The Russian Satanic Artist

He asked to be befriended via FB. I wondered where he got my name, and thought it was via an artist I follow, a specialist in water colours. I complimented her on a piece that was partly reminiscent of Richard Dadd's cluttered masterpiece, 'The Fairy Feller's Master Stroke,' and not long after, the Russian Satanic Artist sent a friend request. He's a sculptor. He creates deliberately crudely wrought little dolls/statuettes, most of which look nicely tactile and some of which have a really strong sense of power, though he's creating variations on a formula, horned indeterminate beings and non-horned indeterminate beings. He's obviously got magical training because he covers some in sigils etc, trying way too hard, pitching to an occult-entranced audience awash in thelemic overgothery. Some pieces are more resonant than others, notably those not aimed at goatee-sporting, polo-neck wearing Anton LeVey-alikes. One piece was Hastur themed, and it worked well, not my favourite in terms of his work, but nicely ominous. If anyone could lay claim to being touched by the King in Yellow it's this guy. Not every day, but on his best day.

But I couldn't be friends with him. R pointed it out to me, the fact that I might actually be, I don't know - complicit? Something like that - in presenting him with a platform among my friends. Russians in Russia need to have problems marketing their stuff out of Russia. It's not against the person or his art. I hate closing a door for that kind of reason though, Art should be bigger than these things. If his work was extraordinary, it might have been extremely hard, but as it is, the mystery has a perfect end, for the artist seems to have completely disappeared off social media.

So no doll for me but at least the story has landed.