“If I think more about death than some other people,
it is probably because I love life more than they do.”
-Angelina Jolie
I feel the magnetic pull towards art and artists that explore themes of death, melancholy, depression/mental illness, etc.
Angelina Jolie and Tricky/Adrian Thaws have always been artists that I deeply respect. {They have been featured on this blog many times and will continue to be}. Both have explored spiritual darkness {e.g. melancholy, depression/mental illness, suffering, addiction} and death in their art. I feel more enriched as a result. I feel that I have walked away with a more balanced picture of humanity and our struggles/triumphs here on earth. Their art has fed my soul and for this, I am deeply grateful.
I completely agree with Angelina & Tricky that death and life are inextricably linked. One cannot divorce one from the other. This epiphany brings us the wisdom to know that reflecting on death is, in essence, reflecting on life. This is the memento mori {remembering death} tradition.
“But past civilisations – from the ancient Greeks to the Victorians – were acutely aware of their own mortality. Memento mori was the philosophy of reflecting on your own death as a form of spiritual improvement, and rejecting earthly vanities.”
http://theconversation.com/memento-mori-remember-that-you-have-to-die-42823
Tricky is right that to reject death is to reject life. His view is very Buddhist in nature. Tricky’s surrealist art may possibly be born out of his realist approach to life. He was forced to reflect on life and death at the young age of four when his mother, Maxine Quaye, tragically committed suicide. This timeless loss created such a void in his life and a fascination and curiosity with death. This dark sensibility and haunting melancholia would be the nucleus for Tricky’s art later on.
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Please enjoy When We Die by Tricky & Martina Topley-Bird…
“Following the announcement of his 13th album ununiform, Tricky presents the video for single ‘When We Die’, featuring Martina Topley-Bird. It offers an intimate look at the diverse range of people going about their individual, and individually complex, city lives – a filmic treatment of the ‘Humans of New York’ story-telling approach. Eerie, haunting yet enveloped by a sense of peace and acceptance,
‘When We Die’ sees Tricky take hold of a new zest for life he has come to possess:
“If you don’t accept death, you don’t really accept life”, says Tricky.”
If you would like to listen to his whole BBC interview, please click here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p05gyl1q
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Lyrics
I don’t die young, not like Michael
My friend’s psycho, so, I might go lie low
So, where do I go, where do I go?
Fun trips, she’s wearing lycro
Where do we go, where do we go
When we die, then we lie low?
Twins apart, faded grey
Is it like that dream I had?
And you are here like a dream
Why did you leave?
What do you need, what do you need?
Now you go, I hardly breathe
What do you see, what do you see?
I think of you and waste my day
So, where do we go, where do we go
When we die, then we lay low?
Twins apart, faded grey
Is it like that dream I had?
And you are here like a dream
Twins apart, faded grey
Is it like that dream I had?
And you are here like a dream
Twins apart, faded grey
Is it like that dream I had?
And you are here like a dream.”
By remembering that we will die,we are free to reflect on our lives, celebrate & live them right now…
For more information…
Angelina Jolie…https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001401/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Tricky…
http://www.trickysite.com/
https://www.instagram.com/trickyofficial/
https://www.facebook.com/TrickyOfficial?utm_source=youtube.com&utm_medium=referral
https://twitter.com/knowlewestboy
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0872635/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Martina Topley-Bird…https://www.martinatopleybird.com/
https://www.facebook.com/martinatopleybird/
https://www.instagram.com/martinatopleybird/?hl=en
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Further Reading…
- http://theconversation.com/memento-mori-remember-that-you-have-to-die-42823
- https://mysoulsonice.wordpress.com/2014/01/01/reflection-for-today-the-beauty-of-living-dying-brandon-lee/
- https://mysoulsonice.wordpress.com/2013/04/14/reflection-for-today-the-dangers-of-a-sad-soul-henry-david-thoreau/
- https://mysoulsonice.wordpress.com/2014/01/27/tricky-reflects-on-the-seductive-powers-of-ego/
- https://mysoulsonice.wordpress.com/2012/03/15/tricky-contradictive/
- https://mysoulsonice.wordpress.com/2014/08/01/reflection-for-today-love-amnesia-charles-bukowski/
- https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/sep/19/tricky-mixed-race-interview
- https://mysoulsonice.wordpress.com/2012/03/27/tricky-spoken-word-piece-interview-allsaints-basement-sessions-special-presentation/
- https://mysoulsonice.wordpress.com/2013/04/06/reflection-for-today-revolutionary-spirit-ernesto-che-guevara/
- Angelina Jolie Covers ‘Time’ Magazine After Mastectomy (justjared.com)
I really cannot recommend watching 
