On My Desk
*the tiny*, issue 3, edited by Gina Myers and Gabriella Torres. Contact thetiny@gmail.com
[Additional info on ordering *the tiny* from paypal at the end of today's post-plus list of contributors, upcoming reading &&
the tiny]
The third issue of this popular and admired poetry journal features a cover by Andrew Mister (issues 1 and 2 featured covers by James Meetz and David Shapiro). This one isn't tiny, in fact it is the largest issue yet, 159 pages with about 50 contributors. Interspersed among the poems by poets who are decidedly not the "usual suspects", at least in the lineups I am used to looking at, are a few quite witty and lively essays and interviews about writing and the poetry scene, made all the more appealing by coming from voices not so often heard before. Given all this, *fait acccompli* is extremely honored to announce that a selection of our *contradicta* is here handsomely included in a poetry magazine for the first time.
from *P(r)etty Sonnets* by Anthony Hawley:
"XVL
they came swaggering, not knowing just how fast
i wish I could write what was said
caterpillar, junebug towards the graveled surface
of every article in the closet
are there any coats like a dalmatian's
bandonian in the desert we are lost each other in
oh cabelleros
when will it be done
when the laundry
seedpods whirled to give the impression of having whorls"
from Mike Hauser and Dustin Williamson *Talking Shop*
"MH: I do think that to write poetry (assuming one has spent time reading and processing the poetry of others) is to create a piece of culture. Speaking anthropo-something- ly the instinct to share would have come with the act of creating then, right? Not that I want to show you everything I write. That's not necessarily what creating an audience means. To me it's sort of like giving something to another person as a gift, so it exists as an entity apart from your own peception of it. But still part of your "receipts for existence."....And maybe then, paradoxically there has to be some level of isolation. I remember a Phillip Whalen poem (I think one to Bill Berkson) where he is basically saying how there are so many people around that one can't get anything done. But that's funcitionalty, or the lack thereof when one is surrounded by distractions. I mean a sort of maybe self-imposed isolation. Maybe an isolation that the poem imposes on itself."
from Jill Magi *My Penelope/Uraveling as Writing (notes on recent writings and visual works)*
"Even poetry drafts become too stable as I open up the computer document, noticing that it already resembles a printed page. Again, I thnk of H.D."....I know, I feel/the meaning that words hide...." When language is too much, I want something to actually touch and reshape. So I push old, nearly discarded book pages and maps away from their bindings and frames, arranging the markers of the written word into something illegible, visual. Noticeably incomplete, with signs of wear and tear, personal use, and distress."
from Kristy Bowen, *In the night theatre*
"there are far too many entrances
and exits. The girls who love
black shoes and vodka come and go
in the blue light, hiking up their skirts
and running their fingers along the edge
of the butter dish.They are easily subdued,
seduced by surgical pins and bottle glass.
Now we'd call them *nervy, a piece*"
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Gary Sullivan, *elsewhere* no. 3, $3.95 contact garypsullivan@gmail.com
Whap! Blam! Smash! This is the greatest issue yet in this terrific series of comics by the man who is bringing contemporary poetry and poetry culture the kind of humor it has long been desperately in need of. This issue features a selection from Gary's ongoing comic *The New Life* which has been appearing for ten years in *Rain Taxi Review of Books*. The mag opens with a useful and able introduction by Eric Lorberer, the editor of Rain Taxi. Included are comic potraits of such greats as Keats, Bernadette Mayer, Diane Di Prima, Paul Blackburn, WCW, Jackson Mac Low, and Robert Creeley. Less known geniuses are also featured in cameos, such as Jerome Sala, Rodney Koeneke, Sheila Murphy, Drew Gardner and Ernst Herbeck, I luciously enjoyed and laughed at loud reading the histories and spoofs of flarf, the language school and possibly most of all the saga of *Swoon*, Gary's legendary courtship of contemporary poetry'superstar Nada Gordon, who on Gary's pages emerges as a glamorous and zany composite of, let us say, Gracie Allen and Marlene Dietrich. There are serious strips too, including those on 9/11 and the bombing of Iraq. In these timely comics, which transcend into the timeless zone that Mallarme termied "pure poetry", Gary combines a razor edged observational wit with huge humanity and affectionate humor, a rare combination in an era where comedy swings wildly between, let us say, the ham and the hamster. And finally, frankly, I advise you to quickly buy this issue. It is incredibly collectible.
more...Gary Sullivan's play *Mozart and Salieri*, and a play by Simon Pettet are being performed this weekend at Medicine Show. Check Elsewhere; also paypal info for *Elsewhere #3*
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Yesterday evening John Coletti (who, by the way opens the issue of *the tiny* discussed above ("i miss you with tomatoes/over your eyes tatooed valentines/on your trachea zippering/each of my ungainly comments"), (and who, I am told, is the new editor of the PP Newsletter-something tells me he will be great at this- as were, say, Jerome Sala and Nada and Gary- I already want to get some stuff in there) read with Simon Pettet. Coletti, of course, is not the first poet to appear to be inhabited by the spirit of Ted Berrigan (Anselm, the former and now retired head of the Project for many years, was present)-did we also feel the presence of the ghost of Jim Brody, I heard it whispered? Who cares, he immediately won me over by talking affectionately about his three times a week therapy, and seemed to admire his therapist, who apparently insisted that JC talk about his reading, much to the poet's chagrin. Anyway, I like the guy fine, as apparently do many others, to wit the packed house at the BPC. But let's face it, the star of the show was Simon Pettet whose reading mesmerized me. And although I am a long standing denizen and citizen of the L=A school of poetry, I cut my poetic teeth in two workshops given by Ted Berrigan and one by Bernadette Mayer. I will not say I escaped unscathed, but I will admit I beamed throughout this reading lit up inside with tons of nostalgia. This was boosted by the presence in the room of the likes of Michael Lally, Marshall Reese and Nora Ligorano, and Basil and Martha King. Simon read from his lovely *Selected Poetry* and his latest contribution, *More Winnowed Fragments*. Simon gets away marvelously with reading his poems twice, and, as I said to him afterwards, you listen to 'em the first time but you feel 'em the second. Simon claims his poems are eternal and no doubt his instinct is correct. He's loveable and generous and as addictive and sweet as Haagen Daz in the summertime.
"EVERGREEN
I come to you
as an eternal person
and tho' I am loathe to go
Here is the calling card of my
immense proximity
and here is *your* calling card
and here is a pine cone
so redolent
You left it
over at my place"
(Selected Poems, Talisman House)
**
"There is a cruel, messianic, dim, tribal instransigence
That gains you nothing.
There is a bull-headed childish baby-tantrum
That can unleash untold consequences
I am appalled by the darkening of the sky"
*More Winnowed Fragments*, Talsman House
**
more...Michael Lally reviews the reading on lally's alley
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Fuhgetaboud a Condo, Buy some Property on The Moon!
Lunar Luxury
*If you lived here, you'd be home by now"
A lunar development from Eldritch Brothers, a Palmer Subsidiary
by Ligorano/Reese 2007
The New Moon
"the odyssey is just beginning
for the discerning few,
who yearn to leave the Earth Behind...."
"If you lived here, you'd be home by now," DVD, 2007
Keep the Change
curated by Meridith McNeal
Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation
Nathan Cummings Foundation
475 Tenth Avenue, 14th Floor
New York, New York 10018
June 21, 2007 - September 14, 2007
Opening Thursday, June 28, 2007, 6- 8 PM
RSVP for this event by Monday, June 25
tel 646 485-1284
AND
New Prints 2007/Summer-SILKSCREEN
International Print Center New York
526 West 26th Street, Room 824
New York, NY 10001
June 29, 2007 - August 3, 2007
Opening Thursday, June 28, 2007, 6- 8 PM
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Addional info on The Tiny
the tiny #3 features work by Andrea Baker, Ellen Baxt, Edmund
Berrigan, Mark Bibbins, Daniel Borzutzky, Kristy Bowen, Joseph
Bradshaw, John Coletti, Rachel Conrad, Crystal Curry, Michelle
Detorie, Julia Drescher, Will Edmiston, Bonnie Emerick, Betsy Fagin,
Paul Fattaruso, Peter Gizzi, Scott Glassman, Sarah Goldstein, Garth
Graeper & Jason Sheridan, Eryn Green, Kristen Hanlon, Mike Hauser,
Anthony Hawley, Anne Heide, Brenda Iijima, Greg Koehler, Rodney
Koeneke, Michael Koshkin, Tim Lantz & Mark Yakich, Lauren Levin, Jill
Magi, C.J. Martin, Joseph Massey, Kristi Maxwell, Ange Mlinko, Michael
Montlack, Marci Nelligan, Nick Piombino, Billy Ramsell, F. Daniel
Rzicznek, Brandon Shimoda, Logan Ryan Smith, Maggie Smith, Chad
Sweeney, Derek White, Dustin Williamson, and Devon Wootten, with cover
art by Andrew Mister.
the tiny is available for purchase for $12.00 by clicking on the
PayPal link below, or by sending a check made out to Gina Myers or
Gabriella Torres to the tiny, 95 Verona St. #4, Brooklyn, NY 11231.
Paypal: the tiny-paypal
Also, please look for a number of upcoming tiny events, including
October 19th at the Poetry Project at St. Mark's Church.
Distribution Automatique
Friday, June 22
Mallarme: Transpositions of Reading
from Stephane Mallarme to
Georges Rodenbach 28 June, 1892
"Your human history, at times so erudite, evaporates; and the city, in the form of a vast phantom, continues, or recovers consciousness through the characters, and all that's done with a subtle certainty which instills a very pure effect. All the modern experiments in reading seek to make the poem end as a novel, and the novel as a poem, but there's no doubt the writer is hampered by too many separate items if his juxtaposition is less exact than yours is here: and if he lacks your magic."
**
from Stephane Mallarmet to
Emile Zola 18 March 1876
"A book whose special aesthetics are in absolute harmony with whatever mode of reading its readers may adopt is a masterpiece."
from Stephane Mallarme to
Georges Rodenbach 28 June, 1892
"Your human history, at times so erudite, evaporates; and the city, in the form of a vast phantom, continues, or recovers consciousness through the characters, and all that's done with a subtle certainty which instills a very pure effect. All the modern experiments in reading seek to make the poem end as a novel, and the novel as a poem, but there's no doubt the writer is hampered by too many separate items if his juxtaposition is less exact than yours is here: and if he lacks your magic."
**
from Stephane Mallarmet to
Emile Zola 18 March 1876
"A book whose special aesthetics are in absolute harmony with whatever mode of reading its readers may adopt is a masterpiece."
Thursday, June 21
Tuesday, June 19
Chelsea: Enclosures
Figuring this may be our last chance of the season, Toni and I headed out for a jaunt to Chelsea this past Saturday. We didn't expect much: the latest buzz had it that nothing much was happening this month. In fact, there were few people to be seen as we trudged the long streets between 10th and 11th avenues in quest of transcendence, or maybe just an aesthetic jolt. To my delighted surprise, we had plenty of memorable art to see. What follows is a sketch of that very satisfying day.
First off, we headed for the Pavel Zoubok Gallery, a diminutive affair at 533 West 23rd Street, the perfect scale for its mandate which is to show only collages. The show up now (which continues until August 10), is *In Context- collage & abstraction" This is a fine show- an available treat is a small catalogue for $10, with all color plates from this show. Many favorites in this show, Schwitters, Villegle, Nevelson, Amy Silliman, Tworkov and numerous surprises. A highly recommended show and gallery.
There's a fine show up at the A.I.R. Gallery (511 W. 25th Street) this month, work by an acquaintance of mine and Toni's, Joan Snitzer. The show opened on May 29 and continues until June 23, so you'll have to hurry. These are light and airy abstractions with lots of open space to move the eyes around in and not a little bit of finely delicate line drawing to guide the way. If you like Cy Twombly (who doesn't?) you'll very likely enjoy these too, but I'm not trying to say these paintings are in any way derivative. I found them delightful, sophisticated and charming and look foward to seeing wherever Joan Snitzer decides to go from here.
Moving on, as they so often say these days, and with Toni as my guide I have to because she covers a lot of ground quickly on a visit to Chelsea. In a day of very fine shows this one at the Betty Cunningham Gallery (541 W. 25th Street) was a knockout. Titled "It's All Spiritual: Art from Tribal Cultures", the show consists of pieces that originate from tribal cultures in the Americas, Africa, Indonesia, Polynesia, Melanesia and China, dating from 1100 BC to the early 20th Century. The show was curated by Alan Steele. The excellence of the curating was obvious in noting how incredibly interesting and engaging each and every piece was, very much including the 19th and early 20th Century pieces. Toni remarked how you can see in this show where so much contemporary art derives from; this and the sheer spiritual magic of the show was palpable the minute you starting examining the pieces closely. This is a show that should be the envy of museum curators everywhere. One of the standouts was a group of tiny figures reminiscent of Giacometti, dating from the 12th to 16th Century Djenne culture. The show closes on July 27th and is a must see.
I learned about the book parties at the Cue Art Foundation (511 W. 25th Street) only this year, to the surprise of my friend Charles North, but at least and at last enjoyed quite a few this year. This month at the gallery I liked nearly all the work I saw but particularly the work of Andrew Scott Ross, which, like the 12th to 16th Century piece at Betty Cunningham discussed above was a work consisting of tiny upright figures but these were placed in a miniature mountain landscape constructed out of gray cardstock. Especially after the Djenne piece mentioned above, this piece was haunting and revelatory. But there are other excellent works in this group show as well, including a fantastical painting of two figures in golden flowing robes that open out into biomorphic forms (Shalini Bhat) and some lovely abstractions by Emmy Cho and Maya Onada. Believe it or not, these are MFA award winners (the Joan Mitchell Foundation)- and you can pick up a nicely printed free catalogue at the show. Very satisfying!
Two more shows that follow today's theme of "enclosures." There's Dustin Yellin's impressive, biomorphic "Suspended Animations" at the Robert Miller Gallery (524 W. 26th Street). From the show notes: "For his second exhibition at the gallery, Yellin presents large scale, cast resin sculptures. Some tower over eight feet in height. His works, reminiscent of insects and plants captured in amber, are a fusion of sculpture and drawing. The illusion of encapsulated specimens in suspension is achieved by layering drawings in acrylic or India ink on resin. Yellin builds his drawings, sometimes as many as two hundred, one on top of the next, in precise orientations. The overlap and transparency of each layer reult in an astounding effect of three dimensionality."
I also enjoyed, at the George Adams Gallery (525 West 26th Street) new paintings by Sandy Winters. These are figurative paintings of a fantastical nature, that reminded me slightly of the work of Susan Bee. Hanging from trees are plastic bubbles that enclose strange unidentifiable, yet somehow recognizable drawings of creatures: a familiar landscape is thus converted into a kind of animated dramscape that is cartoonlike yet eerie in a through-the-lookinglass way.
All in all, Toni's Saturday Chelsea tour reminded me that even when your friends tell you nothing is happening in Chelsea right now, if you look closely-and have an artist as a super guide- you may still find yourself astounded.
Figuring this may be our last chance of the season, Toni and I headed out for a jaunt to Chelsea this past Saturday. We didn't expect much: the latest buzz had it that nothing much was happening this month. In fact, there were few people to be seen as we trudged the long streets between 10th and 11th avenues in quest of transcendence, or maybe just an aesthetic jolt. To my delighted surprise, we had plenty of memorable art to see. What follows is a sketch of that very satisfying day.
First off, we headed for the Pavel Zoubok Gallery, a diminutive affair at 533 West 23rd Street, the perfect scale for its mandate which is to show only collages. The show up now (which continues until August 10), is *In Context- collage & abstraction" This is a fine show- an available treat is a small catalogue for $10, with all color plates from this show. Many favorites in this show, Schwitters, Villegle, Nevelson, Amy Silliman, Tworkov and numerous surprises. A highly recommended show and gallery.
There's a fine show up at the A.I.R. Gallery (511 W. 25th Street) this month, work by an acquaintance of mine and Toni's, Joan Snitzer. The show opened on May 29 and continues until June 23, so you'll have to hurry. These are light and airy abstractions with lots of open space to move the eyes around in and not a little bit of finely delicate line drawing to guide the way. If you like Cy Twombly (who doesn't?) you'll very likely enjoy these too, but I'm not trying to say these paintings are in any way derivative. I found them delightful, sophisticated and charming and look foward to seeing wherever Joan Snitzer decides to go from here.
Moving on, as they so often say these days, and with Toni as my guide I have to because she covers a lot of ground quickly on a visit to Chelsea. In a day of very fine shows this one at the Betty Cunningham Gallery (541 W. 25th Street) was a knockout. Titled "It's All Spiritual: Art from Tribal Cultures", the show consists of pieces that originate from tribal cultures in the Americas, Africa, Indonesia, Polynesia, Melanesia and China, dating from 1100 BC to the early 20th Century. The show was curated by Alan Steele. The excellence of the curating was obvious in noting how incredibly interesting and engaging each and every piece was, very much including the 19th and early 20th Century pieces. Toni remarked how you can see in this show where so much contemporary art derives from; this and the sheer spiritual magic of the show was palpable the minute you starting examining the pieces closely. This is a show that should be the envy of museum curators everywhere. One of the standouts was a group of tiny figures reminiscent of Giacometti, dating from the 12th to 16th Century Djenne culture. The show closes on July 27th and is a must see.
I learned about the book parties at the Cue Art Foundation (511 W. 25th Street) only this year, to the surprise of my friend Charles North, but at least and at last enjoyed quite a few this year. This month at the gallery I liked nearly all the work I saw but particularly the work of Andrew Scott Ross, which, like the 12th to 16th Century piece at Betty Cunningham discussed above was a work consisting of tiny upright figures but these were placed in a miniature mountain landscape constructed out of gray cardstock. Especially after the Djenne piece mentioned above, this piece was haunting and revelatory. But there are other excellent works in this group show as well, including a fantastical painting of two figures in golden flowing robes that open out into biomorphic forms (Shalini Bhat) and some lovely abstractions by Emmy Cho and Maya Onada. Believe it or not, these are MFA award winners (the Joan Mitchell Foundation)- and you can pick up a nicely printed free catalogue at the show. Very satisfying!
Two more shows that follow today's theme of "enclosures." There's Dustin Yellin's impressive, biomorphic "Suspended Animations" at the Robert Miller Gallery (524 W. 26th Street). From the show notes: "For his second exhibition at the gallery, Yellin presents large scale, cast resin sculptures. Some tower over eight feet in height. His works, reminiscent of insects and plants captured in amber, are a fusion of sculpture and drawing. The illusion of encapsulated specimens in suspension is achieved by layering drawings in acrylic or India ink on resin. Yellin builds his drawings, sometimes as many as two hundred, one on top of the next, in precise orientations. The overlap and transparency of each layer reult in an astounding effect of three dimensionality."
I also enjoyed, at the George Adams Gallery (525 West 26th Street) new paintings by Sandy Winters. These are figurative paintings of a fantastical nature, that reminded me slightly of the work of Susan Bee. Hanging from trees are plastic bubbles that enclose strange unidentifiable, yet somehow recognizable drawings of creatures: a familiar landscape is thus converted into a kind of animated dramscape that is cartoonlike yet eerie in a through-the-lookinglass way.
All in all, Toni's Saturday Chelsea tour reminded me that even when your friends tell you nothing is happening in Chelsea right now, if you look closely-and have an artist as a super guide- you may still find yourself astounded.
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