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Gregory Fitzsimmons (Hobo 23)
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Swan My Mother Said :: Hobo 23

Speculative Ontology

Written by hobo23@gmail.comMay 20, 2013March 4, 2019

Like Thomas Pynchon’s rainbow, the swan appears in an upward streak of light in the sky.

Posted in Ontology, Polaroids, Skrying, Uncanny Objects.

Swan My Mother Said

"'Swan,' my mother said, sensing my excitement. It pattered the bright water, flapping its great wings, and lifted into the sky." Patti Smith

Armed with eccentric cameras and recording equipment, and intrigued by the opening passage of Patti Smith's memoir Just Kids, I've explored Humboldt Park almost everyday for over five years in search of a giant majestic white swan she describes having seen while walking with her mother when she was a child in Chicago. Early during my hunt, I realized that I was seeking something that is no longer in the park, which has changed dramatically from what it was in the 1950s. But I have continued to look, photograph, and record the absence of the swan, as if it is still there, just waiting to be seen. During my hunts, I’ve discovered places and moments within the park and nearby on the surrounding streets where the swan’s presence-as-absence as been almost palpable for me.

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Previous Post Now that it’s spring, there are many light displays on the surface of the lagoon that trace-out the presence on the swan.

Next Post The Park House. I’ve been using cyanotype emulsion and film to collect the swan-light in two stages and fix it’s presence in three dimensions. My entire process is being done in the park.

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