YELLO:EINFACH AUSGEZEICHNET!
When i go long periods without a new web posting, my poor student interns and assistants get quite the emug equivalent of an earful of complaints.What is happening with Ms. Davis? Why hasn´t she added anything new to her blog? Is she in rehab? I am so fortunate that i have a small army of devotees who work with me helping to keep my sundry life together. Lots of love, kisses and a million thanks to Andrea Novarin, Gleeson Brevard, Verle Oberon, Chrome Chastain, Marc Arthur and Lawrence Roberts who all work so hard contributing to the greater glory and cause of namely me, The Vaginal Davis doll. I am a fascinating monster, yet its not easy being friends with me let alone working gratis for such a demanding taskmistress.
UPDATA UPDATA
i left out a bunch of names of the very important guests at legendary filmmaker Wilhelm Hein´s amazing dinner party. So sorry about that. Here are the corrections:
Vivacious and cute Irish filmcurator Peter Taylor of WORM and the Rotterdamn Film Festival with his pretty German girlfriend Christiane Gruen, mighty and meaty Aleks Cigale of the Mad Angus musical project, sultry Polish artist Olga Lewicken with her
philosopher king beau Dr. Carsten Zorn, gifted Austrian poetess Sissi Tax and handsome gallerist Johannes Fischer of the Gallery FischerundFischer where Wilhelm will exhibit his painting on Feb 6th at 7pm The gallery is located at Strausberger Platz 18.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
EIN NÄCHTLICHER STREIFZUG
New decade, and like Ms. Patti LaBelle I´ve got a new attitude. Lund Universities Malmö Art Academy of Sweden has invited me to teach a block seminar in March.
The title of my class will be: Platinum Jungle–Screen Goddesses Caught Between Black&White
General Course Description-Jean Harlow, the literal whitest of white hot sex stars of 1930s Hollywood, pencil thin eyebrows, smoldering platinum über-blondine hair, skin and teeth. Josephine Baker, all legs, all ass, all the time, topped off by the ultimate Marcel wave, conquered Europe in the 1920s as the first international black superstar. At first glance these famous performers and their life trajectories couldn’t be more different. But appearances, as these women knew quite well, are often deceiving.
The influence of both stars can be felt to this day. Harlow’s image, despite her early death, has inspired numerous later performers and artists like Kenneth Anger and Andy Warhol. La Baker’s signature banana skirt became a ubiquitous image throughout the 20th century, even when it overshadowed its creator. What are the factors governing the reception of these two sex symbols in and out of the art world? What might they offer to performers and other visual artists today?
In this course we will look at some of the rare films of these two extraordinary women, as well as examples of their influence in order to probe their non-conventional and innovative gender, racial and aesthetic politics for our purposes today.
Later in March I´ll be flown to New York to perform as part of Columbia Universities Semiospectacular that is the brainchild of the gifted Phd student Mashinka Firunts, who use to be one of my Bricktops girls back in Los Angeles. I´ll also be returning to my favorite stomping grounds of NYU thanks to Nancy Barton who is the chair of the Arts Professionals Dept. Not to leave New Jersey out of the equation, Professor Ricardo Montez will be inviting me to Princeton, and the students of Hampshire College in Massachutts ganged up on the administration to bring me to their tiny campus as well, so watch out Academia a giant black queen is running loose and rampant in your ranks.
It is cold, very cold in Berlin. The enchantment of snow has worn thin. The sidewalks are frozen and slippery so its very dangerous to simply walk about.
Thank Jehovah of Armies for Joel Gibb of the Hidden Cameras and Anna Muelter of HAU. The dynamic duo roused me from my new year depression and took me to dinner at this yumsty vegan restaurant in Mehringdamn. Joel also invited me to his huge compound in Neu Kölln for some homemade soup plantation. Its great feeling social again. I went to Uli Ziemons 28th birthday celebration in Kreuzberg. Uli is the best looking young man in all of Europa. He is tall, dark and very, very handsome. His soiree was held at the Champagneria Umtrunk located on Falckenstein Str. Its a very cute place, that use to be someones flat now turned into a bar/lounge for the twentysomething set. The crowd was fresh and friendly, which isn´t the usual fare in Berlin. Strangers actually were chit chatting with each other and several joined in on our groups conversation. Helping to celebrate the birth of the beauty boy: the Arsenal gang lead by Empress Stefanie Schulte Strathaus, her right hand gal Nanna Heidenreich of Arsenal Experimental with girlfriend DJane Olga Damnitz, Bettina the Sandy Dennis Döppleganger who is curating Forum Expanded, Nadja Talmi, French cupcake Giuamme and his wife, Mourning Becomes Elektra of The Chocolate Grinder Kollective, Daniel Hendrickson and handsome fashion designer beau Piero Bellomo of la Collezione. Also seen in the room white girl rapper Invincible with Hollywood male ingenue Hunter Parrish.
Sunday the legendary experimental film guru Wilhelm Hein hosted a super dinner party at his Kali Films studio. You never know who you will meet at one of his feasts. Wilhelm and his art photog girlfriend Annette Frick know some of the most fascinating people in the world. Its hard to believe that Wilhelm will be turning 70soon, he has one of the most youthful spirits of anyone i know, and is randy & lovesexy like a teenage boy. At the Hein rectangular dinner table: Julia Pfeiffer and Roseline Rannoch of Montgomery Gallery, troubador Mad Angus, goodlooking hunk Ossip Sieverding, Paul the Irish curator for the Rotterdamn Film Festival and his girlfriend,plus Austrian poetess Sissy Text. Will update with all the names of the guests and also the name and date of the Gallery that Wilhelm will have an exhibit at on Feb 6th so check back to this blog a little later.
New decade, and like Ms. Patti LaBelle I´ve got a new attitude. Lund Universities Malmö Art Academy of Sweden has invited me to teach a block seminar in March.
The title of my class will be: Platinum Jungle–Screen Goddesses Caught Between Black&White
General Course Description-Jean Harlow, the literal whitest of white hot sex stars of 1930s Hollywood, pencil thin eyebrows, smoldering platinum über-blondine hair, skin and teeth. Josephine Baker, all legs, all ass, all the time, topped off by the ultimate Marcel wave, conquered Europe in the 1920s as the first international black superstar. At first glance these famous performers and their life trajectories couldn’t be more different. But appearances, as these women knew quite well, are often deceiving.
The influence of both stars can be felt to this day. Harlow’s image, despite her early death, has inspired numerous later performers and artists like Kenneth Anger and Andy Warhol. La Baker’s signature banana skirt became a ubiquitous image throughout the 20th century, even when it overshadowed its creator. What are the factors governing the reception of these two sex symbols in and out of the art world? What might they offer to performers and other visual artists today?
In this course we will look at some of the rare films of these two extraordinary women, as well as examples of their influence in order to probe their non-conventional and innovative gender, racial and aesthetic politics for our purposes today.
Later in March I´ll be flown to New York to perform as part of Columbia Universities Semiospectacular that is the brainchild of the gifted Phd student Mashinka Firunts, who use to be one of my Bricktops girls back in Los Angeles. I´ll also be returning to my favorite stomping grounds of NYU thanks to Nancy Barton who is the chair of the Arts Professionals Dept. Not to leave New Jersey out of the equation, Professor Ricardo Montez will be inviting me to Princeton, and the students of Hampshire College in Massachutts ganged up on the administration to bring me to their tiny campus as well, so watch out Academia a giant black queen is running loose and rampant in your ranks.
It is cold, very cold in Berlin. The enchantment of snow has worn thin. The sidewalks are frozen and slippery so its very dangerous to simply walk about.
Thank Jehovah of Armies for Joel Gibb of the Hidden Cameras and Anna Muelter of HAU. The dynamic duo roused me from my new year depression and took me to dinner at this yumsty vegan restaurant in Mehringdamn. Joel also invited me to his huge compound in Neu Kölln for some homemade soup plantation. Its great feeling social again. I went to Uli Ziemons 28th birthday celebration in Kreuzberg. Uli is the best looking young man in all of Europa. He is tall, dark and very, very handsome. His soiree was held at the Champagneria Umtrunk located on Falckenstein Str. Its a very cute place, that use to be someones flat now turned into a bar/lounge for the twentysomething set. The crowd was fresh and friendly, which isn´t the usual fare in Berlin. Strangers actually were chit chatting with each other and several joined in on our groups conversation. Helping to celebrate the birth of the beauty boy: the Arsenal gang lead by Empress Stefanie Schulte Strathaus, her right hand gal Nanna Heidenreich of Arsenal Experimental with girlfriend DJane Olga Damnitz, Bettina the Sandy Dennis Döppleganger who is curating Forum Expanded, Nadja Talmi, French cupcake Giuamme and his wife, Mourning Becomes Elektra of The Chocolate Grinder Kollective, Daniel Hendrickson and handsome fashion designer beau Piero Bellomo of la Collezione. Also seen in the room white girl rapper Invincible with Hollywood male ingenue Hunter Parrish.
Sunday the legendary experimental film guru Wilhelm Hein hosted a super dinner party at his Kali Films studio. You never know who you will meet at one of his feasts. Wilhelm and his art photog girlfriend Annette Frick know some of the most fascinating people in the world. Its hard to believe that Wilhelm will be turning 70soon, he has one of the most youthful spirits of anyone i know, and is randy & lovesexy like a teenage boy. At the Hein rectangular dinner table: Julia Pfeiffer and Roseline Rannoch of Montgomery Gallery, troubador Mad Angus, goodlooking hunk Ossip Sieverding, Paul the Irish curator for the Rotterdamn Film Festival and his girlfriend,plus Austrian poetess Sissy Text. Will update with all the names of the guests and also the name and date of the Gallery that Wilhelm will have an exhibit at on Feb 6th so check back to this blog a little later.