SONG DRAWINGS

“Narrative is a central theme in all of my work. Each Song Drawing is created with a beginning, middle and end and fuses elements of memory, dream, myth, archetype and symbolism into a compelling and awe-inspiring presentation.

I am interested in creating new personal mythology, pulling from the narratives of the past while being present in the art of cultivating a rich future. The intention is to inspire all people to develop their own rich worlds digging deeper every day to live in a constant state of awe and intention.

The Song Drawing process relies as much on audience and witness as it does on my own developed inner world. Thematically, some elements may be clear to the attendee, while others leave room for the viewer to fill in the blanks with their own imagination.”

In the spirit of Veve drawings found in the Vodun tradition, these works seek to create new possibilities for intentional release and change by way of using the ground as the foundation, lifting the human spirit up from that ground with voice and gestural line. The visual and sonic lines are lingual; phonetic and non-specific, pointing back to the origins of human communication; speaking in tongues, linework that denies legibility but evokes a curiosity of what could be. Like staring at ancient hieroglyphics, we are moved by something but the specificity of that something eludes us.

“The more abstract the deity, the more fearsome the god.”

-Carl Jung

These pieces can be observed by the community during their creation. The collective witnessing of the Song Drawing nods to the timeless human tradition of observing the ritual dance, the shamanic trance, the mark of a new season, the signaling of omen. The work answers a call for connectedness through the age of digital isolation.

The Song Drawings can be observed and heard as digital creations.

The Song Drawing performance can be observed and experienced live.

Witnesses are invited to vocalize along with Morgan as he sings and layers his voice.

Witnesses are invited to circle the growing visual Song Drawing as Morgan draws

These Song Drawings are then either made as impermanent performative works, or left behind as a ground mural, hung as a canvas, or framed as a drawing. The remnant Song Drawing can be walked as one might walk within a labyrinth, or observed as one might observe a painting.

The Song Drawings are large in scale, allowing for the witness to be fully immersed in the experience of the sonic and pictographic linework. On the sonic aspect, a recording of the initial vocal performance would be audible either through headphones or speakers in the space.

The specific materials, scale and execution of each Song Drawing varies depending on the nature of each space and place.

Ideally, whether on a cement floor or a canvas or paper, the drawing is made on the ground, then left or washed away if on cement or wall, or hung as a painting if on paper or canvas.

Morgan initiates the experience with a singular intentional vocal line serving as a sort of overture, establishing the pitch, tone and melodic framework. During this a capella vocalization,, he simultaneously draws around himself in a counter-clockwise circle, drawing complimentary visual lines which represent the vocalizations being created. He then steps out of the initial established linework to build the first set of vocal layers using his music equipment placed at the outer perimeter of the established drawing space.

If visualizing a Song Drawing like a clock, from a bird’s eye view, the music equipment would be upstage at the noon position with four to eight speakers surrounding the outer perimeter of the entire space surrounding Sorne, the Song Drawing and any witnesses present. The space between speakers and the perimeter of the Song Drawing allows for witnesses to circle and surround the performance as it unfolds.

Being that the Song Drawing is durational and can range from 30 minutes to days of time to create, witnesses are invited to experience the Song Drawing performance as long or as short as they wish.

Once the first set of layered vocals is established and looping audibly, Sorne returns to center, building upon the drawn linework, writing out stream-of-consciousness thoughts, layering them, denying legibility thus releasing the thoughts as an offering to the performance and its witnesses. He writes and draws out the thoughts that come, informed by, and in direct relationship to the sound of those vocal layers, the other witnesses present and the nature of the environment where the Song Drawing is being created.

Moving with intuition, at each pregnant pause, Morgan then steps out of the growing drawing to add layers of voice and develop the shifting sound of the Song Drawing.

A dance between singing and drawing ensues, following the prompts of intuition, thus making each Song Drawing its own unique improvised mark of time, space, self and place. All the while, the sound element is being recorded for posterity and made available to future witnesses who wish to experience the sonic and visual Song Drawing as a whole piece.

If the visual drawing is to be preserved, the line work can be clear coated and sealed as one might seal a cement floor. If the work is done on canvas or paper, the work should be stretched and hung using archival materials to ensure posterity.

The recorded vocal performance can either be played continuously through speakers, or accessed by the witness via a weblink and listenable via headphones or earbuds.

The defined performance space can range from a very confined area to a massive room. The floor is the intended canvas, but walls and other surfaces can also be included in the drawing performance.

Materials include white, silver, turquoise, red and gold washable chalks, oil pastels and ink, black paper, black canvas, (black representing the base of potential in alchemy) and clear coat for preserving Song Drawings made on the ground or on a wall. For the music, Morgan uses his own equipment but requires four to eight speakers provided which would encircle the performance and witnesses.