Bukowski Would Have Been Blogger King?
Sometimes, I think about certain artists and writers from the
past, and I wonder how they would have functioned had they
gotten to live right now... For my part, I'm glad I was born
when I was, or, given the choice, I think I would have preferred
to be born right now as opposed to in the seventies: this is
primarily because I would have liked to have been a kid growing
up with the internet as a part of daily life...yeah, that's how
much I'm into it. Well, that having been said, I also might
choose, perhaps the seventeenth century here in North America,
as a member of the Shawnee tribe...perhaps...I've done some
reading over the years, and that was a fascinating culture, with
a unique connection to the earth, and they are now sadly mostly
gone, but, Tecumseh, your spirit lives on! Believe that...in one
way or another the spirit does live on...
How about you? Have you ever wondered about this? What time
period would you have loved? Perhaps, we can replace the cliche,
"What's your sign?" with a bit more bizarre, "Hello beautiful,
what's your era? You seem like a real 13th century girl pretty
baby!"
So, take a writer like Charles Bukowski. Wow, the very name is
charged and frightening, like an electric eel in your backyard
swimming pool; and he can barely be discussed without causing
controversy or argument. Well, what can I say...the opinions on
him are quite mixed. For my part, I like some of his work, which
I think is outstanding on a literary basis; and I love some of
his work, which I don't think is outstanding on a literary
basis, though I think it is some of the most entertaining stuff
ever written. His poetry is quite hit and miss. His short
stories are wonderful, with strong, action sentences that get
the job done. His novels are a kick. And, the movie Barfly is
riotous. One thing about the Buk, which cannot be in dispute,
though, is that he was a prolific writer. Put prolific in
boldface, billboard size letters. He wrote a ridiculous amount.
If the Buk were alive now...with MSN Spaces and Blogger and so
forth, I have no doubt he would have been blogger
extraordinaire. I think he would have gotten into it. I think he
would have been churning out a blog at a rate that would make
your eyes cross. It would be pretty dynamic, no doubt, and it
would be hysterical. I have no doubt.
It's a funny picture. Bukowski blogging away, getting frustrated
with his internet connection, trying to remember his email
passwords, figuring out how to gamble on-line...lol.
Take a figure like Picasso or Bearden or Chagall or any great
painter you like. Could you imagine if they had access to
Photoshop and Corel Painter. Can you even imagine the work that
would be produced? As a painter, I don't have one percent of the
talent of those individuals, and even I can create some
interesting pieces that a lot of people like a lot. Wow, could
you imagine such software in the hands of someone with a Picasso
level genius talent? They just happened to come a little bit
early.
If you are interested in these type of musings and would like to
participate in a web site where these things are discussed,
please take a moment to visit this Creative Concept Forum