🔴  NEW DIRECTION   Ed. No. 23 / ON A NEW DIRECTION ⓵

“LET THE SUNSHINE. LET THE SUNSHINE IN…”

- Lyrics from the song “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)"

This is a medley of two songs written for the 1967 musical ‘HAIR’ 

by James Rado and Gerome Ragni (lyrics), and Galt MacDermot (music)

What a wonderful local member Alex Greenwich is for Sydney.

Here he is with my artwork titled “SUNSHINE!”. 

The two somehow fit together. 

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Recently I found myself singing the above lyrics that took me back to the decorously deco Metro Theatre in Kings Cross.  I too was part of the “happening” as it was called when the musical “HAIR” burst upon our City of Sydney. As a kid I remember being chaperoned somewhat belatedly into the far corner of the back row of the theatre to take in what was the third last performance of the phenomenon that rocked the Western world back in those ‘free’ times of the 1960’s.

The Show was a wildly controversial protest shouting all its quote “smut, nudity, swearing” and dealing with confronting subject matter of its time with an overarching theme of peace and love. 

Jumping forward a more recent version of “Hair” in the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House in 2019 was fun in a nostalgic kind of way. If anything it provoked the question what was all the reactionary response worldwide about to the Show back in ‘67? 

But we’ve all changed and moved on.

A tribe of young people tried to celebrate life back then in the 60’s with a “peace and love” message…until woken abruptly with the realisation that with freedoms comes the discipline of responsibilities. Something that "Hair" touched on.

Looking around today it doesn’t appear much was learned or perhaps I’m wrong? 

Much seriousness, too much discord and discomforting unhappiness is the current millieu.

This is all an indicator that we still haven’t found what we’re looking for.

Is it that we’ve still got to get over blaming others for our own lack of courage, conviction, passion and self belief? 

'See yourself' is the theme for our times.

Maybe a little nostalgia amidst the current storm of change would give us some bearings and compass to STOP, LOOK at our present and LEAP towards our future?

You know what?… I’ve been talking a long time about the need to ‘Celebrate life’ and to ‘Celebrate YOO!’ But it’s not a “happening” man…and woman and everyone else too.

I’ve got my ideas on why everything has become bogged down. 

But that’s all they are ideas.

May I though put a case here for why we should be celebrating even though it is the darkest of times.

If you are sitting in a room and all the doors and windows are blocked from letting the light in it most surely disables you from seeing anything. But if someone opens a door and lets the sunshine in then you can navigate a pathway towards that sunshine.

We need to invite the sunshine in and then the dark goes away with that little effort on our part. That’s the way the nature of things works. We shouldn’t be wasting our energy trying to get rid of the dark. We have to want the light in our lives. “Let the sunshine in”

Before I emigrate to New Zealand I would like to present a retrospective of approximately 22 of my sculptures, paintings and drawings completed over my life here in Australia. 

It’s intended to be a kind of looking back or celebrating a reconciliation of the past before taking the leap forward. 

Perhaps Sydney needs to do the same?

Perhaps Australia needs to do the same? 

Perhaps the whole world needs to do the same?

I would like the exhibition to take place in a pop up space at street level along the Golden Mile Oxford Street leading into the 2025 Sydney Mardi Gras (February 2025). 

Maybe that's what our annual celebration of gaydom needs to be renamed to trigger new life and direction by consciously embracing all of us🌀. Now there's a suggestion.

Does the (+) in GLBTQIA+ mean embracing all those friendly towards diversity and inclusivity in life?

Anyways, the title of my exhibition is “Sunshine!”.

And sure it’s OK to have a vision of what I’d like but making it a reality is a whole another story particularly when there is so much darkness. But all I can do is invite the sunshine in as those free spirited hippies did in the 1960’s.

I know what it takes to put on an art show properly. Exhibition design was my occupation for many of my working years. I was good at it too. It’s work and effort if you’re going to do it right. And I also know truthfully looking at myself presently that I can hardly tie my shoelaces. I am very much surrounded by the dark as many are currently. But I am holding a lit candle and singing along with the spirit of the ’60’s… "Let the sunshine in… the Sunshine in”.

Let’s go with the flow and see what happens. 

Who knows we could end up with another “WOODSTOCK”? Scary! 

What a mess of an event that was. Surely we can do better now? Ya reckon!

We do need to think bigger. - Neville

FOOTNOTE:

Nature usually overtures the return of sunshine with a rainbow. 

PIC: Your artist/editor in beautiful New Zealand earlier this year.

Yes it was bloody cold up there on that lookout overlooking Wellington.

PHOTO: Steve Holmes (April 2024)

What is your vision for YOO?

👋 Celebrate yoo!

🌀NEXT TIME: A BIT MORE ON A NEW DIRECTION

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