Give Me Your Brain

Note: I once wrote a play called "The Great Brain Robbery." This poem is from that period of time, in 1973, when I thought some things were much funnier than I do now. And, the basic premise of the play, that we are unconsciously surrendering our brains, still holds up.

Give Me Your Brain

you're certainly a silly one

afraid to give a brain

the whole world's grabbing for it

release it while you're sane

we need a brain like yours to use

in service to our cause

it won't help you once you're crazy

filled with riddles and with flaws

you're no Einstein nor a Curie

just a normal filled with fury

you're no Jesus why not please us

give that brain away

such a silly greedy one

clutching to your head

all your brain cells added up

won't matter when you're dead

give me your brain

it's not so much

a sibling cerebral skunk crutch

let it go now in this exchange

give me oh give me hey give me your brain

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The Mysteries of Love

The Mysteries of Love -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, acrylic, 14 x 18, painted at 2065 Pennington Road, Ewing Township, NJ, not dated.

The Towers of Vettunder

The Towers of Vettunder - painting by Douglas Brent Smith, acrylic. This one feels like another cover to a science fiction novel. In the 70's I might have tried to write that book. Maybe it's not too late.

With Every Available Device

With Every Available Device -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, December 1976. This is another of the series of acrylic paintings that I did in Oak Lawn, IL, living with Mom and Jack for a brief few months. My favorite art movement is surrealism, and this one clearly emulates the work of the surrealists, in particular Yves Tanguy . When I moved from Colorado to Newtown in 2016 I threw away a number of my paintings, many from this period of time. I did not like them enough to keep them, I guess although I feel some regret at heaving them, one can't save everything and I live in an apartment that's about 600 square feet. No real storage room. This one survived the cut.

Do The Math

Do The Math -- pencil sketch by Douglas Brent Smith, 20 October, 1999. Is it odd that I don't usually draw in pencil? There is so much more opportunity to make changes in pencil, both additions and subtractions. Somehow, though, ink has usually been my choice. I think it might have something to do with contrast. For this rendering I increased the contrast in the file and saturation to bring the drawing out more. I also did what I could to minimize the notebook lines, even covering over the holes and cropping beyond the wire binding. I'm not sure what my head was thinking at the time -- we were shopping for a car to replace the Chevy Cavalier that "drowned" in a storm.

glutton

precisely because i can not tame you or hold you to promises you'll never keep for the fumbling from friction and tension weeping in the night wondering where you are incredibly over the constant terrors you touch me with a velvet glove over fondness lost losing with the lies from eyes once true now gazing on weakness crushed under your strength i wonder why i want you more than before. douglas brent smith

87th Place Oak Lawn, Ilinois

87th Place Oak Lawn, Ilinois -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, 1977. I lived with my mother for a brief time in 1977. My girlfriend at the time, Annie, wanted to escape herself to Florida (haven't seen her since) and so she plotted with my mom for me to move to Oak Lawn. The first gift my mom gave me there was a blue T-shirt that said "Wellinthehellis Oak Lawn, IL?". Jack, Mom's husband, was mostly on the road working but when he was home he'd often give mom a hard time so she wanted me there to calm things down. Jack and I got along great but he was an alcoholic and would hit mom -- but not when I was there, which was why I was there. After I returned to New Jersey Mom would eventually have Jack arrested and Jack straightened up. He stopped drinking. He became safe and loving. They had some happy years together. This painting is a self-portrait. I was blessed with lots of time so I painted. Gosh, how I loved painting. I used acrylics because they dried fast....

Machine Work

Machine Work - collage by douglas brent smith, 1980-81 Note: As a part-time security guard, I sometimes would read books to pass the time. One night my job required me to guard and observe a location from my car -- a black 1966 Volkswagen beetle. It was night, so I brought a kerosene lantern to read by. It was almost like camping out, as long as I kept watch on the construction site and reported anything out of the unusual. Nothing was out of the unusual. That has nothing to do with this collage, except for the one line on John Updike. Run, Rabbit, Run.

Cold Hard Cash

Cold Hard Cash - collage by douglas brent smith, 1980 from journal #15, eccentric nods, 1980.

One More Cosmic Landscape

One More Cosmic Landscape -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, acrylic, 12 x 16, December 1973. Here are two previous views of the same painting, photos that are at an angle. Discards, sure, but also interesting: One More Cosmic Landscape -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, acrylic, 12 x 16, December 1973. Here's a cropped photo of the same painting. I couldn't figure out how to rotate it but I like seeing it at this angle.

One Small Corner of an Ocean

One Small Corner of an Ocean - sketch by douglas brent smith

douglas brent smith

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