Written by Jared Millar
It was around 1976 that Philip K. Dick moved into a third-story condominium on Civic Center Drive just east of downtown Santa Ana, living and writing there until dying of a massive stroke just months before the release of the Ridley Scott-directed Blade Runner, the first in a long run of Hollywood adaptations of his novels and stories …
Starting tonight at Grand Central Art Center in downtown Santa Ana, artist Tim Youd will pay homage to the cult science fiction author and amphetamine aficionado by typing out the entirety of the 1977 novel A Scanner Darkly on a single piece of paper fed repeatedly into an Olympia SG-3 electric typewriter (the same model used to write the original manuscript). Similar recent performances by Youd include typing Charles Bukowski’s Post Office on an Underwood Champion in front of the Terminal Annex post office in Los Angeles and typing Kurt Vonnegut’s Breakfast of Champions on a Smith Corona Coronamatic 2200 at the Vonnegut Memorial Library in Indianapolis.
If you know Dick, you’ll be there for the very first chapter of Youd’s typewriter performance during the November 2nd Santa Ana Art Walk, or if not be sure to stop by during the run of the engagement to watch the artist pounding away at his trusty vintage typewriter!
First Edition Cover of A Scanner Darkly by Phillip K. Dick
The Tim Youd performance continues at Grand Central through the month of November. Grand Central Art Center, 125 N Broadway Santa Ana, CA 92701 (714) 567-7233
