Calgarian designer Matthew Knapik (with whom I previously collaborated with on Calgary Read’s Little Free Library Passport, a PDF of which I’ve posted here) has just transformed a series of my concrete poems in to surface patterns, in response to a call by Uppercase Magazine:

The result of a collaboration between poet Derek Beaulieu and designer Matt Knapik, this collection explores concrete poetry as a departure point for pattern design. Letters are plucked from their everyday roles and given the opportunity to participate in compositions that give them new expressions of form and character. Transformed further into extensible motifs, the poems playfully threaten to infest their two-dimensional worlds.

I’m very proud to unveil the cover of THE CALGARY RENAISSANCE!

Edited by derek beaulieu and rob mclennan, and published by Ottawa’s Chaudiere Books, The Calgary Renaissance highlights some of the diverse and astonishing experimental poetry and fiction that has emerged out of the past two decades of Calgary writing. An essential portrait of some of the most engaged and radical of Canadian writing and writers from one of the country’s most important literary centres.

Contributors include: Hollie Adams, Jonathan Ball, Braydon Beaulieu, Christian Bök, Louis Cabri, Natalee Caple, Weyman Chan, Jason Christie, Chris Ewart, Aaron Giovannone, Helen Hajnoczky, Susan Holbrook, Ken Hunt, Jani Krulc, Larissa Lai, Naomi K. Lewis, Nicole Markotic, Suzette Mayr, kevin mcpherson eckhoff, Sandy Pool, Sharanpal Ruprai, Ian Sampson, Jordan Scott, Nikki Sheppy, Natalie Simpson, Emily Ursuliak, Natalie Zina Walschots, Andrew Wedderburn, Julia Williams, Rita Wong, Eric Zboya, and Paul Zits.

Introduction by derek beaulieu and rob mclennan. Cover by Natalie Lauchlan and Nathaniel Mah. Designed by Christine McNair and Cameron Anstee.

Order today from your local, independent bookstore!

The University of Calgary’s Alumni Association asked me to offer some advice to first year students, in the form of “Advice to my First Year Self” (YouTube)

one more teasing photo of a new project with Richard Harrison and Kit Dobson at Mount Royal University …

SEPT 5th is John Cage’s birthday, and in honour over the next few days i’ll post some links, downloadable PDFs and cool stuff:

• Silence: Lectures and Writings, Wesleyan University Press, 1961.
• A Year from Monday: New Lectures and Writings, Wesleyan University Press, 1969.
• Notations, New York: Something Else Press, 1969.
• Song Books (Solos for Voice 3-92), 3 vols., New York: Henmar Press, 1970.
• M: Writings ’67-’72, Wesleyan University Press, 1973.
• Empty Words: Writings ’73-’78, Wesleyan University Press, 1979.
• X: Writings ’78-’82, Wesleyan University Press, 1983.
• Anarchy. New York City – January 1988, Wesleyan University Press, 2001.

and a mountain of more stuff here at Monoskop

• over 20 full albums (and more) at UBUWeb

and

• “How to Get started”
• Nam June Paik’s 1984 TV special ‘Good Morning Mr. Orwell’ w/ anderson, cage, ginsberg, glass, etc:

my “Please, No more Poetry” and “That’s not writing”  have both been translated in to Romanian by Yigru Zeltil for Tomis magazine online …

Typewriters in transit! More soon on a new project with Richard Harrison and Kit Dobson at Mount Royal University …