THE LAST GRAINS OF SAND

- In a CNN/Opinion Research Poll from last month 70% of respondents said gas prices would be "extremely/very" important in their choice for President. The same poll stated that 73% of respondents backed offshore drilling, and 69% were in favor of drilling in currently protected federal lands.

-Other polls have shown that the majority of Americans believe that more drilling for oil in the US would alleviate the problem of dependency on foreign oil and rising gas prices.

-The US Department of Energy estimates that the amount of recoverable oil available from offshore drilling in the continental US would last only 7 months at the current rate of consumption.

-A D.O.E. report from last year indicates that it would take 2 decades for domestic drilling to have a noticeable impact on domestic production and the impact on overall fuel costs would be insignificant. Recently John McCain himself has admitted that offshore resources would "take years to develop". He is now running on a platform that promotes the idea of vastly increased domestic drilling, which will have little to no effect on overall fuel costs or the long term energy crisis. In addition, his overall stance on viable sources of energy is heavily reliant on our current model of oil production and use, the dire consequences of which have been predicted by such disparate sources as NASA, Al Gore, the United Nations, and the Pope (along with a continually rising number of other organizations and individuals).

-The US only accounts for 5% of the world's population but uses 25% of it's oil. The US is second only to China as the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases. 1 barrel of oil burned adds approximately 1000 pounds of carbon dioxide to the air.


Source: New Yorker Aug 8-11 2008.
Illustrations: A. Turner, Fall 2000.

CATALYST exhibition

the first image above: preview of a large silkscreen print based off of the agoraphobic nosebleed "pcp torpedo" 2xCD layout that i designed for hydra head a couple years back... well maybe it was as recent as 2007. anyway, the print is going to be part of my contribution to a group exhibition taking place in san francisco at the fifty24sf gallery, opening on september 4th. the show is titled "catalyst" and will feature works from a host of interesting folks including but not limited to: seldon hunt, aaron horkey, stephen kasner, justin bartlett, etc.

the second image above: another fine piece by aaron horkey, commissioned specifically to promote the previously mentioned exhibition. horkey never ceases to create wonders.

....and.... this is the stuff the days (and nights) are made of: helms alee "night terror", henry miller "tropic of cancer", m. allen thompson's matress delivery service, chris ware "acme novelty library" vols. 16-18, canine steroid abatement program, mark millar "1985", washington cabin in a future that doesn't exist, joy division "closer", a rubbed raw spine and shakey arms, tarentel "ghetto beats on the surface of the sun", brown jenkins "angel eyes", the wailing and gnashing of teeth....

....and..... below is a press release about the catalyst exhibition written by none other than mr. eugene s. robinson (for those of you who don't know, eugene is the frontman for the inimitable oxbow and author of the recently published "fight", on harper collins/audio version on hydra head):

The aural to the visual, the ears to the eyes, and the ragged run through limbic systems both animal and even vegetable, the graphicists who have made their way into carving a visual fucking identity for our soundtrack are no less compelling visionaries because they deal in imagery. It is the opposite, in fact. The lasting memories of that which is seen, emblematic of the same unspecified disaster that's framed this post-post-modern thing of ours, fiercely clings to our understanding of the place, the space and the time of our lives. Like eight shots across the bow of the lame and the same, Seldon Hunt, Josh Graham, Aaron Turner, Justin Bartlett, Aaron Horkey, Stephen Kasner, Dwid Hellion, and Florian Bertmer contest the assumption that this fine art thing, this aesthete thing, this dainty goddamned pursuit of color, lines, concepts, and meaning need be left to the pampered boulevardiers and galleristas. Far from it, this stuff is coming, not from some place nearly so prosaic as the illusory STREETS, but from the heart, balls and soul of a Promethean desire for ILLUMINATION.
In other words: they're going to SHOW YOU SOMETHING. Whether you like it or not. Whether it serves your purposes or not. Beyond irony and therefore almost outside of comfortable efforts at mockery, THIS art [yeah, I called it art] sidles up to you. It insinuates its way into you and while turning away or closing your eyes is always an option there still is that thing that marks these moments as different and that IS their aural qualities as well. Fury, sound, symbol, and the capture of it all in a flash of light and dark and everything else in between.

This is alright. This is goddamned OK.

And if you leave here unaffected it will be, in all likelihood, because you left here dead.

Enjoy.

--Eugene S. Robinson

FIFTY24SF Gallery Proudly Presents the Group Show “Catalyst”
Opening Reception: Thursday, September 4, 2008 from 7 – 9:30 p.m.