Keith Maiden | If I Were The Devil

K E I T H M A I D E N

The year was 1965... On 3rd April, seemingly a day like any other, the air waves crackled into life and thus began a speech by legendary broadcaster Paul Harvey, projecting his predictions for a future so bleak and full of vice that his radio audience, and indeed his peers and colleagues, failed to comprehend the message and it was underappreciated in its time. The year is now 2016... It is clear to see that, whilst his monologue had no pretentions to prophecy at the time of broadcast, our world today is sadly not too dissimilar from the one he envisaged over fifty years ago. What was meant as no more no less than a dire warning to his audience against allowing the devil into their hearts and minds, influenced by his observations about society’s trajectory at the time of writing, has since been hailed as a Nostradamus-esque memorandum. The year is irrelevant... This is the lesson contained within this exceptional and insightful body of work by figurative artist Keith Maiden. Evil is evil, influence is influence, and the devil has lost none of his powers of persuasion since Harvey’s broadcast in 1965. Social commentary is a key component of Maiden’s subject matter, and we are forced to face the steady decline of mankind through this collection. In this work, Maiden’s provides us with a pictorial depiction of

work influenced directly by Harvey’s transcript, alongside the artist’s own observations about the pervading nature of malevolence in today’s world. The beauty of Maiden’s brush work and subtle palette render this dystopian viewpoint all the harder to accept. Following months of research and planning, sketching and painting, we are presented with work that engages its audience on myriad levels. Maiden will readily admit that the creative process was draining; day after day spent digesting and interpreting the cultural wars raging across the globe resulted in a great deal of introspection for the artist. He was consumed by the concept, and driven by his need to provoke a thought revolution. Maiden knows with full certainty that this collection will divide its audience. Some of us will focus on the form, some might be absorbed by the text, and others might live up to the artist’s expectations and walk away disturbed by the awakening that the pieces stirred within them. Be assured, there is no universal truth at work here, no prescribed response required, the artist would have you think what you like. Just as long as you are thinking…because the moment we cease to think, to analyse, and cease to challenge propaganda and those who would delight in our downfall, we each become the incarnation of the devil in Harvey’s broadcast…and he has won.

NUNEST BIDENHAM | Original Oil on Board | Framed 110 x 80cm | Framed £6950

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WAKE UP & SMELL THE CORRUPTION Original Oil on Board Framed 120 x 80cm Framed £6950

ANGELWITH A DIRTY FACE Original Oil on Board Framed 100 x 80cm Framed £6950

SPEAK NO FACTS | Original Oil on Board | Framed 70 x 50cm | Framed £2950

DAVID BECKHAM Original Oil on Board Framed 120 x 180cm Framed £9950

F I W E R E T H E D E V I L I W O U L D B E G I N W I T H A C A M P A I G N O F W H I S P E R S . I “

CAMPAIGN OFWHISPERS Original Oil on Board Framed 70 x 90cm Framed £5950

CRUDE REALITY | Original Oil on Board | Framed 120 x 80cm | Framed £6950

HALO TO A NOOSE Original Oil on Board Framed 120 x 180cm Framed £7950

NOT ANOTHER MARILYN Original Oil on Board Framed 52 x 90cm Framed £3950

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PATRIOTISM IS DEAD | Original Oil on Board | Framed 80 x 60cm | Framed £4500

OIL BE BACK Original Oil on Board Framed 120 x 80cm Framed £6950

OPPOSITE Original Oil on Board Framed 80 x 100cm Framed £6950

HEAR NO CONTRADICTIONS | Original Oil on Board | Framed 70 x 50cm | Framed £2950

WHY SO SERIOUS? Original Oil on Board Framed 70 x 70cm Framed £4950

IF I WERE THE DEVIL Original Oil on Board Framed 70 x 140cm Framed £6950

F I W E R E T H E D E V I L I W O U L D I ’ D J U S T K E E P O N D O I N G W H A T H E ’ S D O I N G . I “

POUT AT THE DEVIL | Original Oil on Board | Framed 80 x 60cm | Framed £4950

MAN FROMTHE SOUTH Original Oil on Board Framed 110 x 80cm Framed £6950

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F I W E R E T H E D E V I L I W O U L D E N C O - U R A G E P E O P L E T O G E T R I C H T H R O U G H G A M B - L I N G . I

FAITH Original Oil on Board Framed 70 x 70cm Framed £3950

O VIL

TANYA HYDE (SINNER) | Original Oil on Board | Framed 80 x 60cm | Framed £4950

N EVI

HELEN BACK (LIAR) | Original Oil on Board | Framed 80 x 60cm | Framed £4950

O VIL

LUCY FUR (FAKE) | Original Oil on Board | Framed 80 x 60cm | Framed £4950

DEVIL INSIDE | Original Sketch on Paper | 35 x 36cm | £995

SHOUT AT THE DEVIL | Original Sketch on Paper | 46 x 43cm | £1450

DON’T JUDGE ME 4 | Original Sketch on Paper | 64 x 45cm | £1950

GIRL 2 | Original Mixed Media on Paper | 65 x 50cm | £1950

DON’T JUDGE ME 5 | Original Sketch on Paper | 64 x 45cm | £1950

DON’T JUDGE ME 6 | Original Sketch on Paper | 64 x 45cm | £1950

the whole world in darkness. and i’d have a third of its real estate, and four-fifths of its population, but i wouldn’t be happy until i had seized the ripest apple on the tree —thee. so i’d set about however necessary to take over the united states. i’d subvert the churches first i’d begin with a campaign of whispers. with the wisdom of a serpent, i would whisper to you as i whispered to eve: ‘do as you please.’ “to the young, i would whisper that ‘the bible is a myth.’ i would convince them that man cre- ated god instead of the other way around. i would confide that what’s bad is good, and what’s good is ‘square.’ and the old, i would teach to pray, after me, ‘our father, which art in washington…’ “and then i’d get or- ganized. i’d educate authors in how to make lurid literature exciting, so that anything else would appear dull and uninteresting. i’d threaten tv with dirtier movies and vice versa. i’d pedal narcotics to whom i could i’d sell alcohol to ladies and gentlemen of distinction. i’d tranquilize the rest with pills. “if i were the devil i’d soon have families that war with themselves, churches at war with themselves, and nations at war with themselves; until each in its turn was consumed. and with promises of higher ratings i’d have mesmerizing media fanning the fames. if i were the devil i would encourage schools to refine young intellects, but neglect to discipline emotions — just let those run wild, until before you knew it, you’d have to have drug sniffing dogs and metal detectors at every schoolhouse door. “within a decade i’d have prisons overflowing, i’d have judges promoting pornography — soon i could evict god from the courthouse, then from the schoolhouse, and then from the houses of congress. and in his own churches i would substitute psychology fo religion, and deify science. i would lure priests and pastors into mis- using boys and girls, and church money. if i were the devil i’d make the symbols of easter an egg and the symbol of christmas a bottle. “if i were the devil i’d take from those who have, and give to those who wanted until i had killed the incentive of the ambitious. and what do you bet? i couldn’t get whole states to promote gambling as thee way to get rich? i would caution against extremes and hard work, in patriotism, in moral conduct. i would convince the young that marriage is old-fashioned, that swinging is more fun, that what you see on tv is the way to be. and thus i could undress you in public, and i could lure you into bed with diseases for which there is no cure. in other words, if i were the devil

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