Alright, now that I’ve spoiled the fun for the space babies, we might as well clear a few more calcium dustbunnies from the closet regarding the hypotheticals series. This was also written as a supplement to an institutional application in *****, also to which I was not accepted. I’m starting to see a pattern here.
After exhibiting this series a few times in Europe, allthewhile obstinately refusing to divulge any information relating to the symbolism, I feel a bit guilty just throwing the whole thing on a blog post, but hey, that was then and this is now.
This post also may dissapear suddenly…

A Hypothetical Mind.

These three works are representations of three possible growth patterns in spheres of awareness that we as humans have access to at this point in our evolution. They are simply the physical, mental and supernal planes. A large part of the philosophical framework for this series was inspired by Ken Wilber’s theory of “nested hierarchy”, although I certainly do not in any way count myself among his followers. That’s a whole other piece of writing. Other sources of inspiration include the perennial philosophy as expounded by Aldous Huxley, the mythologies of The Dogon tribe of North-West Africa, Vedantic writings associated with the layers of reality and similar interpretations from Kaballah and mathematical/cosmological concepts from classical and sacred geometry.
PART 1. First hypothetical: On the forest floor.

This first piece observes a possible evolution of gross, biological matter into a higher level of complexity associated with the human mind. This is our consciousness at its most basic and chaotic in a state of becoming more organized. We are dealing strictly with empirical quantities and corporeal chemistry. The process of birth and sex regeneration is emphasized. We are living in the diencephalon of the triune brian here. This initial stability in our biological functions is the base from which all higher forms will emerge. The figures represent the uneasy and confusing rise to higher paradigm. It’s how I feel every morning, really. The arms at the top of the image hint at the fetal stages of a kind of primal worship.

PART 2. Second Hypothetical: In a well tended garden.

We have evolved past the gross realms of physical birth and decay and observe a more structured and highly organized awareness. The root is still the elemental 5 pointed star, but it is an intellectual understanding of what our outer world is comprised of. We have transcended but included our base of existence. This is the domain of the psychological. Our minds use abstract tools such as mathematics to categorize what we observe, in hopes of generating a higher understanding. From quantum mechanics to cosmology, we seek to understand the relations between the micro and macro. A personal point of interest is the grey area where hard science and soft science meet. Symbols of sacred geometry such as the golden mean/golden spiral and Metatron’s Cube are used in conjunction with interstellar maps to represent the attempt to achieve a level of synthesis. Our compulsion to implement order onto our outer universe has always been a lofty endeavour towards what Einstein referred to as “reading the mind of God”. This is a trite quote by now, but it’s the first one that came to mind.

PART 3. Third Hypothetical: Trunk Sap in the upper Canopy.

The controversy and discussion really begins here, when our intellect seeks to understand something beyond itself. The spiritual/metaphysical/supernal is replete with endless symbolic representation at various levels of transmental being. Only a comparative few are shown here. The human heads can be seen “waking up” as they ascend the rings of greater awareness. In between are rings of myth and archetype corresponding to the level of awareness of the human rings. We begin with the double snake, a creature that appears in many creation myths throughout history. Sometimes its in a positive light positive as in certain areas of ancient China and among the animists of Indo-China, sometimes negative as in the antediluvian Eden depicted in the Old testament of the Bible. The first ring of symbols contains the animistic and superstitious. What we would perceive through an archaic mind. After the next paradigm is breached, we see symbols as seen through the mythic worldview. Arriving eventually at the level of full self awareness, we see there are no more symbols or images… (well, except for the hebrew ein sof. There’s that human mind always wanting symbolic representation again…)
This piece also encapsulates the previous levels of awareness found in the first and second hypotheticals. The analytical intellect uses the Fibonacci sequence to order this usually unquantifiable level of experience and the snakes can be seen as kundalini energy rising form the coccyx, passing through the chakra centres that overlap in Indian Yoga, Chinese Taoism, the Kaballistc tree of life, etc.

Of course the paradox of this attempt at purveying an integral view of existence is that certain givens must be adhered to for the art to remain coherent, and they are subjective since they arise in my subjective mind and are based on my subjective experience. The particular “formula” I have built upon is the supposition that evolution is a work in process where consciousness is expanded from the individual to the universal, a process of becoming. Self observation and meditation allow us to objectify our thoughts, separating intuition from pre programmed decision based on fear, love or other basic emotions. Once we recognize that we are asleep (or nothing but a conditioned machine in the parlance of Gurdjieff) we can begin to clear the obstacles in our way of realizing the next step of our collective evolution. It must be acknowledged that this view is certainly not shared by everyone, even I would never claim any steadfast belief except in the law of change itself. Reactions I’ve received at exhibitions of these pieces only confirms this. So many people, seeing the world through their own keyholes describe to me their interpretations of these works. I am endlessly amused and interested to hear the theories –sometimes completely contradictory to the above explanation- that shed evermore layers of meaning on this series.
For me, expanding the lateral capacity of my awareness and exploring these inner realms in the context of various cultures holds an immense fascination for me, and the chance to incorporate Korean aspects of culture, history and philosophy will surely add a new dimension to my creative path.

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