Hello again all,

We are pleased to have received such an overwhelming response to the re-launching of THE THINGIST.

As many of you may already know, The Thing has been in a kind of hibernation over the past few years, having moved its offices from Postmasters Gallery to the Clocktower Gallery. Now after great discussion, we are actively seeking a physical exhibition space, grant-writing, fundraising and generally “think-tanking” for the future.

The stars seem to have aligned. The social and intellectual environment seems ripe for a new beginning. (or plug in your own socialist realism aphorism here.)

But what of the new and what of the old? What is still relevant and how to take these into still unchartered territories?

This is where we would like to begin with The Thingist.

(And forgive me the lengthy email but…joy, joy!)

In the past, The Thingist was a terrific resource for a wide range of concerns on the cusp of art, new media and social discourse. The breadth of knowledge (and quirkiness) of its participants created a one-of-kind mailinglist.

And in the event of this exciting new phase for The Thing, we look forward to each of your distinctive voices again.

As always a malleable thing, we will be more actively shaping how this list functions. And your thoughts are essential to this process; but already there a few aspects that we gathered from the past.

• When new members subscribe, we will attempt to introduce them to the group. Maybe this seems a bit formal, but we will keep it simple and low-key. However, for the moment we encourage each of you to provide a tiny little update about your current craziness within your first post.

• As always a gentlemen’s code is assumed in this realm. Other listers’ email addresses should never become a part of your personal email flurries (although personal banter should, of course, be delivered more personally.)

• Because we are carefully expanding the list, at first, there will be a rather loose moderation. This may result in a turnover of post from instant to a few hours. With this, let’s all try to make posts meaningful. Often one’s Inbox becomes cluster-fucked with response like “yes” (or “NO”.) And understandably, sometimes there is nothing more powerful than a simple “yes”; but this has the habit of creating endless posts to open and eventually affects the vitality of the discussion.

Okay, let’s cap it off there for now. Parameters are an elephant over the alps!

I am Arfus Greenwood. Some of you know me as an hysterical writer/curator, therefore meaning flustered, New York art personality, who might fall down drunk in one moment and then deliver a diatribe on the little other, in the next.

Presently, together with Wolf, I have the time and perverse interest to read every little item that each of you write. I am deliberate but I like joy and sublimity is my filter. (Damn, that’s starting to sound like a sexy personal ad… but I refuse to be self-aware about it… ?) Anyway, I write anything. I am a writing whore and fiction is my focus. (But this is not your concern; regardless of what you write, I assume that it is all a kind of fiction.)

If I have anything to say in terms of assisting in shaping the list, I will sneak up on you privately. (No one need know.)

But for now…

The forum is open!

Cheers, Bis Bald,

arfus