Hustler of Culture

Ghibli World of Minecraft

I am so grateful that there are some people with lots and lots and lots of free time on their hands! Someone loves Hayao Miyazaki very much! [Thanks to Mike Steel for this amazing clip!]

NYC - "Dreamweapon" (05.10.11 - 05.29.11)

 

1-2-1 With jeffstaple Featuring Jose Parla

Jeff interviewed a mutual friend and one of the most amazing painters to explode on the downtown NYC art scene in the past decade, Jose Parla.

LA - "To Japan From LA With Love" (04.16.11 - 05.01.11)

Chicago - "The Age of Aquarius" (03.13.11 - 05.01.11)

The Renaissance Society presents
THE AGE OF AQUARIUS
March 13 - May 01, 2011

This show will address the lingering cultural fallout of the 1960s, in particular its effect on a generation of younger artists and their engagement with the period as it becomes more somberly remote. Fifteen years ago Newt Gingrich said the 1960s would come to be seen as a "temporary aberration" within the overall trajectory of U.S. history. Even if he is right, the '60s remains a period with whose ideals we still reckon no matter how misguided, dark, or farcical they have since proven. This exhibition will include video and installation works by Carol Bove (b. 1971), Amy Grappell (b. 1965) and David Noonan (1969).

The opening reception will be on Sunday March 13, 2011, from 4pm to 7pm, and will include a discussion with filmmaker Amy Grappell from 5pm to 6pm, in room 120, Kent Hall, on the campus of The University of Chicago.

Katharine Hepburn Skateboarding

Does anyone know what the origin of this photo is? I Googled "Katharine Hepburn skateboarding" and can't find the who/what/when/where/why for this image. Let me know if you know, thanks!

[Thanks to AnotherMag for the find!]

MOCA Art Opening

Attending MOCA's Rodarte art opening and visiting See Line Gallery.

Nowness Video: José Parlá's "Off the Wall"

José Parlá: Off the Wall on Nowness.com.

Check out Matt Black's latest interview with our friend and amazing painter, José Parlá. On discussing his path to fine art, Jose states, “Society mostly categorized [graffiti] art as vandalism, so my struggle as an artist was to show its beauty to those who could not see it..." and, “The more people told me it was trash, the more I wanted to do it.”

Don't miss José's new show "Walls, Diaries and Paintings" at New York’s Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery.

Goodnight Dune

Like the thousands of children before her, Lulu loves Goodnight Moon, the children's picture book written by Margaret Wise Brown. Published in the late 1940s, it seems as popular today as it ever was then. And just like the Sophie giraffe, it's one of the items you know nearly every parent-friend of yours has.

I have always thought the book's art by Clement Hurd to be a little dark, maybe even creepy. But Lulu's demands for the book to be read over and over (in French and English) reassured me that she was digging the small cast of characters, rhythm of the words, and bedroom full of fun.

Goodnight Dune, a retelling of the children's classic updated with Dune characters and environments is making the pop culture geek in me flip out. Who created such a cool mash up?! Enter Julia Yu, a senior developer at The Daily Beast. In her own words she describes her inspiration and process below:

Goodnight Dune was written and illustrated after I saw this article for Five Sci-Fi Children's Books on College Humor, linked from a Reddit post which asked for a more fleshed out version of the book. While the original parody art was amazing I decided to stick closer to the original Goodnight Moon art style, using some stylistic elements from the David Lynch movie version of Dune.

Wow. Seriously. Wow. So cool! I bet all Gen-X parents are loving this new iteration. I only wish Goodnight Dune could be published and read nightly in our household. Following are a few images to get you psyched. Read the whole thing here:

[Shout out to my pal Michelle for the link share!]

Official Trailer: A Love Letter For You

Check out the official trailer for Joey Garfield and Stephen Power's "A Love Letter For You". So bummed to miss the screening for this next week. NYC pals, tell me how it goes. For more info on the mural project and the film visit the site!

Adidas Skateboarding Brazil Feature

Check out this video because 1) Dan Wolfe shot it, 2) I love me adidas, 3) Brazilian graffiti, and 4) skateboarders, skateboarders, and skateboarders!

NYC - Jim Mangan's "Winter's Children" Event (01.15.11)

LA - Fantômas Centenaire (01.13.11)

HAMMER Presents
Fantômas Centenaire
Billy Wilder Theater
Thursday, January 13, 7pm
 
Co-presented by the Consulat General de France
 
The archfiend Fantômas was created by Marcel Allain and Pierre Souvestre in early 1911. The villain, in top hat and black mask, strode across the rooftops of Paris with a dagger in one hand, casting his murderous shadow over the city.  Born via pulpy paperbacks, he quickly attracted high culture admirers.  The Society of the Friends of Fantômas included Cocteau, Max Jacob, Picasso, Apollinaire, and Colette.  Magritte and Juan Gris painted him; Kurt Weill composed music for him.  In celebration of his 100th birthday, we will screen Louis Feuillade’s haunting, essential silent film Le Mort Qui Tue (1913) with live accompaniment by James Fearnley (The Pogues), followed by a discussion with Fantômas scholar Robin Walz, French director Jean-Pierre Gorin, Los Angeles Times  and NPR film critic Kenneth Turan and moderated by writer Howard Rodman and a birthday party in the courtyard with music by Pink Frankenstein (from Bardot A Go Go!).

ALL HAMMER PUBLIC PROGRAMS ARE FREE.  Tickets are required, and are available at the Billy Wilder Theater Box Office one hour prior to start time.  Limit one ticket per person on a first come, first served basis.  Hammer members receive priority seating, subject to availability.  Reservations not accepted, RSVPs not required.   Parking is available under the museum for $3 after 6:00pm, bikes park for free and many public transit lines run directly to the museum.  See our website for more info.
 
Hammer Public Programs
HAMMER Museum
10899 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90024
programs@hammer.ucla.edu
310.443.7000

NYC - "The Shoemaker" Screening (01.12.11)

SF - Bruce Bacca's "Pop-Up Church" (12.10.10 - 12.26.10)

LA - "Rare Exports" Screening (11.26.10)

FREE SNEAK PREVIEW: Rare Exports
Friday, November 26 | midnight

NOTE: To attend one must RSVP. One RSVP per person. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Your RSVP does not guarantee you a seat. You will receive a confirmation email about your RSVP 24-48 hours before showtime. Early arrival is highly recommended. Doors will open 30 minutes before showtime. No one will be admitted after the film has begun.

It’s almost impossible to shake the old-timey Norman Rockwell-esque image of a jolly, roly-poly man with white hair in a big red suit, whenever the name of “Santa Claus” is invoked -- but Rare Exports, the brand-new Finnish fantasy film based upon the popular short of the same name, shows you that the secret history of Father Christmas is far darker, far creepier and waaaaaay cooler. It's the eve of Christmas in northern Finland, and a mysterious "archeological" dig has just unearthed the real Santa Claus. When all the local children begin disappearing, a young boy, his father and their reindeer hunter friends capture the mythological being -- but Santa's elves, however, will stop at nothing to free their fearless leader from captivity. A wild, nightmarish cross between The Goonies, Gremlins and Let The Right One In, Rare Exports is a re-imagining of the most classic of all childhood fantasies, and is a darkly comic gem soon to be required perennial holiday viewing!

Dir. Jalmari Helander, 2010, 35mm, 80 min.

SM - 'Handmade Nation' Film Screening (11.17.10)

Handmade Nation Film Screening

Wednesday, November 17th, 7pm, FREE

Handmade Nation chronicles the new wave of art, craft and design that is capturing the attention of the nation. It is the feature film debut of director, author, artist and curator Faythe Levine. Levine traveled to 15 cities and covered more than 19,000 miles to interview artists, crafters, makers, curators and community members. Since this is our regular Zine Club night, we'll have zines and zine making supplies out to peruse and work on during the film, plus snacks and drinks.

Sewing teacher Christine Haynes appears in the opening credits of the film - you definitely won't want to miss it!

The Urban Craft Center
2433 Main Street,
Santa Monica, CA 90405

LA - Michel Gondry's "My New New York Diary" Event (11.11.10)

SF - "Bad Dads" (10.30.10 - ?)

Dark Side of the Lens

There are tons of surfing films coming out. This is the most beautifully shot one I've seen so far. [Thanks Kim for the tip!]