22 August 2005
Oh yeah
If you haven't already followed the links to the Histrionics in this post of Rose's (and even if you have but missed it the first time round), check out Appropriation. No prizes for guessing the tune to this one.
Some words
It's just been lots of sound and fury lately, signifying of course nothing. At least I've got my tax nightmare sorted out (sort of).
I wanted to get some work done over the weekend, but it didn't really happen. Maybe the problem is there's things sitting in my head waiting to be transferred to paper, and I get a bit fixated.
Came across an interesting sounding evolutionary theory of psychosis in, of all places, this book review - basically the theory is that a key point in the evolution of homo sapiens from early hominids was a genetic mutation that caused a twist, or torque, in the two hemispheres of our brains, and this twist allowed not only language but also psychosis and schizophrenia.
One of the great things about art is that it's about the only field I can think of where glossing over a simplified account of something quite complicated and then engaging in wild speculation can have quite fruitful results. Not necessarily immediately, but you never know when one odd thing here will link up with one odd thing over there and you're away laughing.
I wanted to get some work done over the weekend, but it didn't really happen. Maybe the problem is there's things sitting in my head waiting to be transferred to paper, and I get a bit fixated.
Came across an interesting sounding evolutionary theory of psychosis in, of all places, this book review - basically the theory is that a key point in the evolution of homo sapiens from early hominids was a genetic mutation that caused a twist, or torque, in the two hemispheres of our brains, and this twist allowed not only language but also psychosis and schizophrenia.
One of the great things about art is that it's about the only field I can think of where glossing over a simplified account of something quite complicated and then engaging in wild speculation can have quite fruitful results. Not necessarily immediately, but you never know when one odd thing here will link up with one odd thing over there and you're away laughing.
13 August 2005
06 August 2005
04 August 2005
03 August 2005
01 August 2005
Sneak preview
This is a somewhat pointless pic of the coastal view I was talking about:
I'll try to take a better one at some stage. I need to update the images on my website something chronic anyway, replace the crap ones with proper ones and add stuff that isn't there.
I'll try to take a better one at some stage. I need to update the images on my website something chronic anyway, replace the crap ones with proper ones and add stuff that isn't there.
31 July 2005
Back to blithering about art
I've been a bit worried that I'd headed up a blind alley and needed to do some backtracking, but I think the solution is to simply give the painting a rest for a while (well, painting in the sense of applying pigment to a canvas anyway). The paintings weren't working, but the preparatory and off-the-cuff stuff have been. I think I might concentrate more on drawing (ink on paper) than painting. It's really simple and direct, stripped back. I want to resolve the inchoate ideas sloshing round my head, not worry about technical bullshit.
In between experimental films at the City Gallery, Rose and I checked out the show of contemporary art from Te Papa they've got there. I've been getting back into situationism and subtitled my thing for the Mary Newton show a psychogeographical coastal view, so I was pleased to see Mladen Bizumic's work. The curator's blurb next to it was strange. It said his work deals with 'what he calls psychogeographies'. Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but it seems awfully like the curator isn't aware of the history of the term.
I've also been thinking of resurrecting an old idea of doing an alternate history of New Zealand (Henry Darger's fictional world reminded me of it). When I was younger I thought I'd be a science fiction writer, and so I studied art theory towards that (as part of a mad theory I had that the science fiction story was the only valid art form of the late 20th and early 21st centuries - something, needless to say, I no longer ascribe to), so it would be a nice nod to that. The coastal view could be considered the first part of it. I'm not so sure about this though. I did see, in another nice synchronistic moment, that one of the talks for this show is about the construction of fictional worlds, so I might go along to that.
I want to pull the various strands together, and ideally integrate everything into a single unified grand scheme. I've made a preliminary stab at documenting and developing a personal mythology (the skeleton guy represents the subject alone in a pointless and absurd universe, the illuminati guy represents the cybernetic control society, etc, etc - that kind of thing). We'll see how we go.
In between experimental films at the City Gallery, Rose and I checked out the show of contemporary art from Te Papa they've got there. I've been getting back into situationism and subtitled my thing for the Mary Newton show a psychogeographical coastal view, so I was pleased to see Mladen Bizumic's work. The curator's blurb next to it was strange. It said his work deals with 'what he calls psychogeographies'. Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but it seems awfully like the curator isn't aware of the history of the term.
I've also been thinking of resurrecting an old idea of doing an alternate history of New Zealand (Henry Darger's fictional world reminded me of it). When I was younger I thought I'd be a science fiction writer, and so I studied art theory towards that (as part of a mad theory I had that the science fiction story was the only valid art form of the late 20th and early 21st centuries - something, needless to say, I no longer ascribe to), so it would be a nice nod to that. The coastal view could be considered the first part of it. I'm not so sure about this though. I did see, in another nice synchronistic moment, that one of the talks for this show is about the construction of fictional worlds, so I might go along to that.
I want to pull the various strands together, and ideally integrate everything into a single unified grand scheme. I've made a preliminary stab at documenting and developing a personal mythology (the skeleton guy represents the subject alone in a pointless and absurd universe, the illuminati guy represents the cybernetic control society, etc, etc - that kind of thing). We'll see how we go.
And that's it for another year
Friday was Czech Dream, about two film students who use a Mininstry of Culture grant to stage a huge advertising campaign for a fictitious supermarket. As a couple of thousand people gathered in a meadow for the opening you wonder how they'll react when they discover the deception. Lots of them made the link with the advertising campaign the government were running for a yes vote to joining the EU - trying to sell a product that doesn't exist. Given the current election campaign, it was a very timely film indeed.
Saturday was Kekexili: Mountain Patrol, which was preceded by Tama Tu. This was another film with no dialogue (except for a karakia in te reo) that worked really well. We also had Occupation: Dreamland.
And then, finally, today we had some short films by Bill Morrison (some hits and some misses - the misses were ones that had originally been made to be part of a larger production), another programme of experimental films called Inside/Out (mostly hits), and Jim Jarmusch's latest Broken Flowers - the perfect end to another bloody good festival.
Saturday was Kekexili: Mountain Patrol, which was preceded by Tama Tu. This was another film with no dialogue (except for a karakia in te reo) that worked really well. We also had Occupation: Dreamland.
And then, finally, today we had some short films by Bill Morrison (some hits and some misses - the misses were ones that had originally been made to be part of a larger production), another programme of experimental films called Inside/Out (mostly hits), and Jim Jarmusch's latest Broken Flowers - the perfect end to another bloody good festival.
29 July 2005
Yet more bloody films
Monday night was Sorceress of the New Piano, about avant-garde pianist Margaret Leng Tan, who was a protege of sorts of John Cage. Before the film we were treated to a toy piano performance by her, which was truly amazing. There was a Q and A afterwards as well. She's really engaging, and her enthusiasm for what she does is really infectious.
On Tuesday we had Werner Herzog's The White Diamond, another documentary about another obsessive (again with a death at the centre of it). Mark Anthony, a local Rasta guy who helped them out, stole the show. At one point Werner asks him if he sees the universe in a raindrop (it makes sense in context), and Mark Anthony turns to him and says, 'I cannot hear the words you say for the thunder that you are.'
On Wednesday was The Devil and Daniel Johnston (also check out the film's website and this Daniel Johnston website), which is the film I was really hanging out to see. I've been a big fan of Dan's since the late 80s, so this was a real treat.
Last night we went to The Wayward Cloud, which was vile.
On Tuesday we had Werner Herzog's The White Diamond, another documentary about another obsessive (again with a death at the centre of it). Mark Anthony, a local Rasta guy who helped them out, stole the show. At one point Werner asks him if he sees the universe in a raindrop (it makes sense in context), and Mark Anthony turns to him and says, 'I cannot hear the words you say for the thunder that you are.'
On Wednesday was The Devil and Daniel Johnston (also check out the film's website and this Daniel Johnston website), which is the film I was really hanging out to see. I've been a big fan of Dan's since the late 80s, so this was a real treat.
Last night we went to The Wayward Cloud, which was vile.
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