DREAMING
THE DRAWING, DREAMING THE POEM by John Randolph Carter Author's Links |
See
John Carter's poetry in current
Poesy section.
As
I create, I feel like I am asleep dreaming the work while being simultaneously
awake, observing, analytical. The drawings, like dreams, have their own
unfolding life of surprising landscapes, strange animals, monsters, bizarre
characters and unexpected juxtapositions. As these works unfold, they
frequently seem strange to me--as my dreams often do. Part of me knows
that this seemingly unreal world is my real world wearing a mask of strangeness.
As
my hand moves across the page drawing a line or writing word after word,
these works seem to be creating themselves. As the drawing or poem emerges,
my conscious mind behaves like an audience in a darkened theater watching
a drama unfold on the stage--sometimes whispering, sometimes silent. My
hand plays out this drama on the page in spite of occasional storms of
protestation from the audience. Critical judgments by my conscious mind
must be suspended or, at the very least, subordinated to the performance
at hand--the unfolding.
With
each willful continuing there is new growth into new dimensions of self.
In the act of creation, I accept myself. In the conscious flash of recognition
of what the work means, I accept myself. Through these acts of acceptance,
I change. As I change, my drawings and poems change. With each change
I become more of who I am--more real, more realized. Whether
frog or prince
(The essay "Dreaming the Drawing, Dreaming the Poem" is adapted from a catalogue essay for the one-person exhibition, Mindscapes, 104 Drawings, held at the New Jersey State Museum and the Minneapolis Institute) |
WAR! || BROKEN NEWS || CRITIQUES & REVIEWS || CYBER BAG || EC CHAIR || FICCIONES THE FOREIGN DESK || GALLERY || LETTERS || POESY || SERIALS || STAGE & SCREEN || ZOUNDS |
©1999-2002
Exquisite Corpse - If you experience difficulties with this site, please
contact the webmistress.
|