One of the most intriguing and interesting aspects of ‘Welcome To The Dark Ages’ has been the inspiration that it has brought to The 400. As a result of the Liverpool ‘happening’ many have gone on to create a wide variety of art…
One attendee, guest writer, Pries Verhon has been inspired by the work of The KLF, before, during and after the Dark Ages. In this account, Pries takes us back through his journey in August whilst also sharing the art, film and comedy that he creates as fruit of The JAMs…
Follow Pries on Youtube, Instagram, Facebook and at his Blog.
Sidebets and Forced Futuristic Art:
A tale of facts, fiction and art before and after the Dark Ages. Part one of three.
The dark ages are over and the shard has been burned. Well at least part one of burning the shard has been done. How many parts are there? And how many days did the dark ages cover? The actual, historic dark ages went on for more than 200 to 400 years or something in between. Or maybe more. Things do happen between the click and the bang (this is page 14 and 15 from “btcatb” reporting and page 257 of 2023 doing the writing).
I was inspired before and after the dark ages. For what might seem as an eternal moment, I stick to 8423 posts on one of several Instagram accounts. This is connected to events in the novel called 2023 by the Justified Ancients of Mu Mu. Some events occur in 1984 and 23 always plays a part it seems.
After reading the novel, I do realize that it has connections to how I handle art, create and explore ideas. For instance, the novel has some rather interesting feminist ideas. The short answer to if I am a feminist is “yes”. In classroom situations students usually want to hear the long answer. And the long answer is that “yes” I am a feminist – but that I do not think that Marxism is the solution. At times I rant on. Other times not. This is a non-rant time, since this is about the dark ages and creativity. But there will be ranting. Get drawn into it.
Manifesto
Ah. I do like the occasional manifesto. Short and to the point. The writers have a mission and state it as a plan for art, politics or something in between. And I remember that during my youth I read the futuristic manifesto. I have also read the communistic manifesto. And I like them both and have problems with how they were used in practice, and how they are used in practice today. Italy had some problems both between 1899 and 1945 and after (do remember Berlusconi). Albania also had some problems from 1899-1989. Cuba, North Korea, Russia, South Africa and Venezuela has had and still has some problems. Let´s not get too political though.
A forced futuristic art sidebet during the Dark Ages. There was several sidebets going on and happening but this is part one and has nothing to do with farming. My own personal problems with futurism are many. For one, one of the authors also wrote a fascist manifesto. And futurism of the early 20th century was split in at least two parts. The one that thrived did so in Italy under Mussolini. Dark times indeed. But something about the manifesto was inspiring both as a youth and as an adult.
Years after reading about it I started to re-code futurism to futurism 2.0. It became a blog that had flowers and is generally pink. Just as 2023 turns a rather male music and art industry into female I have worked and work in a similar way. A sidebet that just went on and is both at times mistunderstood and at times understood.
From war to peace.
From male focus to feminism.
Art is what you make.
*
From hate to love.
From past to present.
And we can all be artists.
Forced Futuristic Art explained
Let´s skip ahead to the events in Liverpool, that occurred from August 22 until August 26. From Thursday to Saturday. During these days I had with me a short novel by Clive Barker. Hellraiser. Also, a USB stick with a trailer.
The 400 attending the events were told that gifts given to Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty during the stamping of 2023 would be burned. On Friday a type of shard was burned. Before the graduation ball I did some filming for two sidebets. I told various people about sidebet one during the days that passed. Interest might have been awakened. I and the others were also focused on doing various jobs and art.
The above-mentioned USB stick had a trailer for a movie I directed. The premiere of the movie was Friday, May 19 in 2017. A total of 4 people attended. I did a talk, a performance and explained the concept of forced futuristic art. The plan is to make at least 200 trailers, promos, advent calendar (there may be a new one made), and short films that are connected to the movie and the two planned sequels. The USB stick with the trailer was put in an empty perfume box and presented to Jimmy Cauty a day or two after the book signing which I did not attend after seeing the long line of almost 400 people. It was passed to Daisy Campbell who handled the gifts. As I understand it was not burned and the trailer is available on youtube for the world and beyond to see. Along with many other trailers of course. You need to see them. Get drawn into it. There is more to tell.
Let´s go on explaining. Hashtags. #ffa stands for forced futuristic art. It also seems to stand for future farmers of America. My Instagram accounts gets a follow and a like every now and then from people who are into that thing and these people may or may not understand my art. #pfk stands for påtvingad futuristic art. So that is the Swedish translation. After the dark ages events there are two more hashtags used at certain times. #klffa and #pfklf that nicely connects to The Jams, 2023 and of course to the KLF. Four hashtags. I use #ffa and #pfk the most and add random numbers to the digital art pieces.
There I was, in the Dead perch lounge. Forcing my art onto Jimmy Cauty. The art concept was not clear in 2012 but that was the year the movie that had a premiere in 2017 was started to be filmed. And after five years there was a premiere and more trailers made. Did he see it? Did he understand it? Was it art? Is it still art? It existed and exists in digital form so there is that.
There is more to tell and explain. Forced futuristic art is many things to me personally. It is not connected to farming in America. At least not now, but it might just be possible to combine art with farming. If I choose to and want to.
What I have done has some pop references. I fought the law in a rather mild, Swedish way and I still do. I never liked the Clash or Pulp that much though. But I do think that Jarvis Cocker did a great version of Justified and Ancient. Tammy did great and Jarvis did a modern rendition.
I fought the law with forced futuristic art and I still do this. Bureaucracy can be such a beautiful thing. It was in Brazil (1984,5) and it helps to create art. As an artist, I realized at the time that people might not understand, care or even know about art that is created. But I do know how bureaucracy works, in a manner. I have never been a man consumed by paperwork but I do make art.
Here is how bureaucracy works in Sweden. I think that it might work the same in other countries. You need to fight for your right to party and fight for your art to be seen. And there is a very easy way. Every case and every appeal or document that is turned in to the authorities gets a specific number. The document gets filed. The case can turn out beneficial or not so beneficial.
Since 2012 I have been doing art and turning it in to the authorities. Mostly since 2014 in a creative, discordian and forced futuristic art way. There have been quite a few trailers, some drawings and other stuff turned it. Some political and anti-racist events (that are also anti-fascist). All of this has been registered and is available at these authorities. By saying the number connected to it or writing in you can get a copy back. After five years it might not be possible.
In 2018 it has been four years since the main forced futuristic art mission was put in motion and I do plan to get copies of the art back from the authorities. Since it is the law it should work. And the material will then be used as a forced futuristic art exhibition. Both before and after the Dark Ages I have been going on with this so there is quite a lot of art material.
Jimmy Cauty is not part of the Swedish system (but then again anything is possible); nor is he part of another authority. Well, he is part of The JAMS who really got 400 or more people to do a lot of art 23 years after he and Bill Drummond (perhaps) burned a million pounds.
Let´s remember shall we? There was a trailer given on a USB stick. People in yellow robes pulling an ice-cream van. Badger kull performing at the Invisible wind factory. Empty coffins burned. I was collecting footage for the sequels to my feature film and talking to people about sidebets connected to forced futuristic art.
A short but long account of the Dark Ages and the forced futuristic art sidebets connected to it. Re:member the Dark Ages.
Tuesday was the start and I do want to remember more that has not already been told. I was outside News from Nowhere and I did see the ice cream van coming and stopping and people entering the book shop. I was in a room at a hostel with a few of the 400 and at times we found the others. Ragwort collector and scattered by one of these persons. Frantic writing on a keyboard by another. There might have been more of the 400 in the room and there were indeed others in the hostel having first breakfast and wandering about; looking through the Bido Lido magazine and preparing. I usually had coffee and some light second breakfast at the Dead Perch Lounge. On Day 1 I quickly explained the little that I knew so far to some random people outside the book shop. I took pictures and films. No sidebet footage as I recall. Or there might have been. If you or any of the 400 can recall or remember get back to me on that.
Day 2 was a Wednesday and I had breakfast, coffee and got the yellow wristband. On Day 2 I was outside Constellations. After seeing Blade Runner 2049, Dr Badger has a certain ring to it. And I have come to ranting at occasions:
Cells.
Interlinked.
Constellations.
Connected.
One word above is not in the movie. It was a sunny Wednesday in Liverpool and thanks to the Dark Ages map that was created and offline GPS working splendid I found myself outside of Constellations. And there was a sidebet being filmed and made here. I basically made a report in Swedish for a comedy crew I am connected to. Journalist style, but all that is coming in part three.
I still have the two job cards and I was leg one and two. Later I got an odd page (257) from Jimmy Cauty. As I had forced my art onto him he forced a page back to me.
Later at the Black-E the million pounds were discussed and voting was made. I do remember that Gimpo had glasses on but not looking through them even once. I may be wrong. He did sign a 7” of America: What time is love that I traded for a black Badger Kull T-shirt. Two other persons of the 400 also signed it. They were not Bill Drummond nor Jimmy Cauty. No other sidebets that I remember, though I did become part of Badger Cunt and quickly started a solo career as DJ Badger Kill. Surely I must have mentioned #ffa or other sidebets to someone. If so, get back to me on that if you are one of the 400 or 99 or just remember anyway.
Day 3 was a Thursday and it was very busy indeed. I still have a bag with weird writing on it from the Shipping Forecast. I use it as a bag for my thermos and have been drinking coffee from it whilst reading 2023 since the dark ages. Usually the reading has been taking place from around 5 AM to 6 AM and at times from 10 AM to 11 AM.
There was a group picture of some of the 400 and a lot of performances going on. There was also great soup. My group was book three, the glossary. Our performance was based on page 253 until page 259 or so. It ended well before the part about the Dark Ages in the book. There was burning of a 7” record outside the Shipping forecast. Coffee, alcohol, drawing, notes taken and planning. Hacking reality and cherry-picking the results as someone wrote. I filmed footage and some of it became part of “Sadoscchcccpoccck – Burn the Shard popart trailer” that was published on youtube on November 23, 2017. Available at two separate youtube channels. Odd and even if you may.
Location 1:
Location 2:
This means that there was indeed a sidebet going on connected to #ffa and so on. There might have been going on more sidebets that I do not remember. As above, get back to me on that if you felt targeted or if you remember and are part of the 400, the 99 or just can recall anyway.
Day 4 was a Friday and the day of being at the Florrie and the great pull north. Before the pulling I got a ride in a rather small car with JAMS-logo on it. We were 4 people and I did a snippet mentioning that we were closing in on 23 seconds. Whilst going to the Florrie, I did film sidebet footage for the sequel to a feature film which is work in progress. It was a relevant area as I did pass some Chinese quarters. It all makes sense if just take the time to see some trailers. Or it might not make same. No matter, it is still #ffa and that is all that is really needed.
I was drawn to the soundtrack played at the Florrie, like a fly getting drawn into ice-cream. Get drawn into it. I think all readers know why the soundtrack was good. Later one picture taken while Jarvis and the choir was singing with analogue camera. A small liberation loophole before pulling the van and the funeral pyre. The pyre rather looked like the shard!
I was filming a dalek and collecting sidebet footage for the comedy channel and the sequel to the feature film. And the pyre did burn. At the invisible wind factory there was time for graduation. I managed to have two certificates signed. Badger Kull played, there was a great DJ set or two and lots of dancing. The occasional beer. A rather long walk back to the hostel with a page holder while discussing television. Make-up still holding, passing people who went on with their lives. An event connecting to a wedding waiting to happen or having occurred for instance.
There was distinct chanting regarding Badger Kull, burning of the shard and some bricks. Bricks being used as weight for folding and preparing for that pyramid being built. I do remember a person stating: “I have my brick” during day three. He was sitting on it or beside it. Did he go on the bus from Liverpool with me? Maybe. There was a brick though. Important to remember.
Some of the events above have been told in other words by me and others. And as above if you do remember being part or talked to about the sidebets get in touch.
Day 5 was a Saturday and I woke up with certain pains in the left leg. Odd? Not really after pulling a van and dancing to around but not after 3 AM. I did leave before closing so a certain song might have been missed. I will always remember the performance by Badger Kull though. That and giving Jarvis Cocker the compliment of being the new Tammy Wynette. Who else could do a version in the future? Dolly Parton, Julian Cope or David Hasselhoff could handle the duties. Glenn Hughes or Isaac Bello too of course or maybe Jeremy Deller and naturally Tony Thorpe. Would be great to have Banksy performing but to four people only, behind a black cloth at the Black-E.
On day 4 or 5 I did a version of Bruce Dickinson´s “Bring your daughter to the slaughter” in make-up at the hostel. A youtube sidebet that can be connected to #ffa if I or someone chooses too. Just like Bruce and Bello could do a version of “Justified and Ancient” with ENT as backing band you can also do Forced Futuristic Art!
I had some breakfast and pulled my bag to the Dead Perch Lounge. Some more footage for the comedy channel, so even more sidebet activity. I liberated a poster and saw the other posters concerning “Why?” which reminds me of a manifesto. I do like the occasional manifesto. A JAMS manifesto sits well with me.
When it comes to philosophy I like to mix it up quite a bit. I doubt but consider myself a transhumanist Satanist with some JAMS thinking and discordianism mixed in that should work well at Festival 23. I have applied with the Forced Futuristic Art concept for 2018 and some other ideas. And perhaps Badger Kunt plays a set. The future dark ages remain to be written. Creative works waiting to happen surely in some manner.
Saturday was a short day and I did another pull with the bag to Liverpool One. Had some food and got some Lego and no ice-cream from the van. I had the Black Badger Kull T-shirt on and snapped a picture at a large fake grass stair. The caption says. “The beginning of the light ages. The end of the Dark ages. I am one of the #400”.
Conclusions, constellations, cells interlinked and the future of forced futuristic art and 400.
Three days turned into five. 400 turned into 99. The pyre was lit, the coffins were burned and it looked like a shard. Since august 26, 2017 a lot has been going on. I finished 2023 the novel. I did like it and I try to read a Clive Barker sequel in the early morning that is connected to “The hellbound heart”. Hellraiser the feature film was released in 1987. 2017 saw the release of “2023” and the future has already passed.
I wrote a piece for “Between the Click and the bang”. Print only, page 14 and 15. Andy Gell released a play called “Whatever”. I have read some from welcometothedarkages.com and will need to catch up to what the 99 were up to. Burning of the shard part two will happen and the pyramid will be built, that seems very crystal clear in the future.
The KLF page has gone mental, or so it says on the Orb page. Some days before The Dark Ages some cynical persons remarked somewhere something along the line that “it will all be available on e-bay next week”. Surely so. The world did not fuuk up and 2023 is the year before what might be Trumps re-election as president. I remember talking to a person who was not that pleased with the current events in America (Come on, what time is love again? 1989, 1992 or 2027?)
Next up is the return of Festival 23. Sweden will have an election next fall. Que sera sera and so on. Finishing thoughts now. Constellatons. Cells. Conclusions.
There has been a long time since I finished a novel but I did conclude 2023. Forced futuristic art was made and will be made. The 400 go on with their creative projects. Remixes, plays, music, art, performances and the list goes on forever for at least 23 more years.
And I do consider myself a feminist (Marxism does not work out that great in practice though. Discordian or not, that sentence might cause some rage). Use the rage and make art. Above us only Starbucks cup, below us no wars going on. Keep writing your manifestos and make that art.
And I do consider myself a forced futuristic artist (fascism does not work out that great in practice though. Even that sentence might cause some rage). Use that rage and make even more art.
And I do plan to keep writing and making art (art does not always work out that great in practice though. And that is a sentence that causes myself rage). But I use that rage and make even more art. Next year I plan on getting #ffa back and use it for more art. Art can come back to you and you can come back to art. Collect it, make your own or just enjoy what you are into. And perhaps Jimmy Cauty is looking at that trailer on youtube or from the usb stick. Between the burning of the shard part one and planning the next stop for the ADP. Maybe not.
This has been a long part 1 concerning sidebets. Part 2 will have some details on one specific sidebet which has a lot of trailers and sequels planned.
I choose to recode futurism to a positive art movement. I choose to be political when needed. I choose to remain one of the 400. An odd page signing off for now. Remember that there is more to remember. There is more to tell. Get drawn into it. #ffa + #pfk with #klffa and #pfklf
It is forced. It is Futuristic. It is Art. #ffa number 3683 words. Should have been 3687 or 3378.
All Photos courtesy of P. Verhon.