Name: Lala Drona
Hometown: Denver, Colorado
Current City: Paris, France (soon to be Beijing, China)
Occupation: Painter / vidéaste
Age: 29 years
What does poetry mean to you?
Poetry provides an outlet for me to express things I am otherwise unable to express in my paintings. Poetry, like other arts, is a sacred moment of connection to the self, but is also a connection to a collective consciousness. It is strongest in the instant of inspiration, and that is why I expose myself to the muse in front of the camera. I create poetry spontaneously and record it in order to catch the immediacy of each emotion and each word expressed at its birth. (See video for “La Politesse” and “The Physical” links below).
Favorite poem or poet:
I have many favorite poems and poets, but my favorite poem at this moment in time is “Thanx 4 Nothing” by John Giorno.
Why do you like this poem?
This poem resonates with me because after living in Paris for 4.5 years, I’m now moving to Beijing, China. I’ve literally and figuratively broken my teeth in this city, exhausted my creative muscles to the bone. I consider Paris my arch nemesis and my lover. She simultaneously asphyxiates and offers relief:
[I want to thank you for your kindness and praise,
thanks for celebrating me,
thanks for the resounding applause,
I want to thank you for taking everything for yourself
and giving nothing back,
you were always only self-serving,
thanks for exploiting my big ego
and making me a star for your own benefit,
thanks that you never paid me,
thanks for all the sleaze,
thanks for being mean and rude
and smiling at my face,
I am happy that you robbed me,
I am happy that you lied
I am happy that you helped me,
thanks, grazie, merci beaucoup.]
Paris is a beautiful narcissist, but I’ve experienced all that I can for now, and now it’s time to open myself up to new inspiration for my work. Such as in the poem, I wish all my exhilarating experiences onto those whom are left behind and those still to come:
[May every drug I ever took
come back and get you high,
may every glass of vodka and wine I’ve drunk
come back and make you feel really good,
numbing your nerve ends
allowing the natural clarity of your mind to flow free…]
“Thanx 4 Nothing” by John Giorno is my farewell for now to Paris. See you in a few years. Peace, love and art. —Lala
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Lala Drona is a painter, vidéaste, and novel writer. Her name comes from the Spanish word “la ladrona,” which means “the thief." It appears she's adopted Picasso's famous saying, "a good artist copies, a great artist steals." To create her work, Lala displays, claims and is inspired, thus, by the theme of "the theft." She has created through her site, Based on a Fact, a vast artistic universe based on her life: The Lala World. “The Physical” and “La Politesse" are two of her most recent gifts to this land.