Artist's Statement
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8 Black Warrior Review Aristilde Kirby Artist’s Statement The essence of this work as a whole is Lettrisme as a whole, but specifically Isidore Isou’s “Sonnet Infinitésimal No.3” (1958). Lettrisme offered me dramatically new ways of envisioning the word alongside concrete & sound poetry, but the SI, for short, was exemplar of Isou’s idea of Art infinitésimal, that couldn’t really made (?), but gives aesthetic revelations in contemplation of its depths. When I first glanced it, years ago, it was really interesting. There was something enticing about the form that made me want to decode it. I saved the image, but I went no further with it, until last year, where it kept catching my eye. I saw the section sign, AKA the silcrow or the scillicet (Latin for it is permitted to know) & noticed it reminded me of the hilt of a sword: the guard, grip & pommel, looking at it from the very front, as if the blade was pointed at you. That set my mind to work—I looked up what the symbol was used for, learned its names. Later that year, I had a conversation with Avren Keating about the nature of translation, what it meant to me, in a tweet thread beginning with a post I had made with an image of Isou’s SI, & by the end of it, I knew I had my skeleton key to a rosetta stone, it was permitted to know. All I had to do was stab, twist, & release the bolt. I saw that if one inverted the bottom ‘s’ & overlapped it over the first, it’d form 8, the shape of the Moebius strip. It was then I saw the locus of Isou’s technique, the mot juste on an atomic level, symbolism in its primacy. The SI wasn’t made to be “understood,” as this sentence makes itself out to be, but it was made to be a motherboard for poetic permutation. Using translation as a means to make said transmutation happen, here’s a line by line translation of all of the sonnet’s 14 in varying degrees. The translations only happen on the poems to the left most side, the right poems past the map of the SI herein are supplements to the story & characters, making 28 total poems. Those 14 poems on the left are the land that makes the map legendary, for me. This is my metagraphie supertemporelle. I use my skillset as best as 9 I could at the time, & this is just one chapbook in a planned set of 13 more works. One of which I’m very fortunate, lucky, to present to you now—shout out BWR. The next is “Sonnet Infinitésimal n°3 / Everything Is Beautiful n°11”. For more in-depth craft notes in regards to method, & divulgences on a social / poetic / personal scale please read L’EYENDA / EMENDER on the BWR website when it comes out! To the debridal of the world as we know it for the regeneration of the world as we need it. [‘cause we are living in a material world / & I am a material girl] BLACK WARRIOR REVIEW CHAPBOOK SERIES 44.1 11 A bouquet of everlasting hydrangeas for the following: Kay Gabriel, Stephen Ira, Liam O’Brien, & Rylee Lyman of Les Vetchiennes - Rachel Levitsky & Ana Paula Simões, the Belladonnas—an. cinquepalmi, Frida Palacios, Thel Seraphim, Avren Keating, Brooke Larson, Kris Leggett, James Pascua, Stephanie Mathis, Sylvia Thach, Hue Nguyen, Megan Smith, & Renee Carter - all of whom are my friends. & for everyone like me I wish a world void of murder, marginalization & suffering. \- - *~à~*_ _ - - / ~ = = = ‘ - , , , , , , , - ·; *の ∴ の= =; = ◌ . ◌ ɔ ~j o y e u x~ ᶨ ∵ ∵ ᶨ {l’ette-risa-hime} � 12 Black Warrior Review for lil’ wander, heiress of stillness The black unicorn was mistaken for a shadow or symbol and taken through a cold country where mist painted mockeries of my fury. It is not on her lap where the horn rests but deep in her moonpit growing. —from audre lorde | the black unicorn Young unicorns snatched from the impossible skies precious horns, ordinary chainsaws In a dead infection a desk drawer full of blurry sunflowers Under your bare feet are only symptomatic of the monster i have become —from pig destroyer | pixie There’s something wrong with me That’s why I wrote this note I’ve joined the writers who believe they have the antidote Kirby 13 {You picked up Dimension Dagger Voyeureuse !▽} {You looked into its lustrous glare . ▽} {whose look pierces back through into you. ▽} ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- / I: Beheaded Aparajita / Obelism Éclisser | A II: Cherry Croissant / Paradi 0 | C III: Dog of Diana / la Dyadeinesse | T IV: Harmony, Finally / Sing, Paraselene | I V: Wishboned Qualia / Tuning Fucked | AA VI: Letters to Cicatrix / Bleed Dirac Sea# | CC VII: Silver Bullet / Gunmetal Grayed | TT VIII: Iron Resolver / Céline Reloaded | II IX: la Vertigonisse / Rift Paradis | AAA X: Paradise Rind / Sundae Bell | CCC XI: Cnidarietta / Pomegranate | TTT XII: Paradie I / Paradies II | III XIII: Divorce / Lunairetic | ACTIVE XIV: Prominence / Debridal | FINALE / ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [hyper-lyrical chronicle of dot-matrix split & helix slasher] [Helianthus decapetalus x Ipomoea alba ‘Moonflower’] [Translated sonnet infinitésimal, 2017] this work is based off of Isidore Isou’s “Sonnet infinitésimal n°3” (1958) 14 Black Warrior Review I: Beheaded Aparajita / Obelism Éclisser Sonnet Infinitésimal a person caret-weight, umlaut-bit vampiric: (o)| §%§%^¨= (o) ' '' ½; /§/§/! ,;:( ' " ' ") )o a black pearl fairy unto a shellac setting; (+)| &_/%/ ?§?§? -”’-”’_/&°+&°+% %§%§=+ a ligature girl like a crossguard as lyric, (o)| ½&½ )° / ./°& &! ‘-”’ _/=+) °( : ) ’”’”) )o ≙ an epoch calyce trophy half-said begetting. (+)| ^§ %%%%, °°°_/? &+%!’” (-))°%%§%§=+ Lis Crow, Lis Crow! Grow slashedged, pyric! (o)| -)=-=-=½;§! ¨&%%%%% ?&? ()()(½) §%°&o Parent’s thesis for an evolution of a worm: (;)| ? , ; . ¨ . ’ / -) (-%%% ’ ” ’ ” ) ° ()()(½) &%;§; beheaded, my body divid to mirror aspheric; (o)| -) ¨ ^%%% §! §! §! ... ++” ’ ++?( ) §%°&o a grand ball of extremities sperm to herme, (;)| &° ° +=+° ½ ’ ”-/ ?,?, §%°&½_/_/() &%;§; from mortal hurt to your you portal hearse; (.)| ‘”&^/^& °&+&°+^§ ‘%§’%^ ½½½! ()½=½=;. The first symbol corresponds to the second, (¨)| ( - ) ° ( - ) ° ; . ; . / ‘ ” ” ’ ” ’ ^ , ? , ? ( ) ? ! ?^^¨ & a Monroe stud rose in stature biodiverse: (.)| ( - ) °& _ - ( ) ( ) §§§§§§§§¨ ¨§§§§§§ ( ) ½=½=;. 83% being suffuse in query, hexedit fecund, (¨)| === ¨ ^ ¨ ! “ ’ ” ° ( )!,!&&&& ()?!?^^¨ yr mutated blank-faced emote clips off map; (§)| +) (+...+) “’”’”’ ,½½½½½,_/ §%§%§%&&%§ ≙ ≙ ≙ sits on dimension lip, bullet turned black. (§)| ¨’”^¨o o ¨^’” ///^¨ ’ ” ° ° °?-/ §%§%§%&&%§ Kirby 15 (o)|double-edged and too late for pastel gothic,| “Every insult I hear back (+)|she’s like fuck it & donnas t.u.k creepers| darkens into a beauty mark” (o)|with easter blue kneesocks, a bandaid lick| —Christine and the Queens | Half-Ladies (+)|below her left eye a fleshtone of dniepers.| “Are you tryin’ to put a stain (o)|amassive maiden of street harassment, sick| in Bambi’s beautiful, pure body?” (;)|& tired with ignoring every day’s familiar|—Bambi, from Atsushi Kaneko’s Bambi and Her (o)|ogres, with one “nice ass” she snaps quick| Pink Gun (;)|& here’s where some critics say her illure| “Piero: What are you writing? (.)|led to whom bled next—that she was wrong| Vittoria: I’m translating some Spanish. (¨)|for daring to hid her clit, dick, whatever| Piero: How do you say “I want to come up” in (.)|excuse desired to bore their antifem prong.| Spanish? (¨)|She was shot. .You don’t believe it? Never?| Vittoria: You say, “You can’t”. Tough language, (§)|I wish I could talk about Lis more, dearie,| isn’t it?” (§)|but, y’know, death eclipses all analysands.| —from Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’Eclisse 16 Black Warrior Review II: Cherry Croissant / Paradi 0 Sonnet Infinitésimal eating a pretzel in the shadow of a 4D sun, (o)| §%§%^¨ = ( o ) ‘ ‘ ’ ½; /§/§/! , ; : ( ‘ ” ’”))o + watching you die x2 thru an oreo edgecap (+)| &_/%/ ?§?§? -”’-”’_/&°+&°+% %§%§=+ from its obsidian compact, I lick with fun (o)| ½&½ )° / ./°& &! ’-”’ _/=+) ° ( : )’”’”) )o ≙ my candied mirror from that black hole gap (+)| ^§ %%%%, °°°_/? &+%!’” (-))°%%§%§=+ you slipped into some one more warmer spun (o)| -)=-=-=½;§! ¨&%%%%% ?&? ()()(½) §%°&o eating a pastel in the shadow of a 4D slug, (;)| ? , ; . ¨ . ’ / -) (-%%% ’ ” ’ ” ) ° ()()(½) &%;§; a person eclipsed nonplussed by a head one. (o)| -) ¨ ^%%% §! §! §! ... ++” ’ ++?( ) §%°&o crestfallen on planar vermillion, so shrug (;)| &° ° +=+° ½ ’ ”-/ ?,?, §%°&½_/_/() &%;§; the planets cast upon galaxial half & half. (.)| ‘”&^/^& °&+&°+^§ ‘%§’%^ ½½½! ()½=½=;. a beauty mark cutlass sans a body scabbard, (¨)| ( - ) ° ( - ) ° ; . ; . / ‘ ” ” ’ ” ’ ^ , ? , ? ( ) ? ! ?^^¨ what’s a slasher to do as handless epitaph? (.)| ( - ) °& _ - ( ) ( ) §§§§§§§§¨ ¨§§§§§§ ( ) ½=½=;. & she’s disassociated again! un yr bastard (¨)| === ¨ ^ ¨ ! “ ’ ” ° ( )!,!&&&& ()?!?^^¨ son, turn it back, like a capsized ship as (§)| +) (+...+) “’”’”’ ,½½½½½,_/ §%§%§%&&%§ ≙ ≙ ≙ a half-kiss moon sunken as a smile in skin. (§)| ¨’”^¨o o ¨^’” ///^¨ ’ ” ° ° °?-/ §%§%§%&&%§ Kirby 17 (o) “Xxxxxx Xxxxx—fatally wounded in Paradies | “There’s been an accident (+) Black Forests yesterday morning, was found | at the house built out of sticks (o) next to a cake knife & baskets of pastries. | I will miss that Little Piggy. (+) The prints of the deceased found outbounds | I can’t believe this. (o) upon the handle—& with traces of pastis | There’s been one more victim. (;) mark smeared by the perpetrator in a fight | but I don’t know his name, (o) that brokeout during Hunthour—Dct. Tracy | and the wolf’s got