L.S.D.I.H.O.P.
This 1969 IHOP ad was clearly made for a… niche audience. How they got away with such blatant psychedelic pandering is beyond me.
This 1969 IHOP ad was clearly made for a… niche audience. How they got away with such blatant psychedelic pandering is beyond me.
Big Think is a website devoted to giving some big brains a platform to spout off on topics meaningful to them, and hopefully to other citizens of this planet we call Earth. With a cadre of boldface names like Ricky Gervais, Robert Wright, Stephen Fry and Ray Kurzweil, Big Think aims to put its readers in touch with… well, big thinkers on topics like sustainability, religion, alternate energy sources, artificial intelligence, history, justice, cultural identity, politics and much more. It is what tends to be called a “heady brew”!
Perusing the site this morning, I watched this sincere short video with M.I.T. professor Noam Chomsky—probably America’s single most important intellectual—discussing the concept of what love is. He admits at the outset that he really doesn’t know, but he takes a good stab at it anyway. Big Think does a great job at fulfilling its mission statement with articles and videos quite akin to TED conference speeches. If you like TED talks (and who doesn’t?) then Big Think is probably a site you’ll want to bookmark, pronto.
Here’s a tip: Don’t miss author Gay Talese on “getting drunk at the New York Times” in the 1960s
Cross posting this from Brand X
The intricately rendered celebrity portraits constructed by San Francisco-based artist Jason Mecier intend not merely to capture the look of his subjects, but their true essence. He often achieves this by using items once owned by them in his mosaics. But barring being able to “paint” without any personal possessions, the fall-back medium becomes things you might associate with his subjects, for instance, Rachael Ray done in pasta and beans or Courtney Love rendered in… pills!
Brand X caught up to Mecier as he was putting the finishing touches on his upcoming show.
When did you first hit on your signature use of found objects and personal effects for your unique portraiture?
I started about 15 years ago doing beans and noodle portraits of my favorite celebrities. Then moved to yarn, candy, pills, and finally about five years ago, I decided that absolutely everything was up for consideration as art supplies. One Thanksgiving, my partner was frantically looking for the turkey baster, and I had to fess up that I had glued it onto my Helen Gurley Brown portrait! I’m always getting busted like that. Nothing is safe in my house.
Did you do anything similar when you were a little kid? There’s such a playful element to your work that I can’t help wondering if your distinct style has childhood roots in things like making American flags out of macaroni, like I did in grade school.
When I was young, I remember being mesmerized by my grandma’s paintings, weaving, mosaics, sculptures, collages and stained glass work that filled my grandparents’ house and yard. If she was working on an art project, she would set me up at a nearby table with a project of my own to work on. One of my earliest pieces is a mosaic made from beans, noodles, rocks and cut bamboo sticks glued on a piece of wood. My grandmother encouraged me to create my masterpieces using materials readily available to me. She would rather paint on the back of her cigarette cartons than buy a canvas. I learned from her that I can make art out of anything I want to, and that there are no rules.
I heard that your portrait of Lady Gaga was made from some items left behind at one of her photo shoots? How did you get your hands on swag like that?
I had an art piece in the big Hello Kitty 35th anniversary art show a few months ago, and a friend—who wishes to remain nameless, obviously—collected a bunch of the Hello Kitty leftovers from her photo shoots for me.
In many respects, there is a commonality with the religious reliquaries created of the Catholics saints, where they would frame the paintings with pieces of their actual bones, and your work. Is this conscious on your part? Are the portraits some kind of pop culture reliquaries?
I suppose it is a similar sort of a hero worship. Once I realized that celebrities would actually send me their junk, I haven’t slowed down. There’s something about the process and having a connection or brief relationship with the subject that thrills me. The idea of using their personal belongings as art supplies makes the art piece so personal and one of a kind. And I know they’re really fun for people to look at.
What are your top favorites of your celebrity portraits and why?
I generally gravitate toward the people who are really recognizable or iconic. … People who have a built-in “theme”—like Elvira—or are almost cartoon-like—like Elvira—but I’m all over the map. The portraits of Donald Trump, Kathy Griffin, Lady Gaga, Stevie Nicks, Parker Posey, Farrah Fawcett, Margaret Cho and Nicolas Cage are some of my favorites. I think they’re the most successful when I feel like I’ve captured the essence of their perceived public image.
What is the single strangest piece of junk you have ever received from a celebrity?
The highlights include Heidi Fleiss’ moldy slippers, Phyllis Diller’s prescription anti-itch creams, Parker Posey’s night guard and Barbi Benton’s retainer from high school. Jane Wiedlin’s leaking black Clairol hair dye applicator. Kathy Najimy’s Dexatrim was a good one. Ricki Lake’s very own compact travel tampon. Florence Henderson’s “key to the city” and silver pumps! I have a cigarette butt from “Dawn Wiener” [“Welcome to the Dollhouse” actress Heather Matarazzo]. Tori Spelling sent me two dildos, and I also have a bag of Pam Anderson’s dirty laundry.
How many of your subjects own the work themselves?
Rosie O’Donnell, Parker Posey, Pink, Ricki Lake, Kathy Najimy, Elvira, Susan Tyrrell, Allee Willis and Tura Satana from “Faster, Pussycat, Kill! Kill!” the Russ Meyer movie. Mary Louise Parker is next on my list. I hear the box of junk is coming!
Maybe you should render her in rolling papers and used roaches.
There you go!
Ghettogloss presents Celebrity Junk Drawer: The Art of Jason Mecier, March 17, 8 p.m.
Cross posting this from Brand X
From Masks From Around the World:
Searching for eternal youth? Want to get rid of those unsightly wrinkles? After a thin layer of lotion is put on your face (for the contact points), the amazing Rejuvenique Anti-wrinkle Facial Toning Machine is turned on and electrical pulses send shocks into the facial muscles. This stimulation is claimed to slow or reverse the aging process of the face. A TV info commercial featuring Linda Evans sells the kit for $200.
(via Everlasting Blort)
Amusing clock by artist Chris Dimino:
Every hour Jack breaks through the door and the and the famous line ‘Here’s Johnny’ plays followed by the scream of Shelly Duvall.
(via Nerdcore )
I adore Meredith Monk. She has a voice like no one else. I finally got to see her live in a small recital hall in the Los Angeles Public Library six years ago. It was one of the strongest performances that I’d ever seen a single person give. She sang accompanying herself on piano or acapella. The highlight was when she did the magical Gotham Lullaby, which is probably her best known piece of music. (Bjork often performs it live; here at the Coachella Music Festival in 2002)
She also happens to stunningly beautiful, looking WAY younger than her 67 years.
Controversial director Peter Greenaway’s fantastic Meredith Monk documentary from his Four American Composers series, which also included Philip Glass, John Cage and Robert Ashley can be viewed on UbuWeb. It’s excellent. I most highly recommend it.
Below a clip from Monk’s 1988 film Book of Days. You can get a DVD at her website. There is also a new CD of her early work, including a phenomenal piece called Candy Bullets And Moon performed with Don Preston of the original Mothers of Invention out now called Meredith Monk: Beginnings
It’s Her Party: Four Decades of Meredith Monk: Underground music’s matriarch throws herself a live retrospective at the Whitney (Encore)
I was once in a sushi bar in Hollywood, a tiny little place on the Sunset Strip across from the Roxy Theater and at one point the topic topic of conversation turned to a particular Japanese delicacy, one rarely encountered, but served in this very same restaurant at certain times of the year, Fugu shirako or Blowfish semen sashimi. I was fairly blase about trying it, but the table consensus was “This stuff is super expensive. We’re on an expense account. They’ve got it. Let’s go for it” and so we did. I don’t remember that much more about it, but I do recall thinking it was pretty good at the time, I must say.
From the description of Natural Harvest on Lulu.com
Semen is not only nutritious, but it also has a wonderful texture and amazing cooking properties. Like fine wine and cheeses, the taste of semen is complex and dynamic. Semen is inexpensive to produce and is commonly available in many, if not most, homes and restaurants. Despite all of these positive qualities, semen remains neglected as a food.
This book hopes to change that.
Once you overcome any initial hesitation, you will be surprised to learn how wonderful semen is in the kitchen. Semen is an exciting ingredient that can give every dish you make an interesting twist. If you are a passionate cook and are not afraid to experiment with new ingredients - you will love this cook book!
Some of the reviews are priceless. And did you hear about the chef in NYC who made cheese out of his wife’s breast milk?
Waste not, want not. Isn’t that what they said during the last Great Depression?
Thank you Paul Gallagher!
Yesterday when I was posting the Pulsallama video, not surprisingly, YouTube displayed several videos featuring Dangerous Minds pal, actress/singer Ann Magnuson and I played one of them (see below) and now I can’t get this song out of my head. Taken from the third studio album by Tindersticks, Curtains, this track Buried Bones is a duet between Ann and Tindersticks leader Stuart Staples. I think you’ll agree that it’s a memorable, moving, absolutely gorgeous piece of music. The lyrics remind me of just about every woman I’ve ever fallen for (but not all, thankfully). The fan made video, below, cut with scenes from Amelie works pretty well, I think.
I was lucky enough to be in the audience for the sole one of probably only two live performance of the duet, at the Mercury Lounge in New York City. Sublime! Afterwards, Ann and I went to a Moroccan-themed restaurant on 2nd Street with the entire band and the owner—someone Ann knew—insisted we try the house drink, which was delicious, but the insane hangover that resulted—there was tons of sugar in it—put both of us off alcohol, literally, for years.
Peter Christopherson is releasing the entirety of Coil’s studio and live output in a massive honking box set full of schwag, remix and karaoke versions, and fuzzy shit. (Sorry, that’s “fuzzy items.” I should be careful to be specific with language in this case.) The box contains:
1. an individually numbered disc (similar to those worn by dancers in go-go bars). Numbers in the Patron’s Edition (ie from #1 - 200) are in RED (as shown), numbers in the Official Pre-Order Edition are in BLUE (#201 - #however many are ordered in the next four weeks)...
2. Four hand-made cloth bags in the same (or similar) fabric Coil’s costumes were made from, each containing the dvds of concerts where those costumes were worn… FLUFFY, GLOWING, REFLECTIVE (mirrored) and SHROUDED…
3. The dvd collection itself, features 14 show dvds (of which the first two, being shorter and without extras, are very rare half-silvered dvds) plus a two dvd “COIL RECONSTRUCTION KIT” containing more than 4 hours of projection animations and processed footage PLUS the accompanying backing-tracks to all the songs in question, Karaoke-style (though without super-imposed lyrics). These are here released under a Creative Commons License, by which you are free to sample, re-loop and otherwise, “molest” or “interfere” with Coil’s music and animations to your hearts content (as long as its not for commercial gain)...
4. In addition the box contains a Collection of more than 100 postcards, 6” × 4” to fit the Patron’s Edition frame, in a velour bag. These pictures (almost all unseen till now) taken by Coil or our friends, are a very personal record of life on the road with Coil… Fortunately there is not a guitar to be seen, though there may be one picture of a a tour bus!
If there are any pictures of groupies, they may well be in uniform, carrying Kalashnikovs…
5. Lastly Colour Sound Oblivion also contains a couple of small printed pamphlets or booklets - One containing Sleazy’s thoughts, anecdotes, reflections on the being part of Coil Live, and thanks to everyone he can remember - The other a facsimile of the Order of Service of Geff’s (Jhonn Balance’s) Funeral, which took place a month pretty much to the day, after the last show in this Collection… This latter will only be included in the Patron’s and Pre-Order Editions.
This looks to be the definitive record of the band, similar to the “TG24” box set for Throbbing Gristle. Some of the most beautiful and damaged music ever recorded, enough to fuck your mind for good.
(Threshhold House: Colour Sound Oblivion)
Below: Coil on Hello Culture!
