As I've written about before, I'm a bit of a Charles Bukowski fan. I love Buks blue-collar rage against the machine in all its elemental no-frills authenticity.
The British 'art terrorist' Billy Childish has adopted the classic Bukowski motifs in his poetry, novels, music and paintings. Indeed he has been labeled the 'British Bukowski', and unashamedly acknowledges the debt owed to his dead white American hero.
Childish's biographical account of his childhood 'My Fault' reads like an Alf Garnett version of Buk's 'Ham on Rye'. Its got the childhood Dyslexia, dermatological eruptions, alienation, loneliness and silent rage.
And of course, overshadowing and shaping all this, is the monstrous but absurd Father character, ranting and raving in Basil fawlty style impotence and alcoholic incomprehension at poor little Billy - the runt of the family.
The shear amount of cold, hard, undiluted vitriol that Childish heaps on his father throughout his biography makes for very uncomfortable reading. His mother and older brother get their fair share too, as does any woman who crosses his path: he describes his notorious 'relationship' with Tracy Emin in minute detail - anal sex, her 'obvious' stupidity and taking the piss out of her cleft palette seemed to be the most memorable highlights.
Childish almost tries to 'out-Bukowski' Bukowski in the depths of loathing and self-pity he's prepared to to sink to in making his point. The point being - he's an heroic victim in a cynical world. He's a victim’s victim...if that makes sense. I guess the clue was in the title of his autobiography: 'My Fault'.
Childish is an interesting character, a notorious art world outsider (which makes him very much an insider in a strange way) and his various projects, paintings, music and writings are always worth a look.
I suppose the peculiar English eccentricity mixed with the monochrome 50’s working class grittiness is the ‘Billy Childish’ brand, and something he is very obviously aware of in the way he ‘markets’ himself.
But I always like to take inspiration from lots of different sources, and you don’t have to buy into the whole caboodle at the end of the day.
I’m a bit post-modern like that, I take a bit of what I fancy and patch it together. If it works it works, if not just try again.
The Tao of Dog, I finally have to admit that I am addicted to your blog. Every time I come to read a new post I want to make a comment. It never happened to me before. Your posts are well written about things I don't know and they make me think. What struck me so much that you wrote about "The shear amount of cold, hard, undiluted vitriol that Childish heaps on his father..." I learned about vitriol from the book "Veronika Decides to Die" by P.Coelho. I always thought that vitriol is just a theory about this poisonous bitterness. Apparenly, I was wrong.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't play your video because my computer is very old. Too sad.
I've read that book too Kaya, great read.
ReplyDeleteI think Childish tends to lay it on a bit thick for literary effect though, very dramatic read and funny too.
I've heard that Tracy Emin's autobiography is very similar too, she was Childish's girlfriend for a while as I've said, two peas in a pod LOL.