Linguistic Transfigurations

"But for the sky there are no fences facing." ~ Bob Dylan

What set Bob Dylan apart when he first emerged on the scene was not simply the message he conveyed, but the manner in which he conveyed it. His words glittered over the surface of his songs and each movement of light caused spangles of delight in the brain that recognized what was happening here.

Mr. Tambourine Man is filled with language that explodes with imagery, carrying listeners through energizing whitewater rapids of emotion.

The message, to some extent, is an old one. The metaphor above is an original way of repeating a common maxim: The sky's the limit. Or to put it another way, there are no limits. But by putting the wine in different wineskins, Dylan rejuvenated the meanings for a new generation.

The culmination verse summarizes thus:

"Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky

with one hand waving free, silhouetted by the sea

circled by the circus signs with all memory and fate

driven deep beneath the waves, let me

forget about today until tomorrow..."

Having lived in Mexico a year, I have to believe these lines are, in essence, a linguistically luminous way of summarizing the philosophy of "Manana" which means "Tomorrow." For a moment in time, for today, for the now, let's just live for today, he sings.

Ultimately, becoming a mature adult means that we do have to carry burdens and assume responsibilities. For the young, the appeal of avoiding this yoke is rightly sensed, though adulthood also has its rewards. As we grow, however, let's not forget to make a place for dancing beneath diamond skies.

For some, music is the route to temporary forgetfulness. We lose ourselves in the sweet strains of the strings, chimes, rhythms. And for others, myself here, it is the act of creation which is my dance.

This month, some of my art is on display at The Venue @ Mohaupt Block in a retrospective of interpretations and transformations, both black & white and color, on surfaces of every kind. The Dylan painting at the top of this page will be on display, along with more than 130 other works. And maybe a few surprises.

First Hand Experiences

"The true artist helps the world by revealing mystic truths." ~ Bruce Nauman

It's official. Last night after work and much of today I have been hanging my paintings at drawings at a place in the West End called The Venue @ Mohaupt. The title of the show is First Hand Experiences: A Retrospective with Glimpses of Things to Come.

A couple weeks ago, when I was first asked to consider it, I felt a little overwhelmed at how much work there would be to get things ready. Then, I did an inventory of what I have already framed, and learned a technique for displaying my painted masonite panels. In short, things came together quickly and we're underway.

First Hand Experiences is primarily a presentation of my recent works, but I have also assembled representative pieces from my earlier days including a pen and ink illustration that won a contest and was published as cover art. The $25 was nice, too.

Preparing the show has brought back a few other memories. The first is how my grandmother used to say I never scribbled when I was little, that from my earliest I used to draw. I can't say whether this is fact or fiction (that I never scribbled) but I do remember at a very early age that I loved to trace things. I remember getting fascinated by drawing faces, then cutting out the eyes and putting different backgrounds behind the face to see how the various colors and patterns would change the expression. I must have been about five years old at that time.

At some point when I was five or six my parents enrolled me in some classes at the Cleveland Museum of Art. I still remember a couple of those lessons. In one instance we were shown a room with images from the medieval era and we were shown lettering that was all embellished with leafy vines and swirly curlicues. Each of us was instructed to draw our own initial in this same embellished fashion. I, of course, did the letter "E".

A couple years later I used to watch this artist on television who showed you how to draw perspective and create three dimensional depth on a two dimensional surface. This kind of thing was utterly fascinating for me and still fascinates.

The open house, to which the public is invited, will be on July 21 from 6 - 9 p.m. The Venue is located at 2024 West Superior Street in Duluth's West End.