CHRISTIAN ORTEGA
This site is about the books, art, photos and videos of the poet and artist Christian Ortega.
2000
The 1st book by Ortega is an accumulation of over a hundred sayings that concern everyday experience. Each saying was born out of the author's musings over the course of a year (the last year of the 20th century to be exact.) "Epigrams" was originally printed in the year 2000 in a signed limited edition and sold at the Printed Matter bookstore in New York, NY.
2006
The 2nd book by Ortega is a collection of poems written in the late 1980's. Beginning around the time the author was sixteen years old. They are presented as an offering to the voiceless of all kin. "IKWYDIT8" spans the notable events of the decade as well as Ortega's nascent period. It is lovingly dedicated to the never ending spirit of Amanda Milan.
2009
The 3rd book by Ortega consists of 100 Concepts and 100 Titles. Main themes are the juxtaposition of rough and smooth. Rough being described by Concepts which are more abstract in content. Smooth being described by Titles which retain an epigrammatic structure. "CONCEPTS and TITLES" is a dialogic series about ideas, a careful meditation on process and form and a playful celebration of language and its ability to charm and galvanize.
2014
The 4th book by Ortega is a reflection on affairs of the heart. Featuring over thirty poems on the themes of Love, Sex and Hate. Red is most associated with danger, sacrifice, passion, fire, beauty, blood, anger and happiness--all of which are expressed within the work. "RED POEMS" chronicles Ortega's life and love's from the 90's to 00's. It includes the controversial "POEM FOR POPE".
The 5th book by Ortega is an extended portrait of a life lived out online in honest and poignant details, thoughts and expressions--both high and low--played out on various social media platforms over a tumultuous ten year period. The work documents the seminal people, places and events in Ortega's life during the years 2010-2020. It depicts a new biographical form, in a contemporary literary context, detailing the personal accounts of an emerging artist's career from being a dreamer to a doer and the ensuing chaos and rewards that manifested.
