Steve Quenell's mystical collages really move me. I love collage and assemblage art because the process is one and the same as the *Alchemical process* (see below) SOLVE ET COAGULA — Separate, and Join Together (or Disolve and Bind) VISITA INTERIORA TERRAE RECTIFICANDO INVENFIES OCCULTUM LAPIDEM (visit the interior parts of the earth; by rectification you shall find the hidden stone) The Philosopher's Stone is within...A universal Metaphysical ideology. Om Mani Padme Om...the jewel is in the Lotus! The process is a spiritual path with emphasis on Tranformation and Soul Development, and God-Realization., the goal is to become ONE with the Divine.
*I should mention that I logged onto Steve's Myspace page to grab his blog address so I could link it to his name...it was just there a moment ago...but as I write this, it seems he posted a link to his new
Website! Coincidentally (wink), the opening sentences of his bio reference Alchemy being the underlying concept of his work!
"The best-known goals of the alchemists were the transmutation of common metals into gold (called chrysopoeia) or silver (less well known is plant alchemy, or "spagyric"); the creation of a "panacea or the elixir of life," a remedy that supposedly would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely. European alchemists invested much effort on the search for the "philosopher's stone", a legendary substance that was believed to be an essential ingredient for either or both of those goals. The Philosophers Stone was believed to mystically amplify the user's knowledge of alchemy so much that anything was attainable. Starting with the Middle Ages, some alchemists increasingly came to view these metaphysical aspects as the true foundation of alchemy; and organic and inorganic chemical substances, physical states, and molecular material processes as mere metaphors for spiritual entities, spiritual states and ultimately, spiritual transformations." Wikipedia
