A final couple of offerings from the Obanites (there's a Southland sleepover joke in there somewhere). Richard Reeve gives us his take on the symposium, (that's him on the left at the Ulva Island Ferry with Bronwyn Lloyd (PhD student with Michele and art historian), Paula Green, Lisa Williams (graphic designer), Michele Leggott and Tusiata Avia – thanks again to Alison Hunt for the photo). There's a sleek surprise from Ms Bluff herself to wind it all up. And don't forget to browse the online anthology. But now, Richard:
Oban 2006 – (Cilla originally called it the Bluff Bunfight), certainly exceeded my expectations. I came away with the distinct impression that many New Zealand poets were much more self-collected than I’d given them credit for, superficially a comment on my own lack of generosity perhaps, but a statement too of the profoundly generative atmosphere of this festival, exhaustively organised by David Howard and Michele Leggott. I ate fat with Jeffrey Paparoa Holman, Emma Neale and Martin Edmond, drank coffee with Tusiata Avia, got drunk with John Dolan, Jeanne Bernhardt, Kay Cooke and Therese Lloyd, helped Michele Leggott around Rakiura’s Ulva Island with its marauding wekas and fake Elephant seal, smoked cigarettes with Cilla, discussed Roman murder with Bernadette, and felt generally liked and appreciated despite my bad breath, irrepressible acne and awkwardness.
Maybe this is partly because the locals who looked after us at the marae were very beautiful people. In Bluff Bessie and Keith Anglem oversaw an incredible display of hospitality: Te Rau Aroha marae, built by Cliff Whiting, is more ornate and complex than Te Papa’s, and the feasts they put on included titi, blue cod and Bluff oysters as well as a sumptuous array of everyday New Zealand staples. Having developed an historical interest in Southern Maori, I was personally thrilled to talk with direct descendants of major figures, and witness first-hand the richness of their korero and whakapapa, exemplified in many of Whiting’s carvings. Indeed?and I know that this was Cilla’s intention in proposing the event?the festival was very much an opportunity for many writers to touch base with land and tangata whenua.
Were there good poems? On Sunday night at Stewart Island (with its whipped straits, albatross and sunsets a perfect ending to the festival), Rob Allan came up with our host Gwen’s favourite line: something like, “Language is the sea that the connects us.” Rob’s line was better than that, but the gist is there of what was an apposite sentiment. There are profound truths for which we very occasionally ought to be grateful: in four days I could hear Tusiata Avia reading powerfully about the fatalism of a Samoan bike, David Eggleton high on grass, John Dolan discussing true grit and Jack Ross musing over America’s Top Models: all of this in the southern tip of both Europe and Polynesia. Can it be said that Bluff was a quintessentially ‘New Zealand’ festival? Ae ’twas, Cap’n.
Criticisms? Disenfranchised, post-academic cynic what I am, I wrack at seminars, perhaps because I’m good at them. Poetry festivals everywhere need, surprisingly enough, more real readings: readings to people who are not poets, to people who are interested but would never pay to hear poetry. Poets need to practise moving and guiding their audiences on their feet, not necessarily as hiphop artists but as diplomats for a culture which is more than token. Naturally there is a real place in festivals for talking about poetry, there are many different types of reading, good poetry is not purely about crowd-pleasing, and so on; still, I wish I’d seen Cilla doing one of her ‘Bluff Songs’ in a pub in Bluff, as I have in Dunedin. Many poets were entertaining readers, but collectively we lacked the benefit of a relaxed, slightly tippled audience which turns good readings into great readings. And there were good readings, well done David and Michele! My largest criticism lies not with the poets who were there but with those who were invited but could not get there. Kia ora.
And finally–finally, something which chimed unexpectedly from my mac this morning; a poem from Cilla McQueen in which you can smell the sea. It gave me that weird involuntary tunnel-vision-with-tinnitus I get when I read something glorious (perhaps I should see a doctor). Can a crafted bunch of words be both muscly and ethereal all at once? Apparently so:
FOVEAUX EXPRESS
Diesel sounds aromatic
magenta, oxblood,
mineral smooth
any how as boronia
swivel that levers
a shoepolish lid,
key curls oily metal.
Poetry takes you apart,
puts you back different
as this day's passage
on shapeshifting water,
one to another island
swift as the stroke
of a pen the toothed strait
on the whale's path
chewed through, islets
scattered between,
text in motion
gimballed on muscling
swells, word-ware, cargo.
Cilla McQueen
Bluff 06.
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Comment by Islander ~ May 4, 2006 11:33 PM
What the fuck does Richard Reeves mean by saying his biggest criticism lies with 'poets who were invited but didnt turn up”???>
Comment by richard ~ May 9, 2006 04:57 PM
In response to Islander's bluff query:
Victoria University Literary fellow Bernadette Hall and Therese Lloyd were to my knowledge the only poets invited from Wellington who made it to Bluff. There were however numerous poets from the other centres. I know of a number of poets who shirked coming to Bluff because the event was to be held on a Marae. And there were still others—I was originally one of these—who balked at the fact that the initiative was taken by Auckland-university poets. Bluff was a great learning experience; I'm sorry that there weren't more poets from across the country who might have been able to benefit from what was nonetheless a diverse collection of voices. Doubtless many absentees had good reasons for not going.
Oh, and there's no 's' on 'Reeve'.
Comment by Islander ~ May 10, 2006 11:25 AM
There are many and varied reasons for refusing invitations to literary events, all of them legitimate in the eyes of those who do the refusing. There is no warrant to criticise any refusal - it is entirely a matter of personal choice.
I regret mis-spelling your name: put it down to the lateness of the hour of my response and my extreme irritation at your ignorant comment.
Comment by paula green ~ May 12, 2006 09:14 AM
Our valley with the shower has dodgy power and phone lines so only just got back on line to read some Bluff talk and feel glad that Richard highlighted Rob Allan's lovely line, how did I forget him as I travelled back though the days, whoops and sorry Rob you were indeed a welcome presence and as for the absences ….. I toast your books on my shelves, we keep company in many varied ways.
from the temporary comfort of power and outside communication, Paula
Comment by Benita ~ May 13, 2006 04:35 PM
BLUFF 06 was exciting for the encompassing aspect, just as was FUGACITY 05. Exciting innatives were taken, and to some extent risk as is anything worthwhile.
So what was encompassing in the recent exercise of BLUFF 06.
It gathered a wide variety of poets, by invitation or otherwise into its net.
It met in more than one location; only one of which I believe was a Marae. (Correct me if I am wrong.) It gathered poets not just from both ends of our tiny Islands, but it met Universally, as it were, on the Internet. Because, believe me even if those of us who followed it could not be present in person we were in spirit, and that for the good of poetry in this country. Our point of convergence was POETRY, not whether some could attend or not; or whether or no the venue of selection.
That Michelle Leggot and all who supported and made this happen, and happen so successfully for the second year in a row, and yet a little different each time is a major undertaking.
I'd say come to the East Coast next time if I could offer help but I'm in positition to do so. But that's what I would look forward to. What might be a third exciting place to go?
Again my heartfelt congratulations and thanks to the sharings that have appeared in Leafsalon.
Benita Kape
Comment by Islander ~ May 13, 2006 10:38 PM
Paula and Benita - cool comments. As someone who lives in a remote area, wholly agree with the 'communication via the books' bit Paula (paticularly when the power's off, as it is quite frequently here0 and Benita- whee! your inadvertent typo suggests - to me anyway!- that East Coast, North island, might be a happening thang this coming year-
cheers all -n/n Islander
Comment by Benita ~ May 13, 2006 11:24 PM
Where I have spelt a name incorrectly and cannot correct I'm truly sorry.
Other spellings - well thanx for the chuckle Mr Islander.
Comment by Robert Sullivan ~ May 19, 2006 07:22 AM
Hi,
Just a quick note to say I loved reading through this site. I still count myself as an Auckland poet even though I'm living in Honolulu with my family. I was invited to the scrummy sounding festival but we couldn't afford the ticket prices on the waka. What's wrong with being an Auckland poet, whatever that means? Most Aucklanders are from someplace else anyway - my ancestral roots are in Northland, Otago, Galway Bay Ireland, England, Scotland. I'm sure I'm missing a few places there, like Torere in Tairawhiti, and Otaki.
But I know Auckland best. Mate!
I firmly believe in heterogeneity - I don't think we should erase our regional/class/gender/ethnic/sexual differences just for the sake of one-nation politics. But I do think as writers that we're in this beyond commercial competitive imperatives. I read somewhere, I think it was Franz Wright in “Poets and Writers”, that Billy Collins was the only poet in the USA to make a living from his poetry. What's the point of the competitive stuff eh? The judgements?
Btw I know Bluff pretty well and it would have been perfect to return. The nzepc festival sounds like it was amazing and from all the postings I've seen on the net really worth celebrating. These events feed you and I just know that Bluff in oyster season (and beyond) would have done just that. Arohanui to all.
Comment by Robert Sullivan ~ May 20, 2006 08:11 AM
Btw I've remembered the quote about Billy Collins - it was an interview in the New Yorker with John Ashberry.
I reread Richard's posting and realize his comments were about Auckland University poets. I still don't think there's anything wrong with being a poet from there, especially judging from all the positive activity on that campus.
I still love this site - I feel so close to home!
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