“Cablepoem Across the Ocean” A Semaphore for the Future: Panfuturists' Apparatus

Mykhail Semenko, a renowned poet, founded Panfuturism, a Ukrainian avant-garde movement similar to futurism. He was a leading figure in the Executed Renaissance, a generation of Ukrainian poets, writers, and artists persecuted by the Soviet regime. Semenko has written countless poems throughout his life, “Cablepoem Across the Ocean” being one of many. This particular piece is part of the Semaphore for the Future, a futurist literary almanac published by the Association of Panfuturists in Kyiv. In addition to Semenkos poem, it contained his Panfuturist manifesto and works by seven other Ukrainian poets and writers. The page featured above is cable poem six, a part of eight cable poems featured in the almanac. In red italic capital letters, the phrase “Shatter Capitalism Into Shards!” is featured on top of the page, followed by a call to mine the earth for natural resources. Semenko wrote mostly visual poetry or as he called it “poetry-painting.” Inspired by F. Marinetti themes, he would experiment with form and use language that would shock the reader.