A Humoristic dark daydream
Poetry by Carter Clapsadle
Design, Binding & Printing by Julie Baugnet
St. Paul, Minnesota: Bluestem Cottage Press, 2023. Edition of 9.
5.5" x 11" closed, extends to 33”; six panels. Accordion structure. Printed on Rives BFK buff, and grey. Images include a variety of alternative print techniques such as ink drawdowns, stencils, pochoir, and Tetra Pak printing to simulate intaglio. Letterpress printed on the Vandercook Universal 1 using polymer plates. Housed in a Japanese linen paper envelope. Signed and numbered by the artist.
Julie Baugnet: “Concept: Often when we think about dreams we think about the dreams of sleep or the daydreams of our aspirations. We think of dreams in more or less a positive light. But what about the dark dreams? The dreams or visions about revenge, doing something wrong, or even killing? We’ve all said or heard the phrase, ‘I could just kill you!’ Such is the case with this poem. Barking dogs interrupt a writer’s train of thought and in turn those thoughts plot out methods of disposing the dogs. Tinged with dark humor and irony, the author doesn’t enact upon his vision but is caught in a cyclic event.”
I have this recurring dream. I kill a dog.
My neighbor’s dog. I’m trying to write a
poem and it keeps barking. Piercing yaps really;
it disturbs my concentration.
I imagine how do I kill it? …
Ruminating on the methods
Like Agatha Christie,
I put a voodoo curse on them; they
Mysteriously become ill and die.
The vets are confounded …