I have always been interested in the way in which Jasper Johns takes an image, often a famous or noteworthy photograph or painting, and abstracts it. His ink and encaustic drawings, Farley Breaks Down, led me to Larry Burrows’ print which appeared in Life Magazine in 1965 (The Mission Over, Farley Gives Way). Johns treatment of the photo is interesting, and possesses its own emotion when or if you get to it, while Burrows photo is just so gosh damn sad and powerful. Johns’ drawings make me think before I get to the emotions; Burrows’ photo creates an ache in my chest that I immediately want to relieve by crying. This life is hell for so many people. What need for a hell beyond this world? People go through hell right here every day. The man in Burrows’ photo was a helicopter gunner in the Vietnam War. He had just come back from a mission gone terribly wrong—a crew member had been killed. The photo is in my head. I decided to do a study, which I am including below. I rarely do studies—I mean I rarely execute a study. But my eye is constantly studying. My mind does not turn off. Even while sleeping. This morning I was awakened by a dream. I was dreaming of Sheila’s brother, my brother-in-law, Peter. It was a tender dream. Peter had an aggressive case of Parkinson’s. In the dream, we clasp hands like brothers. Our hands remained clasped. He was young and vibrant, in his 50s, with a thin beard. We were sitting together. Then we embraced and he lightly kissed my neck, just below my ear, the same way I kiss my son when I get a chance to see him.
Blog Post in Which the Poet Adds a Couple of Torchy Twangy Playlists to the Blog-O-Sphere /
The playlist-maker must make playlists. *The official video for Lilacs (Waxahatchee) features Marlee Grace. I have included it below. Interesting creative I met while running a gallery space from 2008-2015 in East Lansing, Michigan. I recently came across the video after investigating the single, Lilacs, which was included on a collaborative playlist on which I was invited to compile songs.
#playlist #torchandtwang #waxahatchee #marleegrace #joanshelley #perfumegenius #jesswilliamson #courtneybarnett #drycleaning #lomelda #lovelansing #mixtape
In Which the Artist Revisits a Series from which He Had Moved On /
Engine, projector, cell, conduit, eye, creator—I don’t know anymore. The central image of The Reality Project continues to speak to me. There are so many lines to explore. This painting mashes up a painting from The Sublime series with ideas from The Reality Project. Really loving my watercolors—a thoroughly new exploration in itself.
#worksonpaper #quantumphysics #outerspace #innerspace #scifi #duranduran #painting #contemporaryart #coloredpencil #smallworks #watercolorpainting #artistsoninstagram #lovelansing #yoursilentface
Come Undone, 2022
Most Recent Series /
Hello, thank you for visiting. You can find 80s playlists, poetry, my 80s coming-of-age novel and all of my artwork at this site. Please take some time to browse.
This playlist is a companion to my 80s coming-of-age novel, Your Silent Face. Stuart Page is a protagonist obsessed with 80s New Wave and Ian Curtis, the lead singer of Joy Divison. All of the tunes and bands in the playlist get a mention in the novel. The novel is available on Amazon.
In Which the Artist Invokes Identity, The Cure and the End of a Series /
Why Can’t I Be You (Me), 2022 just might be the last piece in this series. I can never be sure, but for now, I do feel done.
I wanted to book end this series with a larger piece. Send Me an Angel was the first piece (30”x22”). Most of the other pieces were 8”x8”.
#painting #acrylic #spraypaint #canvas #outerspace #innerspace #quantumphysics #thecure
Why Can’t I Be You (Me), 2022
acrylic, spray & colored pencil on canvas
20”x16”
Chevy in the Hole Your Silent Face Mashup /
7 Books That Tell the Stories of Flint and Detroit, by Kelsey Ronan /
Am I thrilled that Your Silent Face gets a brief mention in Kelsey Ronan’s article, “7 Books That Tell the Stories of Flint and Detroit”? You’re dang right, I am.
I will never forget reading Ben Hamper’s Rivethead in the early 90s at 8104 Carroll Lane, Silver Spring, Maryland. When I finished the last page, I rolled over in my bed and wept. For about six months, I seriously wondered if I should ever write anything remotely connected to Flint ever again (ha! but seriously). I had left and it was unlikely that I would ever capture it the way Ben Hamper did, or so I thought at the time. I was 23 or 24 years old. I had yet to figure out how I wanted to do it. I was at the time primarily a poet, but I was trying to write stories, too.
Check out Kelsey’s article. Kelsey and I will be reading at The Robin Books, 1105 S. Washington, Lansing, at 3p.m. on Saturday, May 14.
Kelsey Ronan, author of the novel, Chevy in the Hole, Henry Holt & Co, 2022
In Which the Artist Just Continues to Continue /
The exploration with watercolor continues. Inspired by the work of various artists, including @diazeeart and @seonnahong. Yesterday—last night, actually—just needed to make a painting. This is what I made. The image of the figure walking away from us is from The Sublime series.
#worksonpaper #smallpainting #watercolor #colored pencil #art #thepretenders #80s #newwave
Brass In Pocket, 2022
