Summary

The website content discusses the importance of recognizing and embracing one's inherent creativity and the transformative power of art, as exemplified by the annual Burning Man event and the photomontage and chapbook created by AleXander Hirka and Remington Write.

Abstract

Every year, AleXander Hirka and Remington Write collaborate to produce a photomontage and a story that align with the art theme of Burning Man, resulting in a limited edition chapbook gifted at the event. The text emphasizes the need to pay attention to the constant stream of input that our minds file away, often overlooked due to daily routines and societal pressures to conform. It argues that creativity is inherent in all individuals, contrary to the messages from mainstream culture that may discourage artistic pursuits. The author asserts that life is continually transformed with every breath and that the true essence of art lies within each person, not just in sanctioned galleries or museums. The message is clear: creativity is not confined to specific locations or events like Burning Man; it is an ever-present part of our existence, accessible without the need for permission, training, or special talents.

Opinions

The author believes that society's emphasis on practicality and marketability stifles individual creativity.
There is a notion that the real value of art is not confined to institutional settings but is found in the everyday experiences and expressions of people.
The text suggests that so-called epiphanies about one's life direction may actually be societal constructs that lead to conformity.
The author posits that recognizing and embracing one's innate creativity can lead to a more fulfilling life.
The content conveys that the transformative power of art and creativity is universally accessible and not limited to specific events or circumstances.
The author implies that the act of creation is a fundamental human trait, and everyone has the capacity to contribute to the collective flow of artistic expression.

False Epiphanies and True Treasure

Every year AleXander creates a photomontage that somewhat aligns with whatever the art theme of that year’s Burning Man event is and I write a little story that somewhat aligns with both. This is what I wrote this year and what AleXander turned into a limited edition of 500 chapbooks which we’ll be gifting at the event.

ARTransformUS by AleXander Hirka / On display at Center Camp Cafe, Burning Man 2019

That sweep of color and image is only your imagination. Or rather it’s all your imagination and you need to pay closer attention to it. We all do — even those of us who are paying attention. We need to pay closer attention.

As we move blindly through our daily habits, those things we have done across countless yesterdays so many times that we don’t even think about them anymore, stuff is coming in. There’s a constant stream of input.

As it pours in past the usual barriers, our expert filing system crams it away into a hundred million file cabinets. There, behind our eyes and between our ears, is our treasure and it’s tragically easy to let it sit there dormant through our entire lives. It starts with the first time a firm grownup hand guides us back to coloring inside of the lines. It gains traction when the first firm grownup voice assures us that we’ll never be able to support ourselves this way.

Grow up.

Learn a trade or build a skill set.

Become marketable.

Build your brand.

Be realistic.

The culture is riddled with these landmines — designated roles that are designed to go off with the appearance of being epiphanies.

And we run with it; pointing ourselves in the accepted directions. Meanwhile the stuff is flowing in. It never stops.

There are seasons and situations where we can suddenly, blessedly, become aware of the river we swim in and here we are in the mother lode of seasons and situations. Pay attention.

You might think this is all dust and heat and cold and assorted assholery going on all around us (Ok, it is that) but it’s also treasure. Pay attention.

We are of a lineage and it is glorious. From those first hallucinatory bulls and beasts scrawled onto cave walls and through cascades of inspirations, false starts, restarts, hunches, setbacks, breakthroughs, failures, joyrides, sure things, infections, structures, forest fires, blank walls, broken paintbrushes, sneaking suspicions, trapdoors, bell towers, and jumping off cliffs we are following in the footsteps of generations who paid attention.

You were lied to when you were told you’re not creative.

Designed by AleXander Hirka / Cover of Book to be Gifted

Galleries and museums are zoos filled with sanctioned “Art”. No. The real juice is flowing in the streets and across the dusty playa. It’s all around us. We are the sum total of all that unexplainable stuff that has been flowing serenely past judgements and barriers since we reared up on our hind legs and started using our hands for more than pushing food into our faces.

Looking into that mad, marvelous and timeless sweep of color and image that spans centuries we can know without any doubt that we are the Art. We always have been. The whole of society can deny it and do all in its power to lock us down, shut us up, get us in line and we remain the Art.

There’s a lot of talk and blather about how this or that has transformed our lives. Here’s the truth of it:

Our lives are transformed with every breath.

We can recognize that and open ourselves to the roaring majesty of our innate creativity, taking it with us everywhere or we can just have a lovely splash of it here and now and then slide back into our comfortable, “normal” skins after that first incredible shower in Reno.

Either choice is valid. This isn’t a test. There are no wrong answers.

Even more importantly: this isn’t a site-specific phenomenon. It’s in Reno; hell, it’s in the two Walmarts in Reno. It’s in your kitchen. It’s in your cubicle in that shit job that keeps the rent paid. It’s always with you because it’s always in you.

You don’t have to pay for it. You don’t need to track down a dealer. You don’t need to score a ticket to Burning Man (but it’s awesome that you did this year anyway). It’s equal parts Awe, Fire, Drive, and Dance. And it’s free.

You are the Art. You create. You don’t need permission or training or special talents. You choose what to create. You own it. You send it into the world to join all the other stuff flowing past all the other barriers.

And for now here’s all the inspiration of the universe at your fingertips and smoothing along your synapses. Fire away!

All the artists whose work lives in Artransformus by AleXander Hirka