By Shane Devine "Autumn Rhythm" (Number 30) by Jackson Pollock, 1950. Credit: George A. Hearn Fund, 1957. Joshua Susskind was standing in the bathroom of his Brooklyn apartment, wondering where the time had gone. He was balding; his arms were skinny, but he had developed a gut. His glasses were five years overdue for a … Continue reading Hammers
Author: shanedevine96
The Course of Empire
By Shane Devine "The Savage State" by Thomas Cole, 1834 The man enters the clearing. There’s a brisk chill hanging over the untamed landscape. The marshlands are windswept with wisps of smoke, and all around stand stout trees with bristly pine needles. Far out, past the jagged rocks, winds a forceful river, full with rainwater … Continue reading The Course of Empire
Song of a Gnostic Epikoros
By Shane Devine [Epikoros] "The Flammarion engraving," unknown artist The devil wrote the Bible To lead mankind astray; Meant to worship nature, He now adores decay. Praise the cosmos as it is, And you shall be set free – Wish it were some other way And you'll desire of that tree That shatters blissful gardens … Continue reading Song of a Gnostic Epikoros
Modernity, or The Disputation of the Sacrament
By Shane Devine Ekphrases on the Stanza della segnatura I. In troubled youth, I searched for meaning So to the Vatican I journeyed. Its library I lit up with a torch Looking for hidden Mysteries. "The Parnassus" by Raphael, 1509-1511 I traveled long to Mt. Parnassus Seeking out some spring of genius, Liquid from the … Continue reading Modernity, or The Disputation of the Sacrament
Mystery Sonatas
By Shane Devine "The Virgin Annunciate" by Antonello da Messina, 1476 A cycle of philosophical sonnets dealing with the universe as understood by modern science and its implications on humanity's understanding of itself. I have long been seeking a way out of the nihilism of materialism, one that is final and complete, without cheap recourse … Continue reading Mystery Sonatas
First Chorus from “Gesualdo”
By Shane Devine "Vesuvius from Portici" by Thomas Wright, 1774-1776. Credit: Art collection of the Huntington Library in Pasadena, CA. (This is the first chorus section from my play "Gesualdo." The story of the Baglioni family can be found in Jacob Burckhardt's The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy, p. 20-24 in the Modern Library … Continue reading First Chorus from “Gesualdo”
The Art of Poetry (an Ars Poetica)
By Shane Devine Marble relief with a dancing maenad. Adaptation of work attributed to Kallimachos, ca. 27 B.C. - A.D. 14. Credit: Fletcher Fund, 1935. Written June 2016 “I can say what I want in a whisper,” he said This to me in a dream; it was Sallust the crisp, The robust and annihilate writer … Continue reading The Art of Poetry (an Ars Poetica)
