ABOUT US


Electricity is on the move. So, too, is language. The 'Lectric Collective is interested in orchestrating collisions between the language arts and other art forms, to re-establish a kinetic relationship among them, and to ignite artistic mobility through its diverse contemporary vehicles. We are devoted to process and the healthy continuation of artistic junctions.

Together, the collective has written one collaborative chapbook (One Hundred), a short play (Breadsongs), has created a variety of visual works, and curated a number of events, detailed on the PROJECTS page.

The collective was formed by Jillian Roberts, Kelsa Trom, and Sarah Rothberg in March 2010. They once resided happily together in Oakland, CA and are now scattered between San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Brooklyn.

March 13, 2012

Ekphrastic! (5)


All in all, Ekphrastic! (5) was a hit.  The gallery was jam-packed; even Lowell Darling (http://www.lowelldarling.com/), star of the current show at Krowswork, delighted us with his presence (and hilarity). The collaborations were a pleasure and quite different from our previous Ekphrastic! shows.  In this round, the poets and artists worked in pairs and the artistic (non-poetry) component was one of endurance, performed over time, simultaneous to the reading. The difference made for a more integrated experience that was kinda like this:

Wonderhaven. Jen Burris hushed us up. She lilted her collection, “Opera,” by candlelight as we journeyed through the delicate terrains of Christine Elfman’s photographs. Christine guided us through the landscape from an antique projector tucked in among the crowd. She switched the images at particular moments, harmonizing with even the intonation.

Hypnosis. Ben Mirov and Nick Almquist invoked the spirit of the interweb, full-time jobs, black boxes. They pushed cubes and static through the mouths of everyone in the audience. Ben’s words and Nick’s GIF’s churned at a measured pace. Nick’s stunning neon videos framed and reframed Ben’s refrains. A powerful machine. We all laid down on the floor in submission, in agreement.

Bloodlust. Kevin Killian laid his bare heart out across the stage, describing an otherworldly tale of heartbreak, seduction, and leachery. His words groped the photographs behind him: polished figures of a world adumbrated by the supernatural. Though Kevin Killian and Adrian Buckmaster live 3,000 miles from each other and have never met, their mindscapes intersected that night.

Jill.