Format for Asemic Book

[cheryl penn]

This is TWO sheets of A4 paper folded in half then nested.  Please use a thicker quality paper for your work - computer paper is too thin and tears easily in the binding process. Again, at the end of the project I will blog binding instructions. You will need to make 15 copies of your work to post to the other artists participating in the book you are in.  A list of names addresses will be put in separate discussions. You will be notified of this.

[De Villo Sloan]

Definitely, there can be confusion concerning existing languages. This did come up in group discussions. And the consensus was that just because you don't know Japanese doesn't make it asemic. That's pretty much common sense.

Now Japanese & Arabic do have a special resonance with many asemic writers. Brion Gysin did grid pieces combining Arabic & Japanese circa the 1950s. These works have been very influential w/ contemporary asemic writers. Kerri Pullo, in our group, draws a lot from Arabic & Islam. But they can't be read as Arabic. I create a lot of asemic symbols by overlaying & deconstructing the existing alphabet. But the results can't be read. The signifier/signified relationship is broken. In terms of linguistics, that's the most important thing for me. The asemic words & symbols have no correspondence to things or other grammatical functions. Cheryl did raise a compelling question once: "Is asemic syntax possible?" ( I think yes. Synax can be an abstract structure devoid of content.) But there is very likely an expressive component in asemics that transcends language. Many people in the group are clearly influenced by abstract expressionism. Pollock & especially Twombly were producing asemics.

[Linda French]

I loved this conversation. Makes me laugh and laugh. Cruel of me, but there you have it. It was done sort of long ago and far away, but I love it anyway.  --Linda

[De Villo Sloan]

OMG, trying to coordinate all those people was a nightmare. The paper size thing alone was bad enough.

But this answers a question someone had about a week ago in one of the blogs: Yes, the guy called Superhero (S.H.) is known today as Moan Lisa. He also appears to have changed his name to a long strand of letters and numbers. Moan Lisa was Superhero, for all who have wondered.