In Theories of Space and Time,the North American poet, Natasha Trethewey, translates human experience of Space and time over a lifetime, with an emphasis on ‘home’ as a starting point for journeys in life development, and hence also experience of time and space. Here is the poem: You can get there from here, thoughthere’s no going … More Space and time under the stress of oppressive power.
Can we measure the quality of witness to the processes and events of attempted genocide? Two new books that test that idea and challenge the horror. Tayseer Abu Odeh and Sherah Bloor (Trans. & Eds) & Jorie Graham (Guest ed.). [2026] You Must Live: New Poetry from Palestine Penguin Books Ltd.. Ahmed Alnaouq and Pam … More Can we measure the quality of witness to the processes and events of attempted genocide? Two new books that test that idea and challenge the horror.
Let’s pretend we can get in the mind of great artists, and consider how Anish Kapoor might translate the question, ‘What’s a time you followed your gut and it turned out to be exactly right?’ This is a blog preparing to see his new exhibition at the Hayward Gallery. Following your gut to their source: … More Let’s pretend we can get in the mind (or guts) of great artists, and consider how Anish Kapoor might translate the question, ‘What’s a time you followed your gut and it turned out to be exactly right?’ This is a blog preparing to see his new exhibition at the Hayward Gallery.
I suppose I am determined not to prepare in some small way for things I see on theatre. This is another installment of the preparation for my July 8-9th trip, for which the schedule again is thus, together with the surrounding commentary from an earlier blog on another event (the whole is at this link): … More I used to believe theatre was about an actor playing a role. In preparation for Simon Stone’s ‘Oresteia’.
The best advice is to be aware of and distrust the impulse, or the advice of others, that you be always in control of what you say and do, for it too often means that you surrender yourself to the controlling ideologies of the status quo, which is, often as not, embodied by that which … More The best advice is to be aware of and distrust the impulse, or the advice of others, that you be always in control of what you say and do, for it too often means that you surrender yourself to the controlling ideologies of the status quo, which is, often as not, embodied by that which demands your self-control. I think I learned this from Adam Nicolson’s characterisation of Samuel Taylor Coleridge in his ‘The Making of Poetry’ (2019)
Do you think humans will ever colonize Mars? What would life there actually look like? Colonial Mars: some verse for Elon. Below is a paragraph from Wikipedia’s introduction to the SpaceX Mars colonisation idea as proposed by Elon Musk, speaking as bought-in (by virtue of his ‘gifts’ to that society) lead of The Mars Society. … More Colonial Mars: some verse for Elon.
I don’t believe in tips for life, let alone top ones, and am circumspect about success as a thing to be realised. Consider Wordsworth as he must have felt in Alfoxden in 1797. Wordsworth in Darkness by Tom Hammick from Adam Nicholson (2019) The Making of Poetry: Coleridge, the Wordsworths and Their Year of Marvels … More I don’t believe in tips for life, let alone top ones, and am circumspect about success as a thing to be realised. Consider Wordsworth as he must have felt in Alfoxden in 1797.
“And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” – Revelation 21:27 A 14th century tapestry picturing St. John of Patmos awarded the vision of the New Jerusalem by God (photograph by Octave … More “And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” – Revelation 21:27
Édouard Louis shows us that ‘happiness’ may be the result only of ‘social determinism’ succeeding in its function to ‘condition the person’ you are. [1] This is a blog on Édouard Louis (2026) Collapse [Trans Tash Aw], London, Harvill. This piece probably relates to what I have tried to say in blogs about earlier books. The … More Édouard Louis shows us that ‘happiness’ may be the result only of ‘social determinism’ succeeding in its function to ‘condition the person’ you are. This is a blog on Édouard Louis (2026) ‘Collapse’, London, Harvill.
Explaining why I go to art exhibitions is almost the same as explaining why I feel a need to prepare myself to see them. The pleasures and perils of researched prescience is however a subject in itself. This blog anticipates seeing the new Zurbarán ExWhen the subject is ‘seeing’, why exclude visual art, for that … More When the subject is ‘seeing’, why exclude visual art, for that too allows us to ‘see’ in more than ways that are entirely visual. This blog is an explanation of why I go to art exhibitions. This is almost the same as explaining why I feel a need to prepare myself to see them. The pleasures and perils of researched prescience is however a subject in itself. This blog anticipates seeing the new ‘Zurbarán’ Exhibition at 12.00 midday to 13.30 (about) on Thursday 9th July. Will it change my world?
I’d tell him: everybody thinks each day full of nothing in particular, but you can construct your day differenly! This is a blog on Ira Sach’s Peter Hujar’s Day The sub-title to Peter Bradshaw’s review in The Guardian of Ira Sach’s masterpiece Peter Hujar’s Day is: ‘Whishaw is not tested by this verbatim retelling of … More I’d tell him: everybody thinks each day full of nothing in particular, but you can construct your day differently! This is a blog on Ira Sach’s Peter Hujar’s Day.
Controlled exclusion rarely also controls setting (and building) colonisation of the other: the meaning of borders and boundaries. Building the West Bank Wall in 2004 Let’s begin by thinking about that adjective ‘healthy’ as applied to ‘boundaries’. If a boundary can be ‘healthy’ can it also be ‘unhealthy’? We rarely if ever hear of setting … More Controlled exclusion rarely also controls colonisation of the other: the meaning of setting (and building) borders and boundaries.
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