HOW THEN SHALL WE NOW LIVE?
2014
Charcoal
ENQUIRE
A spiritual darkness has descended and the people have nowhere else to run. Even though they don’t speak to each other they are asking the question – how then shall we now live?
On one piece of large paper, I drew lots of the global thinkers and philosophers gathering in front of three large crosses inspired by Rembrandts 1653 etching ‘The Three Crosses’ which is a work that embraces the mystery of the crucifixion in a conversation between the redemptive powers of light and the brooding mystery of the dark. My motivation was to somehow bring together global humanity ,with peoples from all nations, cultures, creeds and world views together into a meeting place. The three crosses soon disappeared opening up the background which then turned into a war zone where humanity has descended into barbarity and where people are persecuted and hung for their beliefs because they are different. In scenes of brute torture and execution humanity tears itself apart committing atrocity to each other and to the earth on which we all depend.
I worked on this drawing over a whole winter trying to somehow bring together peoples of all faiths and world views into a mysterious meeting place , though the function of this meeting is unclear, and a spiritual void has descended into a holding place opening where humanity is frozen, and life has paused. People have turned inward and stopped communicating face to face instead becoming entranced by the light of their mobile phones and the illusions that they point to. Every person is locked into their own inner world looking at screens that connect us to each other digitally but not physically. Instead of talking to each other the people turn inward to a philosophical abyss where the only light left is the light of our smartphones. Entranced by the seductive allure of digital distraction to people are pulled ever deeper into the self-perpetuating distortions of the Facebook alley. Inside they are dying inside with no love to be found , only detachment and displacement and an inability to see the mystery unfolding in front of them. Christ lays crucified on a cross but the only person that can see the crucifix in the corner is the Native American Indian man from Aldus Huxley’s book a brave new world ,the last of his tribe.
All around is darkness and in the sky a flock of geese fly in one direction whilst war helicopters fly in the opposite direction. Whatever the geese are flying from the war helicopters are heading towards. Two directions of travel and choices that humanity has to choose from . Do we choose war and destruction of our eco systems or do we choose peace and looking after our mother earth. There is one lone quiet peaceful woman that is different from the rest of the crowd. She was drawn by the artist Janice Armstrong was in the studio one day feeling sad. I invited her to draw a figure in the crowd and the beautiful woman at the centre emerged who is the calmest point of the whole picture with a peace emanating from her. Like Mother Mary watching over she offers something of a balance to the madness of the patriarchal world even though she is hardly noticeable. A reminder of the divine feminine amongst the masculine version of history that we are all plugged into. A lone Klans man gives a nod to the direction of travel we are heading in with the rise of the far right.
This drawing offers a series of questions rather than giving one definitive answer to the amplified question ‘How then shall we now live ? This is a question that can only be answered by conversation on a global level. Feeling adrift as a species, we desperately clutch our smart phones for answers, searching for a sense of deeper meaning and connection. Even if this is but a temporary pause from the fighting and polluting , here is our window to sit back and ponder our existence.
Each of us must ask ourselves if we honestly want to climb back onto this insane, capitalist- driven juggernaut that is blindly leading us off a precipice, killing and polluting as we fall. Or do we want to change direction?
On one piece of large paper, I drew lots of the global thinkers and philosophers gathering in front of three large crosses inspired by Rembrandts 1653 etching ‘The Three Crosses’ which is a work that embraces the mystery of the crucifixion in a conversation between the redemptive powers of light and the brooding mystery of the dark. My motivation was to somehow bring together global humanity ,with peoples from all nations, cultures, creeds and world views together into a meeting place. The three crosses soon disappeared opening up the background which then turned into a war zone where humanity has descended into barbarity and where people are persecuted and hung for their beliefs because they are different. In scenes of brute torture and execution humanity tears itself apart committing atrocity to each other and to the earth on which we all depend.
I worked on this drawing over a whole winter trying to somehow bring together peoples of all faiths and world views into a mysterious meeting place , though the function of this meeting is unclear, and a spiritual void has descended into a holding place opening where humanity is frozen, and life has paused. People have turned inward and stopped communicating face to face instead becoming entranced by the light of their mobile phones and the illusions that they point to. Every person is locked into their own inner world looking at screens that connect us to each other digitally but not physically. Instead of talking to each other the people turn inward to a philosophical abyss where the only light left is the light of our smartphones. Entranced by the seductive allure of digital distraction to people are pulled ever deeper into the self-perpetuating distortions of the Facebook alley. Inside they are dying inside with no love to be found , only detachment and displacement and an inability to see the mystery unfolding in front of them. Christ lays crucified on a cross but the only person that can see the crucifix in the corner is the Native American Indian man from Aldus Huxley’s book a brave new world ,the last of his tribe.
All around is darkness and in the sky a flock of geese fly in one direction whilst war helicopters fly in the opposite direction. Whatever the geese are flying from the war helicopters are heading towards. Two directions of travel and choices that humanity has to choose from . Do we choose war and destruction of our eco systems or do we choose peace and looking after our mother earth. There is one lone quiet peaceful woman that is different from the rest of the crowd. She was drawn by the artist Janice Armstrong was in the studio one day feeling sad. I invited her to draw a figure in the crowd and the beautiful woman at the centre emerged who is the calmest point of the whole picture with a peace emanating from her. Like Mother Mary watching over she offers something of a balance to the madness of the patriarchal world even though she is hardly noticeable. A reminder of the divine feminine amongst the masculine version of history that we are all plugged into. A lone Klans man gives a nod to the direction of travel we are heading in with the rise of the far right.
This drawing offers a series of questions rather than giving one definitive answer to the amplified question ‘How then shall we now live ? This is a question that can only be answered by conversation on a global level. Feeling adrift as a species, we desperately clutch our smart phones for answers, searching for a sense of deeper meaning and connection. Even if this is but a temporary pause from the fighting and polluting , here is our window to sit back and ponder our existence.
Each of us must ask ourselves if we honestly want to climb back onto this insane, capitalist- driven juggernaut that is blindly leading us off a precipice, killing and polluting as we fall. Or do we want to change direction?
How then, shall we now live?