The Raven-Crow Sings in Silence

An artist here to create using the cut up method, and to share stories. Inspired by William Burroughs and Brion Gysin.

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William S. Burroughs with Mick Jagger and Andy Warhol at his 70th birthday at the Limelight, 1984

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William S. Burroughs - The Technology of Wishing 1/2

William S. Burroughs - The Technology and Ethics of Wishing Recorded June 1986, Naropa University This recording and the entire Naropa Collection is licensed...

A very interesting documentary about creative writing by the one and only: William S. Burroughs. I would highly recommend watching it, even if it is a bit lengthy.

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“The most deadly picture is a picture of nothing at all. The colors are there, but there is no image, nothing.” ~William S. Burroughs

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“Wrought distinctly only tapping, some angels door. Madam Nameless-- vainly morrow;-- Presently rustling napping evermore. Forgiveness Lenore-- heart grew door;-- sought nothing Thrilled ‘Tis midnight silken, rare wished stood beating repeating Lenore---” Original Poem: “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe. Cut-Up by @silence-singer.

Here is my first cut-up, made from the words of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven.” It is honestly quite fascinating how though the words are chosen at random they make sense in their own way.

Cut from basic printer paper and pasted into a notebook, photos taken with various lenses on an iPhone and added and finished in Adobe Photoshop.

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I am getting so far out one day I won’t come back at all.

William S. Burroughs (via quotemadness)

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When you cut into the present, the future leaks out.

William S. Burroughs

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The cut-up method developed by William S. Burroughs and Brion Gysin is interesting when we think about the ways that we use social media, even tumblr. 

Burroughs explained the method:

“The method is simple. Here is one way to do it. Take a page. Like this page. Now cut down the middle and cross the middle. You have four sections: 1 2 3 4 ... one two three four. Now rearrange the sections placing section four with section one and section two with section three. And you have a new page. Sometimes it says much the same thing. Sometimes something quite different--(cutting up political speeches is an interesting exercise)--in any case you will find that it says something and something quite definite. Take any poet or writer you fancy. Heresay, or poems you have read over many times. The words have lost meaning and life through years of repetition. Now take the poem and type out selected passages. Fill a page with excerpts. Now cut the page. You have a new poem. As many poems as you like.”

Current artists use the technique as well:

“Cut-ups establish new connections between images," Foisy said, reading from a cut-up of Burroughs' and her own thoughts on the practice. "Screenshots from films are cut-ups. Films themselves are cut-ups. Writing itself is a cut-up. Thought forms are cut-ups. Memories are cut-ups." Once you think in terms of cut-ups, nearly everything appears as one.

--”The Power of Cutting Up Your Idols, and Everything Else” by Gabby Bess. 

My intention is to research as use the technique as a way of 1.) Overcoming artist block and 2.) Connecting my work with the work of those I admire to see what happens and 3.) Exploring ideas of creativity and originality and inspiration. The cut-up technique seems a good way to do this.