Surviving The Darkness Through Creativity & Connection
⚠️ WARNING: LONG & EMOTIONAL RANT ⚠️
Wow, still coming back to Earth after last Friday's 'Hypertextural' opening at Lupine Studio. In the words of the 21st century poet, Gwen Steffani, that shit was truly bananas.
All the works, concept & show came together in the last 5 weeks from when the studio got in touch, whilst I was in Thailand, until we opened the doors. The concept truely snowballed from the original idea, but I’m glad in the end that it did. The process pushed my practice to its edge & then some & reinforced the need to be comfortable with imperfection & know when to let go & enjoy the moment.
Friday represented the culmination of a life time of my various creative practices. I poured every last drop of my physical, creative & emotional energy into producing the work; every detail was chosen with intent & I would love to share the stories when I next see friends. It brings me to tears with how the work was received & that my energy was reflected back 10X; I am blown away & humbled by your kind words. I now feel justified to write 'artist' on that silly little customs form under 'usual occupation' and feel like for the first time in my life, I have something meaningful to say.
To everyone who supported me, THANK YOU! It shows what is possible if we come together as a community. Friday illuminated how intentional art & music have an immeasurable value in bringing people together to create positive change & connections. Apologies if I didn't get to chat with you or haven't responded to your messages yet, it's been a time; please know your support means the world.
After a lifetime of a range of mental health struggles & almost-daily existential spirals, 18 months or so ago, I made the conscious decision not to be a victim, to let go of the BS, to radiate outward the light that is inside me and to connect with & connect people. I stopped seeing my ADHD/OCD/hyper-sensitivity tendencies as a fault and a source of despair, but rather a super power; allowing me to think, see, hear & feel things that most others couldn’t. I stopped living in fear, but focused on all the abundance in my life and at the risk of sounding like a guy who has just returned from an Ayahuasca retreat; started to trust The Universe that I was on the right path.
I’m seeing things so clearly now and feel more aligned in my true-self than I ever thought possible. The t-shirt I wore on Friday by Ivory (pls go check out the great work they do), which read “Maybe I’m too sensitive (but that’s ok)” sums it up best and seemed to resonate with a lot of people in the room.
Since making this mental shift, everything has changed. My life is drastically different now & (almost) everyday, I wake up feeling happy & filled with drive & purpose. I now know what I was sent to this corner of the cosmos to do.
Be weird, be vulnerable, be 'uncool', make eye contact with strangers and smile, love & forgive yourself, aim for understanding rather than conflict, go to the show on your own, start a conversation, dance with your eyes closed, really listen when someone is speaking, sit with hard feelings, speak your compassionate truth, take risks, support those without a voice, make an effort to remember people’s names, live with integrity, do no harm & take no shit, give someone a genuine compliment, be thoughtful, be kind, share what you have with those that need it, support your friends/local scene/that stoner dude who lives across the road & looks like he'd be dangerous behind a drum kit etc. As the great kick-ons couch philosopher, Jack Arentz, best put it “Live your truth, brother.” Amen.
Do your own version of these things & I can guarantee that Jah, Gaia, Source, The Universe, Buddha, Allah, Jesus, Yahweh, The Flying Spaghetti Monsters; or whatever you call that 'thing' that is larger than yourself, will provide.
If you're still reading, thanks (I'm not crying, you're crying. JKs, I'm crying). I'll leave it here & follow on with some personal thank yous to those people who helped me on my journey and who made this project even possible.
If you are finding yourself fighting your own demons Life Line & SANE Australia can provide a bunch of excellent resources. If my words have resonated with you and you’d like to connect, my door is open (also feel free to send me pictures of your cat).
Thank Yous & Acknowledgements:
None of this would have been possible without the huge community around me, which I'm so grateful to be a part of. I will endeavour to provide links where appropriate to help support those who have supported me.
Firstly outside of my immediate community, a big thank you to my family, for your ongoing love & unwavering support from afar. To my mum, Eszter, for starting me on my musical journey from the age of 5 & for being my number 1 fan. Your sincere interest in my creative projects & those of my friends is mind blowing. It's also great that we've established you prefer techno to house music ("relaxing, yet energetic" as you put it); I'll share some new mixes with you soon. Your capacity for thoughtfulness & kindness for others is unmatched and you have set the example I try to live my life by.
To my dad, John, observing how you interact with others & your ability to talk to anyone with your magnetic charisma is inspiring. For your wise council & always wanting the best for me. We may not always see eye-to-eye on everything and it may not always seem like I listen or appreciate your advice, but know that I hold your opinion in the highest regard. To my big bro Kris, for being the gentle & kind person that you are and for letting me tag along to sketchy warehouse parties with my camera to shoot your band from when I was 16 (what ever happened to Darth Vegas?). You seemingly live your life totally comfortable in your own skin & that is something to be admired. I love you guys 💜XOX
Mish & Em at Lupine, for the opportunity, generous use of your space, trust, support & encouragement throughout. Thank you also for being so open & receptive of my art-rave vision & helping make it a reality. Thanks Angels 😇💜🚨💨
The man with the magic eye 🧿 Dunc for capturing the incredible images from the night, for knowing what's up without needing a brief & for generally being a stone-cold G 🧊 Your long-time support & encouragement of my projects is immensely valued 💜 Thank you also to Soph for coming down to capture some additional shots 🙂 📸 To Alex for capturing the video footage (recap vid coming soon(ish)), yours and Nigel's love & support means so much 📹💜😽😽🐶
To Myles & Maria for curating the tripped-out soundtrack & keeping the vibes on point all night, appreciate you legends 👊🏼🎧🛸💜 Jess & Jamie for being absolute pros all evening and Matt for the sound system.
To fellow artists & friends: Benjamin Knock for your innovative & mind blowing creative output, which heavily inspired much of this body of work, for your generous hospitality, for helping illuminate Bangkok's magic & for being the OG Spicy Boi 🔥🌶️🌋🧡 ✨ Bec Armstrong for helping connect the dots through all you do for the creative community of Naarm & for your inspiring painting that is the first thing I see every morning 💚🤍🌌 Hopefully now you have some understanding of how meaningful your offer to collaborate was during a difficult time.
Bevin Campbell for your continued support & friendship, for being such a real one in the scene & facilitating the community studio space that much of this work was compiled & finalised. Big ups brother 👊🏼💜 To my G, Amin Payne/Teymori for your inspiring dedication to your craft & work ethic. Also for helping out with Uncle duties & holding down the fort at home 🍑😺👊🏼💜
Thank you to my friends and chosen family, of which there are too many to name individually, but special shout outs to Club Peng, The Dubby Boiz, Activity Club, No. 1 rave buds, Olivas & my esteemed legal council, 'Better Call Joel’ 💜🐧🦆
To Pete, for creating a safe container to wax-lyrical about the strange world and time that we happen to find ourselves living in. For being the only person in your position during my journey that I actually connected with and felt understood by. For your compassion and sharing of your own vulnerabilities and wisdom gained from lived experience. Thank you for everything.
To Kat, Gary & Carlos at Prism Imaging for your sponsorship, expert advice & amazing printing + mounting services; all on a very tight timeline 🙏🏼
To the sponsors for your generous support & donations to the raffle: Two Boys Brew, Stomping Ground, Minimum, Small Fry, ATAB Lab, Feel In Flow, North Fitzroy Cycles & Uncle Steeezy’s Hot Sauce Co. 🙏🏼
Thanks also go to the people of Thailand for their kindness during my travels & for giving me the opportunity to learn from your beautiful culture. To the community of Fitzroy North, for being receptive to what I'm trying to do & for putting up with me making it nearly impossible not to interact with me (soz not soz).
Last but absolutely not least, to the big homie Shay, for your shared community-first ethos & welcoming me to the Inward Goods Family, for your collaboration on the amazing hand painted front window, helping hang the works + bump-in help/pick up beers etc. & helping me keep grounded, as I began to unravel, racing toward the finish line. Would not have gotten there without you 💜👊🏼🤙🏼
I’m feeling very optimistic about the future & looking forward to the next project with the vibrant community around me. If we come together and support each other, everything can change.
With love & gratitude to all,
Eric 💜👽🛸
Photo Credits: Duncographic
