The thumbnail image to this post is a photo of a recently finished, or nearly finished black and white ink drawing of the biblical and Gnostic character Seth (see gallery). As I was putting in a few finishing touches on the cobble stones with some cross hatching, my wife, who had been watching me over my shoulder suddenly asked me, "how do you know where to put everything?" I wasn't entirely sure what she meant initially so she explained: "how do you know where everything goes in the picture?" It was the same question that is often asked but in a variety of different ways..... a question I often deliberately ask myself, rephrasing and re-framing it in order to distill some finer understanding of the processes of being, creating and doing. As I fumbled over my best explanation of the dynamics of imagination and self reflection, from the initial moment of the "idea" or "spark", to the first imaginal composition, through a feedback of ideas and symbols as a meditation, and finally to the finishing process I lapsed into a somewhat contemplative state. In what follows I shall try to explicate the whys and wherefores of "how I know where to put everything"...
Looking at this particular project as an example it started with a definite idea, this isn't always the case though, sometimes the initial "spark" will be developed through free-drawing, especially if there is no compelling subject matter at the time. In this instance I wanted to hail and honour the imminent arrival of our baby boy, Seth, who is due to be born this November. Most parents will tell you that agreeing on names isn't always easy, what with competing family interests, conflicting tastes or cultural differences, often there is a need for careful and considerate negotiations. We settled upon Seth as a name after a few rounds of disagreement, wrinkled noses and blank stares. The name appealed to my interest in Gnosticism and biblical symbolism so it felt strong. With that in mind I decided that I would honour our choice of name by encapsulating it in an ink drawing.
Immediately upon deciding to do this I remembered that I had a book with a depiction of Seth on the cover, so I went to the bookshelf in the living room to take a look at it. The image was of Seth standing between two pillars, one black, one white. It is reminiscent of a tarot card drawing and done in a somewhat naive style. On the white pillar to his left is a black letter Shin and on the black pillar to his right is a white letter Tav, spelling Seth/STh in Hebrew script. In the background is a cave set into a mountain, green rays of light emanate from the man's head and at his feet lie a rose and a lotus or lily with their stems crossed. That same evening I meditated on this image in my minds eye and allowed thoughts and visions to gather around the basic underlying ideogram. I imagined the same basic symbolism, but projected through my own artistic filter which contains the residue of all my esoteric praxis. Certain symbols were replaced or deleted according to ideological preference or for metaphysical coherence with regard to the revised narrative. In line with a certain golden thread which runs throughout the work of such diverse Magi as Johannes Bureus and Miguel Serrano I have attempted to cast a glance back into the ancient of ancients, the Hyperborean past wrapped in the thick, dizzying mists of magic and mythos. A Rune Rita, Runes as old as time, washed up on distant shores after the tumultuous downing of Atlantis. A wisdom that has endured in ever degraded, diluted and adulterated forms, sometimes disappearing from sight only to resurface when such conditions allow. From this initial meditation I made the first pencil sketch.
From the first sketch an internal dialogue takes place, this is phase two. [I look at the drawing, the drawing looks back at me... I notice various discrepancies and correct them one at a time. Then I take in the composition as a whole, It is simplistic overall, still in line with the aesthetics of a divination card or similar illustration. My attention is sucked into the void and quickly my synapses are searching for the right connections. I fill in the space with an image or symbol and withdraw from the creative gnosis to cast a critical eye over the work in progress. On occasion such an adjustment may lead to a chain of associated thoughts and images, or it may just complement the emerging dynamic interplay of the whole. Hours can be spent looking into the drawing as it develops, feeling out for the subtle suggestions carried on occult frequencies and projecting these images and symbols back into the drawing using strategic intuition. One eye is always kept firmly on balance and composition, the other eye then is free to scale the heights or plumb the depths of its creative desire.] This process can often span weeks or even months, but in this case, thanks to the simplicity of the composition taken as a whole, I was able to work through the necessary adjustments and creative flourishes to bring the piece into a finished state ready for inking in under a week. Contributing also was a wellspring of ideas and associations that were lurking at the threshold, so to speak, waiting... waiting to be released upon a world already in the grip of chaos...
The final stage is donkey work to some degree, and can take some time, lots of meticulous outlining, hatching and cross-hatching. On the other hand, things start to take shape in a different, more concrete way as greater depth and contrast begin to take to the stage. At this point you can start to see how much occult "life-force" the piece has absorbed from the feedback phase. There may still be several adjustments to be made and often small sections will be revised in light of the emerging final aesthetic, occasionally new ideas may work themselves in at this point, but generally its just polishing the finished article.... And that my Dears, is how I know where to put everything.
*The book mentioned in this post is "Invisible Fire: Inner Dimensions of Western Gnostic & Theurgic Tradition" by Nicholaj de Mattos Frisvold. Pub: Capall Bann Publishing Ltd.