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 8

AIDS Treatment Project 1991 Annual Report page 9