Strands of Genius: The Dao of Using Your Smartphone, Re-Mystifying Our Experience, The Moldy Peaches

Guest curated by Steve Chapman, Artist, Writer and Speaker.

Jul 20, 2023

:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, STEVE CHAPMAN ::

LOCATION: Surbiton, London

Hello, I'm Steve (also known as stevexoh). I'm an artist, writer and speaker known for my distinctive black and white drawings, colourful paintings, street art and strange conceptual projects such as the world's first silent podcast featuring special guests and the globally viral (Not a) Lost Cat poster.

I met Rosie and Faris many years ago on Twitter and since then we have recorded silence together, hung out on the banks of lake Windermere, shared late night drinks and conversation and "enjoyed" an epically complicated train journey to London.

Rosie and Faris also contributed a guest challenge to my new book "What the February?! 108 weird creative challenges for humans". It launched on the 25th May this year and you can find out more and grab a copy at www.wtfeb.com.

Readers of Genius Steals can get 10% off a copy of the What the February?! Book by using the discount code Steal10% at the checkout. Get your copy HERE.

Editor’s Note (Genius Steals): We have been big fans of Steve and all his work for a while now. Just this Monday, he came to hang out with us and Faris’ dad in Worcester Park and we were reminiscing about the fun things we’ve gotten to do together over the years, from recording the silent podcast to playing guitar and singing in the Lake District to running a workshop which had no agenda, completely improvised from start to finish. It ended up with one of the best session scores from the entire conference! We were all riding a big high after that event, but then our train got canceled and the three of us, along with Ashley, had to figure out a new way back to London. We found a new train, or series of trains, and played games almost the whole way back and thought about how different company would have made that a much less enjoyable experience.

When Steve visited us on Monday, it was Faris’ dad Abdulla’s 80th birthday. We stayed up too late playing guitar in the garden, and Abdulla shared his words of wisdom while Steve played:

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:: THE LINKS ::

THE DAO OF USING YOUR SMARTPHONE

I'm interested in doing the opposite of normal. Fascinated by doing things that are counter-intuitive and don't make sense, just to see what happens if I do.

So the first thing that caught my eye about this little article was the line "The Zhuangzi, an ancient Daoist classic, observed that humans are obsessed with usefulness [and] suggests that instead of seeking what’s useful, we should embrace the useless."

Seeing how frequently I pick up my phone, it seems like a great idea to develop some sacred and pointless rituals to change my relationship with it. (Hedge Hog Review)

RE-MYSTIFYING OUR EXPERIENCE

I've long been curious as to how society's dominant beliefs and philosophies about art end up making it feel like an elite thing that only the "specially gifted" or "intellectually superior" can make or interpret. Having spent a lot of time in galleries invigilating my own exhibitions over the last few years I've come to realise that art galleries can feel like intimidating places to many people.

At one exhibition in a small, under-funded town on the south coast of the UK in 2021, some young lads were hanging around outside the gallery. I invited them to come in. At first they used some choice words to tell me that it wasn't their kind of thing. Then they said "I don't get art. I don't get what the stuff is supposed to mean." I explained to them that, even as the artist who had created the stuff, I really didn't know what it meant so there was probably nothing to get." In the end they came in and spent some time looking around, laughing at some things, saying that some things were sh*t, liking some pieces and then left after about 20 minutes saying "Thanks. I like some of that, some of it is a bit weird, but I still don't get it!" I often think of those lads when I feel intimidated by art or poetry or other artistic things where I think there is a hidden meaning that I'm just not clever enough to get. They totally embodied the idea that art is whatever your experience is of it and that is totally unique to you, so therefore impossible to get wrong.

This episode of the wonderful Philosophize This podcast (hosted by Stephen West) explores the work of Susan Sontag and the idea that human beings seek to try to fully understand our experience with the sole objective to dominate it and feel superior to it. The modern assumption that the REAL meaning of our experience is hidden from us and only the expert or the intellectual can help reveal it - especially in the arts. (Philosophize This)

THE MOLDY PEACHES

I've been going to gigs for many years now and have managed to see many of my favourite bands and cult heroes live. But I feel rather ashamed to confess that there hasn't been a single gig I've been to where I haven't gotten bored and looked at my watch and wanted it to end.

I'm not sure why that's the case. It could be that I just get tired standing up for so long or, as an introvert, get overloaded being around so many people, or maybe I get bored when the artist starts playing new material/songs I don't know, or maybe I just don't have that good an attention span.

On the 29th May this year, however I went to see my long term favourites The Moldy Peaches play a one-off reunion gig at the Roundhouse in Camden Town, London and, for the first time, I was totally absorbed and really, really didn't want it to end. (I even found myself with tears in my eyes for the first few songs for reasons I cannot fathom.)

There's something I love about the outsider, the weirdo, the outcast. The artists and musicians that just make stuff because they want to without worrying about the technical or visual aesthetics of it all. And Moldy Peaches totally embody that.

So, whilst I'd love to share a video of the gig (I don't have one), I thought that this strange little documentary about The Moldy Peaches from many years ago would be a good introduction to those who have never come across them or a lovely bit of reminiscence for those who do. A short film about brilliantly weird and subversive outsiders, making art because that's what they do. (YouTube)

Looking for more from Steve Chapman? Coming Friday, look for an interview from him in your inbox!

:: AND NOW… SOME FAST FAVORITES ::

:: Game :: Legend of Zelda video game (I rarely get time to play these days)

:: City :: London

:: Book :: On Not Knowing: How artists think

:: Podcast :: Philosophize This

:: Album :: The Moldy Peaches by The Moldy Peaches

:: PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE ::

This Nietzche quote pretty much sums up my philosophy of life and why I do the things I do.

I hope you found something of interest in this guest curated edition. Keep in touch. You can follow me on Instagram/Twitter @stevexoh or find out more on my website www.canscorpionssmoke.com.

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https://www.instagram.com/stevexoh and https://twitter.com/stevexoh

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It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.

Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based out of Washington, our company is registered in Tennessee, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.

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