One of my various dream projects for the summer, inspired by Dr. Cowan in some ways (what isn’t these days?), and forcing me to publication on this blog in view of the danger of intellectual stagnation of my friends, is to discover the new voice for the new myth that is emerging from the dregs of Modernity. No simple task. My basic strategy is to explore modernity (high modernity and low), then contemporary art, and finally societal expression (via politics and culture) as a window to understanding the new emerging voice. No simple strategy. This involves several manageable and down-to-earth tasks, such as continuing to read, visiting museums, paying attention to politics (with an artist’s view), and doing fun things such as listening to Pandora a lot and reading up on the bands.
I am writing this to you in hopes that I may incite some sort of collective inquiry into where art–in particular poetry–stands in terms of its form–and nothing is (completely) formless–and current direction. What separates high art from, say, certain popular artforms. For instance, does certain music that I listen to for pleasure attain a respected status as “real art” as opposed to pop “trash?” If so, what’s the difference?
So, really just two questions,
1) Is this overall inquiry warranted, worthwhile, already answered?
2) Is there “real” art in any of the popular forms of music? If so, what’s the standard?

Also, as an update on our outpost in Irving. Michael has brought home several large posters from UD archives that have since been pinned on our living room walls, including one of Dr. Cowan and one of Dr. Olenick. Kind of weird, but great.