Poetry by Alan Halsey
Calligraphy by Thomas Ingmire
San Francisco, 2012
Unique book
8.75 x 10.25 inches, 8 pages
White Persimmon is the title of a poem by Alan Halsey. His poem can be viewed both as a “form” poem and a performance piece. In describing the performance Halsey writes: “Three groups of people speak or sing in whispers, as if telling a secret (they’ve seen something rare & wonderful). The ‘choirs’ perform according to a script. They repeat their words slowly & with pauses, each voice setting its own rhythm (unison is definitely not required), freely improvising pitch etc. The work builds until all the voices are heard. Once this is established the voices gradually subside into silence.” It was this image of the sound building and subsiding that inspired the work.