![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/pell-1.jpg\" "\\"pell-#-1\\"")
<\/a>\nwhile I was over at 166 MOTT meeting AMY LI, HASH HALPER dropped by and invited me over to see his ‘summer palace’ . . . YEAR of 2013.
\na very strange, but sweet spot – a little further on, deep into Chinatown – on historic Pell St. <\/p>\n
Chinatown, as in: downtown. New York City. <\/p>\n
don’t know how an inner city photo shot, came out like that .. but sure looks like Hash is walking in the Himalayas, or what. <\/p>\n
just strolling in a small village – with Chinese storefront banners all a flutter.
\na mountain\/skyscraper horizon – hulking in the distance, against an endless cloudy blue sky.
\nmust be the ancestor ‘gods’ of Chinatown . . taking over. for sure.
\nI just press the shutter button. I never calculate the view.
\nthat’s why, or when .. . photography crosses over into art – but, like they say: another story, for another time. who am I.
\nI just write the story.
\nI just follow the . . the breadcrumbs.<\/p>\n
the phrase: a ‘marbled’ staircase – did come to mind.<\/p>\n they are both wearing one-of-a-kind t-shirts . . of Tristan’s design & making.<\/p>\n taking visual clues from the helmet-like head, the stand-alone figure . . spoke ‘knightly’, a noble ‘gnarly’ old skeleton . . who looked as if he had seen many a harsh century go by. we’ve had metal wrought ‘beings’ . . incised and formed with symbols from day one of our discovery of the ‘metal arts’ . . from complex ‘mini’ scaled mass cosmos Hindu creations .. to giant inticate many-armed Tibetan gods, buddhas<\/a> . . who materialize to the call of ancient chants, or just the tinkle of a temple bell . . <\/p>\n there’s a lot of knowledge we forgot, and a lot . . we never knew.<\/a>
\nit was among one of the strangest places I had ever been to – and that’s saying a lot. at first glance: it was a just a narrow gated doorway . . on a bustling Chinatown street.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nbut beyond that anonymous street level door, was a steep narrow staircase .. literally plastered in hand-marbled paper designs. Hash led the way.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nTRISTAN REGINATO & HASH HALPER.
\nthe intense 24-7 marbling had been done by TRISTAN REGINATO, a young artist on the NYC cutting edge . . who just happened to materialize out of nowhere . . he’s on the left, in the cap.
\nI guess it was he, who Hash been dialing up – from his phone.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nTRISTAN REGINATO, handmade<\/strong> marbling. and I do mean 24-7. and I do mean . . intense. <\/p>\n<\/a>
\nat the top of the marbled and mysterious ‘stairway to heaven’, or at the very least . . an upward ‘tunnel of hand wrought creativity’ . . HASH had transformed what had probably been a small illegal apartment . . into an exhibition space.
\neven after the ‘swirly’ stairway set-up . . it was still striking . . to find oneself confronted by a larger-than-life, metal-forged human skeleton. a ‘head-less’ skeleton at that.
\nwith his displaced head, alluding to medieval European armor, at his feet.<\/p>\n
\nkind of like in ‘Raiders of the Ark’ – the one with the ghostly mean eternal knights . . who guard the holy grail. <\/p>\n<\/a>
\nTRISTAN REGINATO, and his, yes !! – headless skeleton.
\na curious metal ‘has-been’ creature, with his head loped off at the neck, at the spine. a violently red, candle in it’s place. it had obviously been lit too. so, that was spooky, and ritualistic .. and metaphors, abounded.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\npoetic. mysterious. unknowing, unknown . . .
\nso many fleeting questions .. arise from the twisted, beaten . . heated, and then frozen metal. <\/p>\n<\/a>
\nTristan’s metaphysical meandering .. seemed poised between the European stride of the skeleton, and his head, to a world view . . that seemed to point back – to the orient.
\nthe strange placement of a very eastern arts inspired candelabra,resting on the floor, just behind the splayed feet. and also dripping with previously lit, candle wax.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nso, is there a link between the cutting edge and the past ? is there an ancient dialog that remains, ghostly hovering – informing all ages.
\nif yes, it’s called the creative unconscious.
\nand the yearning for answers amidst death, immortality, and decay. though in a sense the metal frame had escaped decay – but then, where was the flesh ? is there life without flesh.
\nwithout history.
\nwithout .. ancestors.<\/p>\n
\nI think we basically just get by on . . like 5% – of what’s really out there.
\nis this skeleton saying: . . we better power up soon, expand our belief system ?
\nthe piece raised many questions, there was no clear narrative, but for the ones the viewer himself, projected onto it’s strong, but eroded metal figure, and the red flower-like candle trail . . at it’s feet.<\/p>\n