roomthily

My Name is Hou Je Bek and I’m a Psychogeographer

It covers the ‘domination’ of Iain Sinclair over the field as if he is the Jamie Beswick of the funny walk, the uncertain status of Will Self as psychogeographer, the tactic (or is it a strategy) to coin terms like Deep Topology or Schizocartography and in general how something that is as vaguely defined as psychogeography can be prevented from abuse by snobs and careerist fucks who use the word without ever having pained themselves with the anti-modernist sandpaper redemption of situationist-Marxism.

I recently asked my thesis supervisor what she thought about the increased popularity of psychogeography, as I am somewhat ambivalent about it myself. She thought it was a good thing, but I think she meant this in regards to my future career, because she believes I have caught the wave intime. My own ambivalence is hinged around a practise that I consider to be - by degree - subversive,underground, anarchic and operating against the grain.

In my experience psychogeography is continuously rediscovered with its own booms and busts. What did William Burroughs say about art: It’s a three letter word. Psychogeography is a fifteen letter word, it’s not a profession or a career or an occupation, it’s an attitude like vegetarianism or protestantism which are important to people but not by necessity a reason for people (like vegetarians) to get along or agree on even the most basic facts of life.

via cryptoforest