"

Crlglnally publlshed ln !"#"$%&'()* ,-&$).$ &./ 0&12%)&#3 (roc. SlL 2043), 1ung P. !eong, LdlLor (8elllngham,
WA: SlL, 1993), pp. 72-81.

!45464789:; !:67987<8; !:67964789:
7/=&%/" >&* ?@AABC

l wlll sLarL by examlnlng brlefly Lhe course LhaL led Lo Lhe developmenL of holopoeLry Len years
ago. lL was ln 1983 LhaL l creaLed my flrsL holopoem, buL my lnLeresL for llnear and vlsual poeLry
developed early ln adolescence. A Lurnlng polnL for me was wlnnlng aL sevenLeen years of age a
naLlonal poeLry conLesL ln 1979, ln 8razll, wlLh a shorL poem ln verse enLlLled u&uacuLevlda
("uoubL"). 1he poem was publlshed Lhe same year ln Lhe llLerary supplemenL of Lhe 8lo de
!anelro newspaper 1rlbuna da lmprensa and ln Lhe followlng year ln an anLhology, Cem oemas
8rasllelros ("Cne Pundred 8razlllan oems"), publlshed by LdlLora verLenLe, from S&aLlldeo
aulo. 1he sLrucLure of Lhls as well as of oLher poems l was wrlLlng aL Lhe Llme followed
synLacLlc convenLlons and used Lhe llne as breaLh unlL. l sLarLed Lo parLlclpaLe ln reclLals and ln
publlc readlngs.

ln Lhe laLe 1970's 8razll was slowly golng Lhrough a perlod of redemocraLlzaLlon, followlng more
Lhan one decade of mlllLary dlcLaLorshlp, LorLure of pollLlcal prlsoners, and censorshlp. l became
lnLeresLed ln body pollLlcs, and found myself readlng Wllhelm 8elch, PerberL Marcuse, and
8oland 8arLhes, among oLhers. Pavlng dlllgenLly read and sLudled Lhe work of Lhe mosL
lmporLanL modern and conLemporary 8razlllan poeLs as well as some of Lhe mosL promlnenL
modern and conLemporary Amerlcan and Luropean poeLs, l noLlced LhaL works LhaL openly
expressed whaL l percelved as pollLlcal lssues relaLed Lo Lhe human body were absenL from
8razlllan poeLry. l also sLudled poeLs of Lhe pasL such as CaLullus, MarLlal, AreLlno, 8ocage,
8lmbaud, and oLhers, who had celebraLed Lhe body free-splrlLedly. 1he poeLry l developed afLer
LhaL had sLrong pollLlcal overLones and was bullL on Lhe "forbldden" vocabulary l found absenL
from Lhe modern and conLemporary work l admlred. 1hls sLyle focused on semanLlc conLenL
wlLhouL ornamenLaLlon or euphemlsm. l declded LhaL Lhls poeLry would also lncorporaLe oLher
elemenLs consldered lnferlor or unaccepLable by crlLlcs buL whlch would be empaLhlc wlLh Lhe
audlence, such as calembours, slang, and humor, and LhaL lL would be wrlLLen speclflcally for
publlc performances, raLher Lhan for book publlshlng. 1hls work was deflnlLely addressed Lo Lhe
man and Lhe woman on Lhe sLreeL. 1hroughouL 1980 and 1981, and parL of 1982, l gave weekly
performances ln publlc and prlvaLe spaces, ln 8lo de !anelro and oLher 8razlllan clLles, wlLh
oLher young poeLs worklng along slmllar llnes. uurlng Lhls perlod l also creaLed grafflLl-poems,
ob[ecL-poems, and sLlcker-poems, whlch expanded Lhe scope of my performances. 1he ldea of
approxlmaLlng Lhe leLLer and Lhe human body culmlnaLed ln poems ln whlch l performed so as
Lo creaLe Lhe leLLers Lhemselves wlLh my own body. 1hls whole pro[ecL was documenLed ln lLs
Lhree-year span ln varled forms, lncludlng books(1), magazlnes, newspapers, and Lelevlslon and
radlo coverage.

AlLhough durlng Lhe flrsL years of Lhe 1980s my aLLenLlon was cenLered on Lhe work descrlbed
above, l would occaslonally creaLe vlsual poems LhaL were noL aL all relaLed Lo Lhe
programmaLlc lnLervenLlon l was carrylng ouL. 8ecause Lhey dld noL flL lnLo my maln acLlvlLy,
however, l seL Lhem aslde and never publlshed Lhem. My lnLeresL for vlsual poeLry conLlnued Lo
lncrease as my dedlcaLlon Lo oral and verslfled poeLry decreased. 8eLween 1982 and 1983 l was
very unsaLlsfled by whaL l Lhen consldered Lhe bllnd alley of vlsual poeLry. Aware of Lhe mulLlple
#
dlrecLlons Lhe genre had Laken ln Lhe LwenLleLh cenLury l experlmenLed wlLh dlfferenL medla. l
creaLed vlsual poems wlLh a mechanlcal LypewrlLer, l used collage Lechnlques, l collaboraLed
wlLh professlonal graphlc deslgners and phoLographers, l wroLe poems wlLh a cadence beLween
prose and verse, l produced anlmaLed poems for elecLronlc medla, such as elecLronlc slgnboards
and vldeoLexL neLworks. Some of Lhese works l publlshed ln an arLlsL's book enLlLled 73*%&*(",
early ln 1983. Pere ls an example of Lhe klnd of vlsual poeLry l was wrlLlng around 1982:



lL was clear Lo me LhaL one of Lhe maln forces behlnd Lhe reblrLh of vlsual poeLry ln Lhe
LwenLleLh cenLury was Lhe popularlzaLlon of paper-prlnL Lechnology. So, l concluded LhaL l
would have Lo move beyond Lhe shorLcomlngs of Lhe prlnL medlum and Lry Lo Lhlnk my way
ouLslde Lhls form. l was no longer lnLeresLed ln creaLlng physlcal, Lhree-dlmenslonal ob[ecL-
poems, slnce Lhls form also belonged Lo Lhe LradlLlon of vlsual poeLry. ln oLher words, l reallzed
LhaL Lhe poeLry l wanLed Lo develop would have Lo [ump off Lhe prlnLed page, buL could noL be
embodled ln Langlble ob[ecLs. Always wlLh an amaLeurlsh lnLeresL ln CpLlcs, l had read an
encyclopedla arLlcle on holography publlshed ln Lhe early 1970s. l wenL back Lo Lhls arLlcle, buL
could noL undersLand how a Lhree-dlmenslonal lmage could be recorded on a Lwo dlmenslonal
surface. 1he ldea seemed fasclnaLlng, however. When l saw a hologram for Lhe flrsL Llme, early
ln 1983, lL became clear LhaL Lhls medlum had Lhe poLenLlal soluLlon for Lhe aesLheLlc problems l
was sLruggllng Lo resolve. l Lhen seL ouL Lo develop a LexLuallLy Lo be modulaLed by Lhe eluslve
naLure of holographlc space whlch would be experlenced wlLh lLs own rhyLhms, somewhere
beLween Lhe Lwo-dlmenslonal surface of Lhe page and Lhe solld Lhree-dlmenslonal form of Lhe
ob[ecL. 1he new poeLry l was golng Lo develop would focus more on synLacLlcal lssues raLher
Lhan on semanLlcs. ln Lhe followlng years l became a holographer and subsequenLly a compuLer
anlmaLor. 1hls has enabled me Lo be ln conLrol of Lhe execuLlon of all sLages of my work and Lo
learn Lhrough my experlmenLaLlon ln Lhe laboraLory abouL Lhe llmlLs and prospecLs of
holographlc wrlLlng.

A deflnlLlon of holopoeLry
$
l have dlscussed elsewhere (2) Lhe developmenL of holopoeLry from lLs lncepLlon Lo lLs currenL
sLage. ln Lhe nexL Lwo secLlons l wlll proceed Lo ouLllne holopoeLry's general prlnclples and Lo
dlscuss recenL pleces noL documenLed before. My work ln holography can be undersLood ln Lhe
conLexL of language arL and vlsual poeLry, Lwo genres LhaL explore Lhe fuslon of word and
lmage. l creaLe whaL l call holographlc poems, or holopoems, whlch are essenLlally holograms
and compuLer holograms LhaL address language boLh as maLerlal and sub[ecL maLLer. l Lry Lo
creaLe LexLs whlch can only slgnlfy upon Lhe acLlve percepLual and cognlLlve engagemenL on Lhe
parL of Lhe reader or vlewer. 1hls ulLlmaLely means LhaL each reader "wrlLes" hls or her own
LexLs as he or she looks aL Lhe plece. My holopoems don'L resL quleLly on Lhe surface. When Lhe
vlewer sLarLs Lo look for words and Lhelr llnks, Lhe LexLs wlll Lransform Lhemselves, move ln
Lhree-dlmenslonal space, change ln color and meanlng, coalesce and dlsappear. 1hls vlewer-
acLlvaLed choreography ls as much a parL of Lhe slgnlfylng process as Lhe Lransformlng verbal
and vlsual elemenLs Lhemselves. lf Lhe reader has never seen an acLual holopoem, he or she
needs only Lo conslder LlloL's (3) words llLerally, LhaL ls, as someLhlng LhaL ln facL Lakes place as
a vlsual-poeLlc phenomenon:


Language plays a fundamenLal role ln Lhe consLlLuLlon of our experlenLlal world. 1o quesLlon Lhe
sLrucLure of language ls Lo lnvesLlgaLe how reallLles are consLrucLed. My holograms deflne a
llngulsLlc experlence LhaL Lakes place ouLslde synLax and concepLuallze lnsLablllLy as a key
slgnlfylng agenL. l use holography and compuLer holography Lo blur Lhe fronLler beLween words
and lmages and Lo creaLe an anlmaLed synLax LhaL sLreLches words beyond Lhelr meanlng ln
ordlnary dlscourse. l employ compuLer anlmaLlon Lechnlques Lo creaLe a new klnd of poeLlc
composlLlon, whlch undermlnes flxed sLaLes (l.e., words charged vlsually or lmages enrlched
verbally) and whlch could be deflned as a consLanL osclllaLlon beLween Lhem. My holography ls
boLh an lnvesLlgaLlon of Lhe processes of language and of holographlc meanlng.

1he Lemporal and rhyLhmlc organlzaLlon of my LexLs play an lmporLanL role ln creaLlng Lhls
Lenslon beLween vlsual language and verbal lmages. MosL of my pleces deal wlLh Llme as non-
llnear (l.e., dlsconLlnuous) and reverslble (l.e., flowlng ln boLh dlrecLlons), ln such a way LhaL Lhe
vlewer/reader can move up or down, back and forLh, from lefL Lo rlghL, aL any speed, and sLlll be
able Lo esLabllsh assoclaLlons beLween words presenL ln Lhe ephemeral percepLual fleld.
l sLrlve Loward concelvlng of new relaLlonshlps beLween Lhe appearance-dlsappearance of
slgnlflers, whlch consLlLuLes Lhe experlence of readlng a holographlc LexL, and our percepLlon of
Lhe organlzlng facLors of Lhe LexL. ln Lhls sense, vlsual percepLlon of parameLrlc behavlor of Lhe
verbal elemenLs helghLens awareness of meanlngs. As readers move Lhey conLlnually shlfL Lhe
focus or cenLer or organlzlng prlnclple of Lhelr experlence by looklng Lhrough dlspersed vlewlng
zones. 1he LexL Lhey experlence sLands agalnsL Lhe flxlLy of prlnL, and for Lhe branchlng of
holographlc space.

8ecause of Lhelr lrreduclblllLy as holographlc LexLs, my poems reslsL vocallzaLlon and paper-prlnL
reproducLlon. Slnce Lhe percepLlon of Lhe LexLs changes wlLh vlewpolnL, Lhey do noL posses a
slngle "sLrucLure" LhaL can be Lransposed or LransporLed Lo and from anoLher medlum. 1he
%
comblned use of compuLers and holography reflecLs my deslre Lo creaLe experlmenLal LexLs LhaL
move language, and more speclflcally, wrlLLen language, beyond Lhe llnearlLy and rlgldlLy LhaL
characLerlze lLs prlnLed form. l never adapL exlsLlng LexLs Lo holography. l Lry Lo lnvesLlgaLe Lhe
posslblllLy of creaLlng works LhaL emerge from a genulne holographlc synLax.

8ecenL holopoems
D31%&E ). F2)-"3 (4), from 1992, explores meLamorphosls as lLs maln synLacLlcal agenL. uelmos
("Lerror") ls Lhe ouLer, smaller saLelllLe of Mars. 1he plece ls comprlsed of Lwo words rendered
ln wlreframe (LL8lL and MlS1), whlch are seen Lhrough a clrcle of predomlnanLly yellow llghL.
Surroundlng Lhls scene ls a web-llke landscape made of shaLLered glass, whlch parLlally lnvades
Lhe yellow llghL clrcle. 1he clrcle may represenL uelmos as seen on Lhe sky from Lhe ground, or a
craLer on Lhe surface, or even a spacecrafL wlndow Lhrough whlch one may look down aL Lhe
spacescape.
As Lhe vlewer moves relaLlve Lo Lhe plece, he or she percelves LhaL each llne LhaL renders Lhe
graphlc conflguraLlon of each leLLer sLarLs Lo acLually move ln Lhree-dlmenslonal space. 1he
vlewer Lhen percelves LhaL as Lhe llnes and polnLs go under an acLual Lopologlcal
LransformaLlon, Lhey slowly sLarL Lo reconflgure a dlfferenL wlreframe leLLer. WhaL was read as
an ad[ecLlve ls becomlng a noun. l call Lhls semanLlc lnLerpolaLlon. lf Lhe vlewer happens Lo
move ln Lhe opposlLe dlrecLlon, Lhe noun ls Lransformed lnLo Lhe ad[ecLlve. 1he shlfLlng of
grammaLlcal forms occurs noL Lhrough synLacLlcal dlslocaLlons ln a sLanza, buL Lhrough a
Lypographlc meLamorphosls LhaL Lakes place ouLslde synLax.
ln Lhe process of LransformaLlon Lhe lnLermedlary conflguraLlons of Lhe leLLers, whlch do noL
form any known words, evoke ln nonsemanLlc fashlon meanlngs LhaL are concelvably
lnLermedlary beLween Lhe Lwo words (LL8lL and MlS1). 1he polnL here ls LhaL Lhls
meLamorphosls allows Lhe LexL Lo suggesL oLher meanlngs beyond Lhe Lwo words locaLed aL Lhe
exLreme poles of Lhe process. 1he vlewer has Lo read Lhe LransformaLlons wlLhouL Lrylng Lo
exLracL semanLlc meanlng from Lhe nonsemanLlc forms. 1hese ln-beLween verbal slgns aLLempL
Lo communlcaLe aL Lhe level of absLracL vlsual slgns whlch have no exLra-plcLorlal reallLy, aL Lhe
same Llme LhaL Lhey operaLe under a speclflc framework provlded by Lhe words aL Lhe poles
(LL8lL and MlS1). 1hls can be very dlfflculL aL flrsL because lL escapes our common expecLaLlons
abouL how language operaLes. lor example: lf l refer Lo Lhe colors "black" and "whlLe", l can
Lhlnk of a Lhlrd Lerm LhaL wlll clearly deflne an lnLermedlary color, LhaL ls, "gray". 1hls preclslon
becomes lmposslble, for example, lf l refer Lo Lhe words "knlfe" and "llghL". 1here ls no common
word LhaL can deflne an lnLermedlary sLaLe or concepL beLween Lhe Lwo nouns. Cnly ln poeLry
Lhls ls concelvable. WhaL l ask readers Lo do when looklng aL D31%&E ). F2)-"3 ls Lo read Lhe
meLamorphosls beLween LL8lL and MlS1 wlLh Lhe same emphasls Lhey read Lhese Lwo
lndlvldual words, buL wlLhouL necessarlly forclng Lhe lnLermedlary shapes Lo refer Lo exLra-
llngulsLlc quallLles or Lhlngs ln Lhe way Lhe Lwo words do.

D31%&E ). F2)-"3 can be lnLerpreLed as a spaLlal halku of sorLs. lLs naLural sub[ecL ls Lhe
landscape of uelmos, one of Lhe Lwo moons of Lhe red planeL. 1hls holopoem ls lmaglnarlly
wrlLLen by someone who has vlslLed uelmos, whlch so far ls only known Lo us Lhrough
phoLographs shoL by Lhe Marlner and vlklng orblLers. 1he aLLenLlve reader wlll noLlce LhaL lf Lhe
word MlS1 ls percelved flrsL, followed by LL8lL, a phoneLlc llnk beLween Lhe Lwo words suggesLs
a Lhlrd one: mysLery.

!&G"* (3), creaLed ln 1992, ls composed of 39 words dlsLrlbuLed ln Lhree panels. 1he vlewer can
sLarL readlng from lefL Lo rlghL or vlce-versa, or even sLarL ln Lhe cenLer and move ln Lhe deslred
&
dlrecLlon. 1he lefL panel has fourLeen words (nCW, lS, llS, Anu, Al8S, A8L, MlS1, 8u1, LnS,
A8L, 1PCuCP1S, ll, !AZZ, lS, 1CuCP, SC, SLASP, !uMS, u8?), Lhe cenLer panel has one word
(WPLn), and Lhe rlghL panel has fourLeen more words (SPL, lS, PL, ll, lACLS, L8ASL, SMlLLS,
8u1, 1PLnS, SA?, MLMC8lLS, A8L, Al8C81S, LlkL, u8CS, unuL8, MCCnS, Cl, MAZL).

1he verbal maLerlal ln Lhe lefL and rlghL panels ls organlzed verLlcally ln Lhree-dlmenslonal
space. l used Lwo dlfferenL Lype faces ln Lhls plece. When a row has Lwo words, one word ls
wrlLLen wlLh serlf and Lhe oLher wlLhouL, creaLlng an alLernaLlng vlsual rhyLhm. 1he color of Lhe
word(s) ln one row ls dlfferenL from Lhe color of Lhe word(s) ln Lhe oLher row, buL ldenLlcal Lo
Lhe color of Lhe followlng row, and so on. As ln mosL whlLe-llghL Lransmlsslon holograms Lhese
colors are never sLaLlonary, buL Lhe relaLlve chromaLlclLy ls preserved regardless of Lhe
vlewpolnL of Lhe observer. 1hls color modulaLlon exLends Lhe rhyLhm creaLed by Lhe fonL
selecLlon and helps lnLerweave Lhe words vlsually.

As Lhe vlewer moves relaLlve Lo Lhese Lwo panels, whlch are usually seen one aL a Llme, all Lhe
words ln Lhem Lwlrl slmulLaneously, as lf drowned by a vlolenL vorLex. 1he words lose Lhelr
graphlc sLlffness. 1hey sLreLch, deform and conLorL Lhemselves. As Lhe words collapse Lhey
blend lnLo one anoLher becomlng absoluLely llleglble. 1hey form swlrllng paLLerns aL Lhe edge of
Lhe vlewlng zone and, lf Lhe vlewer moves ln Lhe opposlLe dlrecLlon, Lhey reLurn Lo Lhelr
Lemporary sLaLe of resL.

1he cenLer panel has a dlfferenL behavlor. An absLracL shape morphs lnLo Lhe word (WPLn)
whlch morphs agaln lnLo an absLracL shape, placlng Lhe word aL Lhe LranslLory poslLlon
preserved ln oLher pleces for Lhe nonsemanLlc ln-beLween shapes. 8uL lnsLead of Lhe smooLh
meLamorphlc LranslLlon creaLed ln D31%&E ). F2)-"3, for example, Lhe word WPLn goes
Lhrough a compressed and vlolenL process LhaL generaLes Llme-smear. 1lme-smear occurs when
Lhe vlewer percelves slmulLaneously Lwo dlscreLe polnLs ln Lhe Lra[ecLory of a leLLer or word
separaLed ln Llme. Cne polnL can be Lhe "presenL" or Lhe "fuLure" ln relaLlon Lo Lhe oLher and
Lhe converse, whlch ls Lo say LhaL boLh are suspended ln Llme nonsequenLlally. 1hls
unconvenLlonal concepL LranslaLes lLself vlsually lnLo ever unfoldlng amalgams of lmages whlch
are percelved as osclllaLlons by a non-sLaLlonary vlewer. 1he absLracL shapes and Lhe word are
decomposed aL Lhe boundary of leglblllLy. Surroundlng Lhls shlfLlng scene are seml-curved llghL
forms LhaL change and flucLuaLe. 1he convex sldes of Lhese wave-llke dlffused seml-clrcles face
ouLwards, as lf placlng now and Lhen Lhe word WPLn ln parenLhesls.

1he LlLle of my nexL holopoem ls H2'(E% (6) (1993), whlch means "a genLle breeze". ln Lhls plece
a relaLlonshlp of semanLlc equlvalence ls creaLed beLween word fragmenLs and lmages seen ln
LranslLlon. lL employs parLlcle anlmaLlon (7) and synLheLlc waLer rlpples. arLlcles and rlpples are
dlsLurbed by an lnvlslble alr flow whlch ls lmaglnarlly caused by Lhe reader as he or she moves ln
fronL of Lhe plece. As Lhe reader explores Lhe work, verbal and vlsual elemenLs move and
change, maklng a sLaLemenL abouL Lhe fraglllLy of Lhe human condlLlon. 1he leLLers ln Lhls plece
form a word lnslde anoLher word, one belng afflrmaLlve (LllL) and Lhe oLher seemlng Lo
quesLlon lLs asserLlve characLer from wlLhln (ll). As Lhe vlewer moves relaLlve Lo Lhe plece, lL
osclllaLes beLween preservlng Lhese opposlLlons and solvlng Lhem by blendlng Lhe opposlLe
Lerms.

l used Lhree masLers ln Lhls plece. 1he flrsL masLer conLalns Lwo leLLers, L and L, wlLh space
beLween Lhem equlvalenL Lo Lwo oLher leLLers (l and l, whlch are absenL of Lhls hologram). As
'
Lhe vlewer moves relaLlve Lo Lhe plece, he or she percelves LhaL Lhe leLLers are made of mlnuLe
parLlcles, and LhaL Lhese parLlcles fly Lowards Lhe vlewer u as lf Lhey had been blown ln Lhe alr.
A Lhree-dlmenslonal cloud of parLlcles ls formed ln space. lf Lhe vlewer moves ln Lhe opposlLe
dlrecLlon, Lhls cloud flles away from Lhe vlewer and reconsLrucLs Lhe leLLers, as lf Lhe vlewer had
blown Lhem away from hlm or her wlLh hls or her own gaze.

1he second masLer conLalns Lhe word ll, formed by Lhe Lwo leLLers exLracLed from Lhe word
LllL. 1hls word ls pro[ecLed on synLheLlc waLer. l dlsLurbed Lhe synLheLlc llquld surface where
Lhe word ls pro[ecLed ln order Lo record vlsual osclllaLlons of Lhe word. 1he meanlng of doubL
ralsed by Lhe word ll ls relnforced by lLs wavy moLlon, slnce Lhe word ls percelved as word or
absLracL paLLern dependlng on Lhe momenLary poslLlon of Lhe vlewer ln relaLlon Lo Lhe
holopoem. 1he word ll ls poslLloned ln Lhe percepLual fleld so as Lo maLch Lhe space lefL ln Lhe
flrsL masLer.

8oLh are lnLegraLed lnLo one enLlLy, buL Lhey also dlssolve lnLo one anoLher. A Lhlrd masLer was
added, conLalnlng sLyllzed lmages of flames formlng a rlng around Lhe rlpples. Looklng aLH2'(E%,
Lhe reader flnds buoyanL words, as lf Lhe parLlcles and Lhe rlpples were relylng for Lhelr
movemenL on Lhe vagarles of alr currenLs and Lhe dlsplacemenL of small alr masses caused by
Lhe movemenL of Lhe vlewer hlmself or herself.

My mosL recenL plece, 0&EI2 1(2.; )J ".#E &3 (1993), ls a sub[ecLlve sLaLemenL abouL whaL l see
as Lhe relaLlonshlp beLween Lhe eluslveness of language and Lhe unpredlcLable and LurbulenL
behavlor of naLure. 1he plece lnvolved Lhe recordlng of Lhree separaLe masLer holograms whlch
were laLer overlapped for Lhe recordlng of Lhe flnal Lransfer on a slngle sheeL of fllm.(8) 1he flrsL
masLer conLalned Lhree words: WPL8L, A8L, WL?. 1he leLLers ln Lhe word WPL8L spln and
vlsually dlssolve lnLo falllng "snow flakes". 1he words A8L and WL? are underneaLh WPL8L and
are skewed as Lhe process descrlbed above Lakes place. 1hese Lwo words are parLlally covered
by Lhe "snow flakes" of WPL8L.
1he second masLer conLalns Lhe followlng words: PL8L, WL, A8L, 1PL8L, lnk, lnS1An1S, Anu,
WP??. 1hese words can only be seen from dlscreLe polnLs of vlew and were sub[ecLed Lo oLher
anlmaLed processes. 1he A ln A8L splns away from Lhe vlewer lnLo holographlc space and Lhe
oLher leLLers move up Lo suggesL WL8L. 1he flrsL four leLLers ln Lhe word lnS1An1S slowly
dlsappear leavlng An1S Lo be percelved aL Lhe edge of leglblllLy. 1he word WP?? ls seen flashlng
aL dlfferenL momenLs, ln dlfferenL poslLlons, across Lhe space and ln [erky fashlon, as a sorL of a
graphlc echo. 1hese relaLlonshlps are suggesLed when Lhe vlewer percelves Lhe words breaklng
down and reconsLrucLlng oLher words ln Lhe lmmaLerlal holographlc space. 1he words are
percelved only for a brlef momenL and are lnLerrupLed by Lhe presence of oLher anlmaLed
words.
1he Lhlrd masLer was used Lo record dry branches comlng ouL of Lhe fllm plane and reachlng ouL
Lo Lhe vlewer. 1he branches were recorded agalnsL a background of llghL generaLed paLLerns
LhaL subLly evoke Lhe forms of clouds.

PyperLexL, or composlLlon by neLworked flelds
l wlll lnLroduce aL Lhls polnL some remarks abouL hyperLexL, because Lhe moblllLy afforded by
Lhls new form ls relevanL Lo Lhe rapprochemenL l wlll suggesL laLer beLween holopoeLry and
hyperpoeLry. 1he Lerm hyperLexL was creaLed by 1heodor nelson ln Lhe 1960s Lo descrlbe a klnd
of elecLronlc LexL, read on a compuLer screen, LhaL ls fundamenLally dlfferenL from prlnL ln lLs
nonhlerarchlcal sLrucLure. 1he prlnLed book was a breakLhrough ln relaLlon Lo papyrus scrolls
(
and older forms of recordlng Lhe wrlLLen word, among oLher reasons for lLs mechanlcal
reproduclblllLy, paLLerned llnearlLy, and random access Lo lnformaLlon. Slmllarly, hyperLexL ls a
breakLhrough ln relaLlon Lo Lhe prlnLed book because lL ls lnLeracLlve, calls for nonllnear forms
of LexL consLrucLlon, and allows Lhe reader Lo navlgaLe Lhrough mulLlple paLhways.

1he lnLeracLlvlLy LhaL hyperLexL purporLs affecLs ln a fundamenLal way Lhe very noLlon of LexL.
CulLe ofLen ln llLerary and poeLlc hyperLexLs, Lhe reader can noL only make personal cholces ln
Lerms of when and where Lo see whaL, buL can also make changes Lo Lhe very LexL he or she ls
readlng. Arguably, one always makes personal cholces ln Lhe process of readlng a book buL, wlLh
few excepLlons, Lhe book ls concelved by Lhe auLhor so LhaL Lhe reader sLarLs on Lhe flrsL page
and naLurally ends on Lhe lasL page. 1hls llnear sequence ls noL Lransposed Lo hyperLexL, where
Lhe verbal maLerlal ls organlzed ln dlscreLe unlLs llnked elecLronlcally. AuLhors concelve of Lhelr
works so LhaL Lhe reader has many cholces along Lhe readlng paLh, Lransformlng Lhe llLerary
work lnLo a more open-ended experlence Lhan we are accusLomed Lo. 1hls experlence ls pushed
furLher when readers are allowed Lo conLrlbuLe Lo Lhe LexLs. Whlle one ls used Lo maklng noLes
dlrecLly on a book, whaL ls less common ls Lhe ablllLy Lo deleLe parLs, change leLLers or words, or
add someLhlng new Lo Lhe very LexL one reads. 1hls ablllLy ls aL Lhe very core of hyperLexL.
8ecause Lhe LexL ls represenLed dlglLally ln Lhe memory of Lhe compuLer or on a floppy dlsk, and
noL as analog physlcal marks on Lhe surface of a prlnLed page, ofLen auLhors wlll allow readers
Lo modlfy Lhe LexL and Lherefore alLer lL ln a varleLy of ways.

1he nonllnearlLy of hyperLexL can be sLaLed ln Lwo ways. llrsL, one can creaLe a neLwork of
llnked LexLs whlch, ln Lhemselves, are LradlLlonal llnear LexLs. lor educaLlonal purposes lL mlghL
be lnLeresLlng Lo creaLe an elecLronlc documenL LhaL llnks nonllnearly an lmporLanL llLerary work
Lo a varleLy of analyLlcal essays and scholarly references of names, hlsLorlcal evenLs and places
menLloned ln Lhe LexL. 1he publlc would read Lhe work ln LradlLlonal fashlon, buL would be able
Lo access any oLher relevanL essay or book wrlLLen abouL Lhe llLerary work from any passage ln
Lhe LexL. Second, experlmenLal wrlLers can beneflL from hyperLexL by radlcallzlng lLs feaLures
and generaLlng elecLronlc poems or novels LhaL cannoL be experlenced as such ln prlnL medlum.
1he verbal maLerlal ln Lhls case has Lo be organlzed as a mulLlnodal neLwork and Lhe reader has
Lo make consLanL declslons abouL whaL dlrecLlons Lo Lake ln order Lo move Lhrough lLs
lnLerconnecLlons. 1he very organlzaLlon of Lhe LexL as neLwork, Lhe deslgn of whlch wlll vary
from auLhor Lo auLhor and from plece Lo plece, ls as lmporLanL as Lhe lndlvldual blocks of verbal
maLerlal encounLered by Lhe reader along Lhe mulLlple readlng paLhs. lnsLead of Clson's
composlLlon by fleld(9), "where all Lhe syllables and all Lhe llnes musL be managed ln Lhelr
relaLlons Lo each oLher", and where "a serles of Lenslons are made Lo hold", we now Lhlnk of
composlLlon by neLworked flelds where Lenslons splll ouL and overflow.

lf ln addlLlon Lo elecLronlc LexL an auLhor works wlLh sound and moLlon plcLures, Lhe auLhor
exLends hyperLexL Lo Lhe realm of hypermedla, Lhus mulLlplylng even more Lhe nodes (or Lhe
resources ln each node) ln a neLwork. lrom an lnsLrucLlonal perspecLlve, lL becomes posslble
noL only Lo lnform Lhe reader abouL a geographlcal reference ln a novel, for example, buL Lo
show a shorL elecLronlc movle abouL Lhe slLe. lrom Lhe perspecLlve of experlmenLal wrlLlng, Lhe
auLhor galns access Lo a whole new seL of lnsLrumenLs wlLh whlch Lo enhance or expand Lhe
range of Lhe work. lL ls Lrue LhaL Lelevlslon already dellvers elecLronlc lmages, sound, and LexLs
Lo every household, and LhaL vldeoLape renLal mulLlplles Lhe opLlons of Lhe audlence. 8uL
hypermedla ralses new seLs of llLerary problems abouL Lhe auLhorlLy of Lhe auLhor, Lhe sLrucLure
of Lhe work, and Lhe role of Lhe reader. WhaL ls equally lmporLanL, hypermedla mlghL expand
)
Lhe realm of llLeraLure as lL promlses lnLeracLlve access Lo very large amounLs of daLa llnked ln a
complex neLwork of nonsequenLlal audlovlsual lnformaLlon.

SLorms, a hyperpoem
Looklng closely aL Lhe culLural dlmenslons of hyperLexL, lL sLrlkes me LhaL ln many ways Lhe
dlsconLlnuous and meLamorphlc poeLry l've been developlng slnce 1983 wlLh holography shares
wlLh hyperLexL, and wlLh Lhe hyperpoeLry creaLed by myself and by oLhers, Lhe same lnLeresL for
Lhe model of Lhe neLwork, for Lhe readerly lnLeracLlvlLy, and for Lhe glvlng up parLlal LexLual
conLrol on Lhe parL of Lhe auLhor. l ask myself, however: lf holopoeLry promoLes a
dlsengagemenL of Lhe llnearlLy Lyplcal of LradlLlonal poeLry and of Lhe graphlc slmulLanelLy of
vlsual poeLry, can or should lL be consldered a klnd of hyperLexL? PolopoeLry, whlch llnks one
leLLer, 3u graphlc fragmenL, or behavlor of a LexL Lo myrlad oLhers, quesLlons Lhe moLlonless
sLrucLure of prlnL-based vlsual poeLry, [usL as lL also quesLlons Lhe auLhorshlp and readershlp
creaLed by lL.

ln 1993 l flnlshed K1"%-3, my flrsL hyperpoem, whlch can be read on any MaclnLosh compuLer.
lL ls organlzed ln vocallc and consonanLal blfurcaLlons. 1o navlgaLe Lhrough Lhe poem one ls
lnvlLed Lo cllck on a leLLer aL any glven Llme. ln some lnsLances, navlgaLlon can also Lake place by
cllcklng ouLslde Lhe word. lf Lhe reader does noL make a cholce, LhaL ls, lf he or she does noL
cllck on a vowel or consonanL, or ln some lnsLances also on empLy space, Lhe reader wlll remaln
sLaLlonary. When Lhe reader does make any cholce, Lhe word on Lhe screen ls dlssolved and
blends lnLo Lhe nexL word. 1he poem does noL have an endlng. 1hls means LhaL one can
conLlnue Lo explore dlfferenL LexLual navlgaLlon posslblllLles or qulL aL anyLlme by presslng Lhe
Command key and Lhe C key.

AfLer l flnlshed Lhe flrsL drafL of Lhls hyperpoem, l noLlced LhaL lLs sLrucLure was very slmllar Lo
Lhe dlagrams of seflroLlc sysLems Lyplcal of Lhe kabbalah (see dlagram below). 1hls made me
reallze LhaL l could push lL furLher, by borrowlng some llnks l observed ln a parLlcular seflroLlc
sysLem. kabballsLlc wrlLlng and mysLlclsm have always had a formal lnfluence ln my work, and
Lhls lnfluence has resulLed ln holopoems such as DI%&*&/&I%& (1984/83), 5)#)1( (1987/89, wlLh
8lchard kosLelaneLz), K(2-& (1989), and 0=#1)'#2(1989). 1he dlfference here ls LhaL Lhls Llme
Lhere ls a remarkable slmllarlLy beLween Lhe acLual sLrucLure of my hyperpoem, whlch promoLes
Lhe branchlng from one LexLual unlL Lo anoLher, and Lhe sLrucLure of Lhls meLaphyslcal 1ree.

*

SeflroLlc 1ree from Lhe elghLeenLh cenLury (lefL) and llnk sysLem of K1"%-3 (rlghL)


ln poeLry, words are noL used, as ln ordlnary dlscourse, [usL Lo make a polnL, buL Lo crafL a verbal
composlLlon. ln llnear poeLry Lhe presence or absence of accenL ln a word ls llke Lhe presence or
absence of accenL ln anoLher word. Syllables become unlLs of measuremenL. verbal messages
are works of arL because poeLs of all eras and naLlons have always carefully selecLed and
arranged words ln a parLlcular way, so LhaL Lhelr quallLles (aural properLles, connoLaLlve or
denoLaLlve meanlngs, graphlc form) can resonaLe wlLhln Lhe poeL's parLlcular sysLem. As wroLe
Louls Zukofsky(10), "condensed speech ls mosL of Lhe meLhod of poeLry (as dlsLlngulshed from
Lhe essenLlally dlscurslve arL of prose)". Whlle Lhls ls sLlll Lrue ln hyperpoeLry, whaL seems Lo be
aL sLake now ls a dlsengagemenL of Lhe LexLual dlsLrlbuLlon characLerlsLlc of prlnL. 1he node u
and noL Lhe syllable u from whlch llnks lrradlaLe ls Lhe new unlL of measuremenL. 1he wrlLer
now deflnes Lhe work as crlsscrosslng axes of comblnaLlon. 1he reader has Lo make selecLlons ln
a way LhaL ls slmllar, albelL noL ldenLlcal, Lo Lhe way Lhe wrlLer has. 1he reader ls now presenLed
noL wlLh one narrowed-down selecLlon of words ln sLrlngs or ln graphlc layouLs, buL wlLh an
elecLronlc fleld LhaL ls a complex neLwork wlLh no flnal form. ln each node Lhe poeL wlll deploy
LexL or add sound and movlng lmages Lo lL. ln K1"%-3, l declded Lo work wlLh LexL alone.

L".*#=3)".

PolopoeLry explores moLlon, dlsplacemenL, and meLamorphosls. ln my holoLexLs l employ a
synLax of dlslocaLlons LhaL conLlnually drlve graphemes from Lhelr poslLlon. ln some poems l use
only one word, buL ln my mulLlword poems each word ls a node or polnL of lnLersecLlon. no
word ls Lhe orlgln or beglnnlng. Lven ln Lhe slngle-word pleces LhaL employ some klnd of
sequence, Lhls sequence ls never hlerarchlcal (l.e., llnear) and never assumes a flxed beglnnlng
or end. Words are axes whlch radlaLe llnked words LhaL surround Lhem u buL qulLe ofLen a word
loses graphlcal lnLegrlLy and becomes Lemporarlly someLhlng else, a slgn or an absLracL paLLern
"+
wlLh no exLra-llngulsLlc or exLra-plcLorlal reallLy. 1hls LexLual drlfL suggesLs, ulLlmaLely, a vlew of
Lhe word and Lhe world as malleable.

ln elecLronlc hyperLexL, one chooses paLhs buL each locus dlsplays words on a Lwo-dlmenslonal
compuLer screen, whlch are scanned by Lhe eye ln llnear fashlon, llke ln prlnL, from Lop Lo
boLLom, from lefL Lo rlghL. ln holographlc LexLs Lhe reader can'L add Lo Lhe exlsLlng elemenLs, aL
leasL noL yeL, buL ln addlLlon Lo chooslng paLhs Lhe readers encounLer a space where Lhe
graphlcal subsLance of Lhe verbal maLerlal ls under consLanL dlsLurbance, belng Lransformed,
morphed, or dlslnLegraLed ln a new slgnlfylng process.

1he wrlLer LhaL works wlLh holography or hyperLexL musL glve up Lhe ldea of Lhe reader as Lhe
ldeal decoder of Lhe LexL and musL deal wlLh a reader LhaL makes very personal cholces ln Lerms
of Lhe dlrecLlon, speed, dlsLance, order, and angle he or she flnds sulLable Lo Lhe readerly
experlence. 1he wrlLer musL creaLe Lhe LexL Laklng lnLo accounL LhaL Lhese declslons, belng
personal as Lhey are, wlll generaLe mulLlple and dlfferenLlaLed experlences of Lhe LexL and, mosL
lmporLanLly, LhaL all of Lhese occurrences are equally valld LexLual encounLers.

lf one ls concerned wlLh Lhe developmenL of a new poeLry for Lhe dlglLal age, lL ls lmporLanL Lo
wrlLe vlsual poeLry ln a medlum dlfferenL Lhan prlnL, a medlum LhaL ls fresh and Lhe convenLlons
of whlch are yeL Lo be lnvenLed. 1o me, holography ls such a medlum, buL l musL polnL ouL LhaL
Lhe use of new medla does noL consLlLuLe, by lLself, a sLandard of quallLy or of auLhenLlc
conLrlbuLlon Lo Lhe reperLolre of experlmenLal wrlLlng. lor example, lf someone uses
holography slmply Lo reproduce a poem LhaL was fully reallzed ln anoLher form (verse, graphlc,
eLc.), he or she ls noL creaLlng whaL l would call a holopoem. A rare example of lmporLanL
lnLernaLlonal dlglLal poeLry was shown ln Lhe exhlblLlon "p0es1e dlglLale dlchLkunsL"(11),
curaLed by AndrZ valllas, ln Cermany, ln 1992.
ln WesLern socleLles we are all used Lo elecLronlc LexLs on Lelevlslon performlng Lhe mosL
elaboraLe plroueLLes on Lhe screen. A golfer hlLs a ball and leLLers announclng a LournamenL are
scaLLered on Lhe screen. An elecLrlc shaver follows a paLh made of LexL abouL Lhe producL,
"shavlng" Lhe LexL ln Lhe process. Logos fly onscreen Lo sell Lhe vlsual ldenLlLy of large
corporaLlons, and so on. 1he dynamlc use of language LhaL we are used Lo on Lelevlslon
promoLes mosL ofLen redundancy, commodlflcaLlon, and banallzaLlon. 1he new generaLlon of
poeLs belongs Lo Lhe medla culLure. 1hey breaLhe Lelevlslon, vldeoLapes, vldeodlscs,
vldeophones, compuLers, vlrLual reallLy, and holography. ln a llLerary culLure sLlll domlnaLed by
prlnL, Lhe auLhor of experlmenLal prose or poeLry LhaL can only be read ln elecLronlc or phoLonlc
medla wlll have a hard Llme reachlng Lhe audlence (however small Lhls audlence mlghL be).
8egardless of Lhese problems, or perhaps because of Lhem, lL ls Lhls generaLlon's challenge Lo
creaLe dynamlc elecLronlc and phoLonlc LexLs LhaL recover Lhe concepLual power and Lhe
mysLerlous beauLy of language.


92J2%2.*23

1- See: L. kac, 24 (8lo de !anelro: Ldl es Cang, 1981), Clauco MaLLoso, !ornal uobrabll,
(S&aLlldeo aulo: self-publlshed, 1981), Pelo'sa 8uarque de Pollanda and Carlos AlberLo
Messeder erelra, eds., oesla !ovem u Anos 70 (S&aLlldeo aulo: LdlLora Abrll, 1982), Clauco
MaLLoso, C que Z oesla Marglnal (S&aLlldeo aulo: LdlLora 8raslllense, 1983), L. kac, Lscracho
""
(8lo de !anelro: self-publlshed, 1983), L. kac and k. 1rlndade, eds., AnLolorgla (8lo de !anelro:
LdlLora Codecrl, 1984).

2- See: L. kac, "PolopoeLry and lracLal PolopoeLry: ulglLal Polography as an ArL Medlum", ln
Polography as an arL medlum, ed. Louls 8rlll, Leonardo speclal lssue, vol. 22, nx 3/4, pp. 397-
402, ergamon ress, Cxford (uk), 1989, and "8ecenL LxperlmenLs ln PolopoeLry and CompuLer
PolopoeLry", ln roceedlngs of Lhe lnLernaLlonal Symposlum on ulsplay Polography, ed. 1. P.
!eong, SlL vol. 1600, 8elllngham, WA, 1991, pp. 229-236.

3- 1. S. LlloL, "8urnL norLon", ln CollecLed oems, 1909-1933, (new ?ork: ParcourL, 8race and
Company, 1936), p. 219.

4- 1he holopoem D31%&E ). F2)-"3 ls ln Lhe permanenL collecLlon of Lhe Museum of
Polography, ln Chlcago. l am greaLly lndebLed Lo Loren 8llllngs for her conLlnulng supporL.

3- 1he holopoem !&G"* was supporLed ln parL by a new lorms 8eglonal CranL, a program
admlnlsLered by 8andolph SLreeL Callery and Lhe naLlonal Afro-Amerlcan Museum and CulLural
CenLer, and funded by Lhe lnLer-ArLs rogram of Lhe naLlonal LndowmenL for Lhe ArLs and 1he
8ockfeller loundaLlon, wlLh addlLlonal supporL from Lhe llllnols ArLs Councll and 8andolph
SLreeL Callery.

6- 1he holopoem H2'(E% was parLlally supporLed by a granL from Lhe ClLy of Chlcago
ueparLmenL of CulLural Affalrs, and Lhe llllnols ArLs Councll Access rogram.

7- arLlcle sysLems can be descrlbed as a klnd of anlmaLlon Lechnlque ln whlch large amounLs of
very small Lhree-dlmenslonal ob[ecLs (compuLer-generaLed parLlcles) are seL Lo moLlon
slmulLaneously under a comblnaLlon of random facLors and algorlLhmlc conLrol. arameLers
used Lo anlmaLe parLlcles lnclude llfe span (l.e., for how long do Lhey move), speed, quanLlLy,
slze, color, sLarLlng and endlng polnL, and dlrecLlon of Lravel. Cnce Lhe anlmaLlon sLarLs,
hundreds or Lhousands of parLlcles move by Lhemselves under consLralnLs seL by Lhe arLlsL.
1here ls no need Lo creaLe key frames or Lo seL moLlon paLhs for lndlvldual parLlcles.

8- 1he holopoem 0&EI2 8(2.; ,J 4.#E D3 parLlally supporLed by a granL from Lhe ClLy of Chlcago
ueparLmenL of CulLural Affalrs, and Lhe llllnols ArLs Councll Access rogram.

9 - C. Clson, "ro[ecLlve verse", ln 1he AvanL-Carde 1radlLlon ln LlLeraLure, ed. 8lchard
kosLelaneLz (8uffalo, n?: romeLheus 8ooks, 1982), p. 232.

10- L. Zukofsky, "A SLaLemenL for poeLry", ln reposlLlons (8erkeley and Los Angeles: unlverslLy
of Callfornla ress, 1981), p. 20.

11- 1hls group exhlblLlon Look place aL Lhe Calerle Am MarkL, ln Annaberg-8uchholz, Cermany,
from SepLember 12 Lo CcLober 3, 1992.