Less Than Nothing [Panel III of The Nothing Triptych] » 20”x30” » Click image for larger vieHaving though a lot about the concepts of capital “T” Truth and capital “silent K” Knowledge in designing panels I and II respectively, I started panel III, Less Than Nothing, with the vague notion that I wanted to consider how I aspire to process information and express myself while also acknowledging the common “communication crimes” – those that produce more noise than signal – of which I may have been (and may yet continue to be) guilty.

Some Guidelines for Processing and Expressing Knowledge/Information.

Don’t profess to know what you don’t./Share what you do.

Don’t use knowledge as a weapon./Don’t use knowledge as a shield.

Don’t talk shit./Don’t take shit.

Don’t exaggerate./Don’t diminish.

Don’t deceive, prevaricate, dissemble or fabricate./Question judiciously.

Don’t believe the hype./Don’t feed the hype.

Pay attention.

I won’t lie, it does look a tad facile, obvious and possibly unrealistic as far as personal philosophies go. And, maybe it all just boils down to, “Say what you mean and mean what you say.” But, by all means, consider it open source and make improvements if you’re so inclined.

The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. — George Bernard Shaw

The Nothing Triptych » 60”x30” » Click image for larger view.

Heroic virtue did his actions guide, And he the substance, not the appearance, chose. – John Dryden, Annus Mirabilis, The Year of Miracles, 1666

Meaning [Panel II from the Substantial Triptych] » 20”x30” » Click image for larger view.

In which Chris realizes that, having set the bar exceptionally high – w/r/t over-sharing highly personal revelations in the service of discussing the artwork posted herein – he now must discern how to again make watching him linguistically limbo under said elevated bar an engaging and entertaining spectacle.

And, further, Chris, in the interest of continuity – w/r/t/ providing context for the current triptych he is in the process of posting – fans the dying ember of his heretofore brief flirtation with writing about himself in the third person – throws some mesquite chips on it – and nurtures it into a healthy, yet controlled, burn once again.

Chris, in the act (right now!) of doing it, realizes that the third person thing is kind of annoying while also realizing that everything that needs to be known about this piece – and frankly the whole triptych – can be found in the previous two posts. Which is fortunate. Since, Chris, having written at length in the previous two posts about two – of many – elements that infom this piece, finds himself at a loss for what more to say about it.

However, while an abbreviated history of Chris’ life and his meandering meditation on meaning may tell you much of what you need to know about this piece, they don’t tell you everything. In spite of those two posts, Chris assures his readers (and himself) that it is not solely, or even primarily, about drugs though Chris can also assure you that it does have meaning. Possibly (likely?) only to himself, of course, but meaning nonetheless.

As for what heroism may be involved, Chris is certain that it distorts the meaning of the word.

Confused? For what it’s worth, so is Chris.

Note: If you’re interested, Chris suggests you consider the various meanings of the word substance. He is.