Dispatch #6
If last week’s discussion was about “yearning,” this week was about doing. Artist, writer, publisher, dramaturg, skateboarder Maxwell Neely-Cohen visited our class, and left us with several insights on pursuing our interests, even if they seem disconnected.
He started by sharing that his practice exists on a gradient with publishing on one side and performance on the other. Publishing means things that are meant to be distributed, while performances are experienced, and once the moment has passed, it’s over. It’s an interesting provocation, because the nature of being online and posting seems performative in many ways, even if there is documentation. Many of Maxwell’s works highlight this tension across different mediums (plays, websites, spreadsheets, essays), and I was intrigued that he said that what unifies the work is a desire for participation from others — editors, dancers, or writers. Sometimes getting others to connect with you meaningfully requires you to forge your way first.
He shared The HTML Review with us, which is an online publication he co-founded that comes out on the vernal equinox each year. I like that it exists only as a website. Contributions from the previous issue include writing with interactive components, like a shape that obstructs text, or an essay written by two authors separately and then spliced together once done. Sometimes the contributors have no previous coding experience, just an idea. He reminded us that back in the MySpace era, every random person was coding custom websites. A little info can go a long way, and once it’s out in the world others can connect.
This is true in some of his more casual projects, also. For example, he’s created a spreadsheet that documents songs that are stuck in his head when he wakes up in the morning. I found this amusing, as I also have woken up with the “Bagel Bites” commercial jingle in my head and was eager to tell him. I like that this project highlights how customized data can be when you’re collecting it on your own. Another project called 10,000 Drum Machines features websites made by Maxwell that turn the browser into a musical instrument. “Machines want to make noise,” he reminded us.
While we talked about ways to distribute work, we also talked about building work on existing platforms. Maxwell’s hot take was that Substack has had a more negative impact on writing than generative AI. Many students in the class agreed — while Substack democratizes writing, the volume of it encourages writers to write into recognizable formats. Instead of experimentation, the platform rewards being a data type, which is less human.
As Maxwell shared a video of a choreographed piece he developed with the New York Choreographic Institute, he said that the costume designer could easily also be a painter, sometimes they just need the opportunity to try. A personal editorial lens dances across formats.
