David Jones, artist and poet (1895-1974) begins his PREFACE TO THE ANATHEMATA :

'I have made a heap of all that I could find.' (1) So wrote Nennius, or whoever composed the introductory matter to Historia Brittonum. He speaks of an 'inward wound' which was caused by the fear that certain things dear to him 'should be like smoke dissipated'. Further, he says, 'not trusting my own learning, which is none at all, but partly from writings and monuments of the ancient inhabitants of Britain, partly from the annals of the Romans and the chronicles of the sacred fathers, Isidore, Hieronymous, Prosper, Eusebius and from the histories of the Scots and Saxons although our enemies . . . I have lispingly put together this . . . about past transactions, that [this material] might not be trodden under foot'. (2)

(1) The actual words are coacervavi omne quod inveni, and occur in Prologue 2 to the Historia.
(2) Quoted from the translation of Prologue 1. See The Works of Gildas and Nennius, J.A.Giles, London 1841.


20 May 2020

Sign of the Void : on empty(ing) iconography

 
Instruments of the Passion (continued)

Sign of the the Cross
Sign of the Guillotine
Sign of the Electric Chair
Sign of the ...
Sign of the Sign
Sign of the Void :
In this sign, conquer/HA HA


Theatre of the Actors of Regard  
Theatre of the Artists of Raphael  
"In hoc signo vinces" (Classical Latin: [ɪn hoːk ˈsɪŋnoː ˈwɪŋkeːs], Ecclesiastical Latin: [in ok ˈsiɲo ˈvintʃes]) is a Latin phrase conventionally translated into English as "In this sign thou shalt conquer".

The Latin phrase itself renders, rather loosely, the Greek phrase "ἐν τούτῳ νίκα", transliterated as "en toútōi níka" (Ancient Greek: [en túːtɔːi̯ níːkaː], Modern Greek: [en ˈtuto ˈnika]), literally meaning "in this, conquer". 
- Wikipedia  

  
Jeremy Irons' character in 'Night Train to Lisbon' :
"If Jesus had been put to death with a guillotine, 
we would be praying in front of a big shiny blade. 
Or, if he'd been electrocuted, we'd be genuflecting 
in front of a chair."

Andy Warhol, Electric chair
 Andy Warhol, Electric chair (1967)     collection NGA, Canberra

Lenny Bruce is said to have earlier said :
'If Jesus had been killed twenty years ago, Catholic school children would be wearing little electric chairs around their necks instead of crosses.'

Theatre of the Amulets of Regard  
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA