Mykki Blanco

"Blanco seeks out a point of unity between the primitive energy of mystical rite, the raw vitality of youth and the relationship between pop and urban culture." -Vogue From the Silence of Duchamp to the Noise of Boys is the first book of poetry by New York-based performance artist and writer Mykki Blanco. Coinciding with the release of Blanco's two new albums--their first in four years--and two new queer anthologies, We Can Do Better Than This (Vintage, 2021) and The Queer Bible (HarperCollins, 2021) that include essays penned by Blanco, this reissue of the sold-out first edition of From the Silence of Duchamp features the original collection of poems with a new introduction by the author. Written over the course of six years with revisions and additions that span across different ages and locations, From the Silence of Duchamp draws heavily from folklore and oral traditions to convey the energy of rebellious youth and challenge a contemporary indifference to spirituality. Blanco, who came of age first in the Pacific Northwest and then as a 16-year-old runaway in New York City, refers in these poems as much to their own experience of life as to the more far-reaching worlds of mysticism, metaphysics and psychedelia. From the Silence of Duchamp is arranged and illustrated by Nikolai Rose, the New York-based creative team of Jacob Melinger and Alan Paukman, who experimented with wine and salt crystals to create the haunting ink washes that accompany Blanco's visceral words. Michael David Quattlebaum Jr. (born 1986), better known by the stage name Mykki Blanco, is a songwriter, musician, performance artist, poet and activist.

From the Silence of Duchamp to the Noise of Boys

Brontez Purnell

Tiona Nekkia McClodden

Cheryl Dunye

Ellen Spiro

Tacoma Action Collective

Visual AIDS

Thomas Allen Harris

Kia LaBeija

ALTERNATE ENDINGS, RADICAL BEGINNINGS was the 28th annual iteration of Visual AIDS' longstanding Day With(out) Art project. Curated by Erin Christovale and Vivian Crockett for Visual AIDS, the video program prioritized Black narratives within the ongoing AIDS epidemic, commissioning seven new and innovative short videos from artists Mykki Blanco, Cheryl Dunye & Ellen Spiro, Reina Gossett, Thomas Allen Harris, Kia LaBeija, Tiona Nekkia McClodden and Brontez Purnell.The 54 page soft cover publication includes film stills and artist statements from contributing filmmakers Mykki Blanco, Kia LaBeija, Cheryl Dunye and Ellen Spiro, Reina Gossett, Thomas Allen Harris, Tiona Nekkia McClodden, and Brontez Purnell; a statement by curators Erin Christovale and Vivian Crockett; and an essay by the Tacoma Action Collective.

Alternate Endings, Radical Beginnings

Day With(out) Art 2017

Mykki Blanco

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