Surrealism is back!

     For several days now, I've been reading, observing, looking at, eating with eyes ("serving it with greens"), the beautiful edition of The Hunting Of The Snark illustrated and designed by Mahendra Singh. I traveled with the crew of Snark-hunters, I backtracked to particular pages and pictures, and I'm progressively enjoying this mind-twisting and absolutely mysterious book.
     A lot of artists who defined themselves as surrealists, in fact, just substitute the concept of surrealism with dexterous juggling of random combination of descriptive images with the motto "The stranger, the better". This flat-thinking method produces tons of surreal-like "art" and misleads public from the proper understanding (feeling) of surrealism as a way of discovering the great mystery of the universe.
     Unlike many of modern artists, who confuse surreal vision and way of thinking, with the collage method of composing of visual material, Mahendra Singh is definitely one of the rare genuine surrealists. There is no wonder that he found a perfect match to apply his creativity in the Lewis Carroll's poem The Hunting Of The Snark.
     Graphic novel structure of the book; masterly pen-ink technique developed from vintage technique of engraved plates for illustrations of 19 century magazines; endless culture references and reflections; puzzling associations. All this creates a very special world, an athmosphere of "intellectual holidays" essential to Lewis Carroll's masterpiece.
     I congratulate all the admirers of Lewis Carroll creations with the new, such a "Carrollian" art project and I highly recommend it to all collectors as a "must have".

“It’s a Bo-o-o-o-o-o-o-tcher!”

  The assumption which states that “It’s a Boo-…” applies to Boots* seems to be plausible, but is based on written word “Boots”, still vocally “oo” means a long “u” and therefore in this case “Boots” has no priority over “Butcher”. It probably was indeed: “It’s a Bo-o-o-o-o-o-o-tcher!” I would rather believe in this interpretation, because in the poem, Butcher was described in great detail, and acted as one of the front characters, unlike Boots, who was just a “chorus member”. Actually, we even don’t know who Boots is at all.

*Larry Shaw The Baker Murder case, cit. by The Annotated Snark by Martin Gardner.  


The portrait of Butcher from the Oleg Lipchenko illustrations to the Hunting Of The Snark 

'Mama Frog' by Ambrosia, from the album with the same name

There is Jabberwocky poem inside this song (lyrics below):







The clock gets to be such a bore
What'cha livin' for
Though I can't explain, being sane's
Just a dreary chore
I'd like to go fly past mountains
See Mama Frog at her fountain
She'll be there in her golden frog
Sequined uniform
Golden chair, three trained human clowns
Who will soon perform
Balancing books with their heads
Trying to recall what they've said
Past the gate you will soon be in
A garden paradise
Don't be late there, the shining jewels
Sparkle in your eyes
All waiting there for your pleasure
What's keeping you from this treasure?
      (Narration of "Jabberwock" from "Alice In Wonderland")

     'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
      Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
     All mimsy were the borogoves,
      And the mome raths outgrabe.

     'Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
      The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
     Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
      The frumious Bandersnatch!'

     He took his vorpal sword in hand:
      Long time the manxome foe he sought--
     So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
      And stood awhile in thought.

     And as in uffish thought he stood,
      The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
     Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
      And burbled as it came!

     One, two! One, two! And through and through
      The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
     He left it dead, and with its head
      He went galumphing back.

     'And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
      Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
     O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'
      He chortled in his joy.

     'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
      Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
     All mimsy were the borogoves,
      And the mome raths outgrabe.

The clock gets to be such a bore
What'cha livin' for
Though I can't explain, being sane's
Just a dreary chore
I'd like to go fly past mountains
See Mama Frog at her fountain

Short film about LCSNA Spring 2008 Meeting

It was a nice and eventful weekend in Washington. The Lewis Carroll Society of North America gathered for several days to attend their Spring meeting...



... the Spring 2008 Meeting of Lewis Carroll Society Of North America fulfilled its program with success and left us all with fond memories.