Dear Friends —
Here in the US, we take aesthetic self-expression for granted. But the fact is, operating outside the mainstreams is dangerous. Those of us who create privately can generally practice what we do and simply be ignored. But performers face a special challenge, because they operate in public.
Just ask Extreme Elvis.
Sometimes, what is very far away speaks most eloquently and immediately. Take a look at what Pussy Riot performer Nadezhda Tolokonnikova says about aesthetics, self-education, and its political power. It’s incredibly articulate. And brave.
Read Nadezhda Tolokonnikova’s statement here by clicking on the following link. Thanks to N+1 for posting:
http://nplusonemag.com/pussy-riot-denied-parole-tolokonnikova-on-russia-s-absurd-justice-system
Published by Stephanie Barbé Hammer
Stephanie Barbé Hammer is a magical realist prose fiction writer, novelist, occasional essayist, and a committed, intermittent poet, as well as a passionate instructor of writing. A 7-time nominee for the Pushcart Prize she has published work in Hayden's Ferry, Pearl, CRATE, Rhapsoidia, NYCBigCityLit, the East Jasmine Review, Apeiron, Inlandia, Literary Alchemy and the Bellevue Literary Review among other places. She is the author the fabulist novel THE PUPPET TURNERS OF NARROW INTERIOR (Urban Farmhouse Press), a novelette, RESCUE PLAN (Bamboo Dart Press), a prose poem chapbook collection, SEX WITH BUILDINGS (dancing girl press), and a poetry collection, HOW FORMAL (Spout Hill Press).
Stephanie's new novel PRETEND PLUMBER is available for order from your favorite bookstore, and her poetry chapbook CITY SLICKER appeared in July 2022. Stay tuned for her novella, JOURNEY TO MERVEILLEUX CITY, coming out in 2023!
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Stephanie Barbé Hammer Writing (Un) Real 