News: Art
Updates, events, & perspectives regarding the state of the arts.
NFTs and my Art

Looking for NFTs with my art? Find me on https://superrare.co/michaeldivine
My NFTs are rare. They are works that either are not for sale (so no physical original will ever be available) or have been done with a mix of digital and hand made elements so, again, no physical version of an original can exist.
Check them out 🙂
Widespread Panic Poster for Conscious Alliance

Conscious Alliance is a wonderful organization that accepts food donations and monetary donations to give out to those who are hungry. They are amazing and centered in Colorado. I made this poster for the Widespread Panic show at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado. It’ll be silkscreened with metallic inks.
What It Looked Like From Here: Tiananmen Square, June 5, 1989

In 1989, I was 13. In the second grade, we’d done drills in grammar school where we knelt against the wall of the school hallway with our heads between our knees because if an atom bomb fell then that was, apparently, the best position to be in (ha! as if) because the Russians were at war with the United States but it wasn’t an actual war it was a Cold War and that the threat of nuclear war loomed large in everyone’s minds. China was an even bigger mysterious behemoth.
But by the late 80s it seems that tide was turning and in China, students and thinkers and others wanted real change and they organized themselves and rallied in Tiananmen Square. By May of 1989, 300,000 people had rallied in the square. A reasonably detailed and fact based account can be found HERE on Wikipedia. But I remember on June 5th, this man, unmoving, who stood before a line of tanks with red stars on them. I remember the sensation as if a veil of fear were about to be lifted. I remember that the crowds of people were students. I was a student. They were young. I too was young.
You have to understand, in 1989, the world was on the brink of change. A few months later the Berlin Wall fell. A couple of years later, the USSR became the independent state of Russia and a bunch of other independent countries (the independence of which is debatable, at the very least) That Spring of 1989, there were protests in China. China did not budge. By some accounts, thousands of people died and the real history of it – and the people who will never be heard from again – is far more sordid and nuanced than I can write here.
But the world held its collective breath for that moment with that one man.

Who was that man? I have read that he was a man merely on his way home with his groceries. The Chinese government claims that he went on quietly and anonymously with his life. Considering the China’s track record, I doubt that.
The Sunday Express, a British publication, reported that summer that his name was Wang Weilin, a 19-year-old student arrested for “political hooliganism.” Varying reports suggested the student was either imprisoned or executed.
Chinese officials have refused to confirm his name or whereabouts in response to numerous queries from Western journalists in the years since the incident. In fact, they claim they were unable to locate him.
A couple months ago, I was reading again about China. This time it was about their imprisonment, brainwashing, indoctrination, and reintegration of millions of Muslims in an area that the government would like to have greater control over. Millions of people. Disappearing. Gone. Husbands. Wives. Friends. Children.
It made my heart ache.
A country may censure another. They may, on the world stage, call one out. But that’s about it.
And so when we look at China, as a whole – not as the bulk of people who make it up who would likely be happy merely to walk home with their groceries and go about their lives just as that man was doing – we see a country that scrubs its history and uses its economic might to keep the rest of the world from protesting its treatment of its people.
From the ‘social credit system‘ to its treatment of Buddhism and specifically Tibet to its current treatment of Muslims to its treatment of artists or journalists there’s nothing good yet no one is going to stop them because of their economic clout.
So I was thinking about China. And I was thinking about this moment, years ago – 30 years ago to be exact – where there was a moment, a brief moment – where it seemed it all might change for the better.
It was a spark, a candle flame in the dark. But it was blown out. Squashed. And scrubbed from their history, lest it inspire others, in the future, to do the same – to speak out.
I kept seeing that one image in my head. ‘Tank Man’ as he became known in the media. I kept thinking about not just him and that line of tanks but the line of tanks as the extension of a vastly powerful entity.
In my head, he was always down there, a light in the darkness. A focal point in a dream of freedom up against a wave, a massive tidal wave of force bearing down on him. Yet, as I thought about that wave, I realized it needed a face, it needed a name.
I thought about those demons of Tibetan lore. Primarily, Mara came to mind. Mara, in Buddhism, is sort of an embodiment of desire and illusion. I could think then of nothing better. There is nothing so much as desire and illusion which drives the power hungry needs of humans.
And so, today, on the 30th anniversary of when one man, in 1989, stood down a line of tanks in the face of an oppressive and controlling government, I give you this painting.
It is an homage to Tiananmen Square on June 5, 1989 when one man stood before a line of tanks and the world wondered: was the government so hellbent on keeping its power that it would run him down?
Spoiler: the man lived but, yes. They were. They ran down hundreds if not thousands in the end. Reports vary.
I’m sorry it had to be like that.
I think about all those students and writers and artists and intellectuals: this is who made up that revolution. The thinkers and doers who could see a better world. They didn’t want ‘capitalism’ or ‘socialism’ or ‘communism’ – they wanted a world where they or their children could think and speak and worship freely without fear of reprisal from some force or another. That’s what freedom is. Obviously there’s limits to that: do those thoughts or acts impinge upon the freedoms of others? And so on… I mean, there’s always some asshat racist who thinks they should be able to vent whatever they want).
My art doesn’t take sides. It is about humans and human nature. It’s these sensations of being alive today, right now, in this set and setting. It’s about archetypes across cultures and religions and spiritualities and world views. It’s about communication.
Art expresses various aspects and facets of the world as whole. Some art might be there to say ‘the world is commodity’. That’s not for me.
My art is there to inspire. It is there to tell a story of a better world. My art calls out, sheds light on, and illuminates the darkness.
Wherever you may have gone, Tank Man, I send my blessings.
To the world, this vast spectrum of humanity, that finds itself at the whims of small cadres of individuals who call themselves governments and institutions and corporations… I am right there with you.
If you wanted to express this, but could not, I ask your permission.
If you wanted to express this, but could not, I send you my love.
May all beings experience freedom and the causes of freedom.
New Poster for Conscious Alliance and STS9

I designed this poster which is available from Conscious Alliance and Sound Tribe Sector Nine this weekend (March 21/22) in Atlanta, GA. The 18″ x 24″ poster is silkscreened and the colors look great! I’m so happy to work with Conscious Alliance again. I think they do really really great work and I’m always happy to support them when I can.
Who/What is Conscious Alliance?
Conscious Allaince is a “non-profit organization committed to hunger relief and youth empowerment.” They bring in money and food donations through posters that they sell through their “Art that Feeds” program at music events. It’s a great model for a really powerful non-profit that helps to provide food to those who are in need.
It makes me really happy to be able to give of myself and give my work to causes like this that do such good work in helping others. It doesn’t stop there, though. The printer as well donates HIS time and energy and materials. The band lets them use their name for free (making it a commemorative event kind of thing) and allows them to sell the poster inside the venue – ALL FOR FREE! All donated through the various individuals involved because we all love what CA does!
Here’s a bit of what they did last year:
• Increase the value of services delivered directly in the field by 25% to a total of $603,800.
• Hosted 84 food drives nationwide
• Provided over 130,000 meals to those in need through food drives and partnerships with natural food companies
• Developed a series of artist workshops for at-risk youth designed to inspire creativity and teamwork
More here: http://www.consciousalliance.org/2013/03/a-letter-from-the-executive-director/
If you aren’t aware of the hunger problem that plagues this nation, this website is a good place to become more informed: http://feedingamerica.org/
More about Conscious Alliance can be found here:
http://consciousalliance.org/
Art Outside outside of Austin, TX

Had a whole lot of fun this past weekend at Art Outside in Texas. Art Outside is a heavily arts-focused festival (in lieu of a festival which is MUSIC + art) put on by a wonderful crew of people, mainly, I think, from the Austin area. Violet and I really enjoyed it – met a lot of wonderful people and made a lot of great connections. Thank you so much for having us out to join y’all!
Lightning in a Bottle 2012

I had a ton of fun this past weekend at Lightning in a Bottle in Irvine, CA. Irvine isn’t the sort of place you expect such things – a wild artisticly inclined endeavor of a party – part Burning Man, part LA performance, part…. everything else. But sure enough, there it is and it’s a whole barrel of fun. I met some great great new friends and planted seeds for some really awesome upcoming projects. For one, there was Archival Inc, a fine art publishing company that I am working with to produce a new series of high quality limited edition prints on paper. You’ll be hearing more about them soon. Another cool thing was a collaboration I did with Hans Haveron. We’d never met before but were certainly aware of each other’s work. Hans tends more towards the street art scene while I tend more towards… well, whatever it is that I tend more towards. Our work, while different, was wonderfully complimentary and we created something really beautiful. I look forward to next year.
Symbiosis Pyramid Eclipse Painting/Poster

I created a painting for Symbiosis Gathering’s Pyramid Eclipse Festival, May 17 – 21 at Pyramid Lake in Nevada. Signed copies of the poster will be available in the merch tent at the gathering.
Stage backdrop, Karl Denson, Tahoe

Stage backdrop for Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe @ Montbleu Showroom, Tahoe on Tuesday, August 9, 2011, post-Phish.
I was up in Tahoe for Phish and some of the afterparties at Montbleu Showroom where Karl Denson, Lotus, and others were performing. It was a super fun time. I also had a small gallery set up outside of the theater in the Montbleu casino that was run by Creative Minds and Visions, a clothing company that I am working with. We are working on a variety of styles including full print sublimation tees. They’ll be available in a wider variety and wider distribution very very soon.
High Sierra Music Festival 2011

If you were at High Sierra Music Festival last year, you might have seen my giant lightboxes in the Jam House – one of the late night venues. Well, this year we went bigger. I’ll have some large banners of Birth of a Star on either side of the main stage and I’ve helped House & Garden design and decorate (with some nice mesh banners) the smaller acoustic stage they they’re sponsoring where Nathan Moore will be headlining. They, along with Summit Art Licensing of South Lake Tahoe, are also responsible for bringing my artwork there in front of so many people. Thanks guys! (I’ll also still have work in the Jam House and will be working with Jonathan Singer creating some lovely visuals for the late night events).
Above is a (daytime) picture of one of the lightboxes from last year. It’s backlit, is about 18′ tall all together, and weighs a ton. And, yes, it hangs.