Saturday, May 23, 2009

Frank Walsh's Summer Poetry Workshop

THE ANGEL OF EXPERIENCE, THE ANGLE OF INCIDENCE: REDISCOVERING THE PUBLIC ART OF AMERICAN POETRY IN THE PRIVATE HEART OF THE INDIVIDUAL WRITER.

Each workshop begins with at least a 15 min. non-secular Buddhist Samantha- Vipassana meditation session with the object of calming the mind and body and building mental concentration, lessening distraction, to better serve the student in their pursuit of writing and poetry in particular. Cushions to be supplied by workshop participants.

Also Shamanistic techniques and body “work”-- Chi-gong, yoga, spontaneous vaudeville dance routines, etc.-- will be employed if agreed upon by the workshop participants.

1. Poem as portal, entry, into the deep present, whereas the significant past is seen as “texture” supra-imposed by which individual emotions and intellect gain “traction”.
(a). Memory and perception are identified.
(b). Other art forms such as painting, music, and sculpture will be observed to reinforce this.
Exercise: Familiarity with every America literary movement of the last hundred years, such as Imagism, Post- Apocryphal, Objectivism, Black Mountain School, Beat, Amodernism, etc. will be lightly cultivated through historic and contemporary examples.

2. Poetry as direct action, experience, that initiates transformation and change in the socio- economic environment, as well.
(a). Experience and experiment are related by reflection.
Exercise: “Copying” the techniques and styles above in kind. Reading aloud the result of such to an audience as a way to enhance critical abilities.

3. And “meaning” is only that that is a possible future brought into play by making sense of the poem as the poem is made. Meaning is given to the poem by the reader and/ or listener.
Exercise: Getting the feel of the senses involved in the appreciation of the creative and tuning those sensibilities.

4.The Poem as the process and pursuit of truth and beauty and resolution, focused in thought and breath, coincidentally, and “measure”, verging on the real news per se: a non-didactic, ultra- temporal, non- fictional narration accountable to the skillful extent of self expression and communication.
(a). Urban oracle and games of chance explored.
Exercise: Exploring the graphic look of the poem in print as like musical notation and in turn the banner and headline type nature of the line, stanza, overall form through which certain facts are brought to light especially as regards the relationship and function of the individual and societal milieu, especially nature with a big “N”.

5. Whereas form and parts-of-speech are “occasional” yet necessary and organic adept and ever having a body of formal and traditional reserve at hand during the critical point of composition and “making”.
Exercise: The student will consider and in part accomplish various occasional pieces, such as for a wedding, a memorial, an elegy for the dead, love, and good luck in business and travel.

6. Poetry as an art form proper exists in the instant as an aural phenomenon, conditioned, ultimately by audience disposition-- triangulated in space and time by the listener on either side of its effective sufficient performance.
(a). Vowel modulation beyond mere rhyme.
(b.) Extended metaphor and metonymy beyond image become “vision”.
Exercise: Getting the drift of the American spoken language by embracing the street, and the context of parlance in social situations. Seeing past signage and outdoor advertising.

Bottom line and goals---
Public performance, action- reading, facility in the accomplishment thereof, will be emphasized.
Gaining skillful means though listening while alternately engaging with purpose in everyday speech and parlance.

June Blend

Poetic Arts Performance Project Presents:
Blend @ Blue Bananas Café
(A series featuring poetry, spoken word, and music 1st Thursdays of every month)

This month we are featuring Tamara Oakman and Nate Graham.

Blue Bananas Café is located next to the Laff House, 223 South Street, Philadelphia PA. Their website features their tasty menu as well as directions to the restaurant:
http:/www.bluebananascafe.com/

Tamara Oakman- A graduate of Temple University, has won awards in poetry, fiction, creative non fiction, and drama. She has been published by Many Mountains Moving, Philadelphia Stories, Mad Poets Review, and other journals; reads poetry and fiction everywhere in Philadelphia and the tri-state area; judged a fiction and drama contest for Hidden River Arts, and is completed her Master's thesis in English at Arcadia University; a book of poetry called "Snatched". She has hosted at venues such as; Book Corner, Robin's Bookstore and Voices and Visions Bookstore. She created The Light of Unity Festival two years running, is currently leading The Business of Words poetry workshop at The University of Pennsylvania Bookstore for Mad Poets Society, runs a chapbook called "The Business of Words," and coordinated a Fringe Festival performance at The Rotunda called Arsenic Pizza. She manages The Light of Unity Artist’s and Writer’s Series at The Central Library where she showcases the talents of new writers and musicians. Her efforts have been documented in The Metro and The City Paper. She has read poetry just about everywhere including her living room. She is the director of The Light of Unity Arts Association and currently lives and loves in Philadelphia.



Nate Graham - After 4 years in music school, Nate Graham hit the Philadelphia music scene. He performed with his former band in such Philly venues as The Electric Factory and World Café Live before releasing his debut solo album Daylight in 2007 and Trio EP in 2008. Thoughtful melodies and lyrics are staples of Graham's songs, while clever hooks leave the ear craving more. His music has been described as possessing "the ease of Elton John" and the "raw perspective of Ben Folds". Graham currently lives in NYC.



* To sign up for the open mic, or ask questions please email allavilnyanskaya@earthlink.net
* Blue Bananas Café validates parking at Abbott Square Parking Lot, 3rd & South. ($4.00 to park all night!)

Monday, May 18, 2009

Picture Recap: May 15, 2009 Arsenic Pizza Preview

Here are some pictures from the Yogasutra event, Arsenic Pizza: Left Overs (Preview). Videos will slowly be put on our Youtube page.