The cyclical message of this painting, Let if Come, Let it Go, emerges from John Giorno’s long engagement with Tibetan Buddhism. An avid practitioner of the religion, Giorno draws both spiritual and linguistic inspiration from this tradition, yet the phrase is broad enough to encompass a plethora of associations such erotics, relationships, pain and politics. Since the 1970s, John Giorno has exhibited visual pieces generated from his poetry. Featuring short excerpts from his writing or phrases that have continually haunted him, these paintings, set on monochrome or rainbow backgrounds in their signature font, transform words to image. ​

The work of John Giorno embraces two disciplines: poetry and art, which have been a source of mutual fascination and inspiration for the artist. Harboring a close kinship with William Burroughs, Robert Rauschenberg, and Andy Warhol, for whom he starred in the famous film, Sleep (1963), Giorno is recognized today as one of the most influential poets of his generation. He is also considered the inventor of Performance Poetry, and of Dial-A-Poem – a free telephone line to connect listeners to recordings of original works of poetry. Giorno’s words transform to images in his Poem Paintings which are short excerpts from his writings, phrases that have continually haunted him. At the crossroads between poetry, visual arts, music and performance, Giorno’s work directs itself toward a broad public, redefining the capabilities of poetry  and linguistic form.