Dial-a-Poem 2.0 2.0 is an homage to and adaptation of poet John Giorno’s 1960s/70s work Dial-a-Poem, in which you could call a phone line and any one of a selection of recorded poems and music would be played for you, from the likes of Allen Giinsburg, Patti Smith, Joe Brainard, Frank O’Hara, John Cage, Amira Biraka, and many others. The late ‘60s were their own historic era of social upheaval and transformation; now, we are in the midst of another upheaval, and the Anonymous Aardvark Collective is launching a new iteration for a new time. The Anonymous Aardvark Collective is comprised of upcoming Pioneer Works resident Laia, along with artists Maia Chao, Tina Hanaé, and Maryam Gunja, as well as creative technologist Aditya Balasubramanian.

With Dial-a-Poem 2.0 2.0, they have developed their own phone service—this time for “societies grieving the pain of isolation, separation, and distance.” The idea behind Dial-a-Poem 2.0 2.0 is pretty simple: you dial a number, and a recorded voice shares a moment of art with you. In a twist on Giorno's model, the Dial-a-Poem 2.0 2.0 readers have selected pieces they didn't author, but are dear to them in other ways.

Dial: 818-532-5242. Readers are standing by.