| Shown above is “Lilith” which sold at the Damned show in 2019 SKIP TO THE END FOR THE BIRTHDAY GIFTS!! As part of my birth-month celebrations, we’ve been re-watching some of my favorite movies and the other night, we watched Highway 61 (1991) Probably my favorite rock and roll movie, possibly my favorite Canadian movie and a solid road movie by any standard, Highway 61 was directed by Bruce McDonald, written by Don McKellar who also starts as Pokey Jones, the creatively stunted barber/trumpet player and stars Valerie Buhagiar as live-wire roadie Jackie Bangs. It’s low budget, smart and witty and packs enough insight and spark to repay multiple viewings. Rounding out the cast are a delicious scattering of rock and roll reprobates playing bit parts, my favorite being Jello Biafra as an American border guard. I own the soundtrack CD and the novelised comic book as well as the movie on VHS and DVD… let’s say I’m a fan. It was released while I lived in Toronto in the 90’s so there’s also a bit of nostalgia in my affection. What struck me during this viewing was the idea of deals with the devil. The film’s antagonist, the hilariously evil “Mr Skin,” trades people’s souls for usually very tangible goods. At one point in the movie Mr Skin tallies up his recent acquisitions and what they cost – bus tickets to Thunder Bay, a mickey of bourbon, the promise of success and fame… As a token of each deal, he snaps a Polaroid (which was a self-developing photograph film from the last century) The inside of his house in New Orleans is studded with these photographs. On their first meeting, Mr Skin asks Pokey Jones who is holding his trumpet “Do you play that thing or just pose with it?” and goes on to say he could help Pokey “play like Gabriel.” (Pokey refuses, BTW) It’s a commonplace story, the musician who makes a deal with a “devil” to achieve artistic success. What struck me — and which I admit has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the actual content of the movie — was an inner meaning to the archetypal story which awakened a simple spiritual truth. To make a deal with the devil, an artist has to WANT something and in particular to want something that the artist feels is impossibly beyond reach. That essential separateness perhaps distinguishes ambition from temptation. The devil appears and offers to GIVE that unreachable desiderata to the artist on the condition that the artist surrender some part of their essential being. I love how it’s become “soul” in the stories, especially as popular understanding has eroded about what the heck a “soul” could possibly be. One answer? I’m reminded of another deal with a devil story in the Simpsons where Bart sells his soul, only to discover that the automatic doors on the Qwikee Mart no longer open for him! So THAT’S what a soul “does” (grin) Theology, by which I mean Aristotle aside, my interpretation works I think with almost any understanding of what the artist surrenders to seal the deal. The merest, smallest, most imperceptible part of the artist’s personality is all that is needed for the tragedy of this agreement to happen. The artist willingly sells into servitude (or eternal torment) some portion of their current existence for the attainment of something that they believe is outside their existence. Sometimes this is outside of their possible existence (or what they imagine as possible) and sometimes it is just outside their current existence (short circuiting all those hours of practice to be good right now.) In tales of Faustian bargains, there is sometimes a scene of the artist at the pinnacle of their creative power who yet still feels unsatisfied with their work. They are already in torment. And by that point, the tragedy has already LONG in the past. Just like the fun scenes of degraded power and eventual paying-of-the-piper, they are all falling actions. You’ve already lost as soon as it even SOUNDS like a good deal. The inner wisdom of soul-to-devil-trades is that we will NEVER be as good as we want to be. We will ALWAYS have to practice and make attempts that don’t succeed like we hoped and imagine even greater possible ways to use creativity to serve our audience. This yearning does not mean you are an imposter; it just means you are a working artist. You are ALREADY an artist fully, as much of an artist as you will EVER be. The pleasure you already receive creating is a full measure of the joy you will ever get, I mean, alloyed with the bittersweet tang of disappointing attempts and the bracing twang of higher hopes. We don’t need a devil to promise us something we already possess. The sad part of the tragedy is the willingness to trade away any part of our being. Our downfall is the idea that we could somehow become “more” whole by making ourselves fragmentary, by surrendering ANY part of ourselves and our experiences. From my experience, any time I ransom away some part of my life experiences, I also cut off access to some associated resources. I am considering that sense of wholeness, of artistic integrity alot this birthday. For a large part of my life and artistic work, I have more or less gladly muted down or edited out various aspects of my experiences. For instance, folks know I am spiritually driven… and different sub-sets of my friends might be horrified to know the full extent of my spiritual expressions. I am focusing on authenticity and these newsletter are one way I’m searching for the folks who will be served by this authentic work. My Tribe. I create from a sense of abundance, a sense of joy and curiosity, experimentation and service. My audience are the folks who need to see this, read this, feel this. My work may help them get through a difficult time or might help them flourish. And I am not pandering to what I THINK they might want. I am making generous and authentic offerings… and it is extremely likely that much of what I do won’t be for you. I’ve heard this described as being “on the hook.” OK so the slightly more “goth” interpretation of all this is that artists don’t need to sell our souls to the devil. As soon as you become an artist, doing meaningful work for people who care, you will be hooked into a life of “eternal torment.” Which is also an eternal delight. |
| IS THERE A PART OF YOU THAT YOU’D LIKE TO TRADE AWAY? Some pesky corner of your being that you’d rather do without? A favorite sacrificial portion is what some folks call “The Resistance” that nagging procrastinating sabateur that seems to stop your best efforts. Instead of offering it to the Infernal Pawn Shop, perhaps ask your Resistance what is it’s Positive Intent. Really listen. It probably has a perspective that your ambition would rather forget (like safety or love…) Find a higher value that your ambition and your resistance both share, like your well-being. It’s likely that this Resistance also has a resource squirreled away that it can bring to the party. I’ve sketched the process here VERY briefly. The process is something I’ve learned from NeuroLinguistic Programing (NLP) and I’d love to help you work through it. Send me a message; no signature in blood necessary! |
| This is a special BIRTHDAY edition of the newsletter and it comes with GIFTS! I couldn’t figure out how to give paintings away for free using my on-line story (Obligatory Link Here) so I am including photos of eight Tiny Goddess paintings that I described in my very first newsletter (Link Here) They are each 3″ x 4″ oil on gessoed panel. See one you’d like? Send me a private email telling me the number of the one you’d fancy AND your mailing address. First Come, First Served. If you miss out this week, I plan to list another 8 tiny paintings next week as well. And feel free to GIVE this newsletter away to someone you think might dig it. And if you have received such a forwarded message, consider joining us with this subscription link: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/jX0Ddba It’s my once-a-week reflection on what it’s like being creative during the past week, designed to help you spot more resources and opportunities you may have overlooked. You in? |
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| Tiny Goddess #1 Tiny Goddess #2 |
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Tiny Goddess #3 Tiny Goddess #4 Tiny Goddess #5 Tiny Goddess #6 Tiny Goddess #7 |
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| Tiny Goddess #8 |