Paths of Memory and Painting - About Foreground

short-listed for Prix poesie-media 2009, Biennale Internationale des poetes Val de Marne, France, May, 2009

Featured in: Judy Malloy: Retrospective, the 2012 Electronic Literature Organization Conference, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, June 20-23, 2012

Other Exhibitions: Language-Driven Installation Art, Electronic Literature Organization Conference, Brown University, Providence, RI, 2010; E-Poetry 2009, Center of Contemporary Art Barcelona

Conferences, Readings, Presentations: Berkeley Center for New Media Roundtable, UC Berkeley, February 11, 2010, The Future of Writing, UC Irvine, CA, November, 2008; radio interview and reading, Cover to Cover, KPFA, December, 2008;

back and forth motion of the paintbrush
slow buildup of intense color
Sunset. The restaurant we were in
background, foreground, linked
in the array of painted panels
the place I had last seen him
rectangular rocks leading out into
the choppy dark blue green sea
on the hillside the emphatic suggestion
Shadows on the polished floor.
the wine was good. I drank it slowly
tangential places in our lives
some unknown mystery, some aura
challenging the reader
to see a different story
it wasn't until that very moment

It is May 1944; it is December 1941; it is 2009. A story is told over fifty years later in two recollected scenes that take place at the same dinner. Each scene represents different directions in the conversation, but the time frame of the narrative also includes Dorothy Abrona McCrae's memories of her own work and the work of other artists, both at the time of the dinner and a few years later while she is an art student at Berkeley. As in my its name was Penelope, (Eastgate, 1993) as is the case in real life, memory is not always disclosed chronologically.

This work displays most effectively on a screen that is 1200 pixels wide, but it should work on any screen that is larger than that.

Judy Malloy:
Paths of Memory and Painting
You are reading Part II:
when the foreground and the background merged

"...In Paths of Memory and Painting, the viewer is asked to navigate the poem by clicking the lexia that attracts them. An ethereal narrative emerges based on individual decision. The resulting form reflects the viewer’s desire for a certain path. The act of reading poetry and choosing what portion comes next alters the traditional form and a feeling of intimacy emerges between the viewer and the computer..." -- Mary Gagler, Curator, Technology Becomes Them

To navigate this work, wait for the text to advance, or click on the lexia you want to follow. The work begins with a series of lines of poetry from the narrative. Click or wait for the text to change.

Last update, September 21, 2017.