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A Different
Shred of Skin Poems by T. Anders Carson Photographs
by Michael B. In a Different
Shred of Skin, T. Anders Carson roots out the genuine, casting aside of
artificial distractions. His poetry bores at the heart of that which
defines us: the travails of
human interaction, the search for meaning and experience in a world
increasingly insular and similar. Suicide, mental illness, abuse, but also
fleeting tenderness and compassion, mark these poems
like faded signposts on a rough gravel road. —
Matt Firth, Front and Centre
Magazine Toronto; October 15,
2000 — A Different Shred of
Skin (Undead
Poets Press; 1-930769-00-8; 115pp; $18.95) is the first poetry book
combining the photographs of Swiss photographer Michael B. and the poetry
of T. Anders Carson. Neither of them are strangers to the art world.
Michael B. has had his work shown in galleries throughout Europe and
Anders has had over 250 poems published in national and international
publications. The two of them met on a harrowing taxi ride in Egypt.
There are 39 poems that feel their way through the collection.
Carson’s work gives hope to a world filled with lubricated suffering.
Where have his eyes been? They’ve been open. They’ve watched and felt
that life needs to be real. The poems combine the horror of abuse with a
compassion that shares troubled intimacy. The honesty is often brutal but
modest and entails the reader to finish each poem. Conclusions are
modified and empowered. The courage with which these poems were written
can be seen on every page. It is a courage that exists within—a
universal portrayal of growing up in a disembodied world with symbols and
logos for friendship and the bottom line: your soul.
Michael B. has a supreme gift with the lens. He can capture the
innocence beyond the next bend. He can see forming in front of his eyes
the scope of acceptance and reality: a couple dances a dance; a man sits
alone in a church; another neon sign; footsteps in cement—all seen by
our eyes but elevated by Michael and his vision. His subtlety is graceful.
He is a watcher. One that is among us, capturing us. Through the scarred
streets, unmade beds, spiraling staircases to somewhere, we see our
angelic human soul in the light. The seductive shutter opens to reveal the
essence of our boxed revelations. These pictures portray pain and hope as
a way to overcome stringent suffering. The text is a mirror. You can see
beyond the next bend.
The combined power of both mediums is effectively used in
portraying the hope and acceptance needed to maintain stability in our
unbalanced world. The images will linger long after you’ve turned the
page as this is a book that will warm the shelves of any collection. ABOUT THE
AUTHOR T. Anders Carson has
attended a residency at the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation of New Mexico. He
is the recipient of both an Ontario Arts Council and a Canada Council
Grant. His work has appeared in periodicals and magazines in 19 countries
including translations into Greek, Japanese, and Swedish. A Different Shred of Skin is his first full-length collection of
poetry. He recently won the Canadian Poetry Association’s 2000 Poetry
Contest. He resides in Portland, Ontario with Vicki and their daughter
Emilia. ABOUT THE
PHOTOGRAPHER Michael B. has
had solo exhibitions in Chur, Switzerland in 1990, 1994, 1995, 1996, and
1998 as well as in Germany in 1999 and Zurich, Switzerland in 2000. His
work has also appeared in art museums and galleries in Slovakia in 1994
and 1995. He has had group exhibitions in Chur and other towns in
Switzerland in 1999. He is currently working on a group exhibition at the
Art Museum in Chur. Michael B. resides in Zurich. ABOUT BOHEME
PRESS Boheme
Press was established in May 1999 as a book publisher of literary fiction,
poetry, and selected non-fiction. Its mandate is to promote the work of
new authors on a North American scale. For more information on the press,
check out their website at www.bohemeonline.com |