The Artist
Michael Green

History.
Born in 1943; New York University; film school; studied at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil then and hitchhiked around the Amazon. "Contentious" Objector during Vietnam War. Joined Castalia Foundation in Millbrook, N.Y., worked on germinal light shows with Tim Leary. Participated in various tribal/communal societies. Lived in a mountaintop tipi in Woodstock, New York, finally moved to Pennsylvania to study with the Sufi master Bawa Muhaiyaddeen.

Insight.
The original purpose of "the arts" was to guide & document the process of getting aligned to the Great Mystery. Compared to this, the contemporary attitudes of self-expression or holding a mirror up to society, while useful, may be seen as somewhat superficial or indulgent.

Career.
For the last twenty-five years pursued mixed career as artist and craftsman. Worked as a sign painter, landscaper, television art director, fine artist/sculptor and finally turned to creating visual books as artist, writer & designer. I have always favored the bookstore as a superior and more accessible gallery, and tended to skirt the reefs and shifting tides of the art establishment. So far so good: there are over 2,500,000 copies of my books currently in print.

The Art.
The example above is a gicleé print laid on museum-quality archival paper. It originally appeared in The Illuminated Rumi – an exploration of the ecstatic poetry of the 13th century Persian mystic currently America’s most-read poet. Used digital technology to create a new kind of iconography linking together the art of the great contemplative traditions with the insights of science. USA Today called it “Stunning, a true jewel...” and human potential guru Sam Keen wrote, “Rumi himself would have shouted for joy on seeing the images you have created.” This web site arose from the tremendous demand for these art prints. It is the exclusive vehicle for the transmission of these images to the "cultural creatives" of the larger community.

But all along I have been occupied in another strand of work. Here (this web site not withstanding) I would place myself in the tradition of the nameless shaman artisan. This is a creative direction almost totally removed from the contemporary understanding of “fine arts.” It belongs to a sacred art tradition that flows back to the Paleolithic cave painters. Whether a mask, or a circle of stones, a thanka, or even a perfect gesture, the art of the sacred is a device to open a doorway to the spirit.

This kind of work is a private and devotional matter with little interest in the changing trends of modern art. The artifacts and sacred environments I have made can be found around the country. Some could be called earthworks. Stone Circle, in Woodstock, New York, (where Leonard Crow Dog led an all-night medicine ceremony); and Taiowa, a tribal earthwork complex (scene of numerous solstice ceremonies). There is Alignments Hilltop in Millbrook New York, and The Mazar (burial site of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen), in Chester County, Pennsylvania. Important works where important things happen–but they are not to be found in any glossy catalogue. No reviews, not even a signature: the Shamanic artist is a function and a catalyst, not a personality.

My current work is to join all these creative strands in two major museum installations.

The first is a deep experiential guided tour through the profound change of world-outlook from profane to sacred which is slowly transforming our society. It will be largely narrated– illuminated–by the poetry of Rumi, who has emerged as a primary spokesman of this change.

The second installation, Discovering the North American Afterculture might best be called "future anthropology." Through dioramas, artifacts and walk-into installations it will present a fully formed, mythic, and anthropologically satisfying glimpse of a future American culture that has fully embraced a genuinely sacred and environmentally healing Way. A book on the Afterculture is being developed as well.

Michael Green lives in a farmhouse in Pennsylvania’s Brandywine Valley with wife Sally, son Kabir and truck Toyota. His many books include: The Illuminated Rumi, The Illuminated Prayer, Zen and the Art of the Macintosh, The I-Ching Records, Unicornis and The Book of the Dragontooth.

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