Dear Vox Populi subscribers,
At 7pm tonight the official launch of American Ash, my new collection of poems published by Ragged Sky, is happening. I’ll be reading with two wonderful poets — Joan Bauer and Richard St. John.
Joan E. Bauer: Arcosanti
A dusty paint cloth of rust and ochre,
the desert before us as we pass shark fins
of agave & prickly-ribbed saguaro.
Joan E. Bauer: The Sisterhood of Buddleias
Sarah plants a butterfly bush
for the purple, nectar-rich splendor in a pot.
Hannah wants some pink extravagance
to beckon hummingbirds.
Joan E. Bauer: Get Your Kicks
This August my niece Holly will drive
the Mother Road. She’s a writer & I say:
Don’t miss anything: not cornfields, chili fries,
maple syrup farms, not the Big Texan
Steak House in dusty Amarillo…
Joan E. Bauer: W. Eugene Smith in Minamata, Japan 1971
Smith frames: Tomoko Uemura in Her Bath
The mother cradles Tomoko, her misshapen daughter.
Light through a dark window.
A post-modern pietà.
Joan E. Bauer: The Camera Artist
In 1955, Swiss-born Robert Frank criss-crossed the United States. From 27,000 shots, 83 images: The Americans. Factory workers in Detroit, transvestites in New York City. Billowing American flags, gossamer-thin & torn. … Continue reading
Joan E. Bauer: Duckweed
In Branchville, New Jersey, home of Bear Swamp, I’m with the Frugal Traveler & to prove I’m no stranger to frugality, I find a $57-a-night special with a bathroom painted … Continue reading