From the Desk of Pozzo! - Jonathan West

Take a letter, Lucky. Type, HOG!!


Dear Sweaty Man,


I am Pozzo! I beleive you promised me a ten pound chicken. My companion and I waited for this chicken until we ran out of carrots and had to eat turnips. Then we ran out of turnips.
You owe me a chicken, schmartzy!


Sincerely,
Pozzo!


Secretary General to the Army of the

From the Desk of Pozzo! -Faith Levine

If we're going to send hate mail to the art museum when they kick us out, we must treat Art v Craft in the same manner. I regret that this had to happen.

Take dictation, PIG!

Dear Ms. Levine,

I am Pozzo! I would like to post a complaint. My associate and I were ejected from your "hip alternative art and craft fair" last Saturday morning without grounds, and I demand recompense in the form of the termination of the employment of the offending employee (or employees) from your organization.

It is my understanding that you consider this event a "showcase for emerging... artists working in many traditional and non-traditional mediums" and yet your people are unwilling to tolerate the appearanceof a master, I say, a veritable MASTER of the Performing Arts and his humble associate, that is, myself. Perhaps humble is not the right word. Are you listening to me, pig? Type!

Your excuse for this ejection was weak. If this is "a counter economy, a way to avoid mass-produced goods and large corporations" then protecting your vendors' right to sell their goods on the basis of a rental of the space, the property, is hypocritical. The choice to remove us from the premises enforces the bourgeois institution of private property ownership, which we as "DIY artists" must struggle with daily. I understand it is sometimes necessary to play into the prevailing capitalist system (renting a booth, or renting the hall) to achieve something. It is not necessary to impose and enforce these rules on other artists!

My associate is, as I said, a Master of the Performing arts, but surely considering the ineffable nature of the product, the experience, that we sell and considering that we do not have the same space requirements as the vendor booths we cannot be expected to pay a rental fee and still maintain any profitability. Allowing your patrons the opportunity to pay, of their own volition a mere dollar for a bit of local color, for a performance by a Master of the Performing Arts within an event that masquerades as a venue for alternative art, presents little competition and does no significant damage to any ofthe rented vendors. I guarantee that, had we been allowed to perform, the customer's experience at your event would be improved by Lucky'spresence. There are a number of establishments in this city that recognize the value of what we do and who have welcomed Lucky with open arms and with dollar bills. The Pink Banana Theatre company, Darling Hall, the Performing Arts Showcase, a number of cafes and bars, even the police officers at the fireworks and outside Summerfest grounds were all far more accommodating than your staff when we presented ourselves in the same manner. That is, without prior notice or permission.

I thank you in advance for your hasty action in dealing with this complaint and request some validation that the offending woman has been removed from your employ in much the same manner that my associate and I were removed from your premises Saturday morning, that is: escorted to the curb outside. A photograph will do.

Yours,

Pozzo

Archive: Prior to 2007

9/23 Center Street Daze, Sept. 23 2006
“Insurgent Theatre special deals, today only! Deal #1: Your own play, $1. You name the characters and then watch us write, produce and perform your play before your very eyes! Deal #2 Touch a butt, $.25, you pay us!” We sold two communist T-shirts, and enough crappy renditions of Julius Cesar and ass grabbing to make back what the site cost us.

10/7+8 Riverwest Artwalk, Oct. 7+8 2006
The first appearance of our friends Lucky and Pozzo. They traveled through the community spreading good cheer and performance art. Highlights include: drink from a dog dish, strike his companion (Pozzo) , sing Broadway, rebel, climb a tree, and do unendurable back-flips. More Pictures!

10/14 East Side Underfoot, Oct. 14 2006
Lucky and Pozzo's second adventure at a Milwaukee festival. Highlights include: playing dead, juggling a suitcase, more back-flips, telling thinly veiled racist jokes in public, dancing to the customer's terrible harmonica playing.

10/18 MIFF Gala at MAM, Oct. 18 2006
Lucky and Pozzo thought the Milwaukee Art Museum would be a good place for Lucky's performance art mastery. It is and art museum. The Gala party for the Milwaukee International Film Festival seemed like a good excuse for dozens of potential customers to be collected in the space. Highlights include: walking in without paying, dancing, being kicked out, Pozzo's complaint, sent to the offensive woman who kicked him out.