May 2004

bio

art by donald langosy

Douglas Dvorkin is the son of Ron Dvorkin, the host of the Saturday night reading at Barnes & Noble Bookstore in Encino.

Though his life was tragically cut short at the age of twenty, Douglas was a talented poet. His work is lit by the black sun of heightened empathy and is charged with the urgency and emptiness of youth. It is both heartbreaking and reassuring.

He is survived by his parents and sister, his daughter, and his poetic legacy.

sidewalk II

from the omnivorous view of the basin
we see the men enshrouded among
the pigeon-stained statues of Jesus
clenching a small handful of nickel pipe dreams
forming the shape of their palm under the
placid sun laughing between concrete trees
and smiling their sad earth grins

we see the women with their machine gun eyes
count and howl the decor
gorging on trash can meat
as the traffic light sends them up and down
the street and the dead bludgeoned trucks ripen
under the sun's face

we see the spirit of man
dormant in puddle corners holed down
in unconscious celebration of light searching
for immortality and answers to immortal questions
alienating the blades of green growing long with instinct

if we peer through the paths parted with lilac
up in the faceless ceiling mirror we see ourselves intact
the dying dead of a transcending vision only reading
walk
and
don't walk
as the city's greatest men snore loudly
rotting yellow in their good fearing twine.

copyright 2004 Douglas Dvorkin