Philip Letts

Studio 10 at Westbourne Studios

// August 17th, 2009 // No Comments » // Artist, Philip Letts, Studio

My studio at Westbourne Studios, Notting Hill.

Photography, Web mashups and perspective.

blur…

Stop Violence in Iran

// August 13th, 2009 // No Comments » // Art, Artist, Philip Letts

I am donating this artwork to ‘Stop Violence in Iran’. Anyone can take the image (drag the Jpeg) and use it with posts, blogs, tweets, social network communications and more to convey their desire to halt violence and tyranny in Iran.

Join us. Share it.

The World From 70,000 Feet

// August 10th, 2009 // No Comments » // Our Planet

James May, from Top Gear, gives us a 70,000 ft tour of our planet as he takes a ride in a U2 spy plane (not the band). It sure provides some much needed perspective on our small and often petty planet.

Dig it.

Two Dudes and a Web Cam – Performance Art?

// August 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // Art, Web

Is this the future of the Washington Post or just kick ass performance art? You judge.

‘Yellow Men’

// July 28th, 2009 // No Comments » // Art, Philip Letts

Yellow Man has become one of my better known pieces. It has been exhibited in London and New York. It is a mysterious work – one that conjures up mixed and confused emotions in its viewers.

For me ‘Yellow Men’ represent the world that I struggle to accept. One of nameless, faceless automatons lost in the cracks of life. Hiding in corners of anonymity and emotional contradictions. Bankers, lawyers, estate agents, middle men or managers, nameless, faceless dealers and intermediaries each.

All too often confused and concussed by their own meaningless existence chasing money and material. Drifting up the ladder of life – striving and climbing. Lost to ’soul’. How do we reawaken such faceless beings – or do we just abandon them to the next credit crisis and leave them swinging in the wind. Hanging, dangling. Yellow Men.

Death in Girotondo

// July 25th, 2009 // No Comments » // Books, Philip Letts

Angela Grimaldi is in danger. A hair raising moment of rebellion and Angelas circumstances change forever. Escaping the horror of a loveless marriage, Angela tries to start anew, but will she be able to build a new life in the watchful, traditional community in which she lives.

Death in Girotondo follows her reckless and alarming ride through the beautiful landscape of the Tuscan countryside. Along the way Philip Letts shows the beauty of Italys mountains and beaches and gives us a real taste of the charming, humorous, characters in small Italian towns. Italys simple pleasures are deliciously displayed in this farcical thriller.

Death in Girotondo is the debut novel from Philip Letts published by blur Media

Click here for a free preview and to buy Death in Girotondo

My iPhone and Me

// July 23rd, 2009 // No Comments » // Innovation, Philip Letts

I bought my first iPhone in the US two years ago and my life changed. At the time I was bouncing between London and New York so my London, Vodafone life, was Blackberry’d and my New York time with iPhone. My mobile mistress.

London was function, New York form. Since I was such an early iPhone adopter I was incessantly asked why my iPhone was so different. I had 2 answers; the real Internet on my phone and my portfolio in my pocket. As an abstract photographer the latter ruled, as digital entrepreneur the former.

My London/New York parrallel life was a huge mobile experiment in the Apple smartphone v the rest. One week on the Blackberry – the next week inside my iPhone. The former king of email and call quality while the latter ruled palm-based media.

Last September saw the commercial launch of blur Group and my permanent parking in London. I folded up my AT&T iPhone and started a uni-smartphone existence on my Blackberry. For the last 10 months I kept persuading myself that I was OK without my iPhone. Until yesterday when I craved, caved and bought an O2 iPhone 3GS.

Halelujah, reunited with my portfolio on the go, full tilt twittering, crowd management in the waiting room and this blog post. The first from my new iPhone. Free again, untethered. My baby laptop back in my pocket. Reunited forever – what was I ever thinking denying myself this life device. Sorry, Vodafone. Hello O2.

blur Group Video – ‘What is blur?’

// July 16th, 2009 // No Comments » // Innovation, Philip Letts, blur Group

A video on blur Group and the blur Philosophy.

‘What is blur?’

‘Just Before Dying’ – A Short Story

// July 14th, 2009 // No Comments » // Books, Philip Letts, Story

A Short Story

Shit oh shit. Shit. Damn that hurt. Where the fuck did that car come from? I never even saw it and I’m normally so careful crossing the road. Look left, look right, look left again and I never fail to do it, not once since my pedantic father taught me it way back when. So how did I miss this one? Shit.

God, they say that when it happens to you it happens so fast, so fast you never even see it coming. They’re right. Where did that car come from? And I looked both left and right as usual. I know I did, I never fail to. Never. Well it sure looks banged up now. Where is the ambulance, in fact, where is anyone? You kind of expect that if something like this does one day happen at least people will come out of nowhere to help you. Right? Not me, shit, no one at all. No one.

I can’t seem to move my legs. In fact, I cannot move anything. Maybe I’m just dreaming. No, no such luck. Shit. They also say that when something like this happens you panic, you freak out and scream or cry or have some kind of grotesque panic attack. Well they’re wrong about that, I have never been calmer. And me calm? Shit.
God the sidewalk looks different when it’s inches from your nose. It is somehow cleaner and dirtier all at the same time. I mean it looks cleaner in general, whiter than I expected I guess, and yet that dog shit looks, well, awful. Oh and that must be its pee. Great. I suppose they generally do both at the same time. And it smells too. How weird, I seem to be able to see and smell but I can’t speak or scream or freak out. They never said anything about this. Shit.

And I still can’t move anything, not a thing. That’s weird too. Well I guess someone will come along, followed by an ambulance and finally I’ll be taken off to some hospital where they’ll fix me up and whisk me back home soon after. That would be good. I miss home. Shit, that’s weird too. I never miss home, never. And I used to feel so bad about it, like I had some nomadic guilt complex about being immature or irresponsible or whatever. Mind you I’m always feeling guilty about something or other. My mother made sure of that. Its kind of like Catholic guilt I guess except for the fact that we’re Jewish. I wish we were Catholic, I’m sure it would be a lot easier and people would hassle me less. It’s tough being Jewish. They didn’t say much about that either. Mind you, it’s tougher being born from my lot.

Fuck, when did it start? I guess it was since I got back from college. They never got over the disappointment from my academic years and my kiss ass sister made sure to make it perpetually worse for me. God I hate her, but not as much as they hate me. And I’m fucked if I’ll ever really understand why. I guess his nervous breakdown didn’t help and then there was the thing with her heart. Shit, I remember pacing up and down in that Hospital like it was yesterday, waiting for news, stealing glimpses of her in that emergency room with a million tubes sticking out of her and that constant look of demented fear in her eyes. Shit. And once we knew that she was kind of OK he disappeared. He just upped and off’d. I mean who does a thing like that? I guess someone who had a breakdown. Shit.

And of course my sister had to go marry the ass from hell, full of airs and graces and paranoid delusions. Which is why I haven’t seen her in forever. I mean come on, who can blame me for that? I guess I was always the black sheep and that would be fine if they weren’t so goddamned white. Mind you, the older I get the more I realize that they are not so white and pure and sassy, they are just as fucked up as anyone else, maybe more. John always used to say there’s nothing so queer as folk. God he was right. And he didn’t mean gay!

Shit school was fun, the guys, the sports, even the place. I often think about it. They say that those are your best years and I guess to an extent they’re right. If I still lived nearby I’m sure I would go visit the place all the time, kind of reliving it, trying to find something. Christ I wish I knew what? Maybe I should have seen a psychiatrist. Mind you I did once, Anna sent me. She kept telling me how I would come out feeling lighter and happier and full of hope and energy. That never quite happened though I did feel better.

I liked Anna, she was fun, that year or so we had together. Great sex. Shame she was all messed up, but who can blame her really, her father dying so young and a mother like that. She was always looking for something too. Maybe that’s why we got on so well. Mind you when she got into those black moods, fuck, it was each man for himself. And she had a few men, shit, and a woman too. She told me she was just experimenting. Right. I said it was fine but I could never quite get the vision of the two of them out of my head and they weren’t sexy thoughts they were rank. I wonder why? I mean its not like the idea of two women is usually a turn off, but it was with her. Shit. I knew she slept with other men, I just knew it. The slut.

I should have got married really, not with her but with one of the others. I guess I liked Tessa the most. Man she was short and she had the smallest breasts. I can’t count the amount of times that she pushed me away and then one night completely out of the blue she agreed to meet me in her apartment, in her bed. I arrived way after midnight and the lights were off in her room and there she was lying in bed with nothing on waiting for me. Shit. I still can’t believe I left so early in the morning. She pretended to be asleep. No wonder she never forgave me. But she did say that I had the biggest heart. I guess she’s right and perhaps that’s why I am so sensitive and so passionate. I am sensitive, too sensitive. Shit. Maybe I should have been an artist all along. Shit, or an actor. Shit.

I hate my job. I always hated it. It was all about making money and proving my fucked up father wrong and being this great advertising person like everyone always said I should. Fuck I hate it and I’m not even that good at it. Shit. I should have been an artist. Think how different things would be. Maybe I wouldn’t have the money but I would be happy. I would probably live in the countryside in some miniature cottage or ranch, or on an island in the Caribbean. Yeah, that sounds better, that’s what I would do. Shit, hanging out in some cool wooden place overlooking some white, sandy beach. I would paint or write or take photographs all day and then walk the beach with my dog in the evening and hope that I would run into some stunning blonde chick and take her back to my place for dinner and then have great sex. Shit I should have done that. I should have left the city, I never liked it that much and I guess the acid test was that I never knew what to do with myself at the weekend. I would just wander around streets and shops and Starbucks. The treat would be a few drinks at the bar for lunch or something. I never had any hobbies, I never went to any matches or galleries or even the movies. Actually that’s not true I do go to the movies quite a lot, but more and more on my own. Mind you everyone else is married with kids so who has the time to go to the movies with me, eh? Except that I did start going to the movies on my own before they started getting married. Shit.

I guess I am quite a loner. I always thought I was an extrovert, a people’s person, but I guess I’m not really. I guess I am a loner after all, like my dad. Shit.
I should have gone to that Caribbean island after all and become an artist and not waited. Now I’m well into my forties and it’s too late. Time slips by so fast. I should have got married. Mind you if I had got married I would never get to go to the islands, I would have to work even harder and make ever more cash to pay for a wife and kids and cars and homes. Oh shit and then there’s their education as well. I’m glad I didn’t get married after all. Maybe I should do the Caribbean thing. Who says it’s too late to start over? Look at Carnegie, he started making money when he was damned old, or at least I think it was him, anyway, I can still do it, I’m sure I can.

Part 2

“Oh shit, quick get help, he must have been hit by that car. Shit, quick.”
“Are you dialing Henry? Call the police and ambulance, quick.”
“I don’t think he can hear us. His eyes are open but they look glazed over.”
“Shit, what do we do?”
“I don’t know. Should we move him?”
“No, they say never to move people after an accident. So long as he is breathing we should just stay with him until the police or an ambulance arrive.”
“We should keep him warm right?”
“Yep, this coat should do the job.”
“Be careful.”
“Sure.”
“How’s it going Henry, are they coming?”
“Yep, they’re coming. They said to keep him warm, check he’s breathing OK and sit with him until they arrive. They’ll be here in about ten minutes.”
“Christ, that long?”
“That’s what they said.”
“He doesn’t look good. I wish they would hurry up.”
“Yeah but I don’t see any blood, at least that.”
“Who knows?”
“What about the other guy, the one in the car?”
“They’re helping him.”
“He doesn’t look so good either.”
“Don’t worry about him, they can look after him.”
“I wonder who this guy is? He looks so young and well to do. I bet he’s a banker or something. At least he’s not wearing a wedding ring.”
“That doesn’t mean a thing nowadays. He could still have a wife and kids. Shit.”
“God I hope not, he doesn’t look at all well. I am no doctor, but I can tell you this guy doesn’t look like he should. I wish they would hurry up.”
“He’s still breathing right?”
“Right.”

Part 3

It’s weird knowing that your parents hate you, really weird. And hell, it took me so long. I mean I only really figured it out a few years ago. It was when he started staring at me that way, so much hatred and resentment and anger. And all because he is such a fuck up and had his nervous breakdown thing. Like it had anything to do with me. And I never asked for anything. Its not like I don’t give them things. Mind you, nothing is ever enough for her. I remember that psychiatrist (Christ, what was she called?) saying that some people are just born to folk they should never have been born to and that the chemistry is all wrong and always will be. That’s what happened to me and she said that I should just accept it and move on, move on and live as far away from them as possible. Maybe that’s why I always liked New Zealand. That would be far enough.

Maybe I should have moved there? It is an island after all, it has great vistas and I could be whosoever I want there. No one would know me or expect anything of me. I really could be whoever I want to be. I could be an artist or an actor or well, anything. Shit I can’t really think of anything else, mind you, I have always liked the movies. I mean I could sit and watch movies all day and all night. I could even do that for a living. Maybe I should be a movie critic. No, then I would have to spend too much time inside in the dark and I wouldn’t like that. I’m kind of an outside person. Perhaps I should try and make movies? Yeah, with what, I don’t even have a video camera. I did once and I must say I had quite a good eye. Maybe I should be a photographer. God only knows how you make money out of that. Aren’t photographs all free off the Internet these days? I could be a painter? That’s hard as well and I was never that good in the first place. Yeah, but I never tried the abstract stuff and I bet I would be better at that. I remember going to the Pompidou Centre in Paris forever ago and looking at a blank screen some artist was showing off as the next big thing. Man it made me so angry. I get that kind of stuff more now. Maybe I could do variations on that? Yeah right. I guess I’ll stay in advertising for a while longer. Maybe I could be an ad exec in New Zealand? Now there’s an idea.

Shit I guess I haven’t really been happy for a long time. I just wish I knew how to be content. I used to be. Mind you that was a long, long time ago at college and only really for a year or so. Maybe it was that chick I was with then? Na. Maybe it was the place? Not really. I guess it was my mates. Maybe I miss my mates. Maybe that’s what this is all about. Perhaps the loner in me is actually making me miserable. Maybe I need more people in my life. Na.

Perhaps I need a family? Na. Maybe I should try and get on with my parents again? The Ten Commandments say that I should honor my parents, I think. Yeah, but how do you honor people that hate your guts? I guess you give them money. Shit, how messed up is that.

Maybe that psychiatrist was right. Maybe I should get as far away from them as possible and move to New Zealand and start all over. But then I wouldn’t have the friends bit, or the job, or at least not to start with, nor money. I need the money, I really do. Having money kind of makes everything else OK. Shit, shit, shit, maybe it doesn’t. Shit. So what’s it all about?

My parents always said that life is really hard. But not this hard, I mean come on! Perhaps I should have left home young, then traveled the world, become a famous golf professional, made bucket loads of cash and had endless amounts of girlfriends. Then I wouldn’t be asking any of these questions. Damn, that’s it! Instead I spent all of my life playing it safe making money as an ad guy so that I would be OK later in life. No risks. But I’m miserable and who knows if I’ll be here to enjoy the money I’ve made. Maybe I’ll get paralyzed from this damned accident and then all I will have is my memories, my fuck awful memories. Shit, I should have become a golfing pro. Shit.

“Oh Christ I think he’s stopped breathing.”
“No, no, really? Shit, check quick.”
“I can’t find a pulse and his eyes are closed. They were open. Shit.”
“What do we do?”
“I don’t know.”
“Oh thank God, here comes the ambulance. Thank God.”
“Stand aside sir, stand aside mam, we’ll take it from here.”
“Oh, thank goodness you’re here. He seems to have lost consciousness.”
“What’s going on?”
“Stand aside folk, please, this is an emergency!”
“Oh God, that poor man, what are they doing?”
“I think they are trying to revive him. I guess its CPR.”
“Oh God, I hope he’ll be OK.”
“I have never seen anything like this.”
“Nor me.”
“Shit, this is terrifying.”
“Oh God, they’ve stopped. Why have they stopped?”
“Oh no.”
“Oh Christ.”
“Go ask them Henry.”
“They said to leave them alone.”
“Yeah but they’ve stopped now. Please.”
“In a minute.”
“No, go now, they’ll be OK with it.”
“OK, OK!”
“Thank God.”
“Excuse me sir, is he all right?”
“I’m afraid not sir, he just passed away, there was nothing we could do for him. I’m sorry.”
“Poor thing. I wonder who he was?”

THE END

Letts’ Novel ‘Death in Girotondo’ Available at Amazon.com

// July 7th, 2009 // No Comments » // Books, Philip Letts

My debut novel ‘Death in Girotondo’, published by blur Media and BookSurge, is now available for sale at Amazon.com. I hope you like reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it and getting it published. Below is my editors dust-cover summary.

“Angela Grimaldi is in danger. A hair raising moment of rebellion and Angela’s circumstances change forever. Escaping the horror of a loveless marriage, Angela tries to start anew, but will she be able to build a new life in the watchful, traditional community in which she lives.

Death in Girotondo follows her reckless and alarming ride through the beautiful landscape of the Tuscan countryside. Along the way Philip Letts shows the beauty of Italy’s mountains and beaches and gives us a real taste of the charming, humorous, characters in small Italian towns. Italy’s simple pleasures are deliciously displayed in this farcical thriller.”

If you would like to buy a copy of ‘Death in Girotondo’ – click this link.

blur – my philosophy, my art, my life

// June 30th, 2009 // No Comments » // Innovation, Philip Letts

What is ‘blur’?

‘blur’ is a way of looking at things differently. It is a philosophy and reflection of contemporary times and the future that beckons or betrays. ‘blur’ is the most modern world.

The term ‘blur’ was coined by me in 2006 to describe my philosophy and my art because it best reflected its essence. For this millennium is about speed, chaos, confusion and ‘always on’. Last millennium trends lasted decades. This millenniums will last a few years – then a few months.

‘blur’ best describes the nature of everything to be and that is. Lines are blurred. Borders are blurred. Languages, writing, mathematics ‘blur’. Society is blurred. The planet is blurring with the sun’s renewed heat. Cultural divides are blurred thanks to globalization, media and technology. Technology is blurring and all things electrical are converging.

‘blur’ best describes a new world flooded by fleeting moments. Fleeting relationships discovered or disbanded on MySpace or Facebook. Moments of fame that last but fifteen minutes or days. One hit wonders staging endless comebacks. Attention span’s no longer than a butterfly’s flutter. Fleeting everything from travel to relationships, education, book-worming and capital raising. All of us darting through life like a child through a museum. The Blackberry in hand, the iPhone in mind and yesterday serially parked.

‘blur’ is about accepting this new reality and the altered world we live in while understanding that a new order is rapidly emerging and that each of us are and will be affected. 20th Century values, traditions, people and even landscapes are things of the past. The future will require all of us to change the way in which we eat, work, marry, bear children, educate, organize, survive and thrive. And as the individual is forced to reshape his and her very being, so too governments and workplaces will have to redefine themselves. Everything becomes untethered, ready to switch on a dime. Including the workplace.

Individuals ultimately gain power because the 21st Century will be the free-lance millennium, with the disruption of the workplace as we know it and the creation of cell based groups in work, in war, in life. Everything will go digital and the analogue culture will become an old relic. So much that we cherish will be miniature or intangible and the greatest turf war of this millennium will be between the individual and the 20th Century version of employer, government and life. Sadly, most organizations will try and control individuals even as they gain increased power. But those that overly constrain and police their citizens or employees will lose them.

The world order will adjust – countries will re-group to gain power. Europe, Asia, the Middle East, South America and Africa will rise at the expense of the United States. Oil will become an almost priceless scarce resource soon to be replaced by solar, wind and other alternative energy sources. Commodities will be invaluable. Food supplies will not suffice and water will become a traded commodity.

The book as we know it will die and with it CD’s, DVD’s and all things analogue. But with the digital revolution comes a new form of migration and eco-conurbations. The Internet will be about individual empowerment, social interaction and Virtual Reality. Everything imaginable will be connected. Tomorrow’s professionals and free-lancers will own and rent multiple, wired condos around the world – no longer existing in one home, in one place. New style urban jungles in Dubai or Delhi will thrive as old style monsters decline.

Industry will shift from the production and throughput era to the information era to a design led revolution with art-in-product (TM).

The leading industries of tomorrow will look nothing like those of today. Innovation will be the driver and decider. Speed to the global market everything and intellectual property the prize asset. Content will be king and methods of creation democratic, while ‘Art’ in product will drive. Cultural lines will whither and ‘blur’ while art converges into design, fashion and industry – undermining the former while boosting the latter. History and reading will be discarded as relics of irrelevant waste. The ‘visual revolution’ will take over.

But the greatest revolution of all will be (the story of) how we adapt, as people, as society, as a planet and how we grow to accept that as every line becomes increasingly blurred so we do to. For ‘blur’ is the way of tomorrow – today.

New b-uncut.com Goes Live 30 June

// June 26th, 2009 // No Comments » // Art, Artist, Philip Letts, b-uncut

The team at b-uncut is manically plumbing the all new b-uncut.com so that it can go live next Tuesday, 30 June. b-uncut was launched towards the end of 2007 by myself and a small group of contemporary artists so that artists from around the world could unite on the Web. Wind forward to today and b-uncut has become the worlds preeminent network of quality, contemporary artists. As b-uncut becomes increasingly noticed people keep asking me why it has been successful. I think it is simple. The art market is somewhat dysfunctional and poorly geared for both the emerging artist and modern art buyer. Also, the life of an artist is often lonely and disappointing. b-uncut helps to improve both.

Initially artists went to b-uncut to develop a support structure of other artists and to promote their work and their persona in the art universe. Today artists join b-uncut because it is the place to be. The place for contemporary artists to share their experiences, developments, perspectives and most importantly their artworks. b-uncut has become one huge, continuous, Web based, studio party for artists. And it rocks. Today 2 new artists join b-uncut every day.

So, we decided it was time to do more. Time to do more for b-uncut artists and time to try and change the art market just a little. Next Tuesday we shift b-uncut from artist community to art marketplace. A place on the Web where artists can gather and unite as usual, but also a platform for them to promote and sell their art and merchandise. A place where art buyers, admirers, critics and the press can gather to watch the real-time, Web based art market evolve and a place where they can support tomorrows artists, today. And know that b-uncut offers a FAIRTRADE for artists. Finally.

Just Launched Innovatrs.com

// June 25th, 2009 // No Comments » // Entrepreneur, Innovation, Innovatrs, Philip Letts

Today I launched Innovatrs.com – an open, Web based system and site for world innovators, artists and entrepreneurs. Join us.

Philip Letts Blog

// September 29th, 2008 // 4 Comments » // Art, Artist, Entrepreneur, Innovation, Philip Letts, blur Group

I am both entrepreneur and artist. I am the founder of blur Group and the blur art movement. blur Group is a cluster of companies that span social media, innovation and the arts. The brand grew out of my discovery of blur Photography which takes abstract photography mainstream.

My predecessors invented the diary (you know the Wordpress of the 1700’s) and I created the Web’s Currency which was used by 6 Million people. I then went on to lead one of the worlds largest barter networks. Back in 1991 I launched one of the first digital media companies. I’m still young.