This combination of factors made it an ideal place for squatters, anarchists, punks, artists, queers and revolutionaries to create lives which were not plotted out from beginning to end by forces unsympathetic to their needs.
Techno, the underground party music of the nineties, also caught on quickly in Berlin, thanks to events like the Love Parade, which began as a celebration of the reunificaiton. Over the course of the next decade, Berlin's techno scene became infused with the energy of the radicals who had claimed the city as their own.

The free party tradition in England also dates back to the late 1980s. In London (and presumably in Brighton, as well) descendents of that tradition still organise underground parties the same way that they always had: via networks of people who are experienced in, and equipped for, partying way off the mainstream radar. Secret numbers, last-minute announcements and mobile sound systems give these networks the flexibility to navigate the loopholes in UK law. Meanwhile, in Berlin, the underground techno scene has been forcibly moved out of squats and into clubs over the past two decades. These days, most of Berlin’s underground parties take place inside 'clubs' that are more like anti-squats: un-renovated buildings, rented cheaply from the landlord and then run on a DIY basis.

As long as no developers with big money snap up the land that they stand on, these ‘clubs’ can put down roots and let their style evolve for years. The benefits of longevity can be seen and felt as soon as one steps inside these clubs: visually and sensually, they are far richer than anything that could be found in a London squat. Experimentation is taken to much farther extremes as well. So why has London's free party scene has stuck with its temporary, one-off, squatted venues to this day? One big reason for this is that English laws have historically been more liberal towards squatters than German laws have. Another reason is that London's techno scene has been demonised by the British press and government in ways that Berlin's party scene has never been, making it harder for free party culture to integrate into the mainstream.

The Tory government of the 1980s and 1990s systematically blocked off every legitimate avenue through which free parties manifested. It tightened licensing regulations for music events and used them as an excuse to fine underground organisers. It raised license fees so that only established businessmen could afford to open clubs. It also criminalised aspects of squatting. And, just to top it all off, it introduced the so-called “Anti-Rave act” of 1994, which enabled police to arrest rave organisers and attendees. Persecution of both the squatting movement and free party culture persists to this day, in England. By the early 1990s only rebels, radicals, and a handful of reckless entrepreneurs were willing to do raves in England anymore.

London's first free party crews had those first three traits in spades, the most famous example being Spiral Tribe. Like other free party crews that had survived the anti rave witch-hunt, Spiral Tribe had been driven deeper underground. There, it had become radicalised by its contact with other countercultures. Spiral Tribe’s philosophy was just as informed by punk, the free festival scene, anarchism, activism and emerging art forms as it was by rave. And the crew did have a philosophy, as this quote from an early pamphlet shows: "Every moment that we live, every thought that we have, every action that we make becomes an intrinsic part of the whole." Spiral Tribe hoped that their parties would unify English society and heal some of the social diseases that the Tories had allowed to fester, by injecting English youth with a sense of identity that wasn’t linked to profit. The Conservative government had focused single-mindedly on building London's financial industries for the previous 15 years and, as the recession of the 1990s began to hit, the downside of its love of high finance was revealed. Social services lacked funding to help struggling communities, jobs had been lost in almost all the non-banking sectors, and the land was pitted and scarred with time-saving, profit-reaping developments like the M11 link road. Spiral Tribe also used free parties as a tool of protest.

They turned the buildings that they squatted into free spaces where income, status and image were irrelevant to admission, and where radical ideas could be bounced around. Even their first major dance music single, “FFWD the Revolution," had a political statement to make. The Green Party, the Anarchist Bookfair, the CND, Indymedia, Friends of the Earth, Critical Mass and advocacy groups like Release all had a visible presence at free parties, at one time or another. The young, radical people who filled these parties saw that there was no future for them in the current system and they wanted to cast a vote against it with their feet. At the same time, they were casting a vote in favour of a world where they mattered. I suspect that this rebellious idealism once existed in Berlin's underground club scene, too. I can even see evidence of it in the exclusive door policies of the bigger clubs - and yes, you did read that right! - in England, dress codes are associated with fancy clubs but in Berlin, underground clubs turn the most people away.

Their reasons for doing so are just as shallow as they are in London: the door dragon doesn't like your outfit or the bouncer thinks your attitude is wrong. The only difference is that Berlin's underground club staff judge your clothing and attitude by underground standards. The down sides of all-inclusiveness however, can occasionally be seen in London's free party scene. The policy of letting everyone in has led to close encounters with gangs, perverts or people who simply couldn’t handle the party’s intensity and freaked out, in the past. Inside of Berlin’s underground clubs, however, the atmosphere is reliably chilled-out.

The lack of friction is a relief but it can seem artificial at times - I am thinking back to my experiences of Berghain, Kater Holzig and Salon Zur Wilden Renate, here. And since problematic people do tend to be in a minority at free parties, it seems a bit harsh to exclude large amounts of people on the basis that they may be one of the few trouble-makers. In both Berlin and London, the majority of people who go to free parties come away from them with a sense of being included in a community, regardless of superficial differences. People are given every freedom up until they stop respecting the freedom of others and that sense of trust can have a rehabilitative effect in all communities.

In Berlin, outdoor parties play a similar role to that of free parties in London. ‘Open-air' parties, as they are called, are all about socialising, music and creativity. Their aim is to free Berlin’s party community from the notion that strangers can only interact on a superficial, commercial level. Open-air parties draw a more mixed and liberal-minded crowd than Berlin’s underground clubs do; they’re unpredictable; they can be shut down due to noise complaints, and no two parties are ever the same. But then, their raison d'être is not to endlessly duplicate a successful party formula, it is to have fun. The down side of Berlin’s open-airs is that they can only happen during the warm months. For the other two-thirds of the year, Berlin's underground party scene lives inside of its clubs. This, in part, explains why some of Berlin’s bigger underground clubs can afford to hold exclusive door policies: for half of the year, they are the only gig in town.

Another reason is that Berlin’s reputation as a no-holds-barred party city has spread to the rest of Europe, and underground techno fans fly in from around the continent (and the world) every weekend. Their constant pilgrimages to techno’s Mecca have created a week-in, week-out party scene that steams ahead in every season. At peak times of the year the city’s clubs are inundated with people unfamiliar with both the city and the German language, but eager to party, and they make easy targets for power-tripping bouncers or club owners. But it isn’t only foreign visitors who are short-changed by strict door policies at underground clubs. Locals who can well remember the radical roots of Berlin’s techno scene are put off, as well. Marten, founder of venues Zur Moebel Fabrik and Brunnen 70, summed his feelings up by stating, “I hate these kind of entrance policies. If I get refused, I never come back. [It’s] not cool at all, just arrogant and aggressive.” Like London in the late 80s, Berlin’s profile as an international city is growing.

The city’s government is seeking to maximise the profits of this development because they have a huge debt to pay off. In the process however, they seem are remoulding the city’s radical image to suit a broader and blander range of tastes. Generic, corporate-style developments have eclipsed some of the city’s best-known cultural landmarks: Potsdamer Platz, the East Side Gallery, Checkpoint Charlie; the River Spree is next in line to get the populist treatment with the Mediaspree development. Squats are becoming fewer and farther between and underground clubs are being pushed back into less visible, less confrontational locations on the outskirts of tourist districts.

To many people in Berlin’s underground, it appears that the local government is engaging in a policy of cultural replacement, not renewal. In Berlin it seems that DIY culture is slowly being replaced with consumer culture, just as it was in London. If ever there was a time when Berlin’s underground clubs should be fighting for the city’s right to party, this is it. These days, Berlin’s underground clubs are still much cheaper than clubs elsewhere. They are more liberal once you’re inside, and they stay open later than other clubs in Europe. But, can they claim to embody any sort of free spirit while they are weeding out people on the door? In their own way, I believe that the more exclusive clubs in the underground scene are trying to defend their vision of a radical, underground Berlin from conformist influences. But all the same, they are toeing a fine line. It is the subversive roots of Berlin’s clubs that sets them apart from clubs in other European capitals.

Rebellion is the source of the underground techno scene’s energy, momentum and intensity. Without those things, 4/4 time would be just another pop music trend – as endless Eurotrance artists have amply demonstrated. Venues that play nothing but techno would face masses of mainstream competition and eventually die out. By restricting the freedom of techno fans just because they can, Berlin’s underground clubs are blunting the edge that keeps them ahead of Europe’s party flock. They are neutralising the feeling of subverting the system, hacking the program… basically, the feeling of being underground. As Spiral Tribe might say, they are rewinding the revolution.
© Alexia

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Right in front of me is the figure of an eight-foot satyr. It struts proudly on a riser, chest outthrust. The curving steel S’s of its legs seem almost too thin to support its lofty and graceful poise. Its face is narrowed to predatory snout, a pair of antlers swept back on the top like flattened ears. Chains dangle from its elbows and upper arms like jewellery, and its ratchet fingers curve to dangerous points. Its skin is made from rusty plates and the leather and fur of a split boot.

Beside the satyr, an equally statuesque creature is caught in fluid mid-stride. It’s a cross between an ostrich and a T-Rex - reincarnated, I'm told, from one of Joe Rush’s old motorcycles. Steel vertebrae extend into a tail and a neck at either end, tipped with a tail light and a headlight (a visual pun). The neck bends upwards, horn-tipped head jerked back in surprise as if something in the sky is hurtling... or swooping... towards it.

Next is a giant skull made from vaguely reptilian chunks of rock. It’s mounted on a giant hinge, and I can imagine it swivelling suddenly downwards to devour an unsuspecting viewer.

On the opposite side of the room from it, a human skull sags against a wall, a fossil from some long-forgotten epoch. Its electric orange teeth are etched with that mantra so favoured by retail merchants: ‘Best ever’. A miniature, comic partridge pecks the remaining flesh from the skull's head, maybe mocking the modern shopper's endless search for a perfect product. The triviality of that lifestyle pales against this vivid stew of death, rebirth and mutation.

Nearby, a candelabra swims towards the ceiling like an inverted squid, its tentacle-like holders sprouting white, dripping candles. A pregnant tripod spider looms behind it, watching everyone and everything with heartless eye-lenses.

Aside from the skulls, the only human forms in here are the imploring hands that reach towards you from a giant wooden wheel, begging to be freed from the spokes they're impaled upon. Flesh accessorizes the machine in this world, not the other way around. It's panacea for anyone who feels tired of the babbling, overheated mass of humanity; an unsettling but welcome reversal of fortunes.

As I leave the first room, I turn and take another look around it. The people behind me are reacting pretty much the same way I did to its dark atmosphere; they hesitate in the entrance before moving cautiously inside. They almost tiptoe past the sculptures like they’re afraid of stirring the suspended apocalypse into life. Then I pass through the door. Overhead is yet another skull, this one framed with a mane of rusted chains. It glowers a warning of worse things to come, but the perception of menace proves to be just that.

The next room is a whiter, brighter, more civilized space, making me feel like I’ve jumped forward several millennia. The pieces here are mounted on podiums like trophies; relics salvaged from the Iron age next door. Hybrids still abound but they're smaller and more refined, downsized by evolution into more intricate, human-like life forms.

To me the mark of a real artist is the ability to breathe life into inanimate objects and even in this sterile place everything still seems alive. There’s a cyborg head made of blue glass - is it a cast of a living woman or an imaginary one? Either way, her keen serenity is palpable. In a high corner, a vulture perches next to the featureless and cowering figure of a caged man. On a podium, a rat pokes its head and paws out at you, steel face filled with uncanny brilliance. By the entrance, a mannequin with horns swishes its ornate metal tail.

The centrepiece in this room is an upright plane wing painted with a sensual, reclining nude in a gas mask. It’s one of a series of similar paintings done on military wing panels - the only works depicting humans as they naturally appear. The materials and imagery used in these hint at the cause of our species' disappearance from both this landscape and the first. The most poignant one depicts a head-scarfed woman, screaming up at what appears to be The Final Bomb as it whizzes downwards from a clear blue sky.

But taken as a whole, the message of the works in both rooms still seems hopeful: even as life exterminates itself, it defies death by taking on new and unprecedented forms.

****

When I speak to Joe Rush, the founder of Mutoid Waste Company, he confirms my feeling that this exhibition is telling some sort of story. Having worked as a set designer, it's only natural for him to stage his works like props from a movie set, turning spectators into participants as he does. The sheer scope of the pieces is intended to thrust us physically into another reality. Their immediacy makes it impossible not to change - or be changed by - its content.

That explains some of the more casual, playful works which dot the exhibition like clever afterthoughts. My personal favourite of these is a square of penciled ‘blah-blah-blah’s’ sandwiched between some well-executed prints in the first floor gallery. Underneath the square, a mobile phone charger is plugged into a wall socket. The other end of it is stuck rather pointedly into the phrase “Shut the fuck up!” It’s more like elaborate graffiti than art, but it works.

I ask Joe what Mutoid Waste Company does with its larger sculptures. Part of me knows what the answer must be but I still do a double take when he tells me the answer: what they can’t sell they scrap. Most artists I know would be heartbroken to lose something they’d spent so much time and effort on, but MWC seem to relish the challenge of melting down and starting over again. I can sort of sympathize with that, and not just on a personal level. Joe explains that destroying a piece starting over again gives them a chance to rearrange it, add something new to it or take something away; to “mutate”. That constant change where Mutate Britain's sense of energy movement comes from. Kind of like the Tube, it's constantly undergoing improvements. But unlike the Tube, every new piece unveiled is literally the best one ever. Maybe I misunderstood the meaning of that orange skull, after all…

I’m starting to see that Mutoid Waste Company is a philosophy as well as a collective. As the exhibition wears on, the people and pieces involved in it will continue evolving. Viewers will morph into artists and artworks will morph into materials, and then back into artworks again. Just as in the real world, nothing in Mutate Britain stays the same for very long. That's what makes it so relevant, and that's also why you'll want to keep coming back, just like I did.

Mutate Britain is on every Friday, Saturday and Sunday until the 21st December at the Behind the Shutters Gallery, Cordy House, 87-95 Curtain Rd EC2. Anyone who’s anxious to rescue an original piece of Mutoid artwork from the scrap heap by purchasing it can contact the collective through their website: www.mutatebritain.co.uk

Thanks very much to Wreckage for the engaging and informative tour of the galleries… it was a party in itself!

She is currently looking for sponsorship to enable her to exhibit in Florence. If you can help in any way, please contact her to find out more. In the following artist's statement, she talks about the themes and principles underpinning her work.

My first introduction to this was while studying fine art, where I started exploring the concept of how decay and transformation are inextricably linked. I was and still am fascinated with the ability of turning something that is decaying and at the end of its life in the conventional sense, into an everlasting piece of beauty. Rust has traditionally been considered a sign of destruction and corrosion, often feared by many. Personally I find it incredibly beautiful and poetic in the sense that it has a life of its own and is part of the natural chemistry that is continually taking place in the world around us. For what is generally interpreted as a sign that something that has come to the end of its usefulness, when rust sets in it signals a transformation to a new level where life and growth continues through chemical processes that we, as humans, have little control over.

This sense of change and evolution permeates through other areas of my work, especially in relation to my ultraviolet paintings and installation pieces. These works have a two-fold nature in that they exist as one representation under ‘normal’ light, but when exposed to ultraviolet light they undergo a metamorphosis where specific characters of individual elements transform into something new and different, an effect which has to be taken into account from the very beginning. Additionally, the use of photosensitive ‘memory’ paint in certain areas allows a 3rd different representation to emerge from the same image. It is through this element of change that each image consists of 2 and sometimes 3 different representations, all co-existing in the same artwork and only revealing themselves when certain light conditions are applied.

It is this sense of transformation that has led me to my current single line drawing pieces, where minimalist form is transformed and manipulated through the application of light, reflecting the true essence of the natural world around us. Currently I am exploring new ways that allow for the expansion and fusion of 2 traditional art forms, namely painting and sculpture, where each work is a 3D representation of a 2D line drawing. This creates a raised relief effect physically on the work, which is mirrored symbolically in the depth of perspective generated through the use of line and colour.

These pieces are based on the principles of Sacred Geometry, which is found throughout our world on both a physical and metaphysical level. Additionally, some are influenced by crop circles, which themselves have been based on Sacred Geometry principles.

It is here that I feel they aptly suit the theme of redefining ‘landscape’ and extending it beyond traditional definitions, in that Sacred Geometry is all pervading and underpins the foundations of all life and matter. It is found in everything from a leaf off a tree, to the spirals in a sea shell, to the proportions of the human body, they are all intrinsically linked to the same overall fundamental principles. Additionally, the way each image exists as 2 or 3 different representations, all embedded in the same image, reflects the way physical matter itself has different representations depending on ones perspective: a leaf can appear as a leaf on one hand, or as a depiction of the elements and proportions that make up the leaf itself on the other. Each perspective will create a different representation of exactly the same object. It is in this way that I believe my line drawings reflect the true essence of nature.

After arriving at The Coronet, the historic art deco cinema and the ideal setting for The Night of The Vaguely Dead we were greeted by Paka the Incredible mechanical-cyber Trojan-style horse and the very friendly door staff.

We couldn't chill out for long though, as “Can'tsitdownjumparoundandupsidedown” 50's rock & roll & swinging twist were pumped out into crowd. When the opening band, Last Man Standing in their pimply outfits came to the stage the enormous ballroom was already packed, and I was having visual overload spasms from looking around at the beautiful people in their attire: pearls, corsets, coquettish pin-up burlesque, silent movie gorgeousness, and sinister elegant flamboyance.
Pete Bennett exploded onto the stage with his new band, delivering a fire cracker bursting performance with shouty jumping-jack style contagious energy.

Upstairs there was the Casino Room, with blackjack and roulette tables, and the wildest looking variety of creatures, a beautiful blue Smurf girl, dandies, demons and blood thirsty vampires descended from the darkest corners out to play out unscripted horror show.
Back to the stage where Urban Voodoo Machine were amazing alongside Lady Ane Angel performing fire and the gong dance and two drummers showing off their skills in synchronized drumming.

A vicar rocking the giant bass was also present to add to the confusion and consequently at the end of their set the band was mostly writhing on the floor, musically convulsing.

No time to even make a rollie, time is priceless, besides something else is going on behind us, so we quickly made our way to the middle of the ballroom where the dazzling neo-burlesque artist Empress Stah was performing her twisted cabaret and internationally acclaimed chandelier sling routine and amazing aerial acrobatics - sensational sparkly erotic circus. The stripping act culminated with the removal of a strategically placed crystal necklace from her glittery lady garden so to speak.I stood so close underneath her that the body sequins she was adorn with were falling on my hair, like pixie dust.
And I was enchanted.

We had a snoop around the Changing Room, the lavishly decorated boudoir of Madame Mishka, where the stylists who had risen from the dead especially for this night, were on hand to provide the less extravagantly dressed with costumes, ball gowns, corsets, tuxedos, trilbies, top hats, exquisite masks, feathers and wholesome fanciness.

Deviant Aerial's rope performance was awe inspiring air acrobatics, mesmerizing the crane necked audience.

Then we feasted our eyes on more burlesque air shenanigans with a lady on a cute little pony hanging from the ceiling! Then there were also flapper style cabaret dancers, lip synching drag queens and vampire synchronized dancing.

Lost Vagueness pulled out all the stops and the 2200 capacity venue was comfortably packed, so you still had space to swing your scythe or pitchfork around. This was an extravaganza cabaret and burlesque orgy at its best and sleaziest. We were transported into another world full of beauty and glamour, with more than a lashing of twisted decadent horror. It was a visually explosive cocktail of surrealism & "freakiness", executed by scandalously seductive misfits mingling with grotesque zombies and ghouls.

I see you crying into your soup for having missed this wonderland night of debauchery, but all is not lost. Sell your soul {you won't be needing it when you're having this much fun} and get yourself a time machine to experience it for yourself or watch out for the next Lost Vagueness spectacular on NYE.
©Nunuki
photo gallery by Genie

A short break of free dance with DJ Silver Pants which just made most of the room jump up and down spilling coins all over the floor…. we love you…. ah, ah, and ready for the second appearance with the drumming band Carnival Collective dressed in turquoise and black followed by the mainly wind instruments Orchestra Du Sol dressed in red and black with their mix of music from tribal to Balcanic to end with a live rap mc and some drum and bass; simply gorgeous. We could breath happiness from all our pores!

People this was just the warming up! The ska band Cosmic added few blisters to our feet While the Loundrette girls, this year showing us their prominent pregnant bellies, were trying to keep their little “evils” quiet with lots of tequila and fags and invited us to the next party in their” brand new” council flats just down the road….

I had the feeling the DJ was the father but I may be wrong….
And here come our favourite (damn! I didn’t catch his name on the microphone, just blurred something that nobody got),

He arrived on stage with an inflatable green ball and some vinyl blue shorts, spread his head in oil and entered the balloon which by then had reached his size, oh my days, I don’t want to spoil the absolute geniality of his performance trying to describe it to you with a simple “he was jumping in it at music rhythm “ cause that would merely make me guilty of a crime to art, he mesmerized us all and came out of it completely dressed like Elvis…should I add anything else?

The show continued with Roxy Velvet and her sweet kinky performance “Lolita plays with boys” and trio of opera singers that revisited a Bon Jovi song “living on a prayer” in very unfamiliar style.
Our energy by then was gone and we just sat to observe the messy colourful crowd slowly leaving the party with a sense of satisfaction, which was palpable in the air.

The Black Jack table on the main stairs, which offered all night a game for a pound, was closed by then and we missed the chance to win the champagne prize…but we didn’t feel like we missed out much after all!
For more information about their roots and the next venues check their web site www.lostvagueness.com where you can find also some short films and some of their vibes, cause every show is a different experience!

© Dr Rocket

Lost Spice photo gallery by Genie

www.lostvagueness.com

Along with the exhibition, there will be workshops every Saturday where people of all ages and ability can try out acoustic drumming, biscuit decorating, painting animals, clay modelling, creating a sound and image montage and learning about special effects with a make-up artist.

Saturday 29th will be a mini-festival of music and dance to celebrate how the exhibition has changed due to visitors' contributions throughout the month. This event will run from 12 noon-6pm
Both the exhibition and the workshops are free of charge and will take place at Oxford House, Derbyshire St, E2 6HG (020 7739 9001). Oxford House is open from 7-29th July, 9am-10pm (Mon-Fri); 10am-6pm (Sat). Closed Sunday.

This exhibition is hosted by members of SGI-UK, a Buddhist organisation for the promotion of culture, education and peace. www.sgi-uk.org
It is the second art exhibition that the SGI-UK has organised at Oxford House.

Opening evening on the 6th July 6.30-8.30pm

Downloadable flyer and more info: www.yokobear.com/globalfamily

Georgie Tier

I first saw Georgie’s work at Lost Vagueness festival last summer and was very impressed indeed. A friend of mine has recently described Georgie’s very unique style as “Beryl Cook meets Picasso” and this is, strangely, rather fitting.

It was when Georgie exhibited at “Coffee Cake & Kink” in Covent Garden that she was asked to consider providing some eye candy for the boys and thus her first homoerotic painting was produced.
She has recently won a competition to display two of her paintings at the “Art at Large” exhibition in Manhattan. In fact, she won two awards since each painting was a winner in itself. She is therefore the only artist exhibiting two paintings as a result of this competition, one of these being her new homoerotic painting.

Like most artists, Georgie is always delighted to receive commissions. Her vision of Empress Stah is a beautiful and unique work of art and incorporates a string of diamante jewels, to show off one of the Empress’ infamous party acts. This particular commission was first shown at the La Viande preview to the delight of the lady herself, who went on to give us a wonderful cabaret performance as the “golden lady”. This was indeed a massive coup for an art exhibition and gave the evening a strong focal point. Fortunately, there were none of the inanely boring arty farty types here waffling on about the merits of art installations. In fact, this exhibition was so unique that it had even attracted Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf.

Georgie will also be exhibiting at the following venues/dates:15 June – 1 July 2006: Art at Large exhibition, 44th Street, Manhattan, New York, USA.

Check out her website: www.erotic-art-online.co.uk

Nancy Farmer

Nancy has displayed two styles of work at this exhibition. The upstairs space is filled with photographs of Barbie dolls in dominatrix style, joined either by another “slave” Barbie or by a very submissive Ken. These photographs are imaginative, stylish and stylised. One can visualise the scene, taking a walk down the road and there, by the curb-side, you see a woman, bright pink & blue hair, arranging strangely dressed (or undressed) dolls in the muddy puddles, creating a weird scene of a Barbie mud fight.Downstairs, Nancy has displayed some of her very original paintings. These beautiful works cross modern day fantasy with a little BDSM, creating some very surreal and unusual results. The paintings are imaginative, thought provoking, sometimes dark and generally amusing. Picture, if you will, woodland elves and fairies sporting body piercings and tattoos and a lot of attitude. One of my favourites were the 3 dark witches (very Macbeth) each sitting on a “man-stool”, obviously enjoying a chat and a glass of wine. This we ladies understand.

Nancy will also be exhibiting at the following venues/dates:

9 – 24 September 2006: Somerset Art Week.

Check out her web site: www.nancyfarmer.net

The main room was certainly the auditorium on this occasion, reserved for live bands and performers, all brought together and compared, superbly badly, by two amigos with incredibly loud “bad taste” suits, afro wigs and unconvincing Spanish accents. Rather than merely a large dance area, the Lost team had transformed the Coronet into the sort of room you would have liked for your Wedding Reception, large round tables with ample seating so that it was possible to watch the acts on stage in comfort.
And what acts they were. We were wowed by Roxy Velvet and her amazing “birdcage” cabaret, imagine a lady, suited and booted, suspended high above us. Then suddenly she lost the mannish suit, revealing an outfit of feathers, twirling round and showing off like a bird of paradise, in a beautiful gilded cage. We were then dazzled by the amazing Empress Stah, and her sparkling rendition of such hits as “Simply the Best“ made all the more dazzling by the fact that she was covered head to toe in golden paint, cleverly removed at the end of her act, like a stripper with paint stripper!

Amazingly absurd performers and music acts abounded through the night. Later we were entertained by the Cuban Brothers, with their “naked breakbeat/Latin disco spectacular”. Well, they were exactly as billed. Tee hee hee. Need I say more?
DJ Shantel from Germany (awarded by the BBC for World Music 2006) played an astounding set, a mix of urban style sounds of breaks, drum & base, dub etc. This being later in the night, the crowds had cleared a little so finally there was room on the floor to dance. The table tops had previously provided a little dancing space for those daring enough to risk a little fall.

This party must have been a sell out as the Coronet was packed to the rafters. The Coronet, an ex-theatre and art-deco listed building, has been expensively and lovingly restored to its former glory and was certainly the right place for the Lost Ball, with its extensive balcony area providing seating right up to the “gods”. Great for just relaxing and watching the proceedings, either those around you, the performances on stage or the spectacular Lost imagines of Vagueness projected for our entertainment.

Realising that not everyone has access to a suitable dressing up box full, the LV team provides costume hire at very reasonable prices. After all, one really has to look ones best at this sort of “do”. Normal “civvies” just will not do! And this being a masked ball, there was a stall selling well priced masks, from the simple to the elaborate, doing a roaring trade catering for those revellers who wished to retain an element of anonymity, hadn’t planned a costume for the occasion or perhaps merely wished to look like a pheasant or even a peasant.

Bored with the usual party offerings, then why not try your luck at the Lost casino, two tables of gambling, cards or roulette, surely something to suit any seasoned gambler? Perhaps you would prefer to stand in the background, looking for the entire world like a gangster, smoking a large Cuban cigar, purchased from the beautiful cigarette girl at the cigar stand…..

All this and more is possible at Lost Vagueness. One final question, who are the performers and who are the guests? It seems to me that the borders are so completely blurred and that we are all part of the bizarre Lost Vagueness experience.

And all that is left now to do is to remind all you lovely people that the Lost Weekend takes place between 23 and 25 June at a very suitable site in Devon, complete with a castle, so I’m told. What better party and more surreal location could you possibly find to dress up in your chosen costume, from an era gone by, and play out your favourite fantasy. Why not be a can-can dancer, a showgirl or a saloon madam, or perhaps you are a fellow on his way to the opera, complete with cloak and cane. Lost Vagueness is THE place to go.

©Mistress Eli

www.lostweekend.org
www.lostvagueness.com

I first met Charles Sayer through his ex-wife and my good friend, Charlotte. Charlotte had told me that Charles would like to paint me and arranged an introduction. I had already heard a little about Charles and wondered if I would be liberated enough to pose for him. Fortunately, after meeting and chatting to him I decided that this wouldn’t be a problem and I am now the very lucky owner of a beautiful painting which proudly adorns my wall.

Amongst Charles more interesting models was a contortionist who could, of course, strike poses that the more conventional amongst us could never manage. However, one of his most vivid memories was of a professional porn model, met through a magazine launch, who agreed to a free photo shoot on Hampstead Heath. Imagine late one morning, a beautiful, naked, statuesque and well oiled lady cavorting around Hampstead Heath much to the excitement of the joggers, dog walkers and other passers-by.

One of Charles’ ambitions is to hold an exhibition of 1,000 women, to show the beauty and diversity of the female form, each woman and each pose different. Unfortunately, however, it seems that the fear of erotica and particularly the female form makes it very difficult for him to exhibit his work. The Guild of Erotic Art didn’t want him to join as it “did not want to offend”. Charles only just missed out in a claim to infamy when Eurotrash, that bastion of good taste, who had originally recorded a show featuring him and Charlotte, at the last minute pulled out. This was due to advance negative publicity where 4-5 people had complained that he had painted the female anus.

This advance and negative publicity from our prudish society seems to be a problem that has followed Charles around. He was exhibiting work with Candid Arts Gallery but it appears that they only showed 2 out of 6 works that he had put up for exhibition due to reasons of censorship. The 2 exhibited pieces being less explicit than the others. Strangely, however, I found when researching that some of Charles’ works are still shown on Candid Arts’ website, despite the fact that they no longer wished to exhibit his work. Charles’ work has also been featured in Nu, an Italian erotica journal and Hustler, a top-shelf magazine which proclaimed him to be the “Picasso of Porn”, not a title that he cares for.
Charles has literally hundreds of works of art that are crying out for exhibition. He is also available for private commissions. And imagine, what better present for a boyfriend, girlfriend, lover, husband, wife than a painting of your own genitalia?

Painter or pornographer? I will let you decide!

And finally, a little guessing game for your amusement:
Take a look at the picture gallery of Charles’ work and have a guess at which one is me. Answers on a postcard please!

© Mistress Eli

If you wish to contact Charles, please call him on 07984 844375

Only in its third year of existence this event is taking shape as an experience free of preconceptions or pre-planning which becomes whatever its participants want it to be.
It is an ideal environment to make and experience art in any form whatever one chooses to be.

Concept behind this enterprise is to create an event entirely from your participation. Injecting some directions and skipping discussion on what constitutes art organizers are laying down several ideas of what could be done with space and time at Nowhere:

Make use of the costume camp
Put on a performance
Cook for someone
Mix cocktails

Give a massage
Read a story
Create an art project
Write a postcard
Dance
DJ
Talk to someone you don’t know yet
Appreciate the view
Pretend to be interesting
Change the world in 3 days
...between many others...

There are several rules to the no rule theme of the events however and take them lightly at your own peril.

Event organisers expect that you:
Get yourself to and from the site
Bring in all your own food and water
Bring the materials you require for your project
Take out all your belongings and garbage - pack it in, pack it out
Let organisers know of any special requirements

And they will provide:
A suitable location
Opportunities to participate or volunteer
A communal centre camp, including shade structure and sound system
Toilet facilities

The extreme conditions and harsh beauty of the location (middle of the desert, remember!) provide a blank and fertile canvas for participants to make something out of nothing.

Sadly Spanish fire regulation prohibits them from burning art at the end of the event like they do at Burning Man.
In 2006 it will still have a frontier campout quality, and a close, communal pioneering spirit. As the event grows, this will fade. In five years it will be a different experience; bigger and easier with a greater variety of camps. But for now it buzzes with possibility.

They have Bubble Jam blessing (will probably end up there) so if you going to Spain this summer make sure you are going Nowhere.

Your effort and ingenuity can help it take form.

More info: going nowhere
For photos and further contacts with like minded people check euro burners

All around your field of vision is a diversity of allegorical statements coming from different angles, while remaining true to the whole.
The message is clear as well as it is not. It is a matter of conjecture, how this richness of diversity works. In fact, the artist seems to unveil the secret garden of his own soul: rich with creative expression. With the juxtaposition of the mundane “hum-drum” to glue it’s separate surrealist collage abstractions into some kind of “Real” order. A working structure is in place. There seems in fact to be present in this work, a historical undercurrent that relates as well to the last five decades, which I instinctively seek to find in these organic constructions.

Diverse creative out-put sometimes clandestine and Polish resilience to all adversity somehow appears to have returned strengthened by these historical ordeals. But resourcefulness is at odds here, with the events of the 20th Century: notably: the Second World War, and Stalin’s brutal occupation. Now Poland starts to believe again that it has a role to play. There is a new sense of optimism. There is hope. Good vibes oozes from this work as a reflection of this re-emerging national sentiment so often repressed in the past for reasons of doctrine. There is an obvious yet more subtle, if subliminal reaction. A response, that can only come quietly from this artist’s palette. It is an optimistic message and it is happy. This work can join properly into European art circles, it is prepared to play a role; but still unsure of its message yet, I feel.
It’s like there are two worlds at odds in the paintings of Lewacki. The first is calm. The shires? A cosmic fairytale through its celebration of nature, rich in poetry… floating like these busy dragonflies fluttering across one painting, like squadrons in formation. Lewacki examines the pastoral allegory by using these living and organic effects in the composition, as well as referring to a song. As stated before, there is poetry in abundance in this work. There is lyricism and it is always speaking to you.

Then there is in the second: Mordor’s saturnian reality check. I get the impression that it tries to examine and re-examine the legacy of the post Stalinist years. It hints at the advent of the modern industrial age now at odds with ecological concerns. The dream of the power of nature and man’s insignificance within it as well as man’s selfishness and destructive streak within this world.

But so much for history… And yet the artist’s examinations of the absurdities of it all: the joke of his own country’s experience, for want of a better word. Well it’s all there. I haven’t yet had the pleasure of seeing how his work has evolved in the last ten years. How does he describe his style? Is it “conceptual”, “realist-dreamer” or just a plain celebration of the profound beauty of nature, with the paw print marks of man’s presence in a Tolkien-like universe?

The landscape of expression here is multi-faceted, intriguing by the questions it asks of its viewer. You feel like a trespasser in Lewacki’s back yard: the secret garden of Lewacki’s soul eternally it seems at work: a garden of many colours and collages, rich in subtle nuances and with vibrant tones and subtle parables. This body of work uses the well defined as well as the well-healed formulas of what we would describe nowadays as “Classic” fine art painting mixing it with collage. And yet, the painting style uses the same tried yet tested styles of composition by the simple actions of the brush strokes. Nothing fancy at first glance, no. It’s all nuts and bolts stuff. No nonsense, but poetic in the same breadth. Yes! I am repeating myself but the lyricism here must be stressed at all costs, if one is to understand the true nature of Lewicki’s message exposed for our pleasure and enjoyment.

I wander before these pictures and ask myself if good old fashioned “sponging” (does he decorate in his spare time? I muse. Well you know, a Real job!) techniques from the academy of fine arts are present here. Palette work, as well as some clever “smudging” is at the basis of the overall framework of these paintings as they seem to smoke or bubble before you a fine haze of colours superimposing on themselves on other colours to highlight or confuse, or even attempt to entice you even deeper into these virgin lands…The collaged elements add to the surreal elements, which in some of the paintings reminded me of some of Max Ernst’s works.

These canvases now wait to be discovered and appreciated. They need more time to be fully understood. But there is no hurry. At first glance, this work has the potential for being used for all sorts of things like: a quality Screen Saver or for Duvet cover designs etcetera. I would therefore suggest to this artist to have his work copyrighted as soon as possible..

This body of work is hopefully coming over to Britain in the not too distant future… with Mr Lewacki, as I’d like to shake his hand. Then thank him, frankly from the bottom of an old artist’s heart, for bringing back this type of painting in this age of conceptual realism and installations galore ad nauseam. Where are those “classic” disciplines of Fine Art hiding these days of digital discovery in Western culture? Here in Lewacki, we have a new breed of artist returning with a poet’s vision to translate Tolkien’s imagination into his own, thus taking it even further. Coming from a different working European culture of expression. He is an artisan, a craftsman who looks into the past while acknowledging the present.

Explore the pictures that accompany your journey.

Le Mufti
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Magical Adventures... is a spoof of Japanese cartoons like Pokemon. It occupied the role of the cartoon within the cartoon - in the same way Itchy & Scratchy relates to The Simpsons.

Artist and writer Jeffrey Rowlands has wound down Wigu and is now give full vent to the strange world of Butter Dimension Quad.

Why he turns to stencilism of course.

Alas, the third season of Spaced remains the televisual equivalent of vapourware for now.

check more images here