Watercolor + Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bleedproof White . 10.44″ x 15.29″ . 2024
I. We are the World
Last November, I posted this childhood drawing on Facebook and my friend Joseph Conde suggested to remake it in my current style. I still wonder what the hell was on my mind back in 1985, but it was fun to paint between the lines.
There’s a saying that the number of consciousnesses in the Universe is one. This is not some esoteric trick question since everyone can only experience the Universe from their own point of view. In mine, it often feels like people are not really here (nor there). And I’m really starting to doubt that it’s the gin. Where do these parts of them that are left behind even go?
Over the years I’ve jokingly referred to this phenomenon as the “wall of comprehension”. Most conversations are repetitions or stock knowledge. Once the topic deviates, the “matrix will glitch”. We are in a descriptive comfort zone and there isn’t much tr00 analysis or creation of new information anymore. Doesn’t this explain why “art” that is copied from pictures is so popular?
This is why gossip is such cheap conversational currency. One can even call the news gift wrapped gossip. While everything has its time and place, these are just examples of how information can cause a form of mental stagnation. People are so consumed by all these sordid details to distract them from addressing their own personal reality. In effect, we have a society filled people showing their retentive capacities, but aren’t using or honing their abilities. Aren’t we here to do something about ourselves? Why act like a bunch of parrots asking for crackers?
The sine qua non of my work is the fulfillment of a new idea. Call it “counter-conceptualism”, because every piece turns into a fucking thesis. Hey, obey your madness and change the world. And I’m writing all this stuff now so that nobody will misunderstand me. E.g. the relevance of the Rorschach tests in my paintings is for you to find yourself in them, which is exactly what most people are avoiding.
II. The Devil is More Christ-like than You
We often come across this term, “The Christ Like Life”, and people have the misconception that living this way is by means of virtue, abstinence, sacrifice. Ever heard of ‘monkey see monkey do”? With all this talk about parrots, and now monkeys, then I might as well be a pirate. I’ll also throw my interpersonal skills down the Mariana Trench while I’m at it by typing out an interpretation of my own.
It’s not about doing things in Jesus’ name, emulating, or spreading his life story. It’s about leaving such an impact on humanity that we become as well known for our deeds as he is — “like” him. This is only possible when one develops their own skills so uniquely, and excellently.
To me, this is what Jung meant by “Differentiation”, and it’s a little confusing because in his writings, it is supposedly through Differentiation that people become more alike. How could this be so if we all have different interests and pursuits? But it is through this “specialization” that we are able to share a common denominator of serving humanity.
This “service” is an inevitability. By really developing our skillsets or talents so idiosyncratically that they don’t go unnoticed, we are able to create something so innovative and significant that it will influence the course of humanity for all generations to come. For the greater good or not so good, the point is we can influence change.
This now paints the definition of “state of oneness” under a different light. Under this context, it is definitely not one massive group orgasm in the mind hive of 7.951 billion people like all these “spiritual awakening” buffs make it out to be. That’s disgusting! The specific, remarkable, and singular abilities that we can all potentially develop will contribute to humanity’s development even if we hate everybody.
So again, when we hear stuff like becoming closer to Jesus, it doesn’t mean to proselytize in his name and be a martyr. It pertains to having a transformative impact on our race. And where impact is concerned, I don’t think there’s a better success story than that of the Devil himself. He may have many names, but he is with us all when not even Jesus is.
III. 20,000 Leagues
Just like how the author Jules Verne managed to write 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in 1870, Differentiation is also the path to becoming god-like. From his story’s scientific compendium of everything that was known about the ocean and its flora and fauna at that time, to logical mathematical hypotheses such as the pressure per inch that would make the Nautilus a viable sub-aquatic vessel, the speculative technology of pelagic suits interspersed with the fictional, enigmatic Captain Nemo, along with a theorem about the center of the South Pole, this isn’t simply “hard science fiction”. With the additional context of when it was written, plus the bonus of it being so inspirationally un-woke and politically incorrect, 20,000 Leagues is unparalleled. Jules Verne wasn’t even a scientist!
Authors tend to write themselves into their own stories, and the character Nemo, just like his creator is also a result of Differentiation. The book also touches upon how extraordinariness comes at a very steep price, and how one must be willing to endure certain inconveniences to fulfill “Bloodshed Across the Empyrean Altar Beyond the Celestial Zenith”, a.k.a. “vision”. All this talk about water brings to mind the saying that no ship was built to stay in the harbor. So if you’re going to sail the ocean of life, do it in style.
IV. Devilfish
Originally, Part 2, Chapter 16 of the 20,000 Leagues was called “Devilfish” but got changed to “Octopi”, perhaps to offend less people. To paraphrase, it is an umbrella term for a variety of species, particularly cephalopods like octopi and squid, but can include stingrays, and grey whales, for looking or being menacing to sailors. Also, some have protrusions on their heads that resemble horns.
It is not in my nature to settle for the already established and available, so I expanded the idea by adding my own “devils” to the painting. Along with the boobed sea-goats who exude their “infernal” essence, I’ve included a particular subspecies of angler fish called “sea devils” that use a bioluminescent lure.
V. Bioluminescence
When it comes to sea devils, being a “light bringer” means you’re either gonna eat, or get laid. And by getting laid, it means the female absorbs the male. They really embody the archetypal theme of love and death quite well.
It was once thought that all bioluminescence was a result of phosphorus, like light from the sun. This was later on disproven by the French pharmacologist Raphael Dubois, who confirmed that it was a chemical reaction between a specific compound or enzyme, a photoprotein, oxygen, and a calcium ion to produce light. He thus appropriately named this compound Luciferin, and the enzyme Luciferase as a tribute to the element, and after the Greek word “Phosphoros”, the personification of the morning star, which in Latin is “Lucifer”. We can get all pedantic about the sun technically being a star, but I’ll just stick with a pun: bioluminescence is a source of light when there is no “sun”.
Albeit very faint, humans also have their own form of bioluminescence. We generally know that the byproduct of electrical energy is light. However like the extinct ammonites, current deep sea creatures, even fireflies, our bioluminescence is not electric, but chemical too. What do we even need it for if we can’t even see it? Human thoughts and ideas are always symbolically represented by light. I’ve also certainly seen my fair share of flashing lights from dehydration. Certainly, there is a subliminal means of communication there, even if contemporary scientists may think it’s vestigial.
VI. The Lightning Bringer
Hell. Fiery dimension, or icy underworld? Whether it is one, all, within us, or none of the above, the standard for the regalia of its Sovereign is the pitchfork.
It is slightly amusing that something reminiscent of sifting poo out of hay, or poking people in the butt is associated with such a prominent individual. It’s about time that the Overlord wields a more suitable implement, don’t you think? Enter The Vajra (Sanskrit) or Dorje (Tibetan) which is a symbol of the Universe in harmony.
In Sanksrit, “Vajra” means diamond or thunderbolt. It is also a club like weapon that signifies invincibility, having associations with being pure, indestructible, durable, and eternal, like a so called “enlightened” state of mind. Some branches of Buddhism even believe that the Vajra facilitates achieving enlightenment in one lifetime by transcending reincarnation via a “thunderbolt of clarity”. Isn’t this what the Devil did?
The Hindu god Indra once wielded the Vajra as a weapon of destruction, and like a pitchfork its prongs were once open. It was only when the Buddha bent the prongs inwards that it became an instrument of peace.
There are numerous online references for the symbolism behind the parts of the Vajra. I just made the weapon suit the wielder. The crocodiles were replaced with the ultimate representative of Free Will: the Serpent. It was also ensured that the Vajra in the painting has 5 prongs to represent the fifth alchemical element: “je ne sais quoi”.
If I can paint Molloch back into our realm, I can certainly reopen the Vajra to counter this zombie-monkey-parrot apocalypse and negate it with”blightning”: the chromatic aberrations caused by “failure to focus”. It is the negative space like the Will that defines the Universe after all, not what occupies it. Then like water, everything will be forced to seek its proper level once more.
VII. “Godliness”
I find it interesting how there are still people waiting for the Rapture. On the “bright” side, it makes the theory that Jesus is a bodhisattva of Krishna all the more probable. Meanwhile, the Devil differentiated so well that he’s probably eating popcorn while watching everyone die and be reborn over and over again.
As a person of mixed race, I already have a slight advantage for not belonging to one particular place. As for the rest of the list, it’s a work in progress. There was a time when I wanted to be a part of something bigger than myself, and it took a while to figure out that all I needed to do was create it. Over the years, I’ve embarked on the journey of becoming my own master while the remnants of “finding my people” turned into dust.
Again It’s not about emulation, it’s a about having the balls to withstand true specialization. Just keep Captain Nemo, Jules Verne, or even the Ocean in mind. Be so good at what you do that you are indispensable as an individual. And then break free from the “ouroboric” cycle of death and rebirth and really become “out of this world”.