Occupation Poet, social critic Years active 2006-present Role Poet | Nationality American Name Jon Leon | |
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Notable works The Malady of the Century Books Elizabeth Zoe Lindsay Drink Fanta, The Malady of the Century | ||
"The Malady of the Century" East Coast Launch, 5/10/12
Jon Leon is an American poet and social critic. His debut full-length collection, The Malady of the Century (2012), was selected for publication by Futurepoem in 2012. The editorial panel consisted of Wayne Koestenbaum, Anne Waldman, and Lytle Shaw. Other books include The Arrivistes (2015), Elizabeth Zoe Lindsay Drink Fanta (2011), The Hot Tub (2009), and a number of privately issued titles and special editions.
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Writing for The Quietus in 2015 Sam Riviere notes, "It might be more tempting than usual to wonder to what extent the poetry corresponds to life, but it’s pretty much impossible to measure any gap between intent and effect here; Leon has maintained an unlikely level of obscurity, when most writers are engaged in direct forms of self-exposure. Rumoured to be living in several different cities, approached cautiously even by his devotees, there is something precarious about his public identity, a deliberate reluctance to intrude on the work with an authorial perspective."
Writing for The Thousands in 2012 Wilfred Brandt notes, "Other biographical insights gleaned from him and former editors tell tales of an unconventional, spontaneous, rough-and-tumble intellectual who sites Avital Ronell’s Crack Wars as an influence then name checks The Hand That Rocks The Cradle and Drake's 'Crew Love'."
He has said that models are the only true artists.
Creating one’s self
is arguably no different from
creating a sculpture
or some other fine abstraction.
Jon Leon, "There's Only 1 U"