Category Archives: Art I Like

Fifteen Paintings of the Spring by Charles Burchfield

… Charles Burchfield (1893-1967) painted every season wearing a wide brimmed hat to keep the sun from making him squint. He wanted to see nature clearly, the dark with the light, knowing full well that he needed the darkness to … Continue reading →

Mar Ideal por Juan Ramón Jiménez

16 Feb ’16

… One of the great love stories is the marriage of Spanish poets, Zenobia Camprubí and Juan Ramón Jiménez. This poem by Jiménez is sublime and fluid while my translation doggy paddles. Focus on the Spanish. … … … … Continue reading →

For Judith Malina by Ed Sanders

27 Nov ’15

… Kenny Angel gave me this poem book, a tribute to Judith Malina by Ed Sanders. He works on these poem books at his studio on Second Avenue. … … … … …

The Story of the Rabbit and the Coyote. Illustrated by Francisco Toledo, Adapted by Gloria and Víctor de la Cruz

23 Apr ’15

… .. … I bought Cuento del Conejo y el Coyote illustrated by the artist Francisco Toledo when I was in Oaxaca in 1999 finishing up my novel. I’d first seen Toledo’s work about twelve years earlier when I was … Continue reading →

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird by Wallace Stevens with ten engravings by Francisco Toledo and a translation by Luis Roberto Vera

18 Apr ’15

… I Among twenty snowy mountains, The only moving thing Was the eye of the blackbird. II I was of three minds, Like a tree In which there are three blackbirds. III The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds. It … Continue reading →

Album de Animales Mexicanos por Gabriel Fernández Ledesma (1944)

21 Mar ’15

… In the early 90s I went to Mexio to work on my novel, What Night Forgets, usually for the month of January. When I was in the city of Oaxaca, I was always looking for books of printed art … Continue reading →

from Fucking in Barney, Number 4, 1984

15 Mar ’15

… … If it weren’t for Stephen Spera, I doubt I’d have gotten into Barney. I was very lax, and still am, about getting myself into things. Stephen, on the other hand, was always looking for and aware of opportunities. … Continue reading →

Out To Lunch: Joe Brainard Cartoons, Little Caesar Magazine, 1978

14 Mar ’15

… The style of Little Caesar fits these cartoons by Joe Brainard very well, the everyday printed quality of a newspaper, the comics of Little Nancy and Sluggo, the funnies, only in color on Sunday, but black and white the … Continue reading →

Gregory Corso’s A Star

30 Sep ’14

… Just got this gift this weekend. Years ago I brought the poet Gregory Corso to my friend Patricia Kelly who was always looking for ideas for art. For ten dollars Gregory wrote and signed a poem for Patricia that … Continue reading →

Animals by Akram

10 Aug ’14

… … The following animals were drawn by Akram over three years. He draws from time to time often to occupy his mind when he is waiting or waiting and thinking. Akram draws very quickly from his imagination. He might … Continue reading →

Animals in Chinese Art

30 Mar ’14

… I bought some books with prints of Chinese paintings of plants and animals when I was in Wuhan, China in 2006. I can’t read a word of Chinese, but I am sure the paintings are centuries old although I’m … Continue reading →

The Monkey at 9th and C

4 Nov ’13

… I’m not exactly sure when the monkey appeared on my apartment building’s wall. I look at him every day coming and going. No one has desecrated him yet. People walk by but they don’t destroy him. Art often appears … Continue reading →