Sunday

Rewriting Brisbane (mad project)

psychogeographic Brisbane - wack - Rino Breebaart

Related reading: Ai Weiwei on Beijing and Madness

Update: I've since published this book: The Humid Canopy - a psychogeography of Brisbane 

8 comments:

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  2. (corrected a typo) I wish you smooth writing and would be interested to read it. What gives me pause is not knowing if I'm seeing the whole story or perceiving it accurately. I'd like to see how you handle that.

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  3. I wasn't familiar with the term psychogeography but like the idea, inasmuch as I understand it. I look forward to seeing some results!

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  4. Sounds daft? Yes, actually. But nothing makes more sense than Will Self on a good day - so God speed on your quest - it will be interesting, informative and, with luck, enlightening.

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  5. Brisbane may appear Banal, and compared to my home town (Melbourne) Brisbane's streets disappointedly aren't as seething with the culture of the urbanity and urban history. However this is just painting over what really is happening in this city.

    Bizarrely, it is hard to treat Brisbane as a city. Like much of Queensland it is caught between being nostalgic about it's country and rural roots, while rushing head-long into developing bright and shiny glass soul-less structures over truly historic sites.

    This bi-polar heart is what I feel makes it hard to develop an urban culture here in Brisbane. And to that end, the wasteland of suburbanality (not a real word - yet) occupies this space - as you more or less put it.

    Swimming pools, V8 Commodore cars, Landcruiser Pradoes, Homes with 5 bedrooms and a media room, all with country music blaring our of their expensive speakers. The landscape of Psychogeography? Well, the mind is often more interested in the people here. And to be honest, I think there's a story to be had about the people around me.

    The people that move within this landscape I feel may be the place to begin. The people here are different to the people I grew up with in Melbourne. I have much to critique, much to admire. Much that I wish people would grow beyond.

    I'll be interested to see what comes of this idea.

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  6. thanks for the feedback guys.

    scott - yes, Brisbane and cars... something special ;-). 2.3 cars in the driveway, one covered with a tarp, and a rusting diff somewhere to the side of the house.
    I too want to see where it leads. BNE is in a transition phase, and it's changed radically since the 80s; the signs of that past are disappearing but people don't seem to mind greatly. The suburbia is pretty bad, subjective-wise, but the city, or the old city boundary, is interesting... There is a lot of (even mundane) historical stuff waiting to be reinterpreted - and I mean to avoid tourism/historical cliches at all costs.

    So I'll post some updates on here as it begins. No doubt some typewriters will be involved.

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  7. This is slightly related (btw what a (daft, perhaps, and also) wonderful idea!):
    Have you read "How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe?" It's not exactly what you're talking about, but the ideas of time, metaphysical concepts, and different tenses in the same story are definitely alive in it. It's an amazing book, maybe it will help give you some ideas too!

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  8. satchmo - I hadn't heard of that book - but I have been thinking a lot about SF lately - so this might slot in just right... thanks for the tip.

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Nice comments are welcome!