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In Total Art, Laura Paul wrestles with issues of art and violence in a book-length meditation spanning the mediums of painting, photography, movies, music, and more. Inspired by the term Gesamtkunstwerk, the unification of multiple arts for one expressive aim, Paul pushes the limits of what it means to let art, or love, consume all of life until nothing else remains. By reckoning with our sharpest moments of brutality and our most extravagant displays of creativity, Paul shows that art isn’t extraneous to survival, but at the very center of it. A timely examination for a frightening era, this book isn’t only a bold argument about the need for beauty during upheaval, but is as compassionate as it is commanding.
Upcoming Events:
💥 January 30th, 2026 - Total Art reading at Poetry and Biscuits in Chicago, IL.
💥 April 16-19th, 2026 - Transgressive Ecologies: Writing Political Urgency through Radical Poetics panel at the New Orleans Poetry Festival
Past Events:
💥 December 18th, 2025 - Total Art video poetry workshop and screening at PO Box Collective in Chicago, IL
💥 September 25th, 2025 - Total Art at Pocket Lab Backyard Reading in St. Paul, MN with Mike Corrao, Alicia Wright, and L.M. Brimmer
💥 September 20th, 2025 - Total Art at Porchlight Literary Arts Center in Iowa City with Vi Khi Nao and Steve Barbaro
💥 July 28th, 2025 - Total Art at Tangible Books in Chicago, IL
💥 April 12th, 2025 - Total Art at Iron Rail Library in St. Roch Metalworks as part of New Orleans Poetry Festival