Author Archives: marshall reese

Truth Be Told: DC “Getting The News From Poems” Poetry Reading

Friday, September 21, 6:30 PM at Busboys and Poets

Featuring some of the best poets and writers based in D.C., who’ve been active on the Washington scene since the 70’s.

Readers include:

Sarah Browning, Leslie Bumstead, Tina Darragh, Peter Inman, Sepideh Jodeyri, Doug Lang, Magus Magus, Chris Mason, Mark McMorris, Ethelbert Miller, Casey Smith, Rod Smith, Bernard Welt, and others. 

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Truth Be Told DC: Writers Residency

10 poets and writers are joining us on site as part of our writers residency. They’ll be sharing their thoughts and commentary on this site and related social media throughout the duration of the installation.

Poet Casey Smith is the Residency Coordinator. Writers participating include: Sarah Browning, Leslie Bumstead, Sepideh Jodeyri, Magus Magus, Chris Mason, Mark McMorris, Ethelbert Miller, Casey Smith, Rod Smith, Bernard Welt, others to be announced.

Friday, September 21 from 6:30 – 8:30 PM many of the writers in residence will be reading their poetry in response to current events as part of Getting The News From Poems at Busboys and Poets to kicks off the Truth Be Told events in Washington.

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The Truth Will Set You Free

At the end of 2017, one year into the Trump presidency, the familiar begins to escape us.

The Autocrat's Language

"Using words to lie destroys language. Using words to cover up lies, however subtly, destroys language. Validating incomprehensible drivel with polite reaction also destroys language. This isn’t merely a question of the prestige of the writing art or the credibility of the journalistic trade: it is about the basic survival of the public sphere.

In Russia, first they came for the words of politics, value, and passion. Then they came for the words of action, the words that describe buildings, the numbers that denote dates. And then there were no words left to speak. Not that this is a Russian phenomenon.

Here is what Confucius had to say on the topic:

If language is not correct, then what is said is not what is meant; if what is said is not what is meant, then what must be done remains undone; if this remains undone, morals and art will deteriorate; if justice goes astray, the people will stand about in helpless confusion. Hence there must be no arbitrariness in what is said. This matters above everything."

-- Masha Gessen, The Autocrat's Language, NYRDaily

RSS What Donald Trump Says

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Live Stream January 20, 2018

TRUTH BE TOLD – unveiled at 3 PM, January 20, 2018, first anniversary of the Trump inauguration, at Jim Kempner Fine Art 501 West 23 Street, NY, NY, streaming live until it’s gone.

This is the sixth in a series we’ve done since 2006. The temporary monuments of Melted Away are markers for the opening decades of the 21st century – first, DEMOCRACY is broken, then, the ECONOMY ruined; the MIDDLE CLASS disappears, THE FUTURE is tenuous, THE AMERICAN DREAM vanishes, and TRUTH remains an open question.

Site is visible from the street at all times, 24/7. We will be streaming LIVE for the duration, at meltedaway.com, on Facebook Live and on a network of galleries in North America. (Participating venues listed below.) Comments welcome – on Twitter @melted_away, Instagram @meltedaway, and on the Facebook Live feed.

The work will last for days, one week, possibly longer, in an almost imperceptible disintegration that belies the force and speed at which the current administration is attempting to undermine the basic concepts of our nation’s history and governance.

Jim Kempner Fine Art is located at 501 West 23 Street, corner of 10 Avenue and 23 Street.

Thanks to net neutrality the entirety of TRUTH BE TOLD is streaming at these galleries, universities, institutions and museums:

  • ArtsEverywhere
  • Catharine Clark Gallery
  • Contemporary Art Museum, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida
  • Eyebeam
  • Harbourfront Centre
  • Institute of the Arts and Sciences and the Digital Art/New Media MFA Program of UC Santa Cruz Arts Division
  • Nevada Museum of Art
  • San Francisco Art Institute
  • San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art
  • Streaming Museum
  • Division of Media Arts + Practice, School of Cinematic Arts, University of Southern California
  • University of Texas at Austin Department of Art
  • Washington University, St. Louis, Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts
On Location with Streaming Partners

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Polis is eyes

Up to 12 writers in each city have been invited to visit the site and stay for 2 hours.  LigoranoReese have asked them to share their thoughts about the disappearance of the American Dream. This part of the project stems from the idea that direct participation comes from active perception, apprehending the moment and leads to democratic action.

Commentary will be posted in realtime here on the meltedaway website and reblogged to ArtsEverywhere.

Poet and writer cris cheek is the Residency Coordinator. This part of the project is supported by the Musagetes Foundation.

Writers Cleveland

Mary Barrett, cris cheek, Carla Harryman, Justin Glanville, Daniel Gray-Kontar,
Janice A. Lowe, Julie Patton, Mary E. Weems

Writers Philadelphia

Josh Adler, cris cheek, Ryan Eckes, Knar Gavin, Anna Maria Hong,
Cyree Jarelle Johnson, Julia Lopez, Bob Perelman, Ariel Resnikoff, Frank Sherlock,
Kirwyn Sutherland, Orchid Tierney and others

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Beginning with The Future

With Dawn of the Anthropocene, LigoranoReese started inviting writers to visit the meltdowns to write what they saw and felt. Their texts were uploaded in real-time as they wrote them to this website.

Todd Lester was residency manager; invitees included Charles Bernstein, Chantal Bilodeau  Joshua Furst, Konstantin Prishep, Ryan Schlief, Mira Schor, James Sherry, Nikki Singleton, and John Weir.

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