title: Synthetic Soul year: 2012
Los Angeles, Hollywood to Downtown LA view (in fluorescent 3D)
"There's a moon inside every human being. Learn to be companions with it. Give more of your life to this listening. As brightness is to time, so you are to the one who talks to the deep ear in your chest. I should sell my tongue and buy a thousand ears when that one steps near and begins to speak." -Rumi
I first came across Yosaku on a Melbourne-based radio show hosted by Ennio Styles. To my surprise, I found out he was based in LA. Soon after I visited a monthly he used to do at Zanzibar. We became friends through reciprocal sharing of the arts and music. I would send over my new paintings and he would share his latest mixes.
The positive energy continues to swing back and forth; often I paint to the music he introduces me to, and every now and then my art covers the mixes he releases. Yosaku recently asked me to cover an idea that revolved around the notion of 'the city that always sleeps'. The concept has obvious correlations to the social and psychological dynamic of LA, and honestly speaking it's a sentiment I share in some ways. Having lived in more open communities and diverse urban landscapes, I often wonder if the root of this intangible separation stems from the city's oversized, spaced-out infrastructure.
After I started painting this concept I came to realize something. As solemn as his wording may appear, 'the city that always sleeps' is more an indirect reference to 'the city that has so much more to offer'. Los Angeles is a place full of hidden beauties, and with open souls we'll come to understand it's true elegance. In my opinion, that's the message Yosaku conveys through his musical projections. It's one of peace, transmitting positive vibrations to our ears from a true music lover who embodies what I call an uplifting, synthetic soul.
DJEMBE & CANVAS
