come play with us danny. we can play forever, and ever, and ever...
filth // blocktronics // 2013
roarshack80@yahoo.com
if youre reading this:
you are awesome.
im sort of all over
the place with this ansi
its supposed to be the
carpet from the shining
that goes on and on.
this guy shooting
himself? no idea why
went this direction
for the header of the story below.
...and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever...
666
true story:
/groomsman1/ you ever hear of Doc. Bowes Pig Farm?
im in the back of a pickup truck with five other people
surrounded by a sea of ice cold beer as we drive down
dusty back roads on our way up nowhere mountain. my
traveling companions are made up of three bridesmaids and
two groomsman.
im in wheeling, west virginia for my friends wedding.
im also a groomsman, which secured me a seat in the
back of a pickup truck with the rest of the wedding
party. i also happen to be the only person there who
isnt from, or live in west virgina. im in town from
pittsburgh, pennsylvania which singles me out even more.
and as out of place as i am, im the reason were
clanking our way through the backwoods. heres how this
came to be:
the second i arrived in wheeling im already
sticking out from everyone around me. and lemme tell ya,
people who live in wheeling fuckin love living in
wheeling. people from wheeling pretty much only do things
with other people who fuckin love living in wheeling.
basically, if youre not from there, dont go there
looking for friends.
i know that sort of paints a harsh picture of the folks
there, like im trying to make them out to be a bunch
of assholes. they are the exact opposite of assholes.
they were very kind to me, and genuinely great folks to
hang out with. and when i mention not making friends, i
dont mean that in a bad way they really just prefer to
do things their own way. i can dig it.
along with kindness and open arms approach to me since
im in the wedding, they also a humorous approach to
bust my chops. the kinda thing that lets you know
youre in good company. before our trip to nowhere, we
were all sitting around a campfire keeping warm by downing
cold beer after cold beer when someone says:
hey pittsburgh, i take it youre a steelers fan?
i said that i was. and waited for the question that i
like to get asked in out-of-town situations like this:
so, you ever meet any of the players?
i said that i have, and it just so happens i have some
pictures on my phone. unprofessional as it may seem,
my old job was in conjecture with meeting folks in the
business end in pittsburgh, including sports heroes.
i pop out my phone and start showing pictures of me with
cheesy grins next to steelers players who have get-this-over-
with-so-this-weirdo-will-leave-me-alone type grins.
scrolling through, a few random pictures of illustrations
i had done for this and that were in the mix and caught
they eye of one of the bridesmaids. i pull a few up and
do a show-and-tell kinda deal when one of the groomsmen asks:
ahh, i heard you were pretty good at that sort of thing.
you got a lot fancy art shows there in pittsburgh?
i reply by saying that theres art shows and art-type shows
all the time. so its not too often that there are
fancy art shows since its a saturated scene and people
arent starving to see art.
the groomsman responds to this by getting the attention of
the other groomsman and has a vague few word conversation:
/groomsman 1/ hey, ya know where we should go?
groomsman 2 apparently does, and sort of jerks his head to
the side with a weird smile. groomsman 1 returns the
weird smile to groomsman 2 and also to the bridesmaids
who are now a part of this silent conversation, which in
turn, singles me out again.
having no fucking idea whats going on, i do what i do best
in awkward situations: try to be funny, but say something dumb:
/me/ uh, so uh, whats up? is this the part where you guys
kill me and leave my beautiful carcass for the
wolves?
they assured me no as they start hoisting beer into the
back of a pickup truck along with a few flash lights.
one of the groomsman informs me that i need to see something.
actually, in more detail:
/groomsman/ you need to see something. and i bet its
something you dont see in the city. ever.
youre gonna love it.
this is all starting to get weird. im far from home, in
the middle of the woods with people i dont really know,
and theyre all simpatico about something that involves
going DEEPER into the woods via pickup truck all the while
not telling me where were going.
groomsman 1 must have picked up on my reluctant enthusiasm
as i hopped in the back of the truck. intending to put
my mind at ease, he makes a creepy smile and asks:
/groomsman 1/ you ever hear of Doc. Bowes Pig Farm?
this seemed like the kinda thing you hear shortly before
you get gut like a pig left for the animals to devour.
turns out it was a pleasant experience i enjoyed very much.
this is the first thing i saw once we arrived at Doc. Bowes
Pig Farm. well, not an ansi of an owl. that in itself would
have scared me to death, in a very wtf? kinda way.
it was a painting glued between two pieces of glass
with the edges sealed with glass sealant. you wouldnt
likely notice it if for whatever reason youre this far out
of civilization: its somehow nailed about fifteen feet
up on an old elm tree.
the actual Pig Farm is not what the name implies. its
a one-man art show that started back in the 80s and was
randomly added to sporadically through the years. what was
ol Doc. Bowes trying to do by doing this? put a little
artistic flavor into unsuspecting passer-bys who may stumble
upon this from time to time.
owls, deer, wolves, elk, foxes, moose, assorted birds, and
other animals youd find roaming through the woods. all
displayed just like the owl that greeted us when we arrived.
all paintings sandwiched between glass and hung with care
high up on the trees.
heres the thing, no one knows who the fuck Doc. Bowes is.
no one knows why in the fuck its called a Pig Farm when
its not a farm of any sort. and although its populated with
an assortment of wonderful animal paintings, not a single
painting of a pig.
its not listed in anywhere as a place to go. it maintains a
level of respect from those who know about it, and let it
be. its understood that anyone that would dare deface or
take any of the paintings therein, would find the sorry end
of local repercussions while authorities would look the other
way.
basically, its better than any fancy art show. no money is
made off of this. no personal gratitude is placed on one
person. Doc. Bowes made these for one reason only:
the gratification of doing something cool for other people
to randomly find and enjoy. for them to respect the
wonderment of what theyre seeing, and respecting one very
important element to all of this:
someone took the time to create something in a selfless manner
to be appreciated by anyone who may see it. art of arts sake.
not only to be enjoyed once, but the peace of mind knowing that
it will most likely be there forever.
why am i babbling on and on about some dumb thing i did a
long time ago, after i havent released anything in a long
time? everything that has ever been released in ansi format
is still around. people have been saying this sort of thing
has been dead pretty much since it first started over twenty
years ago.
they say the ansi scene died once the internet started to
become the commonplace of any type of communications. but
the irony behind that statement is that the internet will
forever preserve everything any of us, and the people before
us, ever put out there.
think about it: there are THOUSANDS of pieces of artwork
involved with the ansi scene. that sort of thing cant
be erased. it will forever be something that someone will
randomly come across and think what in the fuck? pondering
how all of this artwork, good or bad, ever came to be.
and the fact that it existed and was maintained only by
those directly involved.
even in the most active times, the people who knew what
was happening, were the people who made it happen. none of
what we did, or do now, was ever really known by anyone
else. and like ol Doc. Bowes, we dont give a fuck when
it comes to impressing people who dont appreciate artwork.
since day one, the general attitude of those involved in the
ansi scene only cared about one thing: creating something
to share, if for no other reason because we could. forever.
...and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever and ever...
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INTERMISSION. its like, forever, and ever and ever. get it? the carpet from the shining with those creepy fucking twin girls?? sigh.
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COMNT????? SAUCE00Doc. Bowes Pig Farm filth bLAWGTR0NIGZ 201304137