Well, perhaps it shouldn’t have been so unexpected. Gawd’s Teeth, I’ve just been dragged backwards thru the Summer from Hell. I feel like one of the Damned. Hence my low profile of late. I’ve been in a rather …derealised state, which means I’ve neglected a lot of people & things I really shouldn’t have neglected. But I think perhaps it was a sort of subconscious survival technique - I've had to disconnect, just to persuade myself to keep breathing. It's been a fucking awful year... without doubt the Worst of my Life.

I’ve lost just about everything: my home, my dayjob, the battles I’ve ben fighting (within myself & with various bothersome backstabbing bastards), my future, my dreams. And worst of all I’ve lost my Love, My Muse, My Star in the Darkness. My life is in fucking ruins. Shit yeah, I am one of the Damned. Yet this invitation, and the general (unsolicited) increasing interst in my work / commission enquiries has been just about the only bit of starsparkle in a year when my sky fell out…

What am I on about? Well much has to stay veiled. In the wake of the ways that I have been Betrayed this year I’m one wary Cat. I will never give my complete trust to any one person again. Ppl will have to work pretty hard to earn even my partial trust. So if I’m a bit cagey & careful with you, don’t take offence… it’s (probably) not personal. As for those backstabbing twatweazles who have (or have tried) to fuck me over…

*ahem - sweeps above remark under Proverbial Hat with a swipe of a freshly sharpened, jaggety clawed paw & moves swiftly on*…
But I can tell you about the Damned. Or to be more specific : DAMNED II in Detroit (U.S.). Some of you may know about this already, but for those who don’t, here’s some extracts from the promo blurbs…

“DAMNED is an exhibition of those extraordinary artists who know that without darkness, there is no light, that beauty does reside within the repulsive and enlightenment within our darkest hours. This art may be the one true reflection of self that make us balanced within our personal damnations...or possibly it is an expressive visual therapy...or simply a sign that there is something inexplicably damaged inside without comparison.”

“On October 29 and 30 2009 in Detroit, there will be a congregation of the most controversial fine art artists from across the nation and overseas to display their darkest of creations at DAMNED II. From the famous to the freshest of talent, this ominous assembly will exhibit a diversity of artistries from the deeply depraved to the intensely introspective guaranteed to intrigue, disturb, captivate or repulse. This is not Halloween-themed art but a submergence within the shadowed realms of consciousness within an intimate ambiance of haunting ethereal soundscapes, elegant freakshow vignettes and cirque-inspired stage performances.”

At the ‘famous’ end of the spectrum of contibuters / guests are Artists such as : HR Giger (yes, he of ‘Aliens’ fame), Marylin Manson, Chad M Ward, Christian Correra, Natalie Shau & Lithium Picnic. At the other end of the spectrum are Artists such as… well, me... [link]

The exhibitions curator – who goes by the netname of DVS [link] picked out Ethereality [link] for inclusion. But like a complete asshat I missed the deadline for sending off the print. So, another oppurtunity fucked… and I only have myself to blame for that one. Apologies to Hexabelle (the feat. model) [link] she seemed to be as pleased about the prospoct as I was… particularly as Andrew Gonzalez [link] (whose work she introduced me too, and which is the main influence on the style of Ethereality) had also been invited to contribute.



However, some photos I took during the last WGW ~ feat Wanderlust [link] ~ may be appearing in Unscene [link] soon.



Returning briefly to the subject of Exhibitions ~ I shall be taking a Coach-&-Four (or something) down to London in a couple of weeks to view an Exhibition Extraordinaire feat the Spooki Steampunkesque work of one of the UK's premier Dark PS Illustrators.

The Exhibition is entitled The Darkhouse Archives and is located fairly centrally at Ketchum Pleum, 35-41 Folgate Street, London E1 6BX.

I have no hesitation in reccommending it to your attention in advance, should you happen to live in / be visiting Old London Town betwixt now & 13 November. For a preview, take a look at The Darkhouse website... [link]
The artist happens to be a good chum of mine, so I get a guided tour by The Man himself.



*tips tophat 'n dat*
Mooncat


FUCK THE SYSTEM