MEDIA IS THE MESSAGE
So, what exactly are we looking at here? Concrete Poetry, often referred to as Visual Poetry, Avantgarde Poetry, Shape Poetry, Type Writer Poetry, Word Art, or simply a postmodern movement arose in the 1950’s in Brazil. Concretism did not take hold in the Unite States until the 1970’s. Concrete Poetry is the fusing of words(poetry), and art. Some of it is legible, and some is not, but the “point” of this sect of poetry is to bring light to the creation process and the medium or material used and how this effects, enhances, or hinders a poem’s meaning. It is often said that the medium is the message.
After much research, I have come to understand that not only is the material, tools, and media the focus but actually this aged movement is actually commenting on how we as academics, students, teachers, poets, literati and media consumers conceptualize poetry. We are taught to analyze the words on the page, and that is all we ever do in English Literature classes in high school or grade school. Concrete Poetry uproots the way that we read, interpret, and understand language. Concrete Poetry is known to disregard temporarily and focus on space.
We consume poetry at a very young age with works such as those by Dr. Suess. By high school most students come to hate poetry because they have been conditioned to analyze, rip apart, and find the “true meaning” of the piece. Concrete Poetry battles against the way we have come to understand literature through a signified/signifier system because it is so abstract and the focus is not to analyze but merely, to view.
Below, is a timeline of Literary Movements and Works. Note that only a brief mention of Concrete Poetry is displayed around 1952 &1958 but no examples or external links are provided to allow readers to view that form of poetry. It is mentioned but basically disregarded because it is not a concept deemed important to the mathematical, analytical world in which we live. The lack of information, or up to date information, and the lack of interest in the genre as a whole may contribute to why it is not considered Canonical enough to be taught in schools. Literary Timeline
Concrete Poetry? 