Color it brown.
Archives for February 2025
The
Against the Death Penalty
Death Row Prisoner’s Statement:
« I do deserve to be executed, bottom line
I ain’t goin’ t’candy coat it
I deserve to be executed
by the law of the State of Indiana
I deserve to be executed. »
Double Trouble: Bacon Sometimes Meets Picasso
This is what happens when you take a razor to a pair of images cutting them up in vertical strips. And this is what happens when the procedure is applied to a single image, then doubling the result upon itself. Jiří Kolář gave the name “rollage” to this kind of minimalist collage technique.
My Books
Several books of poems are published by Moloko Print and Stadtlichter Presse in bilingual (American-German) editions, and by Cold Turkey Press in handmade chapbooks. “The Z Collection” appeared in three editions, by AC Books, Blue Wind Press, and Moloko Print.”
Poetry and Music at the Palace
Florian Vetsch reads with Jan Heller Levi & Jan Herman on April 1, 2025, in St. Gallen, Switzerland. Vetsch has translated poems by both into German. During the evening, poems will be recited bilingually by the writers, and their backgrounds will be discussed. DJ Soulsonic (aka Mr. Wempe) will play music selected by the speakers. Special guest poet Clemens Umbricht will perform his translation of Jan Heller Levi’s poem “I Lost My Best Friend to Music” as well as his own New York poem.
More Resonant Than Ever
Heathcote Williams’s ‘The United States of Porn’
![Heathcote Williams [photo: JH]](https://www.artsjournal.com/herman/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/heathcote-williams-photo-280-200x200.jpg)
Heathcote was always prescient. But it is still astonishing to realize how relevant — and resonant — his dissident voice remains more than a dozen years after he recorded “The United States of Porn.”
Steff Signer / Cabinet Music — Frozen Duck Tears
Concept & Music Vocals & Moniphonium Inventions:
Steff Signer, Switzerland
Photography: Mario Baronchelli, Switzerland
«Mother of Transgression» Poetry: Florian Vetsch
Brass Instruments & Tibetan: «singi»
Cymbals: Markus Breuss, Spain
Electric Guitar Explosion: Chanan Hanspal, England
Viola: David Schnee
Recitation Text: Liz Foulis, Scotland
Recitation Poetry: Jaswant Hanspal
Poetry & Prose
‘Wortlaut’ Saint Gallen Festival Salutes the Word
UPDATED: Jan Heller Levi & Jan Herman will appear on March 30, 2025 at the festival, where they will read and discuss their latest poems with Giovanna Caggiano and Julia Mülli from the Kantonsschule am Burggraben. Florian Vetsch will also read with Jan & Jan at the Palace on April 1.
Mr. Big Mouth Sounds Off
Welcome to the Gaza Riviera
‘It will be SOoooo beautiful like never before!’
The Ugly Spirit … with commentary
I know where this image came from. It began with the random association of two photos that I sliced up longitudinally with a razor, then laid the resulting strips side by side. I subsequently photographed it, dropped out the background and very slightly manipulated the color and sharpness. The result seemed to me utterly surprising, just as confounding, and very disturbing. In a word, scary.