Passion for poetry at book launch
The Western Cape launch of the poetry collection Monstrously at the mercy by Pretoria poet and musician Rian Britz and Oudtshoorn artist Wilhelm Vincent was a light-hearted affair. Britz and Vincent made a dramatic entrance, with Vincent dressed in drag, sporting a bright blue wig, sunglasses and gloves. The book reading at the Le Roux Gallery in Wilderness on Sunday 17 February was part of the Wilderness Arts Festival. Hannes Visser, award-winning writer / poet and also editor of Oudtshoorn Courant, interviewed Britz who, apart from writing poetry, also is a student and teacher of philosophy. Britz said poetry should be read for pleasure and readers do not necessarily need to have an understanding of the darker underlying thoughts conveyed.
On a question by Visser, Britz said his mother encouraged his love of reading and facilitated his aspirations for writing by providing a typewriter.
"As a child I used to bang away on the typewriter." Later an unconventional French teacher sparked off his interest in poetry in foreign languages and opened a whole new world for him.
"Life itself can be poetic," said Britz. "Travelling can put you in a state of bliss and once in creative mode the words just flow." This, however, does not mean that he works without plan. Before he puts pen to paper, he selects a structure and then aims to stay within a narrow framework. Vincent, a prolific photographer, did the artwork and selected photos for the book. Prompted by Britz he revealed how he went about choosing specific photographs for certain poems, saying selecting photos for the book was a creative process which involved Britz reading text aloud to him.
Monstrously at the mercy was endorsed by head tutor of the Pretoria School of Practical Philosophy, William Wooldridge. "The magic of weaving words that bring to life ideas that reveal the untapped vistas of man's capability as well as his latent insecurities is a rare gift indeed," he said.
The well-known Wilderness author / lecturer and columnist Dr Riana Scheepers also did a reading at the gallery last Thursday.
‘Poetry should be read for pleasure and readers do not necessarily need to have an understanding of the darker underlying thoughts conveyed.’