Tag Archives: Video

The Venice Biennale – My Afterthoughts

What struck me the most at the Venice Biennale was how I decided I am a modernist and I don’t know where my he(ART) lies in contemporary art. However, with that being said, I still found pavilions and artists I do admire and found some pretty incredibly intriguing works.
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To begin, Ryan Trecartin never disappoints and is always a good laugh watching his drag-style videos. While to me they are never a bore, it is tres interesting to find some people were literally passed out at one of his viewing spots in the Encyclopedic Palace. But actually, knocked out. Unconscious. This was not my case, for I was avidly watching his films, as I always do. If you ever get the opportunity to watch one, DO IT.
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In terms of Pavilions though, my ABSOLUTE most FAVOURITE pavilion was the Netherlands Pavilion in which sculptures were erected out of clay and wood, amongst found objects. The sculptures were a combination of portrait like busts in various sizes, amongst a wooden table that had a clay sculpted lady attached to the front of the table, in a viking-ship like style. What happens when the clay dries?? But besides all this when you were up close looking at the sculptures they had incredibly strong facial features that captivated my eye.
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The COREA pavilion was interesting as well. The iridescent building was without a doubt eye catching, and yet the experience inside was polar opposite. For the “show” inside the pavilion was for you to experience darkness and silence in a room with a few others for a mere 60 seconds. Keep in mind though – you can wait up to 20 minutes to stand in what some may consider a closet with no lights and sound – so you could try and experience this at home  – although I do not recommend it. Your roommates or relatives may find this odd.
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Anri Sala’s Ravel Ravel Unravel video series for the FRENCH Pavilion (which technically took place in the German Pavilion – they made a switcharoo) was nevertheless intriguing, captivating, and moving. I highly recommend taking the time to sit down and watch the videos – just don’t lean on the walls or else a little lady will come and make you move.

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While I know there are 50+ more pavilions to discuss, this is what I have to share for now. If yo get the opportunity to go, make sure you don’t miss these works. Trust me. They are some of the BEST.

XX, DP

Hide & Seek: Kenzie May

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Our LALALAND music GENIUS gal pal, LP (@leanneperice) discovered this fresh track… Get your SATURDAY started with Kenzie May, a 19 year old Bostonian born singer-songwriter who now resides in London…

If you wanna play…

Enjoy Kids!

XX, DP

Fondazione Giuliani: per l’arte contemporanea

So we have come across this AMAZING non-for-profit foundation in the dear city of Roma, Fondazione Giuliani (Via Gustavo Bianchi 1, Rome, Italy 00153). The foundation is dedicated to the research, advocacy, and exhibition of contemporary art. Their newest show is from the artist Guido van der Werve entitled “Nummer Veertien, Home.” The show began yesterday and runs until the 23rd of March. Below we have inserted a description of the film. We encourage all art enthusiasts to go and check it out! Screenings are held Tuesday – Saturday at 3:30 P.M., 5:00 P.M., and 6:30 P.M.

“For twenty days and a distance of over 1700 km, Guido van der Werve embarked on an extreme pilgrimage from Poland to France, swimming, cycling and running from Warsaw to the tomb of Frédéric Chopin in Paris. The Polish composer’s dying wish, who was to be buried in the Parisian cemetery of Père Lachaise, was that his heart be returned to Poland to the church of Santa Croce in Warsaw, where the film Nummer veertien, home begins. A requiem composed by van der Werve accompanies three intersecting narratives: his own nostalgic journey at the pace of a triathlon, a surreal return to his native Holland, and a documentary on Alexander the Great who, like Chopin, died far from home. A key element of the film and characteristic of van der Werve’s practice, is the calibrated use of subtle deadpan humour that loosens the gloomy and melancholic atmosphere of his works and make his arduous performances almost surreal. The search for a balance between contradicting states of mind and emotions acts as metaphor of an intimate interior conflict that through the various films is extrapolated, played down, made more sustainable.”

So if you’re in Rome, don’t only go to the Pantheon and the Coliseum (typical tourist traps, fascinating though and we do find them intriguing), but check out Fondazione Giuliani, a true Italian masterpiece.

XX, DP

Matthew Barney – Fantasy Freakshow?

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Matthew Barney – shocked? confused? repulsed? What is there to say about this Yale University graduate? What isn’t there to say? This Houdini ancestor (or so the story goes), husband of Bjork, and back in the day a fashion model, creates art that without a doubt creates a unique reaction. Unique. I don’t know any other word (or for that case words) to describe his work. Whether he’s dressed up in drag or climbing the walls of the Guggenheim for his Cremaster series (enter if you dare), this artist is testing the limits of the body. At what point can it go no further? At what point does his work become grotesque? Is it grotesque? Is it appealing? It for sure is fantasy-like… but is there a market for that in today’s society? What is your he(ART) telling you?

xx, DP