Ramblings of a Feverish Mind part2   [ go to part 1 ]

Am Ida and Odin

The freedom and expansiveness of the sky and the air is better for what I want to say as an artist. Psyche the Greek God told me my art should represent a collective unconscious of myths, which have become woven into my spirit. Khnum the Creator God has encouraged me to be highly experimental and not to worry about a consistent artist style. He suggests my message will come through irrespective of style. I should not be self-conscious about technique or innovation but to try to convey feelings about my notions of reality. When I asked him if I might be rich and famous, Khnum began to laugh uproariously. I also heard gales of laughter in the background coming from the Gods Am ida, Varuna, Nut and Psyche. Then they began to chant, "get real", "get real", "get real".

There is the incredible Norse God Odin, the god of magicians, who has the power to change his appearance and adopt different disguises. He explained to me how to present contrasts between order and chaos involving the nature of reality. I was also told to live and create on the very edge of chaotic systems because I can have more flexibility than if I live in the domain of orderly, linear systems. In fact now, I have more control as I gently nudge chaos into an artistic statement.

The God Odin has suggested that sometimes in my art there can be a highly visible object and secondary semitransparent representations to convey echoes of time and reality. He said to be sure to include fragments of the object floating in a boundless space. (Even the American Indian God from Above encouraged me to think of the fragments as a magic lotion sprinkled into space to create people and objects).

Odin has also taught me how to simultaneously show imitations of the object creating contradictions from many points of view. I felt that the God Odin might help me so I spent considerable time with him. I tried to talk to him about my interest in emphasizing three dimensions in my work but to no avail. Later I understood his indifference when I discovered he only had one eye, which I understand he lost as a consequence of his warlike tantrums. Odin, who is also the God of Wisdom, did tell me that in the field of art, there is nothing new--just different guises conveying the same ideas about human beings and existence.

The God of Mischief and Me

Pan the Greek God of Mischief lives in my computer. My interest in using a computer's capability to exploit new notions about creativity is very intriguing to Pan. At the same time he takes great pleasure in tormenting me and causing mistakes so that I become confused and question my involvement with a computer.

We have an interesting relationship---he deliberately corrupts my parameters and presents me with what he thinks is horrible art. Most of the time this is true but, occasionally, Pan makes a mistake and I get back an amazing image. It is something I would never have predicated and then I claim it as my own personal art. When this happens he becomes furious and shuts down the computer as his evil side comes out. Eventually Pan will relent because he really enjoys playing this game with me knowing he wins most of the time. I must admit I do love Pan's playful attitude about art and computers. The Greek Goddess Aphrodite and the Hindu Goddess Lakshmi said they could reveal to me secrets of beauty, which transcend physical beauty. However, they said to teach me about art, I needed wings to travel with them so I could fly forward and backwards through time.

At this point the God from Above said he could give me wings by turning me into an eagle. I accepted his kind and generous offer and was able to accompany Aphrodite and Lakshmi and I saw many greats works of art and even watched the artists at work. Unfortunately, I could not talk to them and ask any questions because I was in the form of an eagle.

At each stage of the journey Aphrodite and Lakshmi, who were the only ones to understand my sounds as words, explained to me the significance and meaning of each artist's work. While the journey took us 50 years, I learned to appreciate a concept and an esthetic which links together different styles and cultures throughout the history of art. I can now appreciate relationships between primitive art, Giotto, Michelangelo, Utramaro, Cézanne, Picasso and others. The experience of flying and the trip was the thrill of a lifetime and the God from Above changed me back to my original form. Both Aphrodite and Lakshmi, who represent beauty, gave me a stern warning that I am not to deal with social or political comments. The universe moves very rapidly and I should not be concerned about things, which depend upon an extremely narrow focus of history. Also, I should not pay much attention to notions about interactive virtual reality as an art object because the esthetic issues are extremely complex, especially the criteria that can distinguish between playful entertainment and art. More importantly, the Goddesses told me that if I fail in my quest to achieve beauty, then, when I die, I will be banished to the underworld of ugliness. There, all of my senses will deal with hideous, repulsive and morally objectionable images, sounds and forms for all of eternity.

--- Charles Csuri, 1993