Hi Jim,
glad you're stirring this pot.
I'd put the apparent apathy for new media poetries in the Uk (at least as
evidenced on this list)
down to a mix of forces and i'm gonna state them in various ways, some of
which overlap:
- apathy
- scepticism and at best begrudging interest in its creative potential
- luddite residues, distrust of technologies
- lack of imagination harnessed to realisable projects
- lack of commitment to time put in for anything useful to come out
- fear at not developing sufficient proficiency to make anything
interesting
- poetry lagging somewhat at a distance from most other spheres of human
interaction and proaction
- confusions about ephemerality and substance and 'proper' ways and places
for doing poetry
- frustration disguised as disdain
- lack of know-how
- guilt at being seen to be part of digerati, or digital elite
BUT before this post box fills with angry mail, we ought to acknowledge
that for many of the practitioners engaged here the kind of work they make
does not necessarily move in the directions of what might be worth pursuing
for e-poetics. That's not a condemnation, just a possible explanation. My
own work plays more at the boundaries of poetic hybridities, chips away at
the monolithic blocks of artform certainty. There's no reason why anybody
should feel compelled to explore this medium, much further than as a
conference corridor or corner shop exchange or fullblown debating chamber.
It will take all sorts, thankfully. Nor am i devoid of some of the dashes
above. I have to work at it and have decided to keep doing so. Slowly
perhaps, but with commitment and deliberation, given multiple pulls on my
time and limited financial means. It was whilst on the dole (welfare) living
in a run down seaside town in 1994 that I decided to fork out for on-line
status and to get involved with e-mail. I never regret doing so. But that
was MY priority. I sympathise with those who take part in these technologies
reluctantly. I had no choice, it's where I needed to be as much of what i do
can extned itself here.
and so forth. Thing is what I don't understand is the continually whittering
denial
love and love
cris
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