Excellent as always, Jesse! I've been quite overwhelmed with a number of things lately: just trying to keep with my own work amidst all the usual daily responsibilities of family and work life.
But this is rich in beautiful art and words. (I, like others, would love to hear some of the music created at the event!). I too am moved by Rilke's poems and am grateful for your sharing his work.
A thought occured to me in reading the first poem "I live my life in widening circles"__One assumes that Rilke is himself at the center of this circle ("The center is everywhere and nowhere") while circling around God (Where is God if not within us?) and around the primordial tower (that unknowable original source from whence we all sprang). It's remarkable, Rilke's capturing such a fundamental truth and expressing it in so few words.
Catherine Goodman's art springs from such a place, I think. There is so much to see in it if one is not only open to her and her art but also to oneself. ('Macondo' on the other hand had me smiling for a more tangible and direct reason!)
All the best to you, Jesse, and everyone!
PS More than ever, it's good for us to take our time and enjoy things when the time is right. Are we caught in the flow .... or can we be the flow?
I loved reading about this! I’m reminded especially of how I love HD’s work.
Among all of these evocative words and images, your phrasing of “echo and resonance” keeps reverberating with me. And now I’m going to let those words/ideas reverberate a bit more.
I enjoyed your collage of tributes to Catherine, her work and the recent emotions of her life. It must have been quite an undertaking for you to be there for her in a way that required so many personal and diverse parts to make the whole piece. Thank you for letting us read and see your thoughtful creative evening, Sue
it’s reassuring to see a bunch of other folx on here who also skimmed at first, then upheld the promise to themselves to return and give this post some real focus. Thanks!
It was enriching to absorb so much inspiration and contemplation-dense material around themes of echoes, the music embedded in silence and resonances of memory and senses!
At the risk of overdoing it, I’ve been plugging away at a tarot framework that includes little interior suites of subject matter, and this one from the series (AIR) Music / The Singer / The Song / The Echo felt topical enough to share in the context:
MUSIC / 2b-air / Taurus
In 1952, John Cage took experimental music to its natural vanishing point: his composition 4’33” contains a single notation: ‘tacet’ (silence) and duration, the eponymous 4 minutes and 33 seconds. It’s the Citizen Kane of zen minimalist composition, a magic trick or punch line that can only be performed once to optimal effect. And yet the ripples resonate- beneath and beyond the conceit of Nothingness posited by Cage’s insistence upon ‘a silent piece’ reside the infinite permutations of ephemeral experience: no two performances are alike. In its quest for complete lack of sound, 4’33” unveils time and again the impossibility of an absolutely blank sonic scape. Music relies upon our attention to be ‘elevated’ to the status of phrases, snatches, hooks worthy of repetition and reproduction (both analog and mechanical)- but like magic or life itself, it exists independently of human codification. Apocryphally, Cage is rumored to once have been enclosed in a total sensory deprivation chamber, intent upon discovering the absence of aural stimuli - only to be lulled by the rhythmic hum of his own blood, circulating through his body.
YOU ARE NEVER too BROKE to PAY ATTENTION . UNCHAINED MELODIES . CREATIVITY UNHINDERED by EXISTING EXPECTATIONS
Thanks for your "Reflections" - gives me a taste of being there. I'll be looking into Catherine Goodman's work. And I never tire of Rilke. I imagine the audience moved right along into the
second poem, being unaware of a lost line. Really appreciate this new series.
As promised, I got to this when I got home. :) It was a beautiful evening at the gallery, the paintings enhanced by the words but most of all by the performance of 'Legacies,' such a haunting song that is set to be immortalised on film in the future (my prediction).
I really enjoyed this post, Jesse. Especially the poems and images. The one poem that stands out to me is "I Live My Life in Widening Circles" by Rainer Maria Rilke. These lines strike so well:
Dear Jesse, I just took my time to read about the event and poems. Now I finally know who Catherine is and what a great artist and woman she is. I must show this to my English artist friends. The process of painting, in an organic and physical way is another form of poetry. I would also have loved to see Johnny Depp's exhibition in NYC, meet and hug him. However, it is reassuring to know that the empathy and feeling for the subtle is still present. 🩵
I can really relate to this, “constructs charged pathways between the physical world she observes and her own inner landscape,”
Observing is so important. This morning a large hawk flew in front of me being chased by a singular crow. It’s not the first time this has happened but I grasp onto that “charged” moment and add it to my locker of inspiration to incorporate into my own art.
I’m very interested in perception and its limits, which has emerged as a kind of theme in my Substack, The Happy Idiot. In light of modem physics, do objects exist the way we perceive them? Can things we don’t perceive in a traditional sense affect us subconsciously? What is the “charge” in the “charged pathway” between the physical world, our perception of it, our minds, our souls ….?
I never fail to be moved and inspired by the depth of Rilke’s thoughts and images in The Man Watching. They are so true of life. Two examples:
What we choose to fight with is so small.
what fights with us is go great.
When we win it's with small things,
and the triumph itself makes us small.
Thanks for sharing so I could read The Man Watching again. It was kind of you to look it up and post it so others could read this special poem I’ve shared with so many grieving clients during their darkest days.
Ohhh thank you so so much for your note! I was starting to feel that nobody was out there. Hellooooo, is this thing on? Bueller?? Bueller?? So many special Rilke poems, and they all seem to be able to string together so beautifully. Adding yours here so others can read it, too.
I can tell by the way the trees beat, after
so many dull days, on my worried windowpanes
that a storm is coming,
and I hear the far-off fields say things
I can't bear without a friend,
I can't love without a sister.
The storm, the shifter of shapes, drives on
across the woods and across time,
and the world looks as if it had no age:
the landscape, like a line in the psalm book,
is seriousness and weight and eternity.
What we choose to fight is so tiny!
What fights with us is so great.
If only we would let ourselves be dominated
as things do by some immense storm,
we would become strong too, and not need names.
When we win it's with small things,
and the triumph itself makes us small.
What is extraordinary and eternal
does not want to be bent by us.
I mean the Angel who appeared
to the wrestlers of the Old Testament:
when the wrestlers' sinews
grew long like metal strings,
he felt them under his fingers
like chords of deep music.
Whoever was beaten by this Angel
(who often simply declined the fight)
went away proud and strengthened
and great from that harsh hand,
that kneaded him as if to change his shape.
Winning does not tempt that man.
This is how he grows: by being defeated, decisively,
We're out here, Jesse - sometimes just reading. This Rilke piece is new to me and will be copied into my favorite poems notebook...to be read again and again. Thanks, Jesse.
Excellent as always, Jesse! I've been quite overwhelmed with a number of things lately: just trying to keep with my own work amidst all the usual daily responsibilities of family and work life.
But this is rich in beautiful art and words. (I, like others, would love to hear some of the music created at the event!). I too am moved by Rilke's poems and am grateful for your sharing his work.
A thought occured to me in reading the first poem "I live my life in widening circles"__One assumes that Rilke is himself at the center of this circle ("The center is everywhere and nowhere") while circling around God (Where is God if not within us?) and around the primordial tower (that unknowable original source from whence we all sprang). It's remarkable, Rilke's capturing such a fundamental truth and expressing it in so few words.
Catherine Goodman's art springs from such a place, I think. There is so much to see in it if one is not only open to her and her art but also to oneself. ('Macondo' on the other hand had me smiling for a more tangible and direct reason!)
All the best to you, Jesse, and everyone!
PS More than ever, it's good for us to take our time and enjoy things when the time is right. Are we caught in the flow .... or can we be the flow?
I loved reading about this! I’m reminded especially of how I love HD’s work.
Among all of these evocative words and images, your phrasing of “echo and resonance” keeps reverberating with me. And now I’m going to let those words/ideas reverberate a bit more.
Thank you!
I enjoyed your collage of tributes to Catherine, her work and the recent emotions of her life. It must have been quite an undertaking for you to be there for her in a way that required so many personal and diverse parts to make the whole piece. Thank you for letting us read and see your thoughtful creative evening, Sue
it’s reassuring to see a bunch of other folx on here who also skimmed at first, then upheld the promise to themselves to return and give this post some real focus. Thanks!
It was enriching to absorb so much inspiration and contemplation-dense material around themes of echoes, the music embedded in silence and resonances of memory and senses!
At the risk of overdoing it, I’ve been plugging away at a tarot framework that includes little interior suites of subject matter, and this one from the series (AIR) Music / The Singer / The Song / The Echo felt topical enough to share in the context:
MUSIC / 2b-air / Taurus
In 1952, John Cage took experimental music to its natural vanishing point: his composition 4’33” contains a single notation: ‘tacet’ (silence) and duration, the eponymous 4 minutes and 33 seconds. It’s the Citizen Kane of zen minimalist composition, a magic trick or punch line that can only be performed once to optimal effect. And yet the ripples resonate- beneath and beyond the conceit of Nothingness posited by Cage’s insistence upon ‘a silent piece’ reside the infinite permutations of ephemeral experience: no two performances are alike. In its quest for complete lack of sound, 4’33” unveils time and again the impossibility of an absolutely blank sonic scape. Music relies upon our attention to be ‘elevated’ to the status of phrases, snatches, hooks worthy of repetition and reproduction (both analog and mechanical)- but like magic or life itself, it exists independently of human codification. Apocryphally, Cage is rumored to once have been enclosed in a total sensory deprivation chamber, intent upon discovering the absence of aural stimuli - only to be lulled by the rhythmic hum of his own blood, circulating through his body.
YOU ARE NEVER too BROKE to PAY ATTENTION . UNCHAINED MELODIES . CREATIVITY UNHINDERED by EXISTING EXPECTATIONS
Well put description of Cage's piece, Gem!
Thanks, Brent ! Appreciate the kind feedback
Lovely tribute to Catherine. Here’s my piece about the show and my interview with her in the NY Observer. https://observer.com/2025/03/arts-interviews-artist-catherine-goodman/
Thanks for all you do, Jesse! 🙏
Hi Jesse: When is it ever going to get warm??
Thanks for your "Reflections" - gives me a taste of being there. I'll be looking into Catherine Goodman's work. And I never tire of Rilke. I imagine the audience moved right along into the
second poem, being unaware of a lost line. Really appreciate this new series.
As promised, I got to this when I got home. :) It was a beautiful evening at the gallery, the paintings enhanced by the words but most of all by the performance of 'Legacies,' such a haunting song that is set to be immortalised on film in the future (my prediction).
Looking forward to more Reflectons:)
I really enjoyed this post, Jesse. Especially the poems and images. The one poem that stands out to me is "I Live My Life in Widening Circles" by Rainer Maria Rilke. These lines strike so well:
"I've been circling for thousands of years
and I still don't know: am I a falcon,
a storm, or a great song?"
Thank you for sharing.
Dear Jesse, I just took my time to read about the event and poems. Now I finally know who Catherine is and what a great artist and woman she is. I must show this to my English artist friends. The process of painting, in an organic and physical way is another form of poetry. I would also have loved to see Johnny Depp's exhibition in NYC, meet and hug him. However, it is reassuring to know that the empathy and feeling for the subtle is still present. 🩵
I liked how you asked your friend Laura to get you through the emotional reading and I liked the photo of the two of you
I can really relate to this, “constructs charged pathways between the physical world she observes and her own inner landscape,”
Observing is so important. This morning a large hawk flew in front of me being chased by a singular crow. It’s not the first time this has happened but I grasp onto that “charged” moment and add it to my locker of inspiration to incorporate into my own art.
I’m very interested in perception and its limits, which has emerged as a kind of theme in my Substack, The Happy Idiot. In light of modem physics, do objects exist the way we perceive them? Can things we don’t perceive in a traditional sense affect us subconsciously? What is the “charge” in the “charged pathway” between the physical world, our perception of it, our minds, our souls ….?
Thank you for sharing this special event. I’d never read Echo—I love it. My favorite Rilke poem is The Man Watching.
I never fail to be moved and inspired by the depth of Rilke’s thoughts and images in The Man Watching. They are so true of life. Two examples:
What we choose to fight with is so small.
what fights with us is go great.
When we win it's with small things,
and the triumph itself makes us small.
Thanks for sharing so I could read The Man Watching again. It was kind of you to look it up and post it so others could read this special poem I’ve shared with so many grieving clients during their darkest days.
Ohhh thank you so so much for your note! I was starting to feel that nobody was out there. Hellooooo, is this thing on? Bueller?? Bueller?? So many special Rilke poems, and they all seem to be able to string together so beautifully. Adding yours here so others can read it, too.
I can tell by the way the trees beat, after
so many dull days, on my worried windowpanes
that a storm is coming,
and I hear the far-off fields say things
I can't bear without a friend,
I can't love without a sister.
The storm, the shifter of shapes, drives on
across the woods and across time,
and the world looks as if it had no age:
the landscape, like a line in the psalm book,
is seriousness and weight and eternity.
What we choose to fight is so tiny!
What fights with us is so great.
If only we would let ourselves be dominated
as things do by some immense storm,
we would become strong too, and not need names.
When we win it's with small things,
and the triumph itself makes us small.
What is extraordinary and eternal
does not want to be bent by us.
I mean the Angel who appeared
to the wrestlers of the Old Testament:
when the wrestlers' sinews
grew long like metal strings,
he felt them under his fingers
like chords of deep music.
Whoever was beaten by this Angel
(who often simply declined the fight)
went away proud and strengthened
and great from that harsh hand,
that kneaded him as if to change his shape.
Winning does not tempt that man.
This is how he grows: by being defeated, decisively,
by constantly greater beings.
We're out here, Jesse - sometimes just reading. This Rilke piece is new to me and will be copied into my favorite poems notebook...to be read again and again. Thanks, Jesse.