Youmna

Dearest Ana,

For your birthday with wishes for beautiful pursuits!

In the package you sent, I was offered the following:

1. a Polaroid "I-zone" instant pocket camera

2. a link to an image with the definition of drapetomania inscribed on its surface.

In these, I found the concept of Pursuit.

According to Merriam-Webster, the following words rhyme with Pursuit.

acute, astute, Asyût, bear fruit, beetroot, Beirut, birthroot,bloodroot, breadfruit, butut, cahoot, Canute, catsuit,cheroot, choucroute, clubroot, commute, compute, confute,crapshoot, cube root, deaf-mute, depute, dilute, dispute,dry suit, elute, en route, enroot, flight suit, folkmoot,freeboot, galoot, grapefruit, G suit, hardboot, hip boot,hirsute, imbrute, impute, jackboot, jackfruit, jumpsuit,kashruth, lawsuit, long suit, lounge suit, minute, nonsuit,offshoot, outshoot, Paiute, pantsuit, permute, playsuit,pollute, recruit, refute, repute, salute, sans doute, seaboot,snowsuit, solute, square root, star fruit, star route, statute,strong suit, sunsuit, sweat suit, swimsuit, take root,taproot, to boot, tracksuit, trade route, transmute, tribute,uproot, volute, wet suit, zoot suit.

(yes, Beirut was included--- I did not add it!)

Pursuit

makebelieve that longing is all that matters

you will keep returning to small

the camera has a rubber handle like the ones on underwater masks, I imagine it swinging from

my wrist as I walk fast, accidently hitting another hurried body. Instead, I set it on the desk, it watches

there are four settings: off, cloudy, sunny and a small figure in a box with a triangle roof. I open it and

no film, only its possibility. It is shaped like this, like landscape, like purple plastic landscape

my day is long

there is coffee

without sugar

write about

spoken form

and language

will you find

a way to talk

about loss

in the afternoon

I stop to change

buildings, rain

arrive soaked

ask for more

time, not enough

orange bucket

seats and a

book, quick

look down

and prepare

tomorrow, soon

near the bridge

exit, walk to

water, skip it

we shove into

wooden corners

make plans for

next summer

beneath street

lamp, two bikes

you and I, towards

the hill, do not run

its warm now

later, there will be

remnants of film

open, find sound

12 exposures, September 20, 2011.

Love,

Youmna

Joselina

This is no Aphrodisiac from RepúbliKa Libre on Vimeo.

Claudia

Remember the heads up we got back in August? Here's the video...Space!

Holly

It was really fun. My artistic process when like this...

cut up a bunch of paper and make shapes like the cookie cutters

use an entire glue stick to make an elaborate pile of paper that I had hoped would look like the DR but was actually it's mirror image. Turn whole thing over and freak out a little

Get Crockett to make it look like something good

Take tons of pictures and try out every effect until happy

Yay!

JP

From JP...thank you. It's beautiful. Check it out:

36

You

embrace this year.

Your numbers curve

gently like the tangerine coral

you mimic: soft, bendable, your

fingers touch surface. You unfold this year.

This year you find yourself at home in tropical

seas and sway to jazz beats in cool dark rooms.

Say freedom. No, no: scream Freedom! Inhale

the last 35 years. Remember: all the words you wrote.

The memories carved under skin. Your fleshy rind holds

names of ex lovers, their faces, tears, even their voices.

That skin, those words, they sing, hum, whisper,

scream, pray, chant, sometimes they are silent.

Now exhale. Let those memories flow out.

Remember: there is enough room to collect

new ones. Ana, bend fingers.

Touch water, sand, stone

and especially skin.

Say Ashé.

Carlos

Hello my dear Ana,

Hope this email finds you well.

I´m sending you my work for your beautiful project ¨36 days¨.

Hope you enjoy it!

Title: Sounds of a Vanishing Era: Steam and Diesel

Description:

¨When opening the package it contained a Vynil Record titled “ Railroad Sounds. The Sounds of a Vanishing Era: Diesel and Steam.” I was unsure of how to start, yet the title stayed with me for some days.

I started thinking about my country, Dominican Republic, and i associated the title with our current social and political situation. We, the people, receive a lot of oppression from the state, witnessing corruption on a daily basis. It´s something we are fighting against and speak our minds for it.

With the 36 days project, i present this series of 36 documentary photographs i took in a protest in Santo Domingo due to changes being made in the Constitution, the privatization of public beaches, being one of them. “Sounds of a Vanishing Era” seeks to portray a country not condescending with the newly established laws, putting themselves out there and letting their voices be heard in front of the Dominican National Congress. It was beautiful to see how everyone that attended to protest their rights showed up wearing beach clothing with big umbrellas, playing volleyball and, something very traditional of people in Dominican Republic when going to the beach, food for the whole family (spagetthis, bread, rice, yuca, plantains). Funny picture i saw was a group of police men inside of a bus because of the rain. Apparently they didn´t want to get wet. The things you see...

The audio track in this video is performed and composed by Silvio Rodriguez,a cuban musician who is characteristic for his profound lyrics and revolutionary ideals.

I dedicate this piece to a friend who recently passed away. To Arlincita, a fighter.

-Carlos Rodríguez

The Sounds of a Vanishing Era from Carlos Rt on Vimeo.

The End of 36 Days??? Not quite

Hello. Last I wrote, I was headed to bed. I just woke up today, kinda. Vertigo, people! I had vertigo caused by small crystals in the labyrinth of my inner ear moving out of place. So weird!!

But, it means that the last six days of my performance, I was bed ridden. A friend came up to visit and he walked me around the block like an old dog one afternoon. That's when I left this postcard (forever dedicated, I know. i think i was still in denial at this point) at the corner on our way to the park. We went and sat by the river and I almost scratched my ear with my right pinky toe, but decided against it.

My friend thought the second placement was actually artistic, as opposed to simply located.

And then, in those six days lost and gone to time, I received all these wonderful works of art from the artists...and only now, do I get to post them. So, that is what I'm up to today: posting artwork. I am still receiving pieces from folks. You are all awesome. Thank you to all the artists who participated. I am so grateful. And thank you to all the wonderful amazing people who took photos with me, too. And, if you got a postcard, send a comment sometime.

This isn't the last of me! I promise.