Scott Ellington's Blog

Pomography

Since nobody’s asked what’s meant by my occasional abuse of the term, POMOGRAPHY; it is, in my mind, very-directly related to the semi-popular corruption of the term, “POMO” (“post-modern”), to mean damned-near anything.

I like the fact that the lower case of most typed fonts make POMOGRAPHY practically-indistinguishable from PORNOGRAPHY.  And that a Google search turns up, among other things, photographs of Pomeranian puppies, Indians of Northern California, apples, and remarkable knots of confusion pretty-much wherever it’s dropped in a sentence.  And that temporarily skipping over it (and jamming it, eventually, into some kind of recognizable context) requires an incredible act of interpersonal faith.

I’m also really fond of the idea that “pomography”, particularly in graphic and photographic art, endlessly crawls the razor’s edge between sexual eccentricity and creations that engage the viewer/creator in fanciful flights of conflict over unconscionable subject matter and uncomfortable self-awareness.   Once upon a time, the key to recognizing PORNOGRAPHY was explicit evidence of a publisher’s commercial interest in the undivided attention of the sweating, addicted (and usually-deeply-hypocritical) viewer.  I think that’s far less true, anymore.

Blindly and typically; “I get off on sophisticated erotica, you’re just a PORNO-FREAK!”

The Apple-connection, it seems to me, is extra-especially fruitful as a means to immerse the user (I think PORNOGRAPHY is primarily a utilitarian trigger to sexual abandon [involving stimulus mechanisms that vary tremendously and unpredictably from user to user]) in unrequited thought.  It’s the customer-oriented, ease-of-use aspect, and the sleek&tempting packaging of an ultra-attractive manifestation of whatever’s expressly forbidden, specifically because, by its very nature, the lure of that thing inspires doubt, logistical juggling, self-examination, and careful evaluation of fundamental, agenda-driven conflicts between intimate desires and arbitrary rules.  To totally estrange yourself from your preferred platform and operating system, in mid-sentence, try it today.

I think it’s a great word for puncturing pomoposity and thinkering with gravity.

I’m confident that clarifies absolutely dick.

16 Jun 12 - Posted by Scott Ellington | Uncategorized