William Gibson & Origins of a Name
I originally posted this on the forums of DSW, but I felt like putting it up here as well.
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William Gibson & Origins of a Name
Having just finished William Gibson's latest, Pattern Recognition, I have found my thoughts turned to subject I haven't worked much on in well over a year. The book centers around a series of film segments, 134 at the beginning of the novel, which seem to be connected. However, the segements do not seem to be chronological, have no identifying characteristics, and the artist is entirely absent. As a result, the segments, or "footage" as they are known in Gibsonia, become a cultural phenomena as everyone attempts to solve the mystery, piece together the narrative, unveil the creator. A powerful force which brought me straight back to my roots, Anonymous Arts, which was the reason for choosing to go by Anon, or the reactionary Anonymousless when it is not available.
To leave the boundaries of the book, which unfortunately arrived at a payoff unworthy of the set-up, the idea intrigued me. I had often toyed with the idea of a sort of Guerrila Art, large, impermanent, and unignorable, done in the middle of the night in individual increments. Specific example: At Urbana while I played at being a college student, chalkings on the Quad were the norm, as with many campuses. Usually pithy advertisements for sorority and fraternity parties, club meetings, or the occasional politcal party. I envisioned teaming up with the local writing group I had gotten involved with to create a long essay/poem/rant and coordinate a precision 3AM drill to encircle the Quad with a message. Of course, since the point was to be anonymous, we would want a large group so that it could be done as quickly as possible without being seen too much. Also, we would require a group of people willing to fore-go accepting acclaim for what would no doubt become widely known and spoken about.
Sadly, the essay/poem/rant nor the league of silent followers ever materialized and the idea fell to be indefinately delayed. So to did a more individual effort I later envisoned to be done with anonymous letters addressed to no one and left in random locations and picked up by any citizen who happened to see it and wonder what it contained. Other projects came and went, with hardly any more fuss than that.
And now, this too will likely fade, but at least it has advanced the idea into a more inventive realm. Instead of one-time efforts, I am now more interested in a sustained, continuous performance. A larger matrix in which to hide deeper meanings, which must be worked for, ideally, by a group. Perhaps, one of these days I'll get around to making it happen, and I can imprint my thoughts onto a subjective medium and give make my silence heard.
Of course, it will not be me who creates these things. I didn't invent them, I don't know who made them, I don't know anything more about them than anyone else does, and I will continue to staunchly deny my involvement until my very end.
I don't really know why I posted this, I suppose I just posted it for myself, to set down in writing what I was thinking. But if any of you have comments, I would welcome them.
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William Gibson & Origins of a Name
Having just finished William Gibson's latest, Pattern Recognition, I have found my thoughts turned to subject I haven't worked much on in well over a year. The book centers around a series of film segments, 134 at the beginning of the novel, which seem to be connected. However, the segements do not seem to be chronological, have no identifying characteristics, and the artist is entirely absent. As a result, the segments, or "footage" as they are known in Gibsonia, become a cultural phenomena as everyone attempts to solve the mystery, piece together the narrative, unveil the creator. A powerful force which brought me straight back to my roots, Anonymous Arts, which was the reason for choosing to go by Anon, or the reactionary Anonymousless when it is not available.
To leave the boundaries of the book, which unfortunately arrived at a payoff unworthy of the set-up, the idea intrigued me. I had often toyed with the idea of a sort of Guerrila Art, large, impermanent, and unignorable, done in the middle of the night in individual increments. Specific example: At Urbana while I played at being a college student, chalkings on the Quad were the norm, as with many campuses. Usually pithy advertisements for sorority and fraternity parties, club meetings, or the occasional politcal party. I envisioned teaming up with the local writing group I had gotten involved with to create a long essay/poem/rant and coordinate a precision 3AM drill to encircle the Quad with a message. Of course, since the point was to be anonymous, we would want a large group so that it could be done as quickly as possible without being seen too much. Also, we would require a group of people willing to fore-go accepting acclaim for what would no doubt become widely known and spoken about.
Sadly, the essay/poem/rant nor the league of silent followers ever materialized and the idea fell to be indefinately delayed. So to did a more individual effort I later envisoned to be done with anonymous letters addressed to no one and left in random locations and picked up by any citizen who happened to see it and wonder what it contained. Other projects came and went, with hardly any more fuss than that.
And now, this too will likely fade, but at least it has advanced the idea into a more inventive realm. Instead of one-time efforts, I am now more interested in a sustained, continuous performance. A larger matrix in which to hide deeper meanings, which must be worked for, ideally, by a group. Perhaps, one of these days I'll get around to making it happen, and I can imprint my thoughts onto a subjective medium and give make my silence heard.
Of course, it will not be me who creates these things. I didn't invent them, I don't know who made them, I don't know anything more about them than anyone else does, and I will continue to staunchly deny my involvement until my very end.
I don't really know why I posted this, I suppose I just posted it for myself, to set down in writing what I was thinking. But if any of you have comments, I would welcome them.