venice beach 08

It was Venice Beach pre Obama.

Pre economic freefall.

On this Beach Boys coast the American dream was crumbling and most of the nation was in denial.

The signposts were all pointing one way, well so it was to me. Reef ahead.

©burgseye08

Stone Secret

Stone Secret

1999 - Neil Buddle

Lino and screenprint on handmade paper (Property of the Artists Parents!)

Another set of artwork from the vaults......

These prints were done from a rock found at a beach in Cornwall. Each print zooms in closer to the rock, revealing more detail. The patterns on the rock were reminiscent of the observable strata of rocks along that coast. The blue was screen-printed and the detail is of course in Lino, on early handmade paper.

A New God for New Zealand

A bad picture of a damaged artwork........however today it just seems apt to resurrect this piece. Made in 2004 (Approx) this work uses piano Keys, hammers and saw blades to create a 'New God' the piano keys represent a korowai or feather cloak. The idea of a new god came from the realisation that this country is like a child still struggling for identity, still alternatively embracing and rejecting each parent by turn as it wrestles with defining itself. The struggle was to find a new identity to strive for, it's (the countries') own.

Currently the piece is missing a 'cup' on the left. One side has 2 hollows and a cup and the other 2 cups and a hollow. The hollows indicate the absence of the other. The maths of the piece imply that 1+1=1.

Perhaps the current damage is indicative of the some of the current racial dischord. That reminds me, I should really fix this up!

The H Bomb - Yet Another letter to the paper...

The front-page of the W(H)anganui Chronicle today is focused on the Nat. Geo-Board NZ decision that W-anganui should be spelt with an H. The headlines featured Mayor Laws accusing the board of racism and being unconstitutional. The irony is of course if both sides applied some actual intelligence and an open-mind they would see that neither side is right or wrong, that both are right, no-one needs to 'lose' and that Wanganui could be a leading light in this bi-cultural nation, rather than it's darkest corner. Here is a letter I wrote today to the Editor, describing the 'nausea' this situation induces...

Friday’s newspaper made me queasy with that feeling you get when you know a tasteless and avoidable furore is developing. The ‘H’ debacle is primed to show the unpalatable truth about race-relations in New Zealand, and we are in the front row seats.

Like rams butting heads for supremacy, the attitudes on both sides, are stubborn and destructive. How did this become a contest between cultures? When did it become one way or no way? If in most bilingual countries, 2 languages and accordingly 2 place names are acknowledged, why not here? Wanganui and Whanganui are BOTH in common usage, they are both already valid.

Who are ‘we’ if we can’t compromise? Does a compromise mean that both sides lose? Why are so many, so bitter and insecure, that they will not give an inch, no matter how destructive, ignorant and pointless, the struggle? As this symbolic issue nauseously unfolds, be assured we will see the further entrenchment of prejudices and self-serving agendas, till we are all sick to the stomach.

A previously unpopular name for Whanganui was Petre (Peter), ironically derived (as all you good Christians know), from the word for rock. Perhaps this stubborn town was better named then, than they thought?

Digging in the Vaults

For the Reverend, the last few weeks have seemingly been a time of new work and a nostalgic look to the past. Though this is rooted in a practical need to archive some of this work before it goes mouldy in this temperate climate or just gets lost. It always reminds me of directions I didn't take and threads that have continued.

I have just posted a whole load of odd prints on Picasa (View on Sidebar Slideshow) and Deviantart from before, during and after art-school.

These include the 'DIG Vinyl' (See left) which I produced especially as a commemorative print for the Blink Gallery Show with El Presidente in 2007. Along side more recent ones like that are ones like below from various stages of my art-life.

Sing Swan Song

Sing Swan Song - Neil Buddle / Assemblage 2009

Entry for Wanganui National Art Award (Amalgamated Tech.)

It's been a long time since I have made any assemblage and the experience as ever has been extremely enjoyable. This piece unfolded it's own story which resulted in this take on the plight of native birds in the face of predators and eforestation. All the bird names listed on the piece are currently on the endangered list, most of them critically endangered, and there are more.

A swansong is a last performance and in this case it is the last birdsongs. The title also borrows from a song by the krautrock band 'Can'. Ironically Swans have thrived here since introduction.

The exhibition opens on Thursday 17th September at the Community Arts Centre, Taupo Quay, Whanganui.

Wales - Mushroom Central

Wales - Mushroom Central (Mixed Media on Board / Neil Buddle 1998)

Through the magic of Facebook, I have recently gotten back in touch with a much loved musical compadre from Wales, Johnny Smoke (Matty Miles)! One of my best and last memories of the U.K was a trip organised by a few of my musical friends, to a home-studio in mid-Wales, nestled in the hollow of a hill called 'Drummers Hill', high up on the side of a valley. The hill had once been part of a chain of beacons, using fire and drums to communicate messages across the Welsh hinterland.

The studio, an old barn, became our home for 4 days. Before commencing to play ourselves stupid, we set out across the verdant Welsh fields in search of Psylocibe Cubensis (Magic Mushrooms). As is the way in Mid-Wales, no sooner had we vaulted the 1st farm gate, when we realised, all around us was a carpet of 'shrooms', calling out to be picked. Our planned, harvesting, became erratic as we started 'snacking' and before long we were drifting further afield in every sense of the word.

This became a huge ramble, involving some very hairy bush-crashing, and the emergence at a lake, that was identical in every way to one which I had painted from imagination at high-school. So clear was the feeling of recognition, I could barely be dragged away from this strange geographical realisation of the psyche. We eventually made it back to the studio, 'put on a brew' and 'got in the groove'. Hours, indeed days passed in the window-less studio. Once we all woke up, after a heavy, heavy sleep and it was dark, it took us a day to realise it was a day later than we thought!

I still have a murky recording of that visit, on tape, which I have spliced and re-spliced to repair. Some of my playing that week, hinted at a style, I could only then imagine, but which has since become a singular part of my sound, a deep, dark, bubbling groove, from the dark side of the mushroom.

All these guys have continued to make music together and apart, Paul and Steve as 'Staedler and Waldorf' and 'D'Booga' and Johnny Smoke is currently playing with Pete Lawrie, who is releasing his first album. But for a brief few days, we all played together, on Drummers Hill - Thank you boyos!

The artwork was produced at Art College, and aside form my obvious desire to use the shroom as my muse, I was also attempting to combine, maps, photogrpahy, paint and relief to create a cohesive image. It is hard to construct a perspective that takes you from a macro-level (looking at the mushroom) to the curvature of the earth in space, within a couple of feet, but I still think I gave it a shot! I was actually going to throw this away at the end of my course and Matty protested. He has had it to this day and it now sits in appropriately in his 'den'. Thanks to Matty for sending me the pic and reminding me of some wonderful times and some of the work, I had almost forgotten.

Wales - Mushroom Central (Detail N.Buddle 98)

Strapped for cash

I recently read a very interesting article on The Big Idea entitled Cashless Creativity. The article postulates an alteration of attitude in society, from one of scarcity to one of abundance. This change it is suggested could be led by creative people.

I was sufficiently moved to respond or rant regarding what I see as 'the self-indulgence of creative utopianism'.

I would be really interested to know what any of our readers thought on this issue? So follow the link to the post and ...

'Imagine a world without money...it's easy if you can afford to'.....

Addendum: Here is a link to another web-forum (Yes I waded in!), where a similar discussion rages. It seems the first thing that we can't afford in a recession, is tolerance, closely followed by contemporary art! Maybe the swing towards 'practical politics' in tough times should be called 'recessionism', which neatly implies the certain paucity of spirit and vision, inherent in much of this attitude?

Thanks to Mr. Mercurius for supplying the link.

"All art is quite useless.' - Oscar Wilde