Mark Rice's Blog: All Things Metallic - Posts Tagged "17"

Opinions on Bill Drummond vary wildly. To some, he is an opportunistic and shameless self-publicist willing to do almost anything to draw attention to himself. Others believe him to be a visionary, a creative genius who turns everything he touches into art: music; painting; photography; conceptual ideas; literature. I'm in the latter camp. One of the things I like most about Bill is that he thinks big. In fact, he thinks mythically. He doesn't start a creative project without first having an absolutely clear understanding of: (a) why he is doing it, and (b) the symbolic meaning of the finished product. Sometimes only Bill himself fully appreciates what he's trying to achieve with a particular piece of work, but that doesn't diminish his enthusiasm one bit.

$20,000 is affecting me in the same way that Drummond's previous books did: upon seeing art through his eyes - or through the filter of his mind, at least - I step out each day into a world that seems full of promise and beauty, an arena of mythic possibilities.

Bill goes to great lengths to avoid actually enjoying himself, but many of his artistic statements are rich in irony, and obviously the products of a finely tuned sense of humour.

From creating timeless music with the KLF to producing the greatest heavy metal album of all time (Zodiac Mindwarp and the Love Reaction's 'Tattooed Beat Messiah') to embarking upon world-adventuring voyages of personal and artistic discovery, Drummond's intrepid and irrepressible creative drive is an inspiration. Thank you, Mr Drummond, for changing my worldview for the better.