7/9/2022 #71
Here and Now, Art (Agimat), Kularts, Tantric drawings, Franck André Jamme ,Kenji Liu, Theresa Wong, Karen Lugo, Cuba Feliz.
HERE AND NOW
It’s been a strange week for me, with a minor health issue (improving) and an ongoing car/transportation problem (thanks to theft and supply chain shortages for auto parts).
ART
Seeing the small tantric drawings on postcards used by Theresa Wong for the Carlos Villa exhibit (see both the Links and Soundings section, below) reminded me of the “agimat” drawings I did several years ago. An agimat is an amulet or power object with a “magical” symbol inscribed on it. It can be a drawing on paper or cloth; it can be an object like a necklace or coin. In the Philippines these symbols tend towards the baroque, but I wanted to experiment with simplifying and focusing the images (note: these are extremely subjective interpretations and look quite different from the agimats commonly used in the Philippines).
Next Saturday, Eulipion Outpost will feature musician/composer Aireene Espiritu answering the Six Questions.
LINKS
“Anting-anting Power” from Kularts (San Francisco).
Tantra Song – Tantric Painting from Rajasthan is a book for which a video was made by Dragos for Siglio Press, narrated by “Andrea.” The drawings themselves, copied and handed down over generations since the 17th century, look surprisingly modern and minimalist:
Interview in Paris Review with French poet Franck André Jamme, who collected the tantric drawings shown in the video above.
Contemplative prose poem (zuihitsu) by Kenji Liu: “To Eat a Fig is to Swallow Ghosts: A Postcard for Little Tokyo.”**
And because I’ve been thinking about anarchism, Buddhism, and meditation: Article by Kenji Liu: “Revisiting Buddhist Anarchism.”
*“A zuihitsu is a Japanese contemplative literary form characterized by loosely associated fragments of text” (from a note to the poem in boomcalifornia.org).
**Referring to “Little Tokyo” in Los Angeles.
SOUNDINGS
I learned about the Rajasthan tantric drawings from cellist/vocalist Theresa Wong in this video where she performs soundscapes for a Carlos Villa exhibit at the San Francisco Asian Art Museum. She uses postcards of tantric drawings from Rajasthan and “bird” cards, as guides to her performance:
Karen Lugo shows flamenco’s roots in movement and gesture: Flamenco Fusion with Langa Musicians and Dancers from Rajasthan:
Moving on down to Cuba: “Cuba Feliz - Lagrimas Negras.” A scene from the musical-documentary movie "Cuba Feliz," directed by Karim Dridi:
And it’s after midnight. More next Saturday . . .