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Geniuses of Tedium
The purely conceptual poem does not necessitate the direct experience of the words: this is about as radical a claim for something calling itself poetry as has been made in the present century. That the idea of pure conceptualism is radical in the field of poetry speaks volumes of the relative conservatism of poetry….Read More
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Getting His Life Back
I have to say I’m excited to have two poems of mine appear on the Poets for Living Waters site, founded by Amy King and Heidi Lynn Staples as a venue for responses to the catastrophe in the Gulf. I consider the long poem I contributed to be in progress; surely I have to work in BP CEO Tony Hayward’s decampment to Britain for some R&R at the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race.Read More
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Imaginal Paintings
I think you may all enjoy these images by Israeli artist Orna Ben-Shoshan. Her Web site says: “Orna’s artwork involves opening her consciousness and channeling images that come to her from a different realm of existence.” In them you may recognize aspects of Henry Corbin‘s Mundus Imaginalis. I was led to Ben-Shoshan via the new issue of Ekleksographia (see my just-previous post), “curated” by Amy King. Thanks, Ms.Read More
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The Greatness Debate
This is a reply to Adam Fieled’s excellent post, in which he responds to Amy King’s challenge to define “greatness.” Her post, I have to add, was occasioned by a New York Times essay by David Orr, “The Great(ness) Game”—a laughable piece of pseudo-intellectual drivel. Orr’s essay has succeeded, however, in spurring all sorts of commentary among poetry bloggers. It just happens that Fieled’s and King’s got my head buzzing like a late spring hive. So, by addressing Adam here, I’m also addressing Amy and David Orr and anybody else who’s been pondering the issue of poetic greatness.Read More