After the conversation on Saturday in Pordenone a woman asked me if I wanted to read Raymond Carver’s poem “The painter and the fish.” A young Italian artist, Carlo Dalcielo, who does not “really” exist, made several works of art inspired by Carver’s last poem. The exhibition can still be seen in Pordenone.
Part of the idea is that all authors present in Pordenone for the festival are being filmed while reading the poem in either Italian or English.
“Yes, no problem,” I answered.
I particularly enjoyed reading this line by Carver: “By the time he’d reached home/ he’d quit smoking and vowed never/ to talk on the telephone again.”