Author Archives: JMN

Unknown's avatar

About JMN

I live in Texas and devote much of my time to easel painting on an amateur basis. I stream a lot of music, mostly jazz, throughout the day. I like to read and memorize poetry.

Adventures in Toponymy

Posted on April 21, 2018 by JMN

King Mswati III of Swaziland proclaims that his country shall henceforth be called eSwatini. It means “land of the Swati” in the siSwati language that predominates in the southern African kingdom. The king has reigned for 32 years over one … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged | Leave a comment

Didactic Doggerel

Posted on April 21, 2018 by JMN

The Little Comet That Could Note: “Kreutz” is pronounced “Kroits.” Lovejoy, a Kreutz sungrazer, has just done A death-defying feat, and kissed the Sun. Stargazers shook their heads: “He won’t make it!” Lovejoy said to himself: “I can take it!” … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Written in the 70s — Maned Exeter

Posted on April 21, 2018 by JMN

MANED EXETER (Sontag, 219) Maned Exeter, beleaguered metalunan victor or the victim. The success of such spectacles indicates that most people identify with the victor; they are immortal. I identify with the victim. Screen violence is horrible because I am … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Written in the 70s — Sontag: There are

Posted on April 21, 2018 by JMN

Sontag: “There are spiritual resources beyond effort, which appear only when effort is stilled.” Porno: passivity; easy [lack of] gratification. Sexual excitement accentuates vitality; an end in itself. One does not know, and it is an agony, whether to fill … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology | Tagged , | Leave a comment

“Woman Hugging Boy”

Posted on April 20, 2018 by JMN

This gallery contains 1 photo.

More Galleries | Tagged , | Leave a comment

“Painting is a lie that tells the truth” (Picasso)

Posted on April 20, 2018 by JMN

“As Amos Oz, the Israeli novelist, once put it, ‘Facts at times become the dire enemies of truth.’ Picasso’s ‘Guernica’ is a poor factual account of what happened in a Basque village on April 26, 1937, and a magnificent rendering … Continue reading →

Posted in Quotations | Tagged | Leave a comment

From Memory

Posted on April 20, 2018 by JMN

“Dirge Without Music,” poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay https://www.poetryfoundation.org I’m attracted to the elegiac mode. This poem is formal, but with half-rhyming that doesn’t chime: “crowned” with “resigned,” for example. The speaker quarrels with how we handle death.

Posted in Anthology | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

“Lurchingly?

Posted on April 20, 2018 by JMN

I’ve read and admired Peter Schjedahl’s writings about art in the New Yorker for years. His recent article is entitled “The Lurchingly Uneven Portraits of Paul Cezanne” (New Yorker, April 9, 2018). The piece is unhelpful to me as an … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged | Leave a comment

Banditry Repression

Posted on April 20, 2018 by JMN

I’m happy to learn there’s an institution in France named the Banditry Repression Brigade. It handles art theft. Mentioned in an article in The Guardian by Kim Willsher, 4-4-18. (Copyright 2018 James Mansfield Nichols. All rights reserved.)

Posted in Commentary | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Carper

Posted on April 20, 2018 by JMN

“Abe has not been able to shake allegations that his government gave huge discounts in land sales to two education institutions linked to associates *of he* and his wife, *and then* tried to cover up the links.” (Washington Post, 4-16-18) … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged | Leave a comment