Simon Erl: Jesus

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Why is it that when Simon Erl tattoos a Jesus image, the Prince of Peace looks like he’s mad at you for something?
Subdued color palette  tattoos are really impressing me these days; I tend to go for a more colorful Robert Ryan aesthetic, but the Brits have really been catching my attention with the more muted tones; this Erl piece, Bradley Thompkins newer output… so much great stuff that’s really making me jealous that they’re so far away (and that I’m running out of available skin).

You can ask Simon to do an angry Jesus (or happy Satan, your call) tattoo on you via his tumblr account: http://simonerl.com

 

Merkabah Yantra


This just popped up on Mr. Michael E. Bennett’s blog; a fusion of the Merkabah and a Yantra. It’s so beautifully rendered. I can only hope (and by that, I mean nag him until he does it) that Michael turns this into a print.

The symbolism is worth researching if you’re not familiar:

Merkabah-
Ezekiel’s Wheel- the Chariot of God.
From Wiki: According to the verses in Ezekiel and its attendant commentaries, his vision consists of a chariot made of many heavenly beings driven by the “Likeness of a Man.” Four beings form the basic structure of the chariot. These beings are called the “living creatures” (Hebrew חיות khayyot). The bodies of the creatures are “like that of a human being”, but each of them has four faces, corresponding to the four directions the chariot can go (north, east south and west). The faces are that of a man, a lion, an ox (later changed to a cherub in Ezekiel 10:14) and an eagle. Since there are four angels and each has four faces, there are a total of sixteen faces. Each Chayot angel also has four wings. Two of these wings spread across the length of the chariot and connected with the wings of the angel on the other side. This created a sort of ‘box’ of wings that formed the perimeter of the chariot. With the remaining two wings, each angel covered its own body. Below, but not attached to the feet of the “Chayot” angels are other angels that are shaped like wheels. These wheel angels, which are described as “a wheel inside of a wheel”, are called “Ophanim” אופנים (lit. wheels, cycles or ways). These wheels are not directly under the chariot, but are nearby and along its perimeter. The angel with the face of the man is always on the east side and looks up at the “Likeness of a Man” that drives the chariot. The “Likeness of a Man” sits on a throne made of sapphire.

Yantra-
The Sanskrit word for instrument or machine.
From Wiki: One usage popular in the west is as symbols or geometric figures. Traditionally such symbols are used in Eastern mysticism to balance the mind or focus it on spiritual concepts. The act of wearing, depicting, enacting and/or concentrating on a yantra is held to have spiritual or astrological or magical benefits in the Tantric traditions of the Indian religions.

For more of Michael’s work- click here.

Rise

Kenneth Anger’s LUCIFER RISING lacks any of the cheeky irony presented in his earlier films; gone are the pop songs (replaced by a Beausoleil score, composed from Bobby’s prison cell) and homoeroticism that made him famous- Rising is a symbolic analogy of the Age of Horus and while dated belongs in the movie collection of anyone interested in Esoteric Cinema.

I was pleased to find this photo in my inbox this morning; a tribute to Mr. Anger’s Thelemic vision, tattooed on the fingers of one of the UK’s more impressive tattooers Simon Erl.
Daniel Abrigo did the tops of his hands, with the LCFR RISE lettering by Rich Hardy.

I recommend checking out the high def transfers of Lucifer Rising, but if you just want a quick fix:

Make mine Legba

The Loa are the spiritual intermediaries between Bondye and humanity in the Voodoo faith.
I’ve always have a special liking to Legba (who is sort of the ‘Saint Peter’ of the loa) but Ghede has his appeal as well.

I’m not sure what Loa inspired this piece byt the always impressive Daniel Trocchio but it’s damn good none the less.

Jodorowsky at MoMa- Halloween

On Monday, October 31st 2011, the MoMA in New York will be hosting a screening of Alejandro Jodorowsky’s iconic The Holy Mountain. Jodorowsky will be introducing the film and as part of MoMA’s “To Save and Protect” project will be participating in “An evening with Alejandro Jodorowsky” afterwards.

A hosted screening of El Topo will be on Tuesday, November 1st.

I can’t think of a better way to spend my Halloween.
Ticket information can be found here: ABKO.

I’ll be there with my fiance; if you see me, please come up and say hi!

Talking With Gods

The mandate of OV includes “EXPLORING THE ESOTERIC IN TATTOO CULTURE AND BEYOND.”

This is the beyond.

Grant Morrison has been one of the most influential voices in the comic book industry for over two decades. His writing is hardly aimed at the average comic fan yet he’s redefined Batman (Arkham Asylum) and Superman (All Star Superman) as well as the JLA, all while releasing subversive, occult works like The Invisibles, the Filth and Vimanarama.

Grant is the only guy who knows how to draw hypertime on the back of a napkin.

Anyone interested in Chaos Magic, Archetypes (Morrison’s theory that Superman is the latest incarnation of the Sun God archetype is covered in his new book) and Super Heroes should take the time to check out a recently released documentary called ‘Grant Morrison: Talking with Gods’.

It’s on dvd, sure- but you can also swing over to HULU and watch it gratis. Talking with Gods.

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