Ordinary Paradise
Description
"While representing the best of human endeavor, works of art have become ordinary features of our lives, familiar and reliably present," writes Richard Teleky. "They are, however, extraordinary. So extraordinary, in fact, that in themselves they are a kind of paradise."
In Ordinary Paradise, acclaimed author, critic and editor Richard Teleky considers a variety of artistic forms-from novels and poems to paintings and sculptures to movies and musical compositions-in celebration of the creative achievements that surround us and affect our daily lives. He examines, as well, some of the challenges and tensions in any artist's life.
The essays in Ordinary Paradise challenge conventional wisdom and exemplify a dynamic and lively critical approach, pointing out troubling trends in contemporary appreciation of art and culture. They reveal the rewarding complexities of the demanding art of translation, the nostalgic power of re-reading in provoking self-assessment, and the fraught connection between language, silence and identity as they relate to marginalized voices. Teleky immerses himself into ideas of truth, beauty and humanity, and in so doing, provides a compelling exemplar for engaging with contemporary culture and learning the innumerable lessons that artistic accomplishments have to teach us.
More details
Person
Richard Teleky is an author, editor and educator who has published a dozen books of poetry and prose (both fiction and non-fiction), including most recently The Blue Hour (Exile Editions, 2017) and The Hermit in Arcadia (Exile Editions, 2012). His novel The Paris Years of Rosie Kamin (Steerforth, 1998) won the Harold Ribalow Prize. He is a professor in the Humanities Department of York University and lives in Toronto.