Prolog: More than 50 people have now signed this Manifesto and in one way or the other are inspired by the ideas and guidelines in the manifesto of Holyism.
If you like to copy something from this manifesto and use it elsewhere you can do so. As long as you state who wrote the manifesto and don’t change anything. It’s okay to quote the manifest but only one whole point.
Some critical people have pointed out that for an example “Balance” can mean many things and that the manifesto is weak because of that. Agree if you wish. I am only talking about ideas not guidelines to follow blindly. Others have asked me how a work made by a Holyist looks or sounds like. I can only laugh when I hear such ignorant and stupid people. Holyism is about the attitude. Holyism is like mixed martial arts 100% or the ideas of Bruce Lee and Miyamoto Musashi. Why not use what you got? Why stay in one shape, one stile and form? Prolog written 2007.
By Simon AA Kölle
Holyism doesn’t force artists into anything prosaic or create borders. Holyism is the opposite, borderless.
Like the futurists I, a holyist, say: "Let us leave good sense behind like a hideous husk and let us hurl ourselves, like fruit spiced with pride, into the immense mouth and breast of the world! Let us feed the unknown, not from despair, but simply to enrich the unfathomable reservoirs of the Absurd!"
1. The essential elements of our art will be balance, dreams, courage and danger.
2. Forget about your genius, your talents, and the talents of everyone else. We have no talent. We are all holy.
3. Mix, destroy, cut-up, fold-in and be ironic but be true the world of the piece.
4. The unknown, other worlds, mysteries, magic and inner forces don’t need to be far off. They are among us. There only exists escapism when you act poorly. In the "now" and in the "moment" of flow we are true. Sometimes we though need to be false and celebrate other areas beyond improvisation and flow. Let’s kill the holy cows!
5. Words dictate people’s concept. From time to time we travel beyond the words, the machinery of night and ourselves.
6. The key is the "attitude" not the result. The Way is as holy as the goal or as the seraphim.
7. The flow is ever-changing and Collective and some interactive work (of today) floods with an anti-establishment energy (many times on the internet etc) that will change the way we disseminate some of our art. That’s only good.
8. We welcome the new electronic music and art age with wide open arms because we see it’s potential. Right now the Mozart of our age might be creating Psy trance music in his or her basement. We wish to push new electronic-based music groups, forward. It’s only the beginning now, the childhood. Soon the scenes grow up and electronic music explodes.
9. Roleplay and interactive theatre (Neo-theatre as Grotowski called it and predicted would save theatre) are heavily underestimated. We take interest in both of the mentioned forms even though not all of us practice them.
10. We try to learn by acting and creating. Learn to break down the barriers which surround us and to free ourselves from the breaks which hold us back.
11. We peruse creative art whole-heartedly. Holyism is a bout. It’s a duel. We listen and respect the words of the great Miyamoto Musashi when he says:
• The Way is in training
• Become acquainted with every art.
• Know the Ways of all professions.
• Distinguish between gain and loss in worldly matters.
• Develop intuitive judgment and understanding for everything.
• Perceive those things which cannot be seen.
• Pay attention even to trifles.
• Do nothing which is of no use.
12. We dislike objectification and male dominance in society and especially (this being an art manifest) in art.
13. There is no inside or outside. There is no with or without. We just use what we got. The body is our temple but it has thick armor (husk, shell, scale). We try to penetrate that armor and dive into the unknown. Not with the goal of making the unknown known.
Simon AA Kölle, Stockholm December 2004