CosmiKnot

Leaf Blowing Guys Of course there is the other side to the Leafblower. The tragi-cosmic hero (single guy) At one with the Universe He tries in vain to channel the powers of the cosmos thru his mechanical wand. He is the spiritual tuning fork Art for him is a Cosmic Force Unaware that nature's playing him rather than the other way around. But even at his most hubristic he can’t help actually helping bring something sacred into existence. The black exclamation mark shouting, unheard in the ear protected chaos. You poor vulnerable absurdist fool. Who sent you? Take me to you leafer.

We are living in an age defined by the post-rationalisatic tendencies of the left-brain. This “mode” of thinking is so embedded in our culture that it’s hard to notice. I’ll try and explain, as much for myself rather than out of a need to foist my views on you.  The left-brain is the area that focuses specifically and enables us to grab or get. It is what allows us to categorize and process data. This relies on objective separation, something that empathy does not. If you look at current news all of it is processed through the left-brain. This is because social media has spread journalistic thinking over the world like a binary skin. Now the post-rationalisation process is apparent when Cameron says the Paris murders are an attack on Our Way of life. Sounds very convincing. It’s also retaliation for Western involvement in Syria. Again sounds convincing but the left-brain has been scientifically proven to justify actions it had no part in deciding to implement or understand. The ...

Wood smoke that’s a nice smell isn’t it? That's a nice smell isn't it? I proffered as I approached the two old ladies Seated close together opposite the woodburner behind the low table at the end of a cabin The table where you pay for the books I had four clutched to my breast Taken from the giant book sale in the potting shed across the garden path. Where do you pay for the books? A tall man had earlier asked me Or at least he asked someone as he stood there in his pastel coloured Sunday rambling attire And I was there In the other hut I assume I shrugged He followed me there hesitating for a moment as the handle resisted my efforts. A sharp tug and we were in. Such an enchanting space. A narrow wooden cabin lined with books. Yes it is One of the old ladies replied A comforting sort of smell Yes it is I said I don’t know why? I added exhilarated to meet someone else who found it so That this was not necessary struck me in an...

thanks for your sympathy I called out Across the cavern To the figure on the stage thanks for your support Wrote the echo Above the rushing swoosh Of the underground stream You can keep your bloody pacemaker I yelled into the void throwing down my jumpers Feeling quite upset That I let them bring me down here To where there is no day And the only sound is my pulse Telling me to run away

Life can’t be completely unlumpy That’s easy for you to say You mean without lumps? One or two The soul travels at the speed of a camel The desert was a delight The angels did sing. Life can’t be without its ups and downs That’s not for you to say One for the road Over the bridge Hold onto your knickers The moors were in my mind The angels did sing Life can’t be lump free Without lumpy bits Bacon ham and sausage Oh and cigarettes That’s the c word you know Might be a Cyst The ward was deserted The angels did sing

English Magic – New Art Projects 18 July – 23 August 2015 English Magic is the title of the first show at Fred Mann’s New Art Projects gallery. Magic is about misdirection and there are so many threads invoked by the title that it is hard to know where to look. If Mann is a conjuring impresario then perhaps painting is where he doesn’t want us to look. English magic implies a form of stagecraft that works well as an analogy for painting. The difference being that when the trick works, painting, through triggering transcendence, actually is magic. The magic though, is not something the painter entirely controls or is even able to identify when it emerges. Instead, the artist must create each piece without second guessing its ability to cast a spell. The exhibition is described as four solo shows and visitors find these in a series of surprisingly airy basement rooms. Descending the stairs massed ranks of sideshow characters fill the room in a manner reminiscent of the Emperor’...

The Poor Door A collective exhibition tackling London’s housing crisis A-side B-side Gallery Amhurst Terrace E8 2BT Opening night: 1.10.15 6-9pm Show dates: 1.10.15 - 11.10.15 Gallery opening hours: 12-6pm Weds-Sun Artlicks Weekend: 2-4 October www.artlicksweekend.com www.asidebsidegallery.com @Aside_Bside_ @artlicks @TinselEdwards Curated by Tinsel Edwards Alison Berry, Rebecca Byrne, Tinsel Edwards, Mikey Georgeson, Mars Gomes, Kin, Lee Maelzer, Reena Makwana, S.P.A.R Society for the Preservation of Admirable Rubble (with Brian Guest courtesy of Calum F Kerr), Tom Rizzuto, Julia Russell. “This Ghetto crowding is not through inclination, but compulsion.” It’s 2015 and we are in the midst of a major housing crisis in the capital. In 1903, Jack London wrote ‘The People of the Abyss’, a book describing the cramped living conditions and experiences of the poor in...