Vanishing Cultures: Awakening Compassion


PROLOGUE

An Inner Journey

The concept for this sculptural series and the accompanying text grew out of events and circumstances that began and have continued to evolve for over two decades. The details of images originally revealed in visions and dreams continue to unfold through synchronistic life events, precipitated perhaps by living on and near ancestral hunting grounds, visiting sacred sites and through long term exposure to individuals from other cultures. Personal recognition from a number of indigenous peoples as having been a member of their and other ancient cultures, triggered memories from some other past. Suggestions and implications about the future stimulated the many years of research that led to a re-examination of core beliefs, integrating the intuitive right brain thinking of many indigenous cultures with the inherited philosophies of a left brain dominant, industrial society. The sculptures that were created are not portraits of actual people. The images sprang forth from the deeper recesses of the sub-conscious mind and it has been repeatedly suggested that they are actually self-portraits, describing the soul's journey through an archetypical past. The stories that accompany each of the sculptural works provide a brief history of the cultures represented, as well as a synopsis of the socio-political status of the Third or Fourth World nation to which they belong. Together, the stories present an overview of the current global situation, the struggle amongst indigenous people for self-determination, the evidence, both past and present, of man's inhumanity to man and its ultimate impact on the environment. In an interview, the celebrated author, Robert Bly, suggested that Western man is suffering psychologically from the loss of "Manifest Destiny" and the sins of their fathers. He further suggested that Western society needs to get in touch with the grief associated with this loss. Psychologists suggest that art, pictures and imagery are oftentimes the key to penetrating the minds of left-brain dominant thinkers, inasmuch as art is a right brain function. Stimulation to both the right and left brain thought processes produces an inner sense of "wholeness". This inevitably leads to an awakening to the fundamental truth that we are all part of that interrelated wholeness. Indigenous peoples, living according to natural, universal laws, are fully cognizant of the concept of "wholeness" and its global implications. Industrial/consumer societies have much to learn from ancient cultures, but they are unconsciously destroying their teachers. In a consumptive industrial society, where technology runs rampantly ahead of its potential consequences, the development of balanced left and right brain thinking is a prerequisite to transcending racial, geographical and political boundaries. Without it, there can be no end to the devastating environmental consequences that have resulted on a global scale. Here in the United States, on the day of Minister Louis Farakahn's Black Solidarity march, President Clinton and local politicians gave speeches that addressed race relations as the most complex issue determining the future of our country and that unless we have the courage to face these issues, we have no future for our country. They felt that the "destiny of democracy" hinges on our addressing these issues. Our adopted democratic ideal of "E Pluribus Unum: We must be One" needs to extend to the whole family of man. The democratization of Third and Fourth World nation states would enable the voices of our indigenous peoples to be heard, speaking to the true meaning of AT-ONE-MENT. In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., "We must learn to live together as brothers or we will perish as fools." As U.S. taxpayers we are underwriting race wars all over the world in the name of democracy. Can we not see that we are all of one race...the race of mankind and that equal and civil rights issues inherently transcend geographical as well as national boundaries? Educational administrators in the U.S. maintain that we, as a society, have a responsibility to support our children in the midst of the ever increasing diversity in our school systems, requiring academic and social assistance from the community and the state. Many student leaders believe that education is the answer to creating a better society, indicating that they want to heal race relations in this country, while bigotry, segregation and church burnings continue to escalate in many parts of our country. Anglo-Canadian high school students, who have become the minority due to the massive enrollment of immigrants predominantly from the Middle East are being preyed upon by leaders of the Neo-Nazi movement with "hate rock" music and inflamed speeches, preaching anti-Semitism and racism, appealing to the fear and anger in the youngsters. It is imperative that we educate our children to accept other belief systems, cultures and religions. The potential for emotional turbulence is being incited in young people, and directed toward bigotry which could easily grow to unmanageable proportions. Historically, artists were supported and in some cases came to be revered as visionaries, sensitive to the trends, issues and conditions of their era. Gradually, the support from government, church and elitist society was undermined and eventually withdrawn when they realized that artists were not always representing their interests. Currently, much of the contemporary art we see is a reflection of the confusion, aggression, violence and frustration of western "civilization". In the midst of overcrowded classrooms, educational cutbacks and rollbacks, it would seem the responsibility of public figures, global citizens, and artists of all schools, through whatever medium or means available, to assist in thwarting the increasing movement toward separatism. We need to recognize xenophobia and ethnocentrism as the most lethal of social diseases. It is only though compassion, awareness and understanding that we can arrest the global consequences of these conditions. The information presented in the text documents that accompany this presentation were not based on personal experience. They are an editorial compilation of the works of the authors that are listed in the bibliography. These and many other authors, musicians, poets and philosophers have helped me to understand the history and deeper meaning behind my art and have further reinforced my own belief system. If Love Conquers All... by gail ann johnson Out in that place, beyond time and space, In a field we've ALL met in before... A pact was made and plans were laid For taking us down to the core... Been there, done that...We've gone to the mat. Cried tears for the pains that we bore. Could it be that we've found the key For taking us thru that last Door. Have we been together in lifetimes before? If we got it Right, could our Spirits soar thru ports of entry, beyond the sun, Where One is for All, and All is for One? If our Souls set us up for all sorts of trials, Perhaps we've gone past any need for denials... And if WE made the plans to each be a mirror, Then we got together to see Our Selves clearer. If that was the trip, when we first made the deal, Then we've reached the next step, so that we can ALL heal. So, if Love conquers All, and the fences get mended Everybody will know that the Love never ended. Maybe we can't ALL say that now it's OK And that all that was done is forgiven... But if we could just try living in PEACE We would all receive blessings from Heaven. If that's not the case, and Love can't erase Wrong thinking, wrong feeling, wrong doing, Then we've still got it backward, brains in reverse, And before it gets better, things could get worse. I think we've ALL been here in lifetimes galore... And if we all could believe it, our spirits would soar Thru ports of entry, Beyond the Sun, Where one is for All, and all is for ONE. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am deeply grateful to my dear friend, Pat Malone, for allowing me to include his original music in this presentation, the lyrics of which were collaborations between us. I will owe Don Boulet well into the next incarnation for for his time, artistic talents, technical graphics skills and tutorial efforts, transforming this work into a binary medium now available to everyone on the World Wide Web. For all their faith, support and encouragement, I want to thank my sister, Lynne Johnson, my mother, Laraine Johnson, my cousin, Joyce Fedor, my friends Mildred Stegall, Allan Armstrong, Bruce Mace, Lynn Mace, Jody Jamail, Michael & Rose Hall, Jim Malone, Spencer Starnes, Curt Latimer, Nadia Wills, Gary Webernick, Oscar Madera, Mark and Paul Erb, Gail Means, Ayesha Holcomb, Michael and Theresa Epps, Charlie Sims, Joe and Mary Kay Osborn, Amber, Katy and Jay Bothne, Wayne and Carol Popham, Phillippe Chapelle, Guy Masson, Betty and Betty Sue Adelman, Sandy Horowitz, Frank Fritzges, Harold and Lillian Dotson and Wendy, Dell Weston and all the folks at Weston Foundry, Dan, Irene and Dana Strait, Margaret Burke and Joseph, Christina Depperschmidt, Joe and Tonya Copeland, Dawn Townsend, Steve and John Pugh, Steve and Sally Baxter, Jim Mallios, Bob Lewis, Susan Rowe, Butch Ball, Fred Blake, Bub Crawford, Dan Davila, April Ernst, Laura Carol, Emmanual and Maria Elliot and the members of Subud, Aaron and Nura Stone, Ron Adams, Bef Cupcake, Charles Springer, Dineen Majcher, Sid Korinsky, Jack Dennison, Jennifer, Karen and Roger Kirkpatrick, Peter Rosanelli, Buddy Red Bow. To Scott Williams for his insightful critique, R. Carlos Nakai for his kind editorial comments, David Brower, Kenny Loggins, Melissa Poe, and everyone that attended John Denver's Windstar Choices Conference, for their enthusiasm and inspiration, to Terry and Donna Lipman, a very special thank you for encouraging me to write the text accompanying the Vanishing Cultures series. Without the enduring patience, friendship, and technical assistance of Don Boulet and Greg Forest, this project could not have been completed. I am eternally grateful for their help in making a dream come true. And last, to my father, who argued against bigotry, provided me with social consciousness, taught me self-reliance and gave to me all the love a father could give.

© gail ann johnson, 1995

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