Blog Blog Woof Woof

Marjorie says (forgive me Marjorie for writing about you, not to you) but I want to be CHALLENGED... stirred up, even. I want to find stuff that makes me uncomfortable and then figure out why. The thing about Lahiri's writing is that I find it very pat. Here is where I disagree, partially. Sometimes and I would say more often than not, I want art to sooth and comfort me. I have enough challenges in my life. Maybe I am being selfish but I think part of what Marjorie sees as a plain everyman is partly the point. As a minority in a majority culture/society I am perpetually struck by challenges. In the black community we talk about wearing masks. I try hard not to but I am pushed into wearing masks everyday...I imagine an American born from an immigrant family goes through the same thing and therefore a story like this, written in a "pat" style is something that says to me, you are not alone. You are an everyman, no matter what they would have you believe, no matter what yo...

Marjorie 's response to my "the Namesake" post brought up a discussion I have had time and time again. Does having "sophisticated" taste mean you can't accept something that doesn't match your standard of taste. I used to have a similar discussion with a friend who was now has a Ph.D. in Art History. She believed that not all art is meant to be enjoyed by all people. I think this is absolute bullshit or maybe it's just too Euro, where there is "high art" and everything else, for who I am or something. Culturally, I come from a tradition of functional art...you creatively make things that are useful and therefore understandable...you own a table but that table has flourishes and cuts and designs and symmetry that make it aesthetically appealing. On the other hand, I spent a lot of time as a musical snob. Then I grew up. While I was in my blues and jazz periods no one could tell me what was good because I knew. I knew that deep in my being I...