The Blood of the Mountain is the Hammer
of God
The Art of Malleus
Supernatural Cat
Web: http://www.supernaturalcat.com
Malleus
has created some of the most fascinating screen-prints and rock concert posters
of the new millennium. Following in the great cycle of event-poster making
dating back centuries, their imagination knows no limits. These Italian artists
are inspired designers and printmakers both. What is striking about their work
is that they are equally classicists and modernists, gleefully so – in the new
musical and social currents. You see tradition in the elegant curves they play
with, as well as a darker and turbulent truth that is haunting. Their intent is
to disturb. What Malleus gives is a new viewpoint that makes us sometimes
shudder at what is revealed, but we are comforted by the elegance of their
touch. This is soulful work….
Paul Grushkin
"The Art of Rock" and
"The Art of Modern Rock"
The
Blood of the Mountain is the Hammer of God is the first printed collection of
the work of Malleus. Malleus is a trio of artists (Poia, Urlo and Lu) who
together explore themes of rock music, sexuality and dark style.
The
name they have taken gives some intimation of the transgressive and deeply
erotic nature of their work. Malleus is the Latin word for hammer and it
reflects the trio’s two obsessions. The first is Music where the term malleus
is a bone in the middle ear. The second is eroticism and female sexuality with
a tendency towards perversion and darkness. This can be related, for example,
to the infamous inquisitional witch finders manual “Malleus Maleficarum” (1486)
– “The Hammer against Witches” which seems to spend as much time focused on
sexuality as it does on heresy.
Malleus
constantly returns to these themes of sex, music, the bizarre and death and
unites them in unique and compelling ways. The poster for The Melvins, for
example, has a beautiful woman with long flowing hair dripping blood which is
congealing into a pool at her feet, she is surmounted by a huge blue brain
which is lined with red veins and overlaid with a crown of thorns; what a
combination of images !
The
Blood of the Mountain is the Hammer of God is a truly powerful and seductive
book compiling Malleus’s output over five years of collaboration. It is 112
pages in length, full colour and oversized (9” by 13”). The quality of the book
cannot be faulted reproducing the images in the highest quality.
The
images are striking, beautiful and brimming with colour, eroticism and fantasy.
They are supernatural, psychedelic and at times snidely humourous.
"The
Hammer of God" is structured in four main chapters, branching the artworks
from the beginnings until today. Malleus' array of work includes numerous gig
posters for rock bands, such as Antony and the Johnsons, Aphex Twin, Blue
Cheer, Beck, Blues Explosion, Brant Bjork, Chemical Brothers, The Cure, Current
93, Deftones, Dinosaur Jr, The Dresden Dolls, Down, Earth, The Flaming Lips,
Iggy Pop & the Stooges, Incubus, Isis, Mark Lanegan, Liars, Linkin Park,
The Mars Volta, The Melvins, Mogway, Motorpsycho, Monster Magnet, Mudhoney, Om,
The Prodigy, Queens of The Stone Age, Sex Pistols, Sigur Ros and Sonic Youth.
They have also produced editorial illustrations and CD covers for a diverse
group of clients and these are also illustrated.
The
Hammer of God also includes a commentary by various artists, collectors and
friends including Paul Grushkin and Dennis King (The Art of Rock and the Art of
Modern Rock), Firehouse, David Tibet (Current 93), Jermaine Rogers (Poster
Artist), Alan Forbes (Poster Artist), Justine Hampton (poster artist) Amanda
Palmer (Dresden Dolls), Al Cisneros (Sleep, Om), Brant Bjork, and various
others.
Malleus
also run a thriving website selling their unique works of art, it is well worth
a visit:
This review will appear in Volume 2 No.3
(2009) of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.
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