wunderkammer

 

THE 

 INTERNET

   IS HERE.

 

Poem in Comments

Contribute to this collaborative poem by adding a line in the comments section below. 

Image: foundphotoslj via Flickr

Writers as Kids

a Wunderkammer theme week curated by Kathryn Regina

Before writers were writers they were boxers, ballerinas and scarecrows. If nothing else, they were much, much shorter. When my friend Darah's husband posted a photo of her as a 9-year-old gymnastics star on her Facebook wall, I thought, did Frank O'Hara take gymnastics photos? Are there little league photos of Allen Ginsberg? Who wouldn't want to see those pictures?

That's why we've devoted the next two weeks to childhood photos of writers. Each of our participants was given the photo of another writer and wrote a short piece based on that photo.

You can expect 2 installments a day for the next two weeks at 9am and 3pm PST. You can also expect adorableness and amazing writing. Come back often!

Kathryn

Images, clockwise from top left: Frank O'Hara, Sylvia Plath with her brother, William Faukner

Wunderkammer News

Readers, you're in for a treat: For the next two weeks, Wunderkammer will be curated by Kathryn Regina. 

 Image: L. Marie / Lenore Edman via Flickr

Don't Call Me Mother

a Wunderkammer theme week curated by Ellen Placey Wadey

The language of classification – unless it’s of the objective scientific variety – isn’t one that we accept readily. We resist labels because they never get the full picture of who we are: complicated, contradictory, often confused people. Resisting a label is even harder when you purposefully stand outside one of the most beloved human conditions: motherhood. In a world filled with constant options and increasing tolerance, one would think the choice not to be a mother wouldn’t be a big deal. But the reactions tell a different story. When you answer, “No,” to the question, “Do you have children?” the responses vary from pity – the assumption being that you’re infertile – to judgment – the assumption being that you don’t like children because you’re too self-absorbed. The number of men and women who won’t be parents is significant – some studies calculate as much as 25% of the population and growing. Then why are we still so suspicious of women who have chosen not to have children? The reasons for the choice are as varied as the women who make it. The following is just a sample of those voices. Part of an ongoing project, “Don’t Call Me Mother,” seeks to open a space for the stories and poetry of women who have decided that mother won’t be one of their labels. If you’d like to participate in this project, please contact Ellen Wadey at ellen.wadey@gmail.com with the subject line: Don't Call Me Mother.

Image by Trinette Mura

Wunderkammer News

This week, Wunderkammer welcomes guest curator Ellen Wadey. Take it away, Ellen!

Image: peregrine blue / constanza via Flickr

Poem in Comments: Wunderkammer

Contribute to this collaborative poem by adding a line in the comments section below.

Image: Daniel Neville/ Nevolution via Flickr

It's Obama Art Week

by Della Watson

The post has been held by 43 other guys--most of them bland and forgettable, a few of them grandly memorable, and some of 'em we really, really wish we could forget. 

But Barack Obama is more than just the 44th President of the United States. He is a muse. You need only take a look at blogs like the Obama Art Report (or stop by your local Urban Outfitters) to find the biggest image-making frenzy since Che hit t-shirts. And it's not just professional artists and clever marketers who are inspired. Schoolchildren are doodling Obama art in their notebooks, senior citizens are sketching his likeness, and my neighbors are painting Obama murals on their houses (the photo above was snapped in Berkeley, California).  

Obama's legacy isn't set in stone--yet. On July 8, Greenpeace rock climbers unfurled Obama's giant image on the face of Mt. Rushmore. The banner read "America honors leaders, not politicians. Stop Global Warming." The implication was that Obama can be one of our most memorable, rock-worthy leaders if only he plays his cards right. The stage for grandeur has been set. We'll have to see how the HOPE and CHANGE things play out, but one thing's for sure: We're sooooo ready to immortalize the guy in stone and ink and paint. 

So this week on Wunderkammer, we're celebrating the muse of the moment: Barack Hussein Obama.

HELLO, my name is . . . Wunderkammer

Wunderkammer is accepting submissions. If you would like to contribute, please email your poetry essay, art, fiction, video, or photography to wunderkammer.poetry@gmail.com.

Upcoming themes include Obama/the Political, Ecopoetics, Non-motherhood, and Childhood Photos. Wunderkammer also accepts curator proposals.

About the name: A wunderkammer, also known as a cabinet of curiosities or a wonder room, is a collection of objects meant to represent the world in miniature. Wunderkammern were popular during the Renaissance, when wealthy people would amass encyclopedic collections that might include fossils, paintings, sculptures, bones, feathers, religious relics, and other oddities. The tradition of the wonder room is believed by some people to be the precursor to the modern museum.

Image by Della Watson

Collection Week: Milk Glass Vase Collection

collection by Sarah Mallin

photo by Keith Hendrix