from Spanish Fork Manuscript (2012, 2009)

Vale Tudo
(special thanks Sommer Browning and Blaise Cendrars)

never believe the concierge
we only shelled out a buck
we were watching the Lidell-Babalu fight
we want you to feel at home
I am Alanis Morissette reading her diary
I am above the land of a thousand lakes
I am the inevitable
we make love
we watch more Vale Tudo
I pity you 
come lean upon my breast
syphilis is roaming the streets
the world is stretched & folds out & squeezes shut
I spent my childhood in the Brazilian circus 
a reed in the wind and I its flower
of the famous Gracie family
I met my waterloo at the hands 
of a diminutive Japanese wrestler
like a last shoveling of desire
the sky is rent like a ripped tent
this is the new telecatch
tangling llamas on the tresses of the sun
a good poem must stand 
and this one’s called The Train Falls Upon Its Wheels Sideways
and this one’s called In A Basin Filled with Chinese Goldfish
and this one’s called Several Injections of Doctor Yersin’s serum
some of you will never go to Spanish Fork
some of you will
we’ll make love again after the third fight
it is best to watch uninteresting fights while eating
she saw it first and sees it again
this is how it would go
someone is wrong 
light travels slow
slide open your food slot to talk and listen
sweet my plea cluck cluck my hinny
honey my bunny she sleeps
FOR SHE IS MY LOVE 
ALL OTHER WOMEN 
BUT FIRE OF FLESH
DECKED OUT IN GOLD

tube readings for week of 29th Jan

books checked out from the British Poetry Library for the week:

1) Prose of the Trans-siberian  by Blaise Cendrars (trans by Tony Baker)
2) Just Space by Joanne Kyger
3) Kodak by Blaise Cendrars (trans by Ron Padgett)

also re-reading for third time:

3:15 by Bernadette Mayer, Jen Hoffer, Danika Dinsmore, Lee Anne Brown

(amazing book!!!)

essays on the poetry of Araki Yasusada

read the preface here:

new shearsman book on the poetry of Araki Yasusada

A little background here:

http://jacketmagazine.com/09/yellowbody.html

IN SEARCH OF THE AUTHENTIC OTHER: THE POETRY OF ARAKI YASUSADA by MARJORIE PERLOFF

Doubled Flowering: From the Notebooks of Araki Yasusada was one hell of a book. A must for the collection.





Buying this book of essays soon!!!

article about Grzegorz Wroblewski in Jacket 2

one of my fav poets and good friend. Check it out . . .



the world according to Grzegorz Wroblewski

christmas day 2011

Spicy frozen pizza for Christmas dinner. A 4AM taxi pickup to Heathrow on Boxing Day. London-Paris-Salt Lake City. Drinking Melissa Tea. It was my favourite tea when I lived in Poland. I have finished The Fertility Show (formally Nerve Movie). Sent it off to a publisher or two. Will have to wait a few months.

The Fertility Show takes it cue from Phillip Whalen's idea of a nerve movie and Bernadette Mayer (esp Midwinters Day). Written during my daily 3 hour commute on the London underground. It is a poetics of everything. Inside and outside. Biographical, narrative, expansive poetics, compact lyrics, NY School send offs, homophonic translations of Polish and German from overheard conversations on the Piccadilly Line etc. etc.

A poetics that attempts to narrow the gap between art and life. I don't see any other point.

Another Godzenie (with many many more strategies, modes, attempts to reconcile). A practice in mindfulness.

The poems are written on the tube in London but "take place" in Poland, Turkey, London, Milton Keynes, Las Vegas, North Carolina, Bellingham/Seattle.

A continuous nerve movie.

The other manuscript Smashing Time is also finished.

Now I will continue part two of a manuscript I started last time I was in America. It is called Spanish Fork.

My poetics is a travel poetics. But not in any narrow sense of the genre of travel writing. Orally based But not bardic.

It lives much more off the page than on (methinks). The rhythm of everyday speech is very central.

hm . . . . and the slippery mind . . . quicksilver . . .

I dabbled heavily in flarf in 2004. I dabbled heavily in conceptual poetics as well. Surrealism and political poetry were the entry points into writing poetry.

Now it is many many things. But mindfulness is especially central. And an expansive (rather than constricted) sense of the self and the world.

from Smashing Time

free download or purchase a print copy at:http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/299099

New "Kent Johnson" book (BlazeVOX Press)

doggerel for the masses by Kent Johnson

These various pieces, initially published in journals by Craig Dworkin under the name of “Kent Johnson” (with exception of the tour de force Afterword, presented here for the first time), follow from his call, in the Introductory essay to Against Expression: An Anthology of Conceptual Writing (Northwestern UP, 2010)

immigrating back to where you come from . . .

Cold toes and cold hands in Wood Green. Trying to save on heating.

Smashing Time is done and needs to find a home. I am 60 pages into Nerve Movie (poems written during my commute on the underground from Wood Green to Hammersmith then Hammersmith to Richmond).

When I first came to London in 2008 I had high expectations. Expectations of home. Expectations of coming back to the world of poetry. It was tough year.  I had to adjust my expectations. I had lived too long in North America to expect to find a sense of home. Something about coming back to where you come from and finding it is not the same place at all. My mind creating narratives and images of Northern Ireland and the U.K. Childhood. No matter if we stay in the same place all our lives we still travel. Childhood.

On my second return to my country of origin (in December 2010) I had less expectations. I wanted to re-connect with the poetry world. I wanted to do readings. I wanted to settle down and get more comfortable and re-start my library. I missed having a library in my world travels. I missed having a sense of place. At the end of six years of world traveling and living very feebly at times out of one suitcase, I wanted to just allow myself to feel some of the comforts of a more settled life.

So here I am. One year into my second go at London. I lived in London when I was seven or so. First in a homeless hostel. Later in Elephant and Castle. This was the 80's. It wasn't a good time to have a Northern Irish accent.

This time I have found some good friends. I have found what I love about writing and poetry. Call it a world view. An epistemology? Kenneth Koch, Philip Whalen, Bernadette Mayer, Tim Atkins, Lisa Jarnot, Jeff Hilson, Cathy Wagner, Peter Jaeger, Steven Fowler (especially Minimum Security Prison Dentistry and his Maintenant Series of collaborations and readings of U.K. and European poets).

These are a few of the writers and artists that matter most in terms of living my life. Their work is intimately connected to how I experience life.

And writing through what I love. I have seen this especially in the work of Tim Atkins. And getting out of the way. I have seen this in the various exciting conceptual work of Peter Jaeger. And being child-like in terms of curiosity. Letting everything come in. Including the risk of humour. I have seen this in the work of Jeff Hilson and Tim Atkins. Plus the punk poetics of Cathy Wagner. And the life writing life of Bernadette Mayer. And letting in the multiplicity of voices in the work of Hannah Weiner. And the nerve movies (quicksilver moments of being) of Philip Whalen.

I am having mint tea. It is time to grade final exams. London is not really a home. Perhaps it never will be.

But then again my mindfulness practice has benefited a lot since I have been here for the last year. And I have grown much more comfortable with the North American part of my cultural background. I have learned to create my own America through exile. I thought myself an exile from Northern Ireland when I lived in America. Now I realise my choices are much wider. Much more varied.

I am from the Milky Way.

Good friendship are vital. Writing is vital. Books are vital. Love is vital. Mindfulness and compassion are vital.

And so it goes . . . .

Friend Karol's new blog . . . from northern Poland . . near Elblag . .

check it out:

Karol Piotr Ostrowski

what is poetry and what is it good for??

Every entry on this blog starts with a hyperlink called text. It is the default setting.

Pinkunoizu 'Time Is Like A Melody'

copenhagen prog rock

diggin this prog rock band from copenhagen:

pinkuonoizu

poems from smashing time in issue 2 of La Granada

some of my poems from manuscript Smashing Time in new issue of the Norwegian magazine  La Granada

conceptual slab for Poetry Foundation Chicago

The poetry foundation . . . KEEP OUT . . . pic by Tom Raworth  . . . 

interesting walls

Dodie Bellamy has a lithograph on the wall called
"Death of the Poet" by Fran Herndon.

she says:

"It is from the series she did for Jack Spicer's Homage to Creeley."

And:

"It's been at the foot of the bed for years and I've spent so many hours vacantly staring at it, it's entered my blood."

Grzegorz Wroblewski's paintings are entering my blood.

It matters to have work that matters to stare at, on the wall.

I also have Tim Atkins on the wall. And Jeff Hilson+Tim Atkins collaboration. And a hand drawn cartoon from a friend named joe.

I want more on the wall. I haven't had my own wall for over seven years with all the world travels.

And now, here I am. In North London. In a flat. With walls of books as well. No where near the amount I had when I lived in North Carolina.

check out Dodie 's blog

Makes me wanna check out her Cunt Ups and Barf Manifesto. Fantastic titles.

hm . . .

Marcus Slease covers Bernadette Mayer

covers project . . . Bernadette Mayer's Maple Syrup sonnet . . . north London . .. near Horse Hospital . .

Minimum Security Prison Poetry - SJ Fowler

Steven Fowler reading the other night for his book release of Minimum Security Prison Dentisry at the Horse Hospital in North London. Great evening. Many fine readings !!!

Minimum Security Prison Poetry - Jeff Hilson

Jeff Hilson reading the other night for Steven Fowler's book release of Minimum Security Prison Dentisry at the Horse Hospital in North London. Great evening. Many fine readings !!!

Minimum Security Prison Poetry - Tim Atkins

Tim Atkins reading the other night for Steven Fowler's book release of Minimum Security Prison Dentisry at the Horse Hospital in North London. Great evening. Many fine readings !!!

Minimum Security Prison Poetry - Holly Pester

Holly Pester reading the other night for Steven Fowler's book release of Minimum Security Prison Dentisry at the Horse Hospital in North London. Great evening. Many fine readings !!!

Minimum Security Prison Poetry - Marcus Slease

reading the other night for Steven Fowler's book release of Minimum Security Prison Dentisry at the Horse Hospital in North London. Great evening. Many fine readings !!!

from Kent Johnson on the Poetry Foundation Chicago!!!

I take the liberty of forwarding this post by Ian Keenan. It concerns John Barr, the President of the Poetry Foundation. It appeared today at Montevidayo blog. It might give some "context" for comprehending why the Poetry Foundation Board is so loose and fast about trying to arrest and send to prison young poets who peacefully protest in the PF's $21.5 million sanctum.
*
Some info on Barr:


1. “The Illinois State’s Attorney is looking into allegations of poor “fiscal practices, conflict of interest, nepotism and playing fast and loose with the rules of charitable organizations” (concerning the Poetry Foundation)


2. “Penny Barr, wife of John Barr, who admits she is “not versed in poetry,” was paid $23,000 by the Foundation for setting up a poetry contest.”


3. “The Poetry Foundation also plans to build a $25 million mansion in the Gold Coast with accommodations for visiting poets of its choice and a stage to host readings on. An ex-trustee accused the Foundation of acting like a “private club” and using Ruth Lilly’s money for “personal gratification.”
source: http://chicagopoetry.com/modul...


4. The company Barr founded, Dynergy, frequently likened in business columns to Enron, paid out a $3 million fine for accounting fraud (after Barr left as an executive) and a US Attorney said in a letter “We have become increasingly concerned that Dynegy’s `cooperation’ is more apparent than real.”


5. John Barr donated the maximum to Rudolph Giuliani in early 2007, a month after Giuliani declared his candidacy. Giuliani’s accomplishments as mayor of NYC including a smear campaign against contemporary artists and the Brooklyn Museum that displayed them, attempting to defund the institution. Soon after Barr’s donation, Giuliani named as his foreign policy adviser Norman Podhoretz right after he published the book World War III which advocated a global war, who in a previous life as a literary editor engaged in critical attacks against Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac.


6. Barr’s current company is lobbying foreign governments, mostly Spanish speaking countries in the hemisphere, to privatize their natural resources on behalf of his clients.


7. Robert Pinsky takes credit for selecting Barr for his position.

from Smashing Time! (MIPOesias Chapbook Series)

art by Grzegorz Wroblewski . . .

FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD HERE

my new book now available from MIPOesias Chapbook Series 2012

download for free  . . . or buy print version if you so desire . . .

art by Grzegorz Wroblewski

poems by Marcus Slease

from Smashing Time:

poems from Smashing Time!

Mercy in Liverpool: SJ Fowler & Ben Morris 'a spy vanderung inem wilderness

The Poetry Foundation is the enemy of poetry!

occupy the POETRY FOUNDATION!

Get while you can!!

a set of post-punk visual poetry ceramic tile coasters by Grzegorz Wroblewsk .................. YIPPIE!!!

post punk ceramic coaster

The Fertility Show needs a new name . . .

Possible titles for the new work in progress:

a) Nerve Movie

b) The Candy of the Universe

c) Black Shiny Bubble Jacket

d) My Finger in Your Button Hole

e) Cold Potatoes

f) Are you going to eat THAT

g) How Time Stinks of Sand

h) Ping Pong Donkey Kong

i) The Telepathy of All Living Creatures

J) Night Boners

K) The More Men Tabernackle Choir

L) Opal Fruits

M) I Sold My Subbuteo

N) Monster Knash

O) The Milton Keynes Bowl

P) I wasn't Allowed to See Jesus Christ Superstar

Q) There are 14 Chinese in this Carriage and They Are All Speaking Chinese

R) Jonah and the Whale by Herman Melville

S) It Came from the Gobi Desert

T) Bib EM BOP

U) She Wiggles Her Toes For Me

V) The Hair from My Upper Lip is Falling into my Mouth

W) Kimchee on the Fire Escapes

x) A Mad Dog in Life but a Cowering Rat in His Last Brutal Moments

Y) I Thought This Was Scientifically Done

Z) My Cup Runneth Over

a short play

SNOBS

She: I am made to BLOW!

He: I am made to BLOW!

Chorus:  We are all made to BLOW!

to blow . . .

comarade project

fun time . . .

collaborations  . .. poetry comic with Tim Atkins . . .

lots of good stuff on the night . . .

a rapt audience . ..

off to Amsterdam

taking a 12 hour bus from London to Amsterdam. £30. Delayed summer holiday. Staying on a boat called the Gandalf. Free breakfast included. Never been to Amsterdam. Goin on the cheap. It was Amsterdam versus Bath. Tickets were the same price on the bus. Writing The Fertility Show. Will see what comes up with in Amsterdam. Maybe I am writing one big book split into smaller books.

post punk visual poetry coasters

zimZalla object 011 will be Deuter Kelner, a set of post-punk visual poetry coasters by Grzegorz Wroblewski. Each coaster measures 9cm x 9cm. Available individually or as a complete set of six. Ideal for the dining room, scullery or mead hall. Out and available to buy on 1st November.

Murat Nemet-Nejat!!! My tube readings!! Yippie!!

Recieved Murat Nemet-Nejat's The Spiritual Life of Replicants. Blade Runner. Skin jobs. 


Also Seyhan Erozcelik's Rosestrikes and Coffee Grinds. 


This is the real deal. This Turkish poetry needs wide wide circulation among poets and non-poets. Can't wait to dig in!!


Also some Ozdemir Asaf over here:


http://www.archipelago.org/vol6-2/asaf.htm

Peter Jaeger's characters

peter Jaeger's Poets

Marcus Slease covers Musa McKim

Covers project . . . Musa Mckim

comic book collaboration with Tim Atkins

reading last night . . . good fun . ..

comic book collaboration with Tim Atkins

Grzegorz Wroblewski I will survive

Poetry Foundation dishonours the Chilean poet Raúl Zurita

A foundation for poetry???? NOPE! 


A dishonour to the works of the great poets it houses in its dead museum.


As Frances Kruk puts it so well. The Multi million dollar building of the Poetry Foundation is:


 an homage to the glass temples of skyscraping capitalism. All of these spaces are gated and intolerant to the disobedient, the dreamer, the dissenter, the whistle-blower. Imagination and dignity are curbed or even forbidden. Rather than taking what a person might be objecting to into serious consideration (in this case, the PF’s corporatism, its lack of principles, and its contempt for the arts it claims to be home to), external punitive measures are employed to control the “offenders”.



Raúl Zurita  was the guest of honour at the Poetry Foundation when Stephanie Dunn was assaulted by the representatives of the Poetry Foundation (Chicago) and sent to jail for honouring the work of Chilean poet Raul Zurita.


The poetry foundation should be ashamed of their actions. Zurita expressed his support of the actions of these young poets and the Poetry Foundation honours his work by attempting to jail one of his supporters????? 


What contradictions! Or not!


This in from Kent Johnson. 


A substantial article (October 4th) on the Croatoan Poetic Cell action in La Tercera, one of Chile’s leading newspapers. The article is excellent, in fact, as summary of the event.

A passage quoting Zurita, quickly translated, says the following (original Spanish passage below)

“On being asked about the action honoring CADA, Zurita confirmed, from the United States: ‘I felt a profound tenderness on witnessing these young people, because I knew it was sign of a much deeper struggle, that of poetry against the powers of a shameful order.’”


"Al ser consultado por la acción a favor del CADA, Zurita aseguró desde Estados Unidos: “Sentí una profunda ternura al ver a estos chicos, porque supe que era el signo de una lucha mucho más profunda, de la poesía contra los poderes de un orden avergonzante”.

http://diario.latercera.com/2011/10/04/01/contenido/cultura-entretencion/30-85760-9-seguidores-del-grupo-cada-sorprenden-a-zurita-en-lectura-en-eeuu.shtml

Grzegorz Wroblewski

two turns two towers

Jim Brodey's lost on larrabee

ACK! ACK! ACK! SHAME ON THE POETRY FOUNDATION (USA)

A couple days ago, at the arraignment hearing in Chicago for Stephanie Dunn, the poet and artist arrested at behest of Poetry Foundation a few weeks back for a performance-based protest at the PF Wine and Cheese Gala, an official representative of the Poetry Foundation called on the judge to send Dunn to Cook County Penitentiary until her trial nine days from now. The judge was about to do this (he said as much to the defendant), but a public defender who is otherwise unrelated to the case intervened and convinced the judge to let Dunn go until her trial date-- on condition that a guilty plea be entered. The terrified Stephanie agreed.

Three days after Raul Zurita's reading at the Poetry Foundation, where six or seven activists of the Croatoan Poetic Cell peacefully hung banners (one of them praising Zurita and his old activist group CADA) and passed out leaflets calling for the charges against Dunn to be dropped (the cops were also called by the PF on these poets--they scampered away), the Chicago Police Department carried out a raid during a musical event on the warehouse where most of the members of the Croatoan Poetic Cell live. Property was confiscated and three people detained. Minutes after the police left, a car parked outside, belonging to a friend of those involved, burst into flames. I state the bizarre sequence of these events without making any claim of connections between them, for I have no solid proof. But that is the anecdotal record.

A statement by members of the Croatoan Poetic Cell will be released in the next days, I understand. It is time for poets to stand publicly against this outrageous overreaction by the Poetry Foundation against young writers and artists guilty of nothing except peaceful, conceptual acts of poetic insurgency-- of which there is, to be sure, a long and venerable tradition in our field.  

-- Kent

new publication: The Comarade Project

The Comarade Project. Collaborations between U.K. poets. My Collaboration is with one of my favourite all time poets: Tim Atkins. It's a poetry comic.


Available now. Here is the announcement:


Delighted to announce the latest limited edition chapbook from The Red Ceilings Press...Maintenant: the Camarade project featuring Tom Jenks & Chris McCabe; Patrick Coyle & Holly Pester; Sam Riviere & Jack Underwood; Sandeep Parmar & James Byrne; James Wilkes & Ghazal Mosadeq; Emily Critchley & Tamarin Norwood; Sean Bonney & Jeff Hilson; Marcus Slease & Tim Atkins. With an introduction by Steven Fowler. £5 inc P&P (UK)


get it 


hot hot hot here:


The Comarade Project