~BILLY GRANT . . SPIDER GALLERY / some images & thoughts
‘BAD BOY BILLY’ . . might not exactly be . . your cup of tea,
but, 2021 – isn’t the year to be . . shy.
in fact – that might actually be . . a YOU PROBLEM.
or: BILLY MAKES – LIKE A SQUIRREL !!
BILLY GRANT at SPIDER GALLERY / WITCHITA, KANSAS
BILLY GRANT . . makes like a squirrel / video
see: BILLY GRANT VIDEO at SPIDER
BILLY GRANT, drawing of a baby in flour.
so, flour baby . . . !!
I find this simple image so frighteningly compelling.
first off, I had to ask – what is this ?
there’s no knowing right off the bat / i.e. Instagram, but any digital image in general.
so there’s a big potential for fear – right there.
real, fake ? appropriated ? constructed . . photographed, etc etc.
are we on another planet, or just looking down – on ours from outer space – a huge site specific man made land/work ?
and, that brings us to – scale / dimension.
today – there is just really: 2 scales.
one: you know it’s a pants pocket lining, so, no matter how big the digital image / you get, as in you can comprehend & factor in the – the actual reality dimensions.
two: there is no way to know the dimensions – unless you ask.
which is where Billy’s image lies, and, I’m pretty sure – that’s by design. by deliberation.
plus, it’s so damn surreal & of science fiction, and not actually so much pretty – as formative.
what if this was drawn, huge – on the dark side of the moon ?
so I asked.
and was told, “it’s a drawing of Conner’s baby, I did in flour.”
which again, brings several thought to mind.
in end times, or at the very least . . any stressful present / future times – well, you mind has got to go human survival, biology & babies.
for example: how will socially-driven human babies / survive enforced social distancing, and school closures, viruses, vaccines, etc etc.
is it ?
also all about artists today – responding to climate change challenge by scaling down, and using / recycling simple materials.
is it about: not holding on / not making art to frame and archive and hold ‘forever’ in museums.
will there even be museums, or will they all crumble too, eventually. like they always have. ancient cultures / civilizations.
is the whole point ?
creativity, not the resultant creation.
is it . . an outsider vs insider war / esp re the status quo art world.
is it: a kind of unwritten poetry ? a thought ?
just ask the ancient Tibetan scrolls – how powerful a thought / can be.
just think on: how far away we have come from the Impressionists, the Expressionists, the Hudson School of Landscape painting ?? . . the Jackson Pollocks, and Rothkos – with their heroic statements on manknind, choice, the m-o-m-e-n-t.
the profiund moent.
have we reached: the ultimate profound singularity / moment.
in effect, a point of unity – before the great cell divide / of life.
the moment of the living organism – the baby.
all images via Instagram / courtesy @spider.gallery