Monthly Archives: April 2022

‘I Would Be a Really Good Artist If I Just Stopped Painting’

Posted on April 27, 2022 by JMN

“The Ordinary Song,” 2017. Credit…via Chiem & Read. Artist Donald Baechler (1956-2022) is remembered in the New York Times by Roberta Smith. Among [Baechler’s] holdings of New York artists was a neon-light wall piece by Joseph Kosuth, a leading Conceptual … Continue reading →

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‘Mandible Wishbone Solvent’ — Pass 1 of 3

Posted on April 25, 2022 by JMN

“Mandible Wishbone Solvent,” by Asiya Wadud (Poetry, March 2022) roped in incremental ghost tens / future tens clairvoyant tens home tens // blue slips beneath the exposed wing / tilt then seam then an angle spent all inside / the … Continue reading →

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‘Smidgins’: Afterthought

Posted on April 17, 2022 by JMN

A “smidgin” is an imprecise, tiny amount of something, a modest dollop. As a poem title, the jocular word is self-effacing but also coyly assertive, like a humble-brag. I got dirt under my nails the other day with Rae Armantrout’s … Continue reading →

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‘Fella in Hat Cups His Dominos’

Posted on April 13, 2022 by JMN

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I tried to get my dad to teach me dominos once during the last months of his life. He was in hospital and listless. I thought it might raise his spirits. When I dumped the shiny pieces out on the … Continue reading →

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How Poetry Feels About Itself

Posted on April 12, 2022 by JMN

Rae Armantrout’s poem “Smidgins” fulfills an imperative of lyric, which is “Don’t be gassy.” Also another imperative, which is “Talk in riddles.” My crumpled, wrinkled / blurt / of flesh. // “Let’s face it,” / it says. * … Ravaged … Continue reading →

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On ‘Love Letter to a Dead Body’

Posted on April 2, 2022 by JMN

I’m intrigued by the tension in Jake Skeet’s [sic] poem: Its title juxtaposes love with death, and its rhythms press against the nettle-like images. The first stanza’s images are scarred and rough with “burr and sage,” “bottles” and the “cirrhosis … Continue reading →

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