Unpacking "decompositions" by Jim Leftwich (Part 2)

 "decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

 "decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

 "decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

"decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

 "decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

 "decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

 "decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

 "decompositions" (2006) by Jim Leftwich 

"Asemic Diagram for 12.21.21" by Alicia Starr Ryan

 

"Asemic Diagram for 12.21.21" by Alicia Starr Ryan 

(Maplewood, New Jersey, USA)

-sSs-

Editor's Note: Alicia Starr Ryan is an Asemic Front 2 contributor. She has been a participant in Cheryl Penn's international collaborative book projects, among other associations.

- DVS

Asemic Conceptualism or Asemiotics ? "poema" by Roberto Ncar + Jack Foley & Ncar Vispo Homage

 

"poema" by Roberto Ncar (San Juan, Puerto Rico)

"poema" by Roberto Ncar 

"poema" by Roberto Ncar 

-sSs-

Vispo asemic homage to Roberto Ncar & Jack Foley by De Villo Sloan

Vispo asemic homage to Roberto Ncar & Jack Foley by De Villo Sloan

Vispo asemic homage to Roberto Ncar & Jack Foley by De Villo Sloan

Vispo asemic homage to Roberto Ncar & Jack Foley by De Villo Sloan

Searching for the Primal Asemic: New Work by Lucinda Sherlock

 

By Lucinda Sherlock (Perth, Australia) (December 18, 2021)

By Lucinda Sherlock (Perth, Australia) 

Lucinda Sherlock is a past AF2 contributor and celebrated figure in the Australian visual poetry world. 

/*Poem*/ : New Asemic Visual Poetry by Dona Mayoora

/*Poem*/ by Dona Mayoora (December 18, 2021)

Dona Mayoora

Editor's Note: Dona Mayoora is an AF2 contributor - perpetually popular with readers - who has been an influential voice in the Asemic Front Project through its various phases. 

I believe this piece relates especially to discussions of asemic and pansemic (anti-) symbols and structures that have occupied the blog recently.

Deepest thanks to Dona Mayoora for sharing this work. We certainly look forward to seeing her work in the future.

- De Villo Sloan

AF2 Lost Classic: Asemic/Pansemic by Todd Burst - An Essay

Asemic writing - visual poetry by Nancy Bell Scott (AF2 Archives)

Asemic/Pansemic?

By Todd Burst

First published July 14, 2018:

https://jburst88j.medium.com/asemic-pansemic-bff57a0dcfc4

Asemic writing is a wordless open semantic form of writing.[1][2][3] The word asemic means “having no specific semantic content,” or “without the smallest unit of meaning.”[4] (from Wikipedia)

In 2015 (Scriptjr.nl), artist Jim Leftwich argued that “there’s no actually perfect ‘asemic’ thing or sign, since everything conveys some meaning, everything may find its way to - at - least an inner ‘emotional’ (scribble of) meaning.”

So, instead of using the term asemic to denote a - rather new - art form, Leftwich proposes that we use “pansemic.” Pansemic means, “that everything emits/ expresses some semantically rich sign, always provided with almost a shadow of meaning; so everything makes sense and a bunch of meaningful directions may always be attached to the invisible arrows uprising from any of the written traces we imagine and conceive and make or find.”

Asemic visual poetry by Kerri Pullo (AF2 Archives)

Unfortunately, I disagree with this. Although I respect and very much enjoy Leftwich’s work, I think his concept of asemic/ pansemic might need more reflection. But before I begin my tirade, I want to make it known that I am a philosopher and a follower of Ludwig Wittgenstein: That is to say, I believe meaning is contextual, social and part of our everyday normal routines of doing things, i.e. language is a behavior, etc.

The problem I have with Leftwich’s comment - “that everything emits/ expresses some semantically rich sign” - borrows from structuralism/ postructuralism and Wittgenstein. The meaning of a word (for a structuralist and/or postructuralist) emerges through its difference with other words.

To say that everything is meaningful negates non-meaningful, which in turn negates meaningful since we can’t determine the difference between a meaningful and non-meaningful “semantically rich sign.” So, to say everything has meaning is to say nothing has meaning, but this does not get us back to asemic writing.

Secondly, meaning - in semantics, language, etc. - is socially understood… socially communicable. So a pansemic work would have to elicit a linguistic response - not a feeling - that we would all understand or could be made to understand via language.

________________________________________________

"Abstract art and asemic writing can convey a feeling or an aesthetic quality that remains unnamable, but that does not mean that it is endowed with meaning. A sensation and meaning are two different things. This does not mean that we will not find a common way of speaking about a common aesthetic it-ness that a certain asemic work elicits. This could happen, but it has not."  - Todd Burst

_________________

Abstract art and asemic writing can convey a feeling or an aesthetic quality that remains unnamable, but that does not mean that it is endowed with meaning. A sensation and meaning are two different things. This does not mean that we will not find a common way of speaking about a common aesthetic it-ness that a certain asemic work elicits. This could happen, but it has not.

I agree with most of Marco Giovenale's response to Leftwich:

"A 'proper' [sic] asemic area can be seen in the zone of the mind opaquely linking our expectations for a known written linguistic message and content to an actually unknown shape of glyph.... a whole text or drawing appears in front of us an asemic 'thing,' indecipherable to the intellect that does not recognize the language; but at the same time it may be meaningful to the taste... perception,,, soliciting empathy... sensations.... or something similar."

I generally agree with Giovenale's writing. In the Present case, I believe he explains how any glyph, symbol, etc. could represent this "sensation[s],"but we do not have "access" to this particular symbol.

I disagree with the definition and application of "pansemic" for reasons stated above. I think "asemic work" is much more suitable for the art both Leftwich and Giovenale create, because it makes a tension between what can be expressed and what cannot.

Meaningless writing is beautiful because it does not weigh us down with tangibility, Asemic writing should stay true to its asemia (?!?) its (non-sense).

                                                                                -sSs-

Asemic visual poetry by Todd Burst (2021)

Editor's Note: Todd Burst aka Toddy Bee lives in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, and studied at the University of New Orleans. He is an Asemic Front 2 contributor.

Asemic Calligraphy by Kristine Snodgrass

 

By Kristine Snodgrass (Florida, USA) (December 14, 2021)

By Kristine Snodgrass (December 14, 2021) (detail #1)

By Kristine Snodgrass (December 14, 2021) (detail #2)