The Kiss
Deviant artist Rabbittooth's version of Klimt's The KissEarlier this week I was looking for reference on Gustav Klimt’s paintings in preparation for a fashionable nod to his decorative and luscious work. One thumbnail caught my eye and when I jumped to the page I beheld a version of The Kiss … featuring Han Solo and Princess Leia literally wrapped in a clinch. I blinked, and collapsed into hilarity. One of the funniest things I’ve seen in a long time.
Self-professed geekologist and Deviant artist Rabbittooth specialises in visual puns based on cultural icons, such as this pair, the stars of Kubrick’s The Shining combined with the famous painting American Gothic, and the Mona Lisa with an alien on her face.
But wait! There’s more! Pin-up Photographer Burke Heffner, also inspired by The Kiss, created a picture with a combination of photography and painting. In an interesting take on the original, he used models covered in body paint to emulate Klimt's iconic patterns.
I wonder what Klimt himself would think of all this homage?
Burke Heffner's version of The Kiss, complete with body paint
The one and only original: The Kiss, Gustav Klimt, 1908
March in Line
March illustration from the Frankie calendar, by Anke WeckmannHello March! The first day of the month is almost over, and it did not quite come in like a lion – apparently Melbourne enjoyed a ‘fresh breeze’ with occasional gusts resembling a ‘high wind’ or a ‘moderate gale’. If you’re wondering what on earth I am talking about, I refer to that saying ‘if March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb’. (So is a fresh breeze a really big cat I wonder?)
But I digress. March also blew in this charming folksy illustration by Anke Weckmann. I do like a bit of embroidery on cosy clothes for autumn. Anke is originally from Germany but now makes her home in London, illustrating for a number of publications. Her naïve style is playful and fresh with an appealing muted colour palette; it’s enjoyable seeing her sketchbooks with characters drawn in pencil. She says drawing is her favourite thing to do, although she also likes cups of tea, very long walks and blossoming trees.
See more of her work here.
Do you like this sweater? … The perfect thought for autumn.
The Alchemist
Untitled void sculpture, 2012; fibreglass, paintIt’s been about three weeks since I visited Sydney so that I could attend the Anish Kapoor exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art. And still the first word that springs to mind at the thought of the experience is, “Wow!”
I cannot help but respond in a visceral way, for his work is so profoundly and immediately moving in its bold simplicity, in its enormity, its silence that resounds so loudly in one’s being, that speaks to one’s spirit. It is mesmerising, transcends its surroundings so that one is oblivious to the crowds around. And yet some pieces are also delightfully engaging, so invitingly tactile and tempting to touch, to explore and discover the truth.
his work is so profoundly and immediately moving in its bold simplicity …
One envies the child that instinctively reached out to brush the blue pigment of My Body Your Body – the hand smudge is clearly visible in the bottom. Another deep-blue wall sculpture, Void, floats like an abyss before one’s eyes, mystifying, fascinating.
My Body Your Body, 1993; fibreglass, pigment
The exhibition catalogue states:
Anish Kapoor has created bodies of work that push the boundaries of sculpture through his explorations of the nature of perception in relation to space, form and mass. His ability to transform material into astonishing and often perplexing works of art which raise philosophical questions about the world and our position within it, has led to comparisons with alchemy, the ancient magical power to transform an ordinary substance into something of great value.
Last year when I visited Sydney the MCA was closed for renovations, and it was interesting to learn that the museum’s architects and curators had extensively consulted with Kapoor and his studio team regarding the spaces that would house his work – some of the rooms were specifically designed for this exhibition.
If you can get to Sydney before 1 April, I would strongly urge you to see this exhibition for an unforgettable experience. You can also read a previous post about Kapoor’s work here. I’ll shut up now and let some of my pictures speak a thousand more.
Untitled void sculpture, 2012; fibreglass, paint
Untitled void sculpture, 2012; fibreglass, paint
(Left) When I am Pregnant, 1992; fibreglass, wood, paint. (Right) Oracle, 1990-2002; sandstone, pigment.
Oracle, 1990–2002; sandstone, pigment
A man contemplates Void, 1989; fibreglass, pigment 
It is irresistible: he must lean in. Void, 1989; fibreglass, pigment
Side view, Void, 1989; fibreglass, pigment
Memory, 2008; Cor-Ten steel
Memory, 2008; Cor-Ten steel
S-Curve, 2006; stainless steel
That’s me on the left, reflected in C-Curve, 2007; stainless steel
This Colourful White Night
Theatre of Dreams :: Watts // Big Up // No flashLast night Melbourne held its inaugural White Night, during which art and culture took over the city from 7pm until 7am. The city was divided into precincts celebrating music, light shows, art, film and installations of all sorts. The streets were jammed, the laneways packed like sardines, but Melburnians behaved themselves on the whole.
Wonderland :: Lucifer VI // Rock BW-11 // No flashAlthough we heard some music (it was difficult to fully appreciate some of the acts because of the enormous crowding), my out-of-town friend and I most enjoyed the sound and light shows around town. The precincts had such evocative names as Wonderland, Theatre of Dreams, Elizabeth What Were You Thinking, The World Above, Light Fantastic, and Loved & Treasured. We only missed out on seeing the acts from Pictures & Posers and the Outer Limits, but it was impossible to see everything without a minute scrutiny of the program and careful mapping of the streets. I’m looking forward to next year already!
Read more at The Age website.
The Beasts From Behind :: TInto 1848 // D-Type Plate // No flash
Grisly and Gorey
From The Gashlycrumb Tinies
Edward GoreyThis might seem shocking to some, but until last week, I had never heard of eccentric American illustrator Edward Gorey (1925–2000). I don’t know if it’s simply because he wasn’t popular in Australia during my childhood, or somehow I just missed his work. This year, my sister gave me a mini calendar of his The Gashlycrumb Tinies, a rhyming alphabet of children who die in all sorts of grisly ways, first published in 1963. And today I learned on Abebooks’ Facebook page that yesterday was his birthday.
From The Gashlycrumb TiniesDuring his career, Gorey illustrated many books, including Bram Stoker’s Dracula and HG Wells’ The War of the Worlds, as well as creating his own books, many of which were wordless. With strange and evocative titles such as The Sinking Spell, The Inanimate Tragedy, The Glorious Nosebleed, The Sopping Thursday and The Abandoned Sock, Gorey's stories are delightfully sinister, drawn with a Victorian or Edwardian flavour and are equally appealing to adults as well as children … Or perhaps that should be written the other way around, for although Gorey’s books were popular with children he did not in fact associate with any, nor indulge in any particular fondness for them!
From the Donald book series
In response to being called gothic, he stated, “If you're doing nonsense it has to be rather awful, because there’d be no point. I'm trying to think if there’s sunny nonsense. Sunny, funny nonsense for children — oh, how boring, boring, boring. As Schubert said, there is no happy music. And that’s true, there really isn’t. And there’s probably no happy nonsense, either.” [Wikipedia]
I don’t know that I agree with that – you just have to look at Roald Dahl for some happy nonsense, or even Dr Seuss. Gorey also reminds me very much of Lemony Snicket, whose children’s books I have read (as an adult, after ostensibly purchasing the first of his A Series of Unfortunate Events for my niece Rosiecheeks) and enjoyed very much.
Read more about Edward Gorey at Abebook’s story.
The Deranged Cousins
The Osbick Bird