Clay Goss, Writer, playwright: sends creative models

Sharing with you author and playwright Clay Goss' email 
on the discussions that he sent a few days back.
(with his permission).



 

He and I have known each other since 
birth. My mother, Eloise Owens and 
his mother, Alfreda were best friends.
My mother was Clay's godmother. We 
all called him Sonny. We were dragged 
to each other's homes when we were 
growing up and just kinda stared at 
each other until we could go home.

Turns out we went to the same high school in Philadelphia 
and then the same college, Howard University and became 
friends.

Sonny was a big man on campus in high school, playing 
football at Germantown High and doing important literary
stuff later at Howard and beyond. 
He invited me to my first high school party. And he is 
married to a professional story teller and writes and 
teaches in Phila. 



Joyce

        Thanks for the comments. I wrote my thoughts
down as fast as I could. It was very late and I had
just reviewed a master's thesis defense essay and
poems for the umpteenth time. So I know the grammar
and spelling must have been somewhat whacked. I just
wanted to give two models from the past that seemed to
go somewhere.
         Interestingly, there are two other models I
have dug on over the years. One is right there in
Chicago: The AACM(The Advancement of Creative
Musicians). In the latter half of the 70's I spent a
blizzard cold year at Ohio U.in Athens. somehow they
invited Muhal Richard Abrahms, the founder of that
group, for a solo concert. I spent a part of the day
with him(he was like Ornette/a country/east
texas?/sort of guy/which shocked me because of the
experimental range of his music and the depth of his
"jazz" ability. and, I've always been open to the
sounds and artists of the Art ensemble of Chicago, his
group. 
           Anyway a book by the Columbia (university)
Prof and trombonist George Lewis covering The AACM 
and Abrahms over the last forty years is about to 
come out(a mustread since they have 
lasted so long, put out a zillion groups, individuals, 
and have influenced avant garde music worldwide over that 
period; doing so without going the
"commercial" route. You should look him up!!
I doubt he'd remember me or Athens but I do know he
was a very approachable and congenial cat.
            The other model was from Japan. Led by an
art school graduate/entrepenuer, Takashi Murakami, this
group following the Warhol model and innovating it
from a Japanese artistic and business point of view
have created a MOVEMENT that extends worldwide and
makes a fortune. Last summer I went up to NYC to see
their blockbuster exhibit at The Japan Society. This
cat centered a group of people/notions called Otaku Culture 
and took off with it. 
Regardless of how one feels about the art,this
stuff is spreading like hip hop. You have to look in
to it. Murakami has a studio/factory in Brooklyn/an
extention of his operations in Japan.
                Look, do what you will with the stuff
I sent you...remember I sent it to you (and not)"going 
outside" 
even though I knew the potential of it since I read some 
blogs now and then.
                 Again, your movements and activities
are inspiring--keep dancing and moving on up!         
                sonny

Thanks Sonny. 


"Pillars III"    
by Joyce Owens