children of the colour wheel

inner children could not be contained within the confines of the youth festival closing party, & well into the shrinking night we continued to play with toys & motivation generated from the psychedelic inspired event & quietly let our collectively exhausted hair down at the conclusion of a successful fest.

we're all kids at heart. some more wild than others.

kaleidoscopes, spinning tops, UV torches & bubbles mandatory mainstays for any lively party mix. the macro-cosmos of an urban living room slowly revealed. we muted with the changing light as like clockwork it slowly spun, spanning the entire colour wheel. rinse, repeat, recycle.

the bubbles flew. and the bunnies started to eat the cardboard walls as the roller rink adjacent slowly relinquished in a slow collapsed murder under the incessant drill of jack hammers. sun ra had serenaded the advent of a new day. magic.

and the last bubbles floated out into the morning sky as the revolving matmos light steadfastly rotated inside, deep violet hues slowly fading to bright.

i'm a child

inner and outer 

reconciled, 

the child alive 

embraces wholeness.

...and the dancing 

rainbow shrew 

remains untamed. 

dare to dream 

once more,

more!

more cautious 

on slippery 

floors

when wet

arabesque over 

eggshells broken

in time will be

one with earth.

reticent suppressors 

forever banished 

to 

distant shadows

now reduced.

the future

spinning top

cosmic spirals

in phi swirls

now mine.

i'm the last splash

want you, koo koo, cannonball.

space is the place

anywhere else is in between.

you've undone it. you've undone me.

wretched girl! have you no shame?

feel alright now

:)

flower zombie girl

i was recently at some dance party & took a brief respite outdoors with my wonderful friend [other] vic, to teach the bored bouncer/security guy ballet against the wheelchair cramp rail [as you do].

he was extremely confused & bewildered but really got into the spirit of things & by the end of the sesh we had random strangers lining up as we repeated this ad hoc choreography in an unintentional "the sweetest thing" style beauty salon dance scene homage. a good night.

...then i met her. and fell in love. my flower zombie princess. she let me take photos as i directed her as she bled barely there into the dark night. her blossom halo separating shadows. isn't she beautiful? i don't remember her name...

and it made me think of this:

Do not go gentle into that good night,

Old age should burn and rage at close of day;

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,

Because their words had forked no lightning they

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright

Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,

And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight

Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,

Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

- dylan thomas

shadow puppetmasters

the shiny new punk monk experimental interact projection breakaway faction[ky, nick and yours truly] play shadow puppets on the pine street wall as kate, alex, clare and mel bathe us in liquid light. meanwhile we project back down onto the expansive floor beneath at their feet. it's a projection off!

this quiet little article in city news who covered the opening event on the night pays a little homage atop a well curved and pink covered before and after bum. dirtyland. that's us.

meanwhile i manage to twist not so very hard, salubrious graffiti artist & festival co-director craig bunker AKA bunkwaa to come join us to demonstrate the mechanisations of flipbook & ad hoc paint programs with a well placed projected crab. the kids go wild. especially us.

this lively punk monk collaboration lives on into the smart arts closing night party this friday april 15 at red rattler where punk monk propaganda play with alice spacedoll & the divine knights with freestylin MC UN-1 playing evening MC. look for more light, live animations, a nano fanzine and things to skew/enhance your vision during and after. ALL FREE.

then you'll find us at the closing party on tuesday april 19 for hugely successful jurassic lounge at the australian museum bleeding interactive love onto gemstones by night. dance on & with us. while around the bend, our liquid light alchemists will bathe the museum in trippy coated goodness.

and if you're not sick of us then punk monks can also be found at the regrowth festival for alice spacedoll's album launch combining work, play and plant growing over easter weekend.

that's april pretty well bombed.

:)

she comes in colours everywhere

never saw the sun shining so bright

don't take out your handkerchiefs

twelve thousand edited words

...instead of the usual two or three.

something stupid

:)

i'm free

i admit it. this was my era. 

i actually went to a garden wedding fueled on excessive licked, sipped & sucked tequila and this song was the wedding march. it was an idyllic time filled with manchester music, LSD and dance parties. 

the groomsmen wore sunflowers in their lapels. we dined at a local chinese afterwards and got even more smashed. we told the bride as she ate a straw mushroom that it was a mountain oyster [sheep testicle]. she threw up. at the table. she was always rather delicate/gullible. we laughed.

aah, the 90s. sadly the marriage didn't last.

to understand the future one must embrace/forgive the past. RIP fluoros. please don't come back again. again.

lucky, lucky, lucky

and now for something a bit different. transition beckons. irresistibly.

sometimes i wonder why i'm so blessed. the universe really does provide in a non-religious zealot way. balance is restored. it seems bizarre that everything can change so goddam fast but when you feel and emote hard enough, it can i guess.

farewell rock bottom.

i choose life. maybe not with 80s kylie on repeat but she works rather nicely with this celebratory cheap wine hangover.

city news covers smART arts

Smart ARTS to showcase Sydney’s young talent

The Smart ARTS festival kicks off on April 1, providing young local artists with a unique two-week window to showcase their talents.

The event will feature a broad variety of works, ranging from film screenings and live music to more traditional exhibitions, and is expected to attract visual and performing arts enthusiasts from all over Sydney.

The festival is the creative platform for the City of Sydney’s annual Youth Week celebrations and will draw from the creative talents of 16-25 year old Sydneysiders.

The event coordinator Christie Torrington said: “The great thing about the City of Sydney at the moment is that there are more and more opportunities being made for young artists to get out there and exhibit their work.

“The event will enable them to show a wider audience what they can do in a creative sense and that’s what smart ARTS is all about.”

The festival will be hosted by the Pine Street Creative Arts Centre, which has in recent years become an integral part of the local art scene, serving as a stepping-stone for young people seeking a professional career in the field of creative arts.

The festival will commence with an art exhibition and launch party featuring performances by the Sydney Youth Orchestra as well as light projections by award-winning filmmakers, Punk Monk Propaganda.

Victoria Waghorn, founder of Punk Monks, said audiences can look forward to a spectacular display.

“On the opening night the walls are going to be lit up with liquid light and we will be playing projections and interactive animations,” she said.

During the course of the festival, Waghorn and other members of her team will also be offering free workshops, teaching youths how to make mobile films that will in turn be shown on the closing night.

“It’s an evolution of following your dreams and pursuing your passion!” she said.

When asked about the impact of the arts centre and the upcoming festival, Waghorn replied: “When I first came here I didn’t realise the scope it had. “This centre actually pulls in people from all over Sydney, not just the neighbourhood behind the university.”

Another highlight will be a performance by the Divine Knights synth-pop duo, who will be playing at the closing party on April 15. Gerard Anthony from the Divine Knights said: “I am really excited to be part of something that’s so creative and that’s supporting young creative people. It’s incredibly important.”

The City of Sydney’s smart ARTS festival will run from April 1-15 at the Pine Street Creative Arts Centre in Chippendale. All events are free but bookings are required for some events. For more information visit www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/pinestreet.

By Alexander Meyer-Thoene

smART arts opens

friday april 01: smart arts opened. running a little ragged & behind schedule [i brought my technical problems curse with me] come 18:30 almost on the dot we were ready to rock in the subdued light as we waited for the sun to disappear.

...and the crowds from the art exhibition mocktail queue inside to venture out. we breathed a collective sigh of relief as the show got underway. noone had died from our hair raising stunt set-ups in between. WHEEE!

us punk monks have a fair share of involvement in the fest and are really excited to be involved in such a progressive enterprise promoted & run by the council for the youth of sydney [16 - 25s].

organisers christie torrington & craig bunker have put together an inspiring and action packed programme for the two week duration. we're  a very happy & key part of the visual action & vibe.

we projection bombed the space within almost the last inch of itself [although as ky & nick point out we could have fitted at least one more projector].

not only did we flood the floors & walls with light and imagery we combined liquid light alchemy courtesy of kate [taylor], alex [papasavvas], clare [devlin-mahoney] and mel [papasavvas] with a visual mash of film [me, stephen dunstan, steven kastrissios, kate taylor, dan simmonds, angela bishop, tony lawrence], 2 and 3D animations [craig bunkwaa & alison locke] with some onsite live pencil meets flipbook programme [yours truly with ky [-lee menzies] & nick [radford] and guest animator bunkwaa] creating patchworks of interactive imagery using ground zero AKA the basketball court as our canvas. 

...and we made dreamcatchers too which hung ghostily from trees and eaves. the amazing silhouette lamps were created in a props workshop by talented artists & volunteers leading up to the fest. small 3D bunkwaa effigies danced in faerie circles in the grass carefully keeping watch. it's all about psychedelic dreamtime texture.

all these photographs were taken by guest punk monk & underground KINO film friend, emerging photographer vaughan allan. aren't they stunning? we love being made to look good.

we're just getting warmed up... want to come to the red rattler on april 15 for closing party to see what happens next?

and then, and then, and then - there's the whole journey in between. check out the programme. and while you're there sign up for my mobile film workshops!

smART arts festival

a pine street creative centre initiative

[with sydney city council]

april 01 - april 15.

reality check

i nearly died two weeks ago. in body. my spirit had already been broken, the last shreds of self-belief & sense of self-worth shredded from what was essentially an emotionally abusive relationship. with myself & the person who i mistakenly thought was my love.

i went away like a wounded animal to die with a trail of burned bridges in my wake. after being the subject of an extensive police hunt i was scheduled against my will into a mental institution for a few days until it was deemed i was no longer a danger to myself. i thought i would never get out. but surprisingly did.

until 48 hours ago i didn't really think i should have been released because i was so disturbed with a mind in utter turmoil. i still wanted to die & was planning to after this weekend just past [i'd just meet a couple of project deadlines first]. this time i would do it properly so i'd never go back to that place again. my secret mantra.

suicide addicts are selfish pricks. but we don't think so at the time. my motivation was fueled on a twisted perspective of poetic nobility, sacrifice and selflessness. a reluctant resignation that the magnum opus might never exist & that i was cursed with the opposite of the midas touch. me = poison ivy. i was living my own self-directed death ballad.

my friend steve points out: no corpse looks that beautiful after a few days hanging around the bush flyblown, bird pecked & trawled by ants. perfectly applied make-up wasted. someone i know who jumped the gap a couple of years back wasn't found for three months. romantic vision begone.

and then something strange happened. some of my not permanently alienated friends & family came together from near and far & inadvertantly saved me over the last couple of weeks. they meant to but i was sure it was a hopeless cause. 

initially i was just going through the motions & as much as i tried to fill it, the emptiness was all pervasive. i feel cheap that my weird epiphany came so fast & culminated over such a short period into one epic unexpected conclusion last night. for the first time, i saw myself & then him in a clear light. what they say is true: he really wasn't worth it. love is blind.

all the long lost pieces came suddenly back together & i was no longer humpty dumpty. they just fell into place & incredibly i walked away like a miracle survivor from a mega budget hollywood burning wreck with unbridled pyrotechnics, unbroken & scratchfree.

the damaged bridges still require repairs but my sleeves are rolled up for the blood, sweat & tears which lays ahead revealing the only visible scars which are on my wrists not heart. a constant reminder of the frailty that love can bring in a world of misdirection. we are so fallible. 

the future is uncertain, as change is welcomed in all its fluid luxuriousness.

still there is no replacement for love, truth & beauty. humanity might be flawed and i am as good a crazy poster girl as any, but we must own our flaws. channel & embrace them. that is art. story. perfection.

perception is all encompassing

the extent of my current conversation skills

...but with more rhythm. gotta love three day long hangovers.

project pending

this year's mountain project. for the soon to be acquired feathered friends. 


i will be running it as a series of weekend workshops. touch base if you want in on this massive hands-on learning curve.

the conversations there are more interesting than in your living room

can't believe you played yourself like this

odi et amo

odi et amo.

quare id faciam, fortasse requiris

nescio, sed fieri sentio et excrucior.

i hate and i love.

why i do so, perhaps you ask,

i know not, but i feel it, and i am in torment.

gaius velerius catullus  [84BC - 54 BC]