Tzaphkiel

With ABSOLUTION running smoothly and steadily and increasing like a healthy party should, I am now free to turn my attention partly to other things. I'm very happy to see NYC rapidly becoming the fun and exciting place I knew, with more events and art than one person can even digest.

One art installation caught my eye...it's to benefit the WM3. For those of you who don't know, there are three guys who are serving life sentences for supposedly killing three young boys in West Memphis, Arkansas 17 years ago. The trouble is, there wasn't a shred of real evidence to convict the guys who were teens at the time. They were convicted partially because they wore black all the time, listened to bands like *gasp* METALLICA(God Forbid!), and dared to be different in a town filled with sickening right wing jerks who call themselves Christians(although a real Christian would never judge by outward apperances "For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." I Samuel 16:7). They were labled as Satanists and sentenced to die in prison, and one- Damien Echols- was put on Death Row!!

Here is the description of the installation:

""Tzaphkiel" marks the second time that DeNike and Echols have
collaborated on a major piece. Eight mirrors lean against the gallery
walls creating a kaleidoscopic point of intersection for divination
and reflection. Four pillows, each representing a cardinal direction,
offer viewers a place to sit and meditate while viewing themselves on
all sides. Two of Echols’ paper talismans—one dedicated to Saturn and
the other to Tzaphkiel—adorn the project room doorway while his paper
flowers—handcrafted in Manichean shades of white and black—occupy a
vase in the center of the room. During the performance, DeNike will
work to embroider a cloth scroll with the phrase “I believe in magick,
I believe in you” a piece she began nearly two years ago as a tribute
to Echols.

The installation takes its name from the Golden Dawn archangel
associated with Saturn. Tzaphkiel, often called upon for banishing and
overcoming obstacles is said to possess the ability to create portals
and see across time. From June 4-11, in conjunction with the
installation, DeNike and Echols will embark on a seven-day
collaborative meditation. DeNike will reside in the gallery,
subsisting only on water. During the day she will lead a white light
meditation where gallery visitors are invited to send white light to
Echols, who will be mediating simultaneously in prison. At night,
DeNike and Echols will work with Saturn energy invoking Tzaphkiel
calling for a just resolution in Echols’ case. Although DeNike has an
extensive history of performative work, this marks the first time the
artist herself will be the primary participant in a live work."

Wow, I've got to go see this. And I am also struck by the amount that Damien Echols has not let the horrific circumstances that he is under stop him from being the artist he was meant to be! His Art is transcending even Death Row- now that is absolutely amazing. Now, if he could make this happen from Death Row in Arkansas, doesn't that make you want to get off your butt and do something??? What an inspiration.