A Snake's Tail Full of Ants: Art, Ecology and Consciousness (Resurgence Book) - Tapa blanda

The intriguing title is taken from Ingmar Bergman, who likens the current situation in the arts to 'a snake's tail full of ants. The snake is long dead, eaten, deprived of poison, but the skin is full of meddlesome life.' However John Lane's purpose is not to condemn and castigate, but, on the contrary, to reaffirm, rediscover and rekindle the sacred fire, to find a way through the present chaos to a future renewal. . . John Lane's eloquent words will find an echo in many hearts. * Kathleen Raine, poet and Blake scholar *

There is evidence of a sea-change in Western consciousness, which implies a fundamental rejection of the Arts of Humanism: cut off from society, from nature and the sacred. John Lane both celebrates the power and challenges the defects of this five hundred year old tradition, questioning among other matters the institution of the self-directed professional artist. Challenging and illuminating, A Snake's Tail Full of Ants looks forward to a time when creative expression is not lofty, professionalised and unapproachable but closely interwoven with the activities of daily life.