I was entranced by all the poems in Laura Mullen's collection, After I Was Dead. Haunting, yearning, reflecting, searching and absconding, fragmenting and coalescing -- the poetic language here is written in a uniquely intimate voice. The poems have an abstract and surreal quality grounded in human emotion. The seeking and reaching toward some sort of closure, the opening and beholding the vast interstices of experiences. These poems left me in awe.
I had many favorites, including the "White Painting" series. Many I can't reproduce here because of the magical way she uses the spacing on the page (this blog would fuck it up). Here is one poem I particularly liked that I think will format well on the blog:
House
Where it should have been there were only memories.
They liked it anyhow and lived there. For them
The moment it fell down was the moment it lifted up:
Livable-in at last.
A pantry full of regrets; a garden
Planned out in the shape of a plan, lush
With what-might-have-been and O-if-only;
A folly where... on fine afternoons...
And the parties they threw there then, or rather,
Imagined themselves throwing, who had never been
Much for parties, but "Better late than..." -- and the rest
Of the phrase lost in laughter. Love bloomed
In the nonexistent parlor: the piano
That never was was closed, suddenly,
By the woman who looked at her hands so as not to see
The face of the young man who knelt at her side,
Enrapt. Impossible ever to know
If it was the sunlight which had faded those curtains
So slowly that no one had seen, or whether
They had been wrong about the color from the start.
And a phrase from another poem, "Structures" leaps out at me:
Always the sky, that obscene
innocence
Monday, June 30, 2014
Patti Smith at Fort Tilden, Rockaway
Patti Smith and James Franco read poetry and performed at Fort Tilden as part of MoMA PS1's celebration of Rockaway. I only caught the end of Franco reading his poems. But I was blown away by Patti Smith and Lenny Kaye's performance. They did five songs, including "Wing" (my favorite), "Redondo Beach", "Pissing in a River" and a rousing and marvelous "People Have the Power." It was a great set, a great mini concert, and, as always, I felt grateful and privileged to be in Patti's audience.
MoMA PS1: Rockaway! Patti Smith Installation
MoMA PS1 is celebrating Rockaway with wonderful installation pieces by several artists at Fort Tilden. The event takes place in the part of the city most devastated by Hurricane Sandy.
I was most impressed and moved by Patti Smith's "The Resilience of the Dreamer" set in a decaying warehouse type structure. The centerpiece is a golden bed draped in white fabric, hanging in the middle of the vast and decrepit space. It is quite dramatic and moving. I also loved the part of the installation in nearby room, where a large stone vessel containing many white stones sat amidst graffiti in the dilapidated space. The effect of these pieces was truly beautiful and evocative.
I was most impressed and moved by Patti Smith's "The Resilience of the Dreamer" set in a decaying warehouse type structure. The centerpiece is a golden bed draped in white fabric, hanging in the middle of the vast and decrepit space. It is quite dramatic and moving. I also loved the part of the installation in nearby room, where a large stone vessel containing many white stones sat amidst graffiti in the dilapidated space. The effect of these pieces was truly beautiful and evocative.
Sunday, June 29, 2014
Luciano!
Luciano at Celebrate Brooklyn was awesome last night! He had such terrific energy singing these wild and soulful reggae songs! He danced all over the stage and even came down into the audience. He clearly loved sharing his music, which was rousing and spiritual and just a whole lot of fun!
Opening for him was Sandra St. Victor, who had a fabulous voice and a great command of the stage.
Opening for him was Sandra St. Victor, who had a fabulous voice and a great command of the stage.
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Diary of Young Girl
I just finished Anne Frank's Diary of a Young Girl. It is crushing. Devastating.
She writes of her family's two years in hiding with an other family and an another man, 8 people altogether. During that time she and her writing matures, and she reflects on many serious subjects, such as character (internal and external identity), love, politics, human nature, loneliness, and youth. Throughout the diary are many descriptions of the bickering and difficult dynamics between those in the "Secret Annex". I found these passages deeply moving -- not only was mundane life going on, but you know that underneath the squabbles and tensions was a profound fear. They were all terrified.
Anne Frank's writing is clear as a bell, and she was clearly a talented and precocious teenager.
The diary ends abruptly, as the Annex was raided and all 8 of them were taken to concentration camps. Only Anne's father, Otto, survived. In spite of "knowing the ending", I was shocked and grief-stricken.
Also very intense was the tremendous care the Frank's and Van Daam's received from their helpers. These Dutch citizens were truly heroes.
She writes of her family's two years in hiding with an other family and an another man, 8 people altogether. During that time she and her writing matures, and she reflects on many serious subjects, such as character (internal and external identity), love, politics, human nature, loneliness, and youth. Throughout the diary are many descriptions of the bickering and difficult dynamics between those in the "Secret Annex". I found these passages deeply moving -- not only was mundane life going on, but you know that underneath the squabbles and tensions was a profound fear. They were all terrified.
Anne Frank's writing is clear as a bell, and she was clearly a talented and precocious teenager.
The diary ends abruptly, as the Annex was raided and all 8 of them were taken to concentration camps. Only Anne's father, Otto, survived. In spite of "knowing the ending", I was shocked and grief-stricken.
Also very intense was the tremendous care the Frank's and Van Daam's received from their helpers. These Dutch citizens were truly heroes.
The Killer
Last night I saw Ionesco's The Killer starring Michael Shannon at Theater for a New Audience in Brooklyn.
This existential play centers on Berenger who discovers a beautiful radiant city, designed by a municipal architect. There he experiences a bittersweet joy. He is nostalgic for pure joy, but the present feeling is plagued by doubts as to the certainty of anything.
At the end of the first act it is revealed that the city is traumatized by a killer who mesmerizes people with a photo and then pushes them in a lagoon to drown. Berenger is devastated by this and seeks to find the killer and bring him to the authorities.
The play is very verbal, and the dialogue and Berenger's monologues are brilliant. It seems like a play I would enjoy reading.
The middle act takes place in his apartment with a friend, Edward, whose briefcase contains all the physical elements of the killer's murders. This scene is funny and dynamic. Also creepy. The final act is more chaotic, with a disturbing and amusing fascist politician (Ma Piper), aggressive police, and finally a drawn out confrontation with the killer. This should have been the most tense and important scene, but I felt it was too long and unfortunately I got restless towards the end.
This existential play centers on Berenger who discovers a beautiful radiant city, designed by a municipal architect. There he experiences a bittersweet joy. He is nostalgic for pure joy, but the present feeling is plagued by doubts as to the certainty of anything.
At the end of the first act it is revealed that the city is traumatized by a killer who mesmerizes people with a photo and then pushes them in a lagoon to drown. Berenger is devastated by this and seeks to find the killer and bring him to the authorities.
The play is very verbal, and the dialogue and Berenger's monologues are brilliant. It seems like a play I would enjoy reading.
The middle act takes place in his apartment with a friend, Edward, whose briefcase contains all the physical elements of the killer's murders. This scene is funny and dynamic. Also creepy. The final act is more chaotic, with a disturbing and amusing fascist politician (Ma Piper), aggressive police, and finally a drawn out confrontation with the killer. This should have been the most tense and important scene, but I felt it was too long and unfortunately I got restless towards the end.
Saturday, June 21, 2014
American Cool at the National Portrait Gallery
I forgot, I also saw the exhibition "American Cool" at The National Portrait Gallery. A collection of photographs of iconic figures in American popular culture, it featured wonderful images of people like Jimi Hendrix, Debby Harry, Patti Smith, and Lou Reed. It was very enjoyable.
The Gallery press writes: "Cool is a supreme compliment that evokes people who exude rebellious self-expression, charisma, edge, and mystery. It is an original American sensibility and remains a global obsession. In the early 1940s, legendary jazz saxophonist Lester Young brought this central African American concept into the modern vernacular, and it became a password in bohemian life connoting a balanced state of mind, a laid-back artistic mode of performance, a certain stylish stoicism. Cool has been embodied in such jazz musicians as Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, and Dizzy Gillespie; in such actors as Louise Brooks, Robert Mitchum, and Steve McQueen; in such rock and rollers as Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, and Patti Smith; and in many others from the worlds of literature, art, comedy, sports, and political activism. American Cool refers to those who have contributed an original artistic vision to American culture symbolic of a given historical moment."
The Gallery press writes: "Cool is a supreme compliment that evokes people who exude rebellious self-expression, charisma, edge, and mystery. It is an original American sensibility and remains a global obsession. In the early 1940s, legendary jazz saxophonist Lester Young brought this central African American concept into the modern vernacular, and it became a password in bohemian life connoting a balanced state of mind, a laid-back artistic mode of performance, a certain stylish stoicism. Cool has been embodied in such jazz musicians as Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, and Dizzy Gillespie; in such actors as Louise Brooks, Robert Mitchum, and Steve McQueen; in such rock and rollers as Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, and Patti Smith; and in many others from the worlds of literature, art, comedy, sports, and political activism. American Cool refers to those who have contributed an original artistic vision to American culture symbolic of a given historical moment."
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