I owe this discovery to CBC docs. As you may know, I'm a fan of the CBC, so one more point for them.
Bill Anhang creates all sorts of wild and wonderful works, and believes himself to be on a mission from God in doing so. What I love about the 20-minute documentary CBC has produced (see video above) is that I started out thinking Bill was wrong about his divine commission, and ended up questioning my own assumptions. When you see the light Bill brings into the lives of those around him, especially a Rabbi who has had a major stroke, it's hard to argue that God has plans for him.
Bill's work could be called 'outsider art', but I've been thinking about that genre a lot lately, in light of our own wild and wonderful show, what Bernice sees. When so many people smile at this type of work, who is on the outside? Who draws those lines? Outside of what?
The piece ends with a beautiful quote, presumably from Bill's artistic partner, off camera.
“You’re all divine beings, and Bill’s light will make you feel it”
Take 20 minutes to 'feel it' this weekend.
You can discover more work from Bill Anhang on his website at http://www.anhang-billsville.ca/01WAnhang.html
Banner image is a screen capture from CBC's documentary Billsville.