Bio by Richard Exelbert.

1948. A young boy as the tale has it throws a rock in the desert while
chasing after a goat and the rock lands in a cave on a hillside and
cracks open an urn - and inside the urn is a scroll - the moment it is
exposed to the sun the parchment crumbles and flies away into the
wind. And there are hundreds of these scrolls and the people who kept
them were the essenes.

The thing about the essenes is they lived outside jerusalem in the
desert 2000 years ago sitting in the hot wilting sun sleeping in those
caves. And they were on the run - on the run from the Roman Empire
for sure. But they were on the run from those that opposed it too.
They were beyond underground.

Sweating in the sun

The parched desert drying their tongues out

Scorpions nipping at their heels

"I tell them in parable so they won't understand"

plung! goes the urn as the rock smashes into it.

tick scrawl tick scrawl go the scribes endlessly making records of the fact

1984. A young boy sits in a crowded baseball stadium inking out every
play of the game into his program. baseball the only sport that can be
recorded on paper completely and then completely re-created later on.

tick scrawl tick scrawl

an old woman sits on a bus and embarrasses her son. did she patronize
that young child across from them?

a cold clear lake in the mountains of north carolina filled with small
rounded blue stones smoothed by the ages

a young man digs his hand into the lake and removes the stones
rhythmically and tosses them across the water

plung! plung! splash splash

all the presidents and all the astronauts are from ohio. most of them. that is.

now each plung (removal of a stone) and each splash - is clear

it rings alone throughout the valley

plung!

splash!

the romans had their day and they still do.

look at the mummy portraits circa year 100 AD. See the curls in their
hair. The adornments of their dress. Earrings. Jewelry.

the then is now.

distractions from time

the true artist pursues mastery over time

sits

suffering

in

the

sun

atop

a

blue

mountain

seeking
mandalas
in
the
wildflowers

next
step
he
digs
his
hands
into
the
mud
earth

pulls
out
turtles
rabbits
sunflowers
worms
beetles
backhoes
wet large stones with potato bugs wiggling beneath

slurp and sludge are the sounds he makes sinking his hands into and
out of the ooze

sluuuuurp! sludddddge!

plung! splash! plung! splash!

tick! scrawl! tick! scrawl!

now put it all together and here is what you get

sluurp! sluuuuuuuudddddge!
plung! splash! plung! splash!
tick tick scrawl tick tick scrawl

this is wes tirey

applying his craft

wielding his machine
as
alchemic
weapon

pulling
bunnies
out
of
the
earth

throwing
stones
across
the lake

working
the
earth

pulling
out
and
putting
back
in

all
symbols
churning

pure
emotive
power

mud
and
water

stone
and
silence

desert
sweat

all
things
churning

clarity
and
sludge

tick
scrawl
tick...

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