Thursday, January 7, 2010

Thank you for the comment Anonymous on January 5th 2010! encouraged me.


I didn't know much about Andy Warhol before 1982 when I bought the Edie Sedgewick book by George Plimpton and Jean Stein. Of course I had grown up seeing the images of the Soup can, the Liz Taylor, Marilyn, Jackie O, in the pages of the Newsweek magazine our family received. And images of Andy himself. He was a celebrity artist. The Banana cover for the Velvet Underground album is another memory; during my high school years some of the SMH girls had a copy. And I frequently studied art books during that era as well and Andy's silkscreens again appeared.
After I read the Edie bio in 1982, I had a bad taste in my mouth for Andy. That Andy was a bit of a user and an asshole. Now I see the whole scene in context and how funny and insecure AH really was. Andy was a bit of a user and an asshole but again one has to look at the context of him, his actions, his art and his background and just him. Edie may have been used by Andy and the Factory but she was an equally bigger user of people, a desperate drug addict and had a tragically screwed up childhood.
In the years since I first encountered the Edie Sedgewick book, I have read several Andy Warhol documentaries and books. Like Bob Colacello's book, Steve Watson' book. The Diaries. And the excellent Ric Burns documentary American Masters. Studying his art with art books also. And I have come up with a deeper understanding and knowledge about Andy Warhol. He is much more influential on art history and culture and pop culture. What I found is that Andy Warhol the artist and the man is much deeper and more influential than the popular image of him and the popular images he created. Even though he said his art was all about surface. Oh god I could go on and on......

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Philip Seymour Hoffman. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead


Philip Seymour Hoffman. One of the best American actors. Yes, because he is an award winning actor, He won the Oscar for Capote, and is very famous for that. Obviously. He has done so many unforgettable supporting roles too, they are among his best: Doubt, Cold Mountain, Almost Famous, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love. All well known films. Undoubtedly he get loads of scripts and is in great demand by mainstream Hollywood.
This is not the only way we see Hoffman's great acting range and eclectic choices. But it is in much smaller, really, really independent, very character driven pieces that makes him all the more outstanding.
Films like The Savages and Before the Devil Knows You're Dead are two of the lesser known films for PSH. They are two I want to review for you. BTDKYD is one I didn't think much of, that it was that great, when I first saw it. Part of it was the low-budget music soundtrack, which came across as a bit cheesy I thought. Lumet, the director, made the budget sacrifice for the music, I imagine. Lumet directed this movie at age 83. Should be arriving soon. Let's get this post up and then I will review the movie next week. PSH has the lead role, a very tragic one at that. A tragic story, that I like much better now upon reflection. Let's see what the weeks viewing will bring.

Monday, January 4, 2010

English language word of the week: Evanescent plus Jake G. Kristin White saw him!


Definitions of evanescent on the Web:

tending to vanish like vapor; "evanescent beauty"
wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
"Evanescent" is the third single by the Japanese band Vamps, released on May 13, 2009. It includes a cover of the 1973 song "Life on Mars?" by David Bowie. The limited edition included a DVD with the music video for "Evanescent."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evanescent_(Vamps)
Evanescent is a term used to describe skin lesions, like wheals, that last for less than 24hours before resolving. ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evanescent_(dermatology)
vanishing, disappearing, fleeting; ephemeral, momentary; barely there, almost imperceptible
en.wiktionary.org/wiki/evanescent
Evanescently - An wave is a nearfield standing wave with an intensity that exhibits exponential decay with distance from the boundary at which the wave was formed. Evanescent waves are a general property of wave-equations, and can in principle occur in any context to which a wave-equation applies. ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evanescently
evanescently - In an evanescent manner
en.wiktionary.org/wiki/evanescently
rapidly disappearing.
www.mykoweb.com/CAF/glossary.html
Evanescent is a word used to describe a fragrance that disappears quickly.
www.discountperfume.net.au/Articles.asp
passing away gradually or imperceptibly (evanescence)
www.eldritchdark.com/articles/criticism/69/a-glossary-for-the-fiction-of-clark-ashton-smith
lasting only a short time; transitory. Haunting behavior is evanescent and exiguous ( extremely scanty; deficient in fullness, extent).
mysite.verizon.net/vzeoqapc/ghostexcavator/id30.html

Vanishing like a vapor is the main definition I heard. All of these definitions are interesting. Fucking awesome English word!! And HOT picture to go along with it!!
LOVE you out there people!

Andy Warhol :more History and influence Polaroid Instamatic Cameraa


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Originally uploaded by ● Frio
Andy Warhol with the famous Polaroid Instamatic camera. He was famous for those 80s celebrity silkscreens. It is how he made such big bucks in the 1980s. The silkscreen would originate with one of these instantly developed photos from this camera. Everyone had one. Even our family did. I guess not everyone, but so many did as I think they were affordably priced. Anyway, they are making a" comeback." Saw a CBS piece on the comeback and I intend to do a follow up. and report back to you dear audience. The European company where Polaroid was based says they are making more of them and they are a big hit in that country. It is Austria or Germany I believe.