Namaya update July 11, 2010
Creative Window: I am having a marvelous time waking up in the morning with pencils, pastels, pen and paper, my guitar close by, and a camera on the tripod. My creative tools are at the ready. One morning, I was watching a butterfly dance on an echidnae flower, and the words could capture part of the dance, but the camera was a few meters away from the butterfly, and I caught her dance. For a small window of time, I have created this time to write, draw, design, write music, and most importantly, allow my spirits to soar. In this age where so much is in the public domain, and our history and lives is an open book to the wider world the time to be alone to create from the core of who I am and my connection to life is a gift. I value this privacy of time to create and the time by Blue Heron Pond.
Beatnik Cafe we had a wonderful run in Boston and in New York City with this. The video and the film are on the web at www.beatnikcafemusical.com. Our plans are to take it to various colleges within the New York City area. We are also shopping for promoter or producer to take this project forward. I have been thinking about this and a number of ways. I love the idea of the story of Jack Kerouac, Charlie Parker and the way this musical revue puts the story together. It is a powerful, wonderful story. Though I believe in a Broadway run, producers will try to make it more about the beatniks, which was the least interesting part of the period, humorous at times, but largely not very interesting. The real interesting work was the jazz and this period of tremendous social transformation. Stay tuned for more notes.
I also like how my understanding of the music deepens and greater understanding of this music called bebop and jazz evolved.
I also wanted to capture my growing appreciation for Kerouac and understanding of him, he was very committed to his writing, and some parts of the writing are sublime.
Terrific group of singers, performers, musicians. Finally, with a good director, and a lot of work this production is moving forward. Maggie one of the Beatnik singers is off to Poland and is trying to secure shows there and in Scandinavia. Always it is about following the money
Four Prophets:
This is the other main project in the next year- Jesus, Mohammed, Moses, and Satan meet in a public restroom. Satan calls for Judgment Day. She says, “Humans are not to be trusted.” This will be shot as a 10 minute trailer in a local studio and hopefully interest a theater or production company to take this play forward.
This is a major work and after my extended creative hiatus need to refocus on getting this out. I have a feeling that it will make its debut in Europe not the US, this is a hunch, as the funding climate to put on new works is limited, and this is so controversial.
Video
Women of the Veil
I had a fascinating vision one night. I was deep in the Sahara and the moon was up, there was a woman standing on the dune she was dressed in a long black sharh shaf, the wind was blowing, I heard music an oud and this melody, and the song started this chant, “Women of the veil. Women of the book. Daughters of the prophet. Let you spirits be free. Let your veil fly free. Let your hair flow.” The wind blows, the veils rise, then more and more women appear. The Uuuala sounds out. More women appear. The wind blows the veils back and away, the chadors blow away, the hair now flies in the wind. “Women
of the book let your hair fly free, let your spirit sail in the wind, let true freedom for women begin.” A short 3 minute video
Pornography of war:
This is one of the main directions I am moving in and over the course of the next five years, perhaps even longer. The pornography of war is a multimedia, photography, installation, sculpture project. The one we are starting with now is called make love not war .
The outside of the exhibition space looks like a cheap porno shop, with the entrance blocked, “No one under 18 permitted.” Inside is the PORNOGRAPHY OF WAR.
Artistic Statement: Simply, two people having sex, or people naked is not pornography, but one person killing an another is obscene. In the words of one judge, “Pornography, I know it when I see it.” It is not only raising the voice against war, it is posing the dialectic question: Is War Pornographic? I also see it is vital to offer the alternative – war is Thanatos & life is Eros. We squander our children’s future with militarism
Make love not war is a series of photos of men, gay and straight and couples making love. It shows a man and a woman in their uniforms. Taking their uniforms off and making love.
Be All That You Can Be: this has been in my vision for about four years or more. I think with the social media sites we can now move forward with this. The idea is very simple. 4800 people, men and women, children walking through the streets of Washington DC with helmets, Army ponchos, each with an 8 foot length of rope, and army boots. Each one of the participants have the name of the soldier killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. They would be walking marching in a single file through the streets of Washington, connected with the rope that is knotted. One to another. It moves through the streets of Washington filmed and recorded. They would move towards the Vietnam Memorial and pass in front of the Vietnam Memorial. They would then proceed to an open spot. There is a cauldron or a small vessel placed in the center and the names of each one of the soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan are then called out. There is a gong that rings out with each name called.
Return Home: This is a sculpture about 15 feet long of black sand with impressions of feet and soldiers returning home from war. There are a series of prosthesis marching with boots on, some others without. The bed of black sand is about 2 feet wide
$680 Billion Dollar Penis:
This project is long in the works. We are shooting some samples in the next few weeks. There will be the 14 foot tall penises as the US penis is the largest since the US spends app 51% of all global military money – or app 20 -25% of US GNP. The other countries like France, Germany, China, Russia, Israel, Iran, Brazil,etc
PENTAGON MAN:
Series of cartoons of Pentagon Man the man with the ICBM penis that I’ve been drawing.
The Wall: Recreating the wall of separation in Palestine in a museum
PEACE GARDEN: as I had detailed in previous writings and in the sketch attached.
Audio Book.fm.
Love Tap Message – Daily inspirational messages. We are starting a url called
www.yourlovetap.com
www.wakeupamericans!.com is the other new dimension of our on-going podcass
Luscious Wet Kisses
A friend reminded me I had been talking about this project for five years. It is a series of nudes/ partial nudes in nature at Blue Heron Pond with male and female models. Then combining this with poems from previous books EROS TO GODHEAD and GOD SEX POLITICS. Probably, it will inspire a new series of poems based on the photos. First photo shoot tomorrow 12 July.
Love in an Age of Aids
This is another photo shoot using saran wrap. Two models male/ male or male female nudes. These photos are done on a stage and will be part of a dance/ stage performance
of Love in An Age of Aids. The lovers meet, then the saran wrap surrounds them, it is the attempt to reach and to get close, but the density of fear and AIDS, impedes that journey
“Dinner Party at the World Economic Forum” – The dinner party at Devos
A few of the projects we are working on - Create Loving rEvolutions. This is the imperative.
Enjoy your own creative journey.
Namaya
