“A time of turmoil…” by Richard F. Yates (Holy Fool)
We are in the midst of a move. I HATE moving. I swore last time (seven years ago), that instead of moving all of the STUFF that accumulates in a house over the years, I was just going to catch the place we are leaving on fire and walk away. (I didn’t do that this time… Maybe next time, if there IS a next time…)
I run on routines, on habitual activities. If I break a routine, I get confused and forgetful. I have special morning routines when I get up that I have to follow – and when something slips in to disrupt my routine, everything goes haywire. (I forgot to take my blood pressure medicine and anxiety pills on Friday because I didn’t follow my regular morning plan. By afternoon, I was shaky and headachy and a grouch… There are consequences…)
Right now, what with the move, EVERYTHING is out of whack. How to cope???
ARTZ…
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[Digital drawing made this morning in MS Paint…]
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“Self Portrait (Gothic Grandpa)”
[Selfie with digital drawing and crude magickal elements.] Days go by. Time is the ultimate enemy. I'm working on a spell that will stop time in its tracks...
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"Something Very Bad Happened..." by RFY (HF) & FEH (TT)
[Crayon, felt pen, wax pencil on reclaimed cardboard with digital embellishments and color.] My almost three-year-old granddaughter and I have been collaborating on artworks for over half her life. I think we're getting pretty good! This one has all the energy of a horrible murder scene, with the primitivism cartooning of an old guy with no schooling in art. What do YOU think of the final product?
---Richard F. Yates (Holy Fool) & Felicity Echo Hanson (Toddler Terror)
P.S. - This is the newest FREEBIE art that I'm giving away for ZERO TEZ (for a short time.) If you're into it, there are 23 editions just a single click away from your collection! DO IT!!!
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"Black and Yellow Safety Snake"
[Digital drawing created and animated on my phone.] If you see a reptile pulsating in this way, it's best to stay clear. They are undoubtedly having an emotional moment and need some space to think...
https://objkt.com/asset/KT1ABGYuE84UQNDJdWtMEhiBi6yhsfTQ7W56/333
Sold!
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Let’s look at some artwork that I’ve COLLECTED lately! These first five are from the Hive chain (NFT Showroom):
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“Official Thank You” by insaneworks
https://nftshowroom.com/richardfyates/collection/insaneworks_thank-you_official-thank-you
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“Are We There Yet” by insaneworks
https://nftshowroom.com/richardfyates/collection/insaneworks_water-vector_are-we-there-yet
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“Sunrise” by rektdoteth (aka Collin Dyer)
https://nftshowroom.com/richardfyates/collection/rektdoteth_trashart_sunrise
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“Retrowave 6: Lucky Rethinking Eth” by rektdoteth (aka Collin Dyer)
https://nftshowroom.com/richardfyates/collection/rektdoteth_rekt_r-6-lucky-rethinking-eth
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“Eating Meat” by stellabelle
https://nftshowroom.com/richardfyates/collection/stellabelle_gross_eating-meat
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“DESCRIBE THE SHAPE OF YOUR SPACE” by PEPPEKIM
https://rarible.com/token/tezos/KT18pVpRXKPY2c4U2yFEGSH3ZnhB2kL8kwXS:13403
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Let’s veer off in a different direction for a moment. (Sorry for this, but it’s what my brain does, sometimes…) The Declaration of Independence includes the following line in the preamble: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” [https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript]
If we examine the wording here, the authors of this document believed that very IDEA that all “men” are equal and that they have the fundamental rights to life, liberty, and happiness, was axiomatic. This was a STARTING POINT that seemed (to them) self-evident – OBVIOUS. These points did not NEED to be argued because everyone should already believe this…
But what if they DON’T share these starting points? What if “they” believe (whoever “they” are) that THEIR rights and their beliefs and their happiness are more important than other people’s? What happens then? Do “we” have to jump straight into violence? (Whoever “we” are…)
There are other issues with the language of the Declaration that I could bring up, like what if someone doesn’t believe in a “Creator?” Nature can’t “endow people with rights. In nature, stuff just happens. Things eat other things. That’s how nature goes… The supposition, of course, is that HUMANITY is somehow outside of or BEYOND nature. In the ideology of the founders of the United States, this existence beyond nature, however, seems to be contradicted by this language (from the line just previous to the one quoted above): “When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.” [Same source cited above.]
Here, we have some strange phrases: “the powers of the earth” and “Laws of Nature and Nature’s God.” The laws of nature seems very different from the laws of humanity, so what does this mean? And who (or what) is “Nature’s God?” Is this Pan? Where the founders of the U.S. polytheistic? And, to be honest, I really don’t know what to do with the phrase “the powers of the earth.” Are they referring to non-human, elemental creatures here? Or witchcraft, maybe? Or is this just an invocation, in clever language, of human organizations and loci of power?
We, as human beings, are at a very dangerous stage of development. With global communication technology, our knowledge of world-wide affairs is vast and nearly instantaneous, and with this global perspective comes a sense that we can touch all people and all parts of the planet with ease, but human BRAINS aren’t really wired for global affairs. We’re far more localized and tribal, so being confronted with global problems OVERWHELMS us… Drives us, literally, to the brink of insanity. (LOOK AROUND. It’s “self-evident” that this is the case.)
Life, liberty, and happiness. These seem reasonable. Meanwhile, a faction of U.S. citizenry believes it is their DUTY to make people follow THEIR beliefs and ideologies, codifying their ideologies in the LAWS of the land. To me, this seems like some “self-evident” bullshit. Why is it anybody else’s business who someone loves? Who someone marries?
If folks hold certain beliefs (religious or ideological) then they have every right to live by those beliefs. I, for example, find it emotionally distressing to EAT mammals, because I can see in their eyes that they have emotions and complex thoughts. I’m not comfortable eating something that has feelings. I’m not telling anyone ELSE that they should think and act the way I do because I don’t believe that I have the right to tell someone else how to think or act. However, a very loud contingency DOES believe that they have the right to tell ME and my friends and family how we should think and act. I hold this truth to be self-evident: They can go fuck themselves. (Although, I suppose that would be considered sinful in their strict religious ideological framework. Oh well. They can just ask for forgiveness, right?) But that URGE to CONTROL others…. To tell folks they don’t even know how they should live their lives…
I don’t get it. Do they have such insecurity in their own belief systems that they feel the need to repress and destroy every other ideology, just so theirs doesn’t seem so nonsensical? (If it’s the ONLY choice – there is no choice.) ??? If your religion says you can only wear green and have to eat cupcakes on Wednesdays and that by petting puppies you create new angels, GREAT! Have at it! Pet the puppies, eat the cupcakes, and wear green. Just don’t expect me (or anyone else) to behave exactly like you do. (I don’t look good in green, and I’m more of a cat person.)
And this has been my Monday morning rant! Thanks for tuning in! Now, back to the ARTZ!!!
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"Danger (Shopping Karts)"
[Digital photograph taken with my phone plus digital embellishments.] A common scourge of the urban landscape, man-eating karts wander the wastelands in search of easy prey...
https://objkt.com/asset/KT1ABGYuE84UQNDJdWtMEhiBi6yhsfTQ7W56/334
Sold!
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"She"
[Ballpoint pen on notebook page with digital embellishments and color.] There is a fantastic song by The Monkees called "She." This picture has nothing to do with that song. Enjoy!
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"Bird of Paradise"
[Colored pencil on reclaimed cardboard with digital embellishments and color.] Lovely plumage! (He's just a little tired and fragged out. Probably pining for the fjords...)
P.S. - It's quite likely that I published this piece originally on my Primitive Entertainment Workshop blog, (back in 2017), but this is the first (and only) time that I’m minting this work as cryptoart...
Sold!
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"Make a Circuit with Me"
[Sticker collage on clear plastic sheet over striped pillowcase, photographed, and then run through multiple digital filters.] If you ain't a fan of the band, The Polecats, then you probably don't know the song, "Make a Circuit with Me." I think you should go listen to that tune, either way. (It's a classic!) Then after spinning that song, look at this image again and see if it doesn't look just like that song sounds! Thrilling!
https://objkt.com/asset/KT1ABGYuE84UQNDJdWtMEhiBi6yhsfTQ7W56/335
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That’s enough for now. I have to go finish packing!!! Thanks for stopping by!
---Richard F. Yates (Holy Fool)