We’ve been spotlighting Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s art work this week, but what of Jack Kerouac’s paintings and drawings?, a little-known, minor (but important) aspect of Kerouac’s genius. For a long time unlooked upon, unknown, residing, along with multiple artifacts, with the family in Lowell, it wasn’t until, posthumously, and late, (in 2007-8), that they finally, entered a wider domain. The Estate still retains a large number of works but in that year, 2008, a significant portion were transferred to the Locarno-based Swiss gallerist and collector, Arminio Sciolli (who, along with his brother Paolo, became their devoted and studious custodian) – approximately one hundred art works, all told – (along with some miscellaneous memorabilia – “clothes, sneakers, a box of crayons”, and “a tape recorder containing conversations that Kerouac used in books like Visions of Cody“)
Eduardo Simantob tells the story of the purchase, along with details of their curation – here
The initial presentation was in 2013 at his LDV Gallery in Il Rivellinio (an evocative space, an old fortress, transformed into a cultural center) – “Ti Jean -Ou L’Art du Joual” was the name of the show. In lieu of a catalogue, they published the first printing (in facsimile) of the manuscript of On the Road in joual, the Canadian patois that Kerouac spoke in infancy (and continued to speak with his mother).
Read a thoughtful review of “Ti Jean – Ou L’Art du Joual” – here (and see also here)
A more substantial show (the first proper museum show), Kerouac. Beat Painting, curated by Sandrina Bandera, Alessandro Castiglioni and Emma Zanella, alongside Arminio & Paolo Sciolli, took place at the Museo MA*GA in Gallarate, Italy, between December 2017 and April 2018 (some parts of the collection had been shown at the Centre Pompidou at the legendary Beat Generation show the previous year)
That show traveled to America later that year to the Robert Rauschenberg Museum in Fort Myers Florida. (appearing. as with at Gallarate, alongside artwork, inspired and complimentary, by Peter Greenaway)
Beat Painting, the catalog, published by the eminent publishing house, Skira. remains the central resource vis a vis Kerouac and painting. As Michael Velinsky wrote, reviewing it for Hyperallergic, it is “crucial in studying the overlap in his investment in both writing and painting” (painting that need not, as the editors/ curators note, be viewed too simplistically – “The works on display”, they write, “should not be approached using an art critic’s traditional methods, but (rather) seen with one’s eye and one’s mind, the two tools capable of perceiving the powerful world of Kerouac’s art. After all, (he) Kerouac felt the need to convey his ideas and feelings through an array of tools and visions, seeing artistic expression in its totality.”
David Barnett reviews the catalog for the Independent – here
Thea Hawlin reviews the show (at length) for Apollo magazine – here
Further images and commentary are available – here
See also Colin Marshall‘s summary note for Open Culture from 2019 – here
Speaking of Italian shows and the (lesser observed) lesser works of great men – Bob Dylan’s Retrospectrum continues at the MAXXI (Museio Nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo) in Rome (continuing till the end of April)
A brief video-tour is available – here
Amiri Baraka (we spoke of here last week) – certainly too great a mind (one of Allen’s “best minds”) to be summarily occluded. Last week at Harlem’s great cathedral, the Apollo Theatre. he was justifiably feted. Trumpeter and composer Russell Gunn premiered his “The Blues and Its People,” a suite inspired by Blues People, Baraka’s influential text, marking the occasion of its 60th anniversary.
Speaking of anniversaries City Lights, the venerable City Lights turns 70 this year. Two fine appreciations appeared in the San Francisco press this week. Sarah Holtz pens an ode to the store in The San Francisco Standard – (“City Lights Remains An Ode to San Francisco”) and the eminent Beat scholar, Jonah Raskin (we’ve featured him here many times before) sings its praises in the San Francisco Examiner – (“City Lights Turns 70 without Ferlinghetti but with revolution in its heart”)
and, courtesy of Simon Warner’s Rock and The Beat Generation Substack, here‘s a timeless document – Raskin’s 2022 appraisal of Allen:
“This essay, written on the 25th anniversary of his death, looks back at his life, his work and the times that shaped him and that he also had a hand in shaping. The author offers insights into ‘Howl’ and ‘Kaddish’, which he argues are his two best poems. He also points to Ginsberg’s flaws and suggests how readers today might appreciate his body of work, which has been translated into dozens of languages and read around the world.”
– an extensive and invaluable piece of writing – don’t miss it !