There’s a new website up for Popolo Press, run by Kiva Tanya Stimac, who is responsible for so many of Montreal’s beautiful letterpress show posters over the years. Firmly rooted in the ideology and philosophy behind Montreal’s independent scene, Popolo Press’ work is meticulously crafted, locally-bound and offered to the public with a lot of love. I’m looking forward to having the opportunity to work with them in the future.
UPDATE: A great interview with Kiva up on Felt and Wire.
As encouraging as the international momentum building around the Occupy Wall Street movement is, it also raises within me a fair amount of skepticism about its efficacy and sincerity. Ironically, the widespread popularity makes me intrinsically question it, as I guess I’m always more comfortable (or at least used to) working from the margins.
I have not attended any of the general assemblies here in Montreal, so my criticism is more instinctive than anything else. The term “Occupy” also rings false in this context, pointing to a history of colonialism that is embedded in our geography. On the flip side, this same instinct pushes me to at least do something in support of the initiative. I’m all for the creation of a critical dialogue around the systemic inequalities in our society, and in conversation with a friend who was at Occupy Wall Street in NY, I was very encouraged by his account of the maturity of the movement there. The cause is just, and the process-oriented consensus model laid down by the NY occupation is certainly inspiring if it can be carried through to other sites.
So, yes, I’m participating and I encourage others to come down on Oct. 15th to Square Victoria and demonstrate. We can’t build this if we don’t take part.
Though I’m in no way affiliated with the organising of the event, I created the above poster to lend my support and solidarity.
Download the 11×17 version here or the 8.5×11 version here.
—Update—
I also created a Decolonize Montreal version of this poster to address the issues I had with terminology and context. You can download it here.
I’m very happy to announce that Capitalism Kills Love has been featured in the latest e-issue of Rattle Magazine (issue e.11). Since 1996, Rattle has established itself as a key site in print and online for the promotion of contemporary poetry and the development of an active community of poets. Read more about the magazine here.
The project is featured in Dan Waber‘s Eye Contact section where he gives a very insightful review of the series and its context as a piece of visual poetry. I’m honoured to have the work read in this light, and given the timing, as the “occupy” movement(s) spread across North America, I hope more and more people take up the challenge that inspired me to create the work. Capitalism Kills Love and love kills capitalism…
Poets are always among the first to go missing in regime changes, because they’re dangerous. The power that poetry has is the judo throw of paradigm shift. Those in Title Case Power are (rightly) afraid of those who are able to wield this less-flashy but ultimately more effective lowercase power. (…) They know how to push the buttons, slide the levers, and twist the dials that make us think we thought of that ourselves. What happens when a poet who is also a graphic designer decides to use his powers for good?
Download Rattle e.11 here
And a loud shout-out to Aram Tanis who provided the original photography for the project!
I spotted some really nice gig posters showing up post Pop Montreal on Fairmount the other day, and thought I would share. Enjoy! And yes, they’re snapped on my retro-android camera for nostalgic pleasure. Let me know if you want to see more!
The cold-blooded execution of Troy Davis last night in Georgia greatly upset me, as I’m sure it did hundreds of thousands of people around the world. It’s a saddening and enraging reminder of the injustices perpetrated in order to maintain a system of privileged power and the inherent racism of the criminal justice system in the US.
In collaboration with the Howl Arts Collective, I quickly designed this poster in solidarity with his struggle, also drawing the link between Davis’ execution and Stephen Harper’s position on capital punishment, a clear warning sign of the growing violence of the policies of this Conservative majority.
Download the poster in English and French, and please spread widely. A great miscarriage of justice was done yesterday in Georgia. Let us redouble our efforts for a more just world, where the death penalty no longer exists and these decisions might be based on at least a shred of humanity instead of blind faith in a corrupt system.
No justice. No peace.
Read more on the Howl Arts website.
Poster design by Stuart Thursby
Though it’s been a while since I’ve been a fervent NDPer, I was deeply saddened by the news today. I tend to think of politics with a small “p”, grassroots activism, on the ground and in the day to day direct actions we take. But as my friend Yan mentioned, Mr. Layton was “our” closest ally in this government, the official opposition to Canada’s Conservatives and their increasingly scary policies. It’s a tragic day for all Canadians, as an important voice for change, for dialogue, has been silenced. His last letter to Canadians is a touching and inspiring note to leave on, emblematic of his strength of character, will and hope.
Rest in peace Mr. Layton, you were an inspiring and stand-up figure in a world often bereft of them.
Let’s also remember that a movement is not a man, not a leader, but consists of everyone who works their ass off fighting for social justice every day. It’s a sentiment I think Mr. Layton would support. Mourn the man, build the movement. So, thank you for everything you’ve done Jack, thank you for providing so much hope and speaking bravely of love in politics, we’ll keep up the fight for you…
[edit] a great article on The Mass Ornament reflecting on the cooption of Layton’s public image.
PS. If you are in Montréal, John, Louis and a few others are organising a candlelight vigil tonight at 20h at Mont Royal parc. Details on facebook here.
We went through hundreds of zines today from the Expozine archives in preparation for the next issue of Four Minutes to Midnight (details coming soon). Amongst many things, I was struck by the beautiful illustrations of Shawn Kuruneru and wanted to give him a little shout out.
I was interviewed earlier today by Stefan Christoff on Radio is Dead over at CKUT FM. We spoke at length about the role of art and cultural resistance in the face of the conservative politics of Canada.
I feel like I rambled on a bit, but hopefully there’s some interesting/inspiring stuff in there. The interview starts about 19 minutes in.
Radio Is Dead, July 25, on CKUT FM
Fuck Death from plasti75 on Vimeo.
I’d been meaning to post this for a while, but I’m only now getting my tech set up back in order after a little computer mishap in Berlin. But it’s really not such a big deal, because Berlin brought me so many good things, among them the chance to meet the wonderful Lotti Thiessen. Her and her partner (aka Cow Heart) produced this beautiful little experiment for us, with Charlotte reading Nettelbeck’s poem Fuck Death, from our last issue Happy Hour.
