Jonas Burgert

The deep, dark, magical and vibrant work by Jonas Burgert

Gasper Noe's "Enter The Void"

Havn't seen a movie so disgusting, dazzling, delirious, delicate and over all mind blowing in a long long time.
I think watching the movie gives very close effect to taking LSD. The story follows a messed up teenage boy living in Tokyo that got involved with drugs and got shot down by the police. The Tibetan's Book of Death then play the main role of the movie and we look through the eyes of that boy soul, decending his body and go through the process to his new life. At the end of the film, I felt the distinct between my own conciousness and my physical body. it fucks me up so bad, thats how powerful a movie could be! salut to that!

watch the trailer

Isaac Julian's Ten Thousan Waves

I recently went to Hayward Gallery (South Bank)'s new exhibition "MOVE". The exhibition gathered works centered around body art/performance art from the 60s to the present day. This includes amazing interactive installations Tania Bruguera, William Forsythe,Robert Morris, Bruce Nauman, Yvonne Rainer, Simone Forti and big archive of recordings and videos for the audience to browse through...
but none of these works was not the reason I paid 8 pounds to get in...It was the UK premiere of Isaac Julian's "Ten Thousand Waves".
I spent 50 minutes submerge myself in the beautiful scenaries, emotions, narrations, and the physicality of the piece. It was a massave 9 screens installation where the viewer could walk around the room and get different perspectives from the same story.
The film itself was about people who trying to strive for better lives. Often I felt like they were related ghost stories...there's something very mystical yet urban about them

"Ten Thousand Waves" really transgresses genre boundaries, and eventally as it takes the audience to another space and time, it also transgresses the sensations of reality. highly recommended.

Another Man Magazine A/W 2010

Another Man Magazine A/W 2010

The new issue of Another Man magazine is themed "Altered States".
With very interesting articles and interviews including Matthew Stones phrasing Joseph Beuys as a style icon, bringing back Brion Gysin's tripping Dream machine, new projects by tattooist Horiyoshi the Third, mysticism in the art of Angelbert Metoyer, Shamans Essay (EXTREMELY RELEVANT! SURELY ONE OF THE THINGS THAT GOES ON MY "I WISH I WROTE THAT" LIST!!!) by Tim Blanks, conversation between the occult icons: AA Bronson and Daniel Pinchbeck, etc.

The mixture of content was very engaging, although almost every article left me begging for more. (being a mass magazine, it's understandable that they wouldnt go in depth with such heavy topic) Nick Knight's photoshoot with the artist Duo- Lucy McRae and Bart Hess, was stunning and presents a perfect aesthetic to go along with this issue. Eventhough he was on the cover, Keith Richard was surprisingly outshine everything else in the magazine.

Overall, Another man has picked up the bits and pieces of esoteric spirituality and printed them out in style. Is this an evidence that Shamanism has officially made a come back into our mainstream media?

David Byrne's ILÉ AIYÉ (THE HOUSE OF LIFE)

I just watched this documentary from 1989 yesterday and, wow, what an inspiration it was to my project!

Ilé Aiyé is David Byrne's breathtaking 1989 documentary on Candomblé, the African-influenced spirit cult of the Bahia region of Brazil.

Ilé Aiyé explores the ways in which Candomblé has influenced the daily life and culture of the people of Brazil in music, art, religion, theater, food, dance, poetry and more. Ilé Aiyé uses experimental film techniques, music, and cultural observation to express the life and rituals of Candomblé and the symbolic manifestation of the Orishás, the deities which represent the wide range of natural and spiritual forces. The rhythms of the sacred drums and bells, a dance of spiritual ecstasy, offerings and sacrifices, divination and the visitation of the Orishás through trance are all part of the color and life of Candomblé.

Elizabeth Mcgrath

Surreal scupltures by Elizabeth Mcgrath

Alessandra Exposito

Mix media sculpture from skulls by Alessandra Exposito

Mongolian Shamanism

I just came across a Youtube channel of a Hungarian Assistant Professor sharing his finding of his field research of the social phenomenon of the Shamanism in the contemporary Mongolians.

In this video, titled 'The Mongolian Shamans' Spring Rite', he described the ritual as follow:

short clips taken at Eej Mod in Selenge aimag on April 5, 2009. They show apprentices of the well-know Mongolian zairan Byambadorj circling the sacred "mother tree" until attaining a state of altered consciousness.

Rick Bartow

Personal experiences and cultural engagement inspire Rick Bartow's drawings, paintings, sculpture, and prints. He is deeply involved with his family and community. Myths from around the globe, especially Native American transformation stories, are the heart of much of his work. Observations of the natural world: hawks, ravens, coyotes, self-portraits, and eagles populate his iconography. He is well known for astute interpretations of literary, musical and visual arts.