"..nowadays everything valuable is ephemeral. I mean that in days gone by solidity and the ability to last were what gave value: a sarcophagus, a statue, a temple or a canvas. But now everything of value is consumed, used up, disappears - whether you're talking about natural resources, drugs, protected species or art. We've left behind the era when scarce products were more valuable precisely because of their scarcity. That was logical. But what's the consequence of that? Today, for things to be more valuable, they have to be scarce. We've inverted cause and effect. We tell ourselves: Good things are rare. So let's make sure bad things are rare, and that will make them good."makes sense doesnt it.
that's an excerpt from one really amazing book i just finished. warning: this entry's gonna be like a book review; so those interested, do read on. others can read off the last few paragraphs.
the book's definitely not everyone's cup of tea or something that one might settle with on days you dont have your usual brewed cuppa. it is such a different type of novel to read. so different that it sends one into a whole different dimension. to me, it's like redefining the genre of fiction and in this case, a wave of philosophy ideas drenches it too.
the book is called
The Art of Murder by
Jose Carlos Somoza whose works are originally written in Spanish. you can read abit of it from
here.
i dont even know where to start about the book. the conceptualisation and the weaving of his ideas are in such a fabric that wraps you in a daze. the pictorial descriptive creation of his idea he writes is amazing. it's almost crazy.
"A work of art is a transformation. Portraits are works of art because they transform themselves into the person they are representing."the whole book is centralised on a fictional created form of art: hyperdramatism (HD) art. it's a type of art that artists use real naked bodies as their form of canvas. in this book, under a famous Dutch art genius, Bruno van Tysch, these canvases are 'primed' - almost sterilizing the body of their faults (even though perfect ones are already picked out) and cleansing it. these canvases are removed of their body hairs, termination of sweat glands and even hormones; as such, for girls, their menstruation cycle stops and they constantly pop pills to keep themselves 'primed'. in any case, these canvases are primed and painted (even in places like the eyeball retinas, inside the ears, vulvae, navels, etc.) and exhibited in galleries, in their specified positions (tiptoed, bented, in contortion, etc.) for almost 8 hours straight. if they are bought, they are on display at the owner's homes for a period of time. failures of HD art canvases become Ornaments, like a Table, Trolley, Chair or even a Lamp. it's taking Body Art to an almost ridiculous, level. that's the background. in this story, canvases of this particular Dutch artist are mysteriously murdered in grotesque manners and it is unknown why.
the rather long background note is really just one leaf of a tea plantation, i can even say im not really describing it right and proper; not giving the author much justice for his masterpiece. Somoza creates it so flawlessly and amazingly that it seems like another world all together. he describes it as though the whole scene and idea really exists now in Europe. he draws out effortlessly the passion and love that a person might have to be a canvas; prestigious and worthy as the public stature of a canvas is highly regarded. he brings out the strong desire and conviction of a HD artist or for that matter, anyone who positively embraces HD art, in such a fascinating brushstroke; it's almost really is crazy.
the book's philosophical strength grades more than the thriller murder part; though both should be credited worthy for a read. the ending is a semi-surprise; not one that would make you gasp and be puzzled of, but one that one would accept and consume. like it is written, "the public is quick to forgive madmen and the dead", which is seemingly true. how many of us would blame a dysfunctional mentally unstable being of murder compared to one that is sane and thinking?
Jose Carlos Somoza makes me really wonder, if hyperdramatism art really exists. or that i may even silently wish it does and that i am anticipating and anxiously wanting it to be created. because if it does, i'd want to see them for myself.
"We live in a confused world. A world which has become art, become simply the pleasure of concealing, of pretending to be something one is not, or that does not exist. Perhaps we never used to be like this, perhaps this has come about despite our true nature. Or perhaps we have been like this from the start, perhaps our true nature was always concealment, only now we have the means to make this possible."Labels: pictures, ponder, quotes, reviews
