A Poetry Reading by Jerome Rothenberg

A wonderful occasion to hear one of the world's great living poets!

The Last Goon Show Of All

Ahh, memories ...

HART CRANE

 My current thinking is prompted by Hart Crane who said: 

"The writing of a poem is not - as the writing of a chemical equation is - intended to describe anything; instead, the poem is the chemical reaction itself."

Chu Berry - Blowin' Up A Breeze

So far ahead of his time ... and Hot Lips on trumpet: great musicians.

Natalie Goldberg's definition of Poetry

 

Over many decades, when I’ve been teaching writing, I have used a great list of famous poets who have described poetry, never quite nailing its essence. Today, while throwing out books to the op shop, I came across Natalie Goldberg’s WILD MIND. Page 203 held a great surprise – another definition:

  Poetry is a dumb Buddha who thinks a donkey is as important as a diamond. 

Wow, this reader’s mind is in a turmoil of images which collide and clutter in the neural junkshop. It doesn’t tell me ; it delights me.

ART IMPULSE by Andrew Burke

 

One of my favourite artists

was born before language

and I understand what s/he

was communicating:

five clay streaks on

a cave wall. Now the Tv

would feast on the arts channel

exploring which school of art

s/he creates in, what

string of influences s/he had,

the materials s/he chose

and the palette of the diaspora.

I ask, ‘Why did you stop at five?’

S/he puts up her hand in answer.

 

Published in The Australian 2022,

Lisa Gorton wrote in her poem Grafitti:

An arm’s length of wall permits any depth

of meditative calm or your money back.

I read it on the Internet,

I saw the streaks on my screen.

 

*

 

Why I wrote this poem

is the same impulse s/he had.

wise saying

 

TRAINSPOTTING by Coral Carter - a movie-poem

 Trainspotting V3.1 FIXED.mov

HOPE IT OPENS UP OKAY!