Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Write A Dada Poem

Since Dada was an art movement that considered almost anything to be art, especially anything involving a random element, this technique to write a Dada poem is actually extremely easy compared to most forms of poetry. Still, artistic license is always permitted, and you can take this basic method and build on it in a variety of different ways.


Instructions


1. Select an interesting section of text.


2. Cut each word out individually.


3. Put the paper words in a bag, or pile them on your work surface, and mix.


4. Pull words out one by one and write them down until you run out, creating a uniquely randomized poem.


5. Keep in mind that you still control the line breaks - moving them around can create quite a lot of variation in the meaning and feel of your Dada poem.


6. Try some variations: cut out phrases instead of individual words, for a slightly more coherent result, or start with a few pages of text and cut out only the phrases that grab your attention.