“Communication and Peace” by Deryk Houston
Medium: linen on wood panels, acrylic, Size: 56″ X 96″
I am fascinated by war and how difficult it is to secure peace.
We reduce our cities to rubble, shred human beings at will… and then rebuild and start the same process over and over again. I believe that if we could communicate better we might change history.
There has been a lot of good things written about how important it is to understand the other person’s needs in order to avoid conflict. My eight foot panels, track the period from the expression of our hearts left on cave walls, through the inward “illumination” period of the church, through to the printing press, through to the mainstream media such as CNN and the New York Times… on through to social media and WikiLeaks ……exposing our governments manipulation of the truth.
The “blood gutter”, at the bottom edge of each panel, contains odds and ends (locks and keys), fragments of time (watches, wheels, springs) and communication technology. (cell phones). A “blood gutter” is the deep line cut into the “side” of the blade on many swords. It is not there for decoration. I included it in this artwork because it illustrates the cold blooded ingenuity of mankind’s ability to develop effective killing devices. When a sword is thrust into the body of it’s victim, the blood gutter allows the vital blood to exit the wound quicker and render the victim helpless. It also makes it easier for the sword to slide further into the victim and cause more harm.
As you read from left to right in the blood gutter section on my artwork, you will see a slight shift in colour. It shifts from mostly shredded grey, towards a final trace of blue, green, yellow and …. a little red. This marks where we are today. A time of Hope.
It is fascinating to reflect on how information has been controlled through the use of Language (Latin for example), the control of early maps by governments in order to control trade, how powerful people and companies try to control the story and frame events for their own gain. I find so much hope today in the idea that people now have access to information at their fingertips and the power of that information is no longer in the hands of the few. Goat herders in remote lands are learning languages and skills by having access to a cell phone. Money is being loaned by a process of micro lending…. Anyone with modest means can go online and lend a small amount of money to someone who needs some chickens in Africa. Through social media, we learn of an earthquake on the other side of the world before we see it on CNN. These are dramatic changes to our world view.
And ….just like before….when books were hand copied and mistakes started to appear between “hand copied” books……..people will still have to look at several copies on the table or the information on their computer to figure out the truth.
Leave a Reply