Bøker av Luke Kurtis

Springtime in Byzantium collects three distinct but related works by luke kurtis: a poem titled theodora, a series of conceptual photographs titled marble paintings, and a performance art/video art piece titled labyrinth. Structured around and inspired by the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy, this trilogy of works is presented alongside photographs and digital collage works also by the artist.The motif that pulls the book together is the bookmatched marble panels of San Vitale. "Its kaleidoscope-like forms are so captivating, yet they're overshadowed by the famous mosaics," says the artist. "If you stop and think about it, the bookmatched marble isn't out of place in a contemporary design sense. You could take the panels out of the church and put them in a modern building, and no one would bat an eye. I wanted to use my photographs to remove the panels conceptually, put them in your hands in the form of a book, and draw a line through hundreds of years to connect the past with the future."The works were created independently over several years and only conceived as a whole specifically for this book, altogether representing a decade of artistic practice, from 2011, when the first work was created, to 2021, when the project was realized in printed form. Though kurtis has published several poetry books, all of which feature his visual work, this is the first book where his visuals are the focus.

Georgia Dusk is an autobiographical poetry and photography chapbook collaboration by Dudgrick Bevins and luke kurtis. Both born in Dalton, Georgia and raised in rural Appalachia, the poet's lives followed very different paths. Yet they both ended up in New York City where they eventually met for the first time. Upon discovering their common roots, the two poets developed a unique poetic bond. In Georgia Dusk, their contrasting literary and visual styles give way to poetic dialogue that explores themes of grief, longing, gratitude, pain, and joy against the simultaneous backdrops of their shared heritage and adopted home.

the immeasurable fold is an autobiographical poetry collection that explores the poet's trajectory from rural southern farm boy to life as a Greenwich Village artist. The poems recount memories of family, hurt, love, loss, joy, sadness, longing, and forgiveness all through the lens of a spiritual reckoning.Not a typical selected-works collection, nor exclusively new work, the immeasurable fold is based upon a manuscript of poems written in early 2000 titled lazy dreams and other memories. Though the full-length manuscript remains unpublished, in 2005 kurtis included a selection of those poems (along with a few newer ones) in his debut solo exhibition, for which he used the same title. bd-studios.com published a small, limited edition exhibition catalog of those poems and photographs. Long out-of-print, those poems, additional/unpublished poems from the original manuscript, as well as new poems written in the years since-altogether spanning a decade and a half, from 2000 through 2015-have been compiled in this new collection.

INTERSECTION is a collection of poetry, photography, and found texts by luke kurtis created as part of the artist's rediscovery of his southern heritage. It's his self-described "ode to the south." Paired with the companion INTERSECTION zine, also published by bd-studios.com, the artist's rural upbringing is contrasted with his adult life as a New York artist.

In 1963, Allen Ginsberg traveled to Cambodia and visited the ancient Khmer temples. He wrote "Angkor Wat," an eponymous poem about the temple complex. It was a very different time: pre-Vietnam War, pre-Khmer Rouge, and before the bustling tourism trade that is now the lifeblood of Siem Reap. Yet the Angkor Wat temples themselves remain a unique source of inspiration for poets and photographers who travel there from all over the world.Over half a century later, Angkor Wat by luke kurtis is both the artist's homage to Ginsberg's text as well a celebration of his own pilgrimages to the ancient city. Published in 1968, Ginsberg's Angkor Wat book was a single long poem accompanied by photographs by Alexandra Lawrence. kurtis's book is a suite of poems paired with his original photography. Chronicling the poet's own travels where he explored mythical stories and experienced mystical visions, kurtis's poems take you on a tour of Angkor Wat (and beyond) unlike any other and tell the story of one American poet deepening his Buddhist spirituality.

The Language of History: A Greenwich Village Artist Remembers 9/11 is an intimate collection of work by interdisciplinary artist luke kurtis. The artist, a long time resident of Greenwich Village, witnessed the 9/11 attacks from the street near his home at 9th Street and 6th Avenue. This book collects a selection of his photography and writing created in response to the tragedy.