Death: A Self Portrait

A new exhibit in London explores the human fascination with death throughout time and various cultures.  Death: A Self-portrait at the Wellcome collection showcases morbid still lifes from the 1600's, to Day of the Dead sculptures in the 1970s.  Metamorphic postcards from 1900's, ancestral offerings to contemporary art and sculpture are also displayed.  

As macabre as this exhibit may appear at first, I found it very interesting to see how people of different histories interpret death.  It's not so much about being morbid, but acknowledging how short life really is, or celebrating the person who once was, so they are never forgotten.  Everyone's relationship with death is so very personal, which makes each item special.  

Death: A Self Portrait 

Until February 24, 2013

Wellcome Collection, 183 Euston Road, London NW1 2BE, UK

The Vesper project opens today at the Friedman Benda gallery in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York.  It is a spooky installation of artist Titus Kaphar that weaves personal stories of his family, historical context, found objects and distorted photographs.

It was intended to be an experiential artwork presentation.  Viewers will explore abandoned wardrobes, old typewriters, gilt frames but altered to cause doubt and alter recognition.  Think of it as a very high brow haunted house of an artist's personal story...  For more information, cehck out the gallery website: http://www.friedmanbenda.com/

Titus Kaphar: The Vesper Project

November 8 - December 1, 2012 

The Tragedy of Maria Macabre

photos by Michael Blase

Happy Halloween my lovelies! I had a wonderful time with my Victorian Horrors party over the weekend, with illicit teacup cocktails, ravens and the exquisite dancers of Rachel Klein Productions.

They are the amazing group behind the Symphony of Shadows I saw earlier this year.  If you are in  New York this Sunday, check out the fantastic new production, The Tragedy of Maria Macabre.  The show is a macabre circus, a bit of Grand Guignol, and gorgeous celebration for the Day of the Dead. The performance will take place at La Mama theater in the East Village.

Check out the trailer here.  More information about the event here. 

Sunday, November 4, 2012

5:30 PM

Club at La MaMa. 

74a East 4th Street, btwn 2nd Ave and Bowery

UPDATE 11/1/12: Due to the damage from Hurricane Sandy, the theater is closed until further notice.  Please check out their site to stay informed of their current projects and their next show!

Symphony of Shadows, A Morbid Fantasia

I had the supreme pleasure of attending the first performance of this sexy and macabre show.  The production is an extravaganza of ballet, aerialists, musicians, surreal costumes, acrobats, burlesque and dancers telling a dark, but beautiful story.

Nightmares plague the central heroine every night and her corporate day job is a bigger horror still.  The heroine is haunted by everything from a sequin tossing demon, trapeze black widow, menacing hunky rats, shimmering snake contortionist, flaming fan dancer, lingerie-clad ghosts to name a few.  The eerie violin concerto is a sensuous score to this seamless, elaborate production.

Creator Rachel Klein started with a concept of the horrors of sleep paralysis.  She worked with co-story writer Sean Gill on how to portray the different nightmares.  Visual inspirations included silent films and the paintings of Henry Fusili.  Performers from her own theater company, as well as dancers from Martha Graham, Alvin Ailey and circus performers from House of Yes, Circus Warehouse, Muse and Skybox collaborated with  her to create the character movements of the horrors.  Composer Sean Hagerty produced the eerie music that set the mood.

If you are in NYC the next few weeks, definitely make the time to enjoy this show!

Thursdays - Saturdays,

June 7 – 23 at 7:30pm

Dixon Place, 161A Chrystie Street, (between Rivington & Delancey)

Buy tickets: $15 in advance, $18 at the door, $12 (student/senior)

Photos by Mariana Leung & Michael Blase

Le Cabinet de Curiosites

 Stroll into a historical financial building in Tribeca and enter a macabre fantasy.  The New York Mercantile Exchange building is currently hosting an elegant, unusual exhibit presented by the Malborough and Steinitz galleries.

The unique show is the collaboration of artists, Thierry Despont, Manolo Valdes and Claudio Bravo.  The show is intended to be a multi-layered experience to evoke wonder in the viewer.  It features a mix of opulent antiques, like Napoleon Bonaparte's Empire table, giant preserved insects, fantasy creatures made of found objects, artfully arranged animal skulls.

Had I had to room to do so, I would have twirled around the floor, but the gallery was filled with the glitterati like Princess Firyal of Jordan and a Baroness...Maybe even aristocrats have a dark side...

The multiple rooms had the Gothic ambience of Victorian mystery and scientific whimsy of Steampunk.   Gilded, but aged walls.  Treasures with a dark edge.

The exhibit runs until January 31, 2012.  It is located on the 2nd floor of the New York Mercantile Exchange Building at 6 Harrison Street.  Admission is free and open to the public.

Othelo Gervacio PostBoredom

The Fuse Gallery recently hosted a show by Othelo Gervacio in NYC.  The art was a mix of inky Gothic calligraphy, moody grim reapers.  Skulls incorporated into religious icons or poetic death images collaged on the walls.

The artist has a great blog on Tumblr showcasing his work as well as his passions.  

Rodarte's Noir Fashion Exhibit at Museum of Contemporary Arts

In business for only six years, the Mulleavy sisters of Rodarte have been one of the most lauded and respected fashion designers of the current generation.  Honored by Michelle Obama with the Cooper Hewitt Award, celebrated by the fashion elite, the label is now being honored at the Museum of Contemporary Arts in Los Angeles.

The exhibit, “Rodarte: States of Matter” shows several tutus from their highly publicized (and controversial) gig designer for the movie Black Swan.  There are also garments from three seasons of their runway collections.

Longtime collaborator, Alexandre de Betak helped to create dramatic set pieces to display the collection.  A very noir exhibit meant to display black garments as sculpture pieces, there are mannequins suspended from the ceiling and spun slowly on whirling motors.

The theatrical “immersive” exhibit is what you would hope for from a duo who cites “Living Dead Dolls” and Japanese horror films as inspiration. 

The exhibit runs until June 5, 2011 at MOCA Pacific Design Center in Los Angeles.

Photos by Autumn de Wilde. Courtesy of MOCA.

Gothic Steampunk Sculpture of John Christopher Borrero

I started my holiday shopping at the One of a Kind Show in NYC last weekend.  The event brings together artisans from all over to present everything from jewelry, clothing, fine art and gourmet items that are made by hand.  One artist stood out for me.  John Borrero had haunting paintings that looked like lost souls.  He also had several fantastic sculptures with a macabre, steampunk slant.  Many of them featured moody, faded photographed faces set into mechanical mannequins.

If you are looking for a special, unique gift, check out the last weekend of the show...More details here.

Yoshitomo Nara Nobody's Fool + Cosplay Contest

The Asia Society in New York is hosting a landmark exhibition of Yoshitomo Nara's work and its ties to rebellion, rock and punk music.  The neo-pop artist is known for his hipster creepy-cute images of children and animals.  

On Friday, October 15, the museum will host a Cosplay competition in the artist's honor.  Prizes from Forbidden Planet, Midtown Comics and the museum itself will be awarded.  Participants need to be in costume inspired by either anime, comics, video games or your own original concept.

Divine Comedy Auction at Sotheby's

How to you send celebrities like Alan Cumming, Julianne Moore and Padma Lakshmi to Hell?  Invite them to Sotheby's auction house for a private viewing of their new exhibit and auction, The Divine Comedy.

This is a rare tongue-in-cheek event for the famed, often stuffy auction house.  It was inspired by Dante's vision of Inferno, Purgatory and Paradise.  The exhibits range from classic August Rodin sculpture, a variation of a Bosch triptych to contemporary art like Damien Hirst, Andy Warhol and Cindy Sherman.

If you don't have the thousands (or hundreds of thousands) in dollars to purchase these pieces, you can buy the illustrated catalog instead.  Click here for more information or view the exhibit until October 19th.
Top photo by Joe Schildkrout, art photos from Sotheby's.

Dead or Alive: MAD Museum Exhibit in NYC

Is there beauty in death? At the Museum of Arts and Design, thirty artists attempt to prove this true. Through sculptures, installations, the works in this exhibit are made from items once living, now dead.

Some of have re-purposed bones into new objects. Some have made use of the decorative patterns and silhouettes of insects into beautiful decor motifs. Usually, an exhibit with such a theme provokes artists who create for shock value, or are politically abstract. Instead, the actual craft and design of these pieces are so well thought out, many could even be functional.

Feathers have been a prominent embellishment in fashion in current seasons, and fits perfectly into this exhibit. The iridescent wings of butterflies take on the silky sheen of many taffeta ballgown, its mural giving elegance to a room.

A motorcycle of engineered bones has the edge and style that would make the American Chopper Boys Drool. The delicate manipulations of beetles in a Victorian home setting might convince you it was an aristocratic estate piece.

The exhibit runs until October 24, 2010.

Photos by Stanzie Tooth

Beyond The Brambles - Exhibit by Jade Kuei

If you are in New York or New Jersey, check out artist Jade Kuei's new exhibit at the Kanibal boutique. She was previously profiled for her creepy cute jewelry collection, and has not graced us with a wonderful collection of paintings.

What nightmares can you encounter when you get lost in the woods? The exhibit examines the monsters that a child imagines he would encounter... What I love about Jade's work is that the child in her art are never victims. The child always seem to befriend or conquer the phantoms he encounters.

The art show runs until August 23rd, 2010. Can't make it to the exhibit? You can always peruse her Etsy shop or view her online portfolio.

Memento Mori Art Show at the Pop Gallery, Sante Fe NM

Artists Brandon Maldonado, Marie Sena and Daniel Martin Diaz have collaborated on a gorgeous new art show in Sante Fe, New Mexico. The exhibit is called Memento Mori: Remember You Must Die.

Brandon Maldonado's work has a beautiful illustrative quality to it, taking inspirations from religion, his own culture, Dia de los Muertos and pop culture. Marie Sena draws from her background in medical illustration and tattoo art to produce her myth-like pieces. Daniel Martin Diaz explores the effects of how religion and death have affected his family. Through his art, he examines the complexities of the human spirit.

The artists reception and official show opening is Saturday, July 24, 2010. If you are in New Mexico, head on over to the Pop Gallery at 133 West Water Street.

For more information, e-mail artinfo@popsantafe.com

Rodarte's Ancient Skull-Inspired Museum Project

Wickedly dark fashion designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy joined other creatives in a project for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The ladies of Rodarte took their inspiration from the museum's turquoise encrusted Mexican skull in their series of fashion sketches for the Cell Phone Stories project.

Participants like actor Rainn Wilson and artist Kianga Ford, people have contributed their voices, texts and images for art-seekers to take on a journey through the museum highlighting and reinterpreting the experience in unexpected ways.

Want to get in on the action? Text "LACMA" to 67553 to receive weekly text messages that will direct you to the various pieces of the project.

Macabre Travel: C'est La Vie Vanities in Paris

I am currently packing for my trip to Paris at the end of the week. I am eagerly looking forward to the ''That's Life! Vanities: From Caravaggio to Damien Hirst'' exhibit at Paris' Musee Maillol

until June 28th.

The exhibit is a collection of work from contemporary and classical artists that examines the relationship of life, death and vanity. Modern artist Damien Hirst's crystal studded skull was a flashy controversial piece when it debuted, but suits the theme perfectly as a representative of today's interpretation of the theme. Contemporary artists seem to view death with a rebellious view. Caravaggio's haunting monk, or Luigi Miradori's Sleeping Cupid showed the macabre respect of the elders in accepting detch.

There is pop art from Keith Haring, surrealism, and historical pieces dating back to the mosaics of Pompeii. If anything is to be learned from such work, it is that life is short, enjoy it any way you can...

RIP Louise Bourgeois, Pioneering Artist and Sculptor

Louise Bourgeois was photographed by Robert Mapplethorpe, had her own retrospective at the MOMA and influenced many a young artist passed away today in Manhattan. Her work was dark, witty, erotic and emotionally charged.

She worked in primarily steel, wood and stone, often depicting the human form. Her French childhood was a major influence in many of her pieces. She represented the United States at the Venice Biennale and has been featured at the Tate Modern.

Photo of Louise: Maplethorpe Gallery

Morose and Macabre Gallery and Shoppe

Are you tired of staring at the bleak, blank walls of your home? Perhaps its time to peruse the spooky and elegant gallery of Dr. Morose and Miss Macabre Noir (not a relative of mine). Their biography, or "Obituary" states the deceased couple had made an agreement with the devil to return to Earth after being tortured and rolled in flames to "Share their visions of hell and the wonderful things that await the still breathing."
The gorgeously designed website is host to an online gallery of , moody art, creepy sculptures and shadow boxes. Their Etsy shop also offers art, jewelery and clothing. Their self-named "oddities" show a diverse range of skill and vision. Could they be Hieronymus Bosch reincarnated? Only Beelzebub can tell.

13th Hour at the Last Rites Gallery

How can you stay away from an exibit called the "13th Hour" from a gallery named "Last Rites?"
This deliciously dark art series features artists like H.R. Giger, Michael Hussar, Kris Kuksi, John John Jesse, Chet Zar, Inky Dreadfuls, Anthony Pontius, Lithium Picnic, Carrie Anne Baade, Molly Crabapple and more. This show sets the perfect mood for All Hallows Eve, running from October 18th to November 23rd.
511 W33rd Street in New York City.