Mexican Day of the Dead Festival at The Bargehouse SE1 - 29-10-14

Day of the Dead Festival - The Bargehouse SE1 - 29-10-14

The opening night at the Bargehouse was one of those events where you wish you had dusted down the Paul Smith suit and the Prince style platforms for men, packed as it was with Amazonians that towered over you, even when stood on a sneaky step. One of the attendees must have been 6ft 6ins without the heels.
Many Mexican embassy staff marshalled us with grace,and the whole event was totally brilliant.
A room of b/w photos of WW1 veterans was a touching opening space. Onward and upward to floor 2 and floor 3 where the action was.

Fabulous HD photos of proper Mexican Day of the Dead costumes;the subjects covered in bright yellows and oranges, greens and blues, material, body paint and heaven knows what else. The triangular pieces along a wall were stunning in their beauty, and then there was a macabre room of wood like sculptures by the Chapman bros.

The floor ended with the geodesic dome constructed by Kayle Brandon and Lady Lucy, which will be covered with drawings and art works by attendees at the drawing exchange events at various cemeteries in the next 3 days. These include the Crossbones cemetery at Bunhill - no doubt linked to the famous plague pit, and Highgate East cemetary where Karl Marx is buried. The dome will be spectacular by Sunday, and I expect to be there to see it dismantled.
A totally brilliant night was capped by one of those moments of serendipidity you might be able to dine out on, (well at least get a swiss roll out of). I was explaining I loved London because there is always something of interest to be seen around every corner.

My friend was struggling with my concept, but just then we turned into Hatfields to see a large crowd gathered under a railway bridge, apparently all watching a huge row between a man and woman.
"Its one of those walking tours " I predicted.
As we approached all became clear. It was a promenade theatre event; the man had been attempting to leave his graffiti and tag and the woman had objected to him destroying the environment ( I think). There followed a full on, foul-mouthed slanging match with the arguments for and against the gentrification of London boroughs, delivered with brilliant clarity despite being yelled and featuring a foreign accent. It was amazing to stumble upon, especially at that moment and captured exactly the point I was trying to make about why I love this city.

www.dayofthedeadfestival.co.uk 

Late Turner + Turner Prize 2014 at Tate Britain

Late Turner & Turner Prize at Tate Britain 10-10-14

What would Turner make of this years prize, a decent enough question seeing as its named after him. We currently have an opportunity to imagine his frame of mind in later life, by examining many large and bright oils and more petite watercolours in the current show. He certainly put in the hard yards , no flipping through books in a library or listening to audio tracks on a computer for him. Much of these late works are composed from hillsides and lake views in Switzerland, with a familiar view of Lake Lucerne with its causeway over which trains still cross today. Then there is Lake Zug and and the famous mountain of the area – the Rilke I believe. He went back to this part of the world ten times and produced lots of work, some of which looks unfinished as the canvasses feature large white expanses – unusual for him.

Turner ended his career specialising in capturing a moment – that special moment when the sun bursts through the clouds like a celestial spotlight, blinding the onlooker with light. Or that millisecond when a steam train thunders across a viaduct, creating a foggy smokey atmosphere, through which one can not only glimpse the locomotive, but seemingly see inside the engine room, all sparks, sweat, motion, fury. He might be leaping what is really possible in this most famous picture ; "Rain, Steam, Speed - The Great Western Railway 1844", but most of us tend to overlook the artistic licence to allow for the overall effect. Atmosphere became his speciality and some of his best work can be seen in the Tate’s current show. There are some delightful views of Rome , ancient and modern, as well as fires as seen at the Houses of Parliament 1833 and at The Tower of London.

How do you create mystery and atmosphere when your chosen medium is video? Its not something any three of the four artists short listed for this years Turner prize attempt. They all seem to have reached the same point of view regarding art ; make a super annoying – ( Richards, Vonna, Campbell)} ultra pretentious – the one based on Chris Marker and Alan Resnais – “It for others” – Campbell , and extremely offensive and boundary pushing – Richards film featuring Robert Mapplethorpes xxx cert photos of male on male sex. All three are beyond any kind of excuse for art – they are accompanied by the most tedious, pathetic audio tracks imaginable – the only feeling any of them left me with was frustration that this utter drivel has been chosen not only for the Turner Prize, but to represent Britain at the Venice Biennale.What a bunch of utter, self important twerps the Italians who saw it must think we Brits are.

Whats worse is that the only artist the “panel” could find that didnt contribute a daft film was Ciara Philips screen prints which have been used to wallpaper her space. The only good thing here were her posters of revolutionaries like Riviera and Che Guevera. Really decent subject matter and didn’t make you feel like self harming within two minutes of looking on. Well that’s got to be worth £20k in itself, hasn’t it ?

For what its worth I think Duncan Campbell will win, as his was the only room that people didn’t rush through while averting their eyes from the art they were here to see. In Campbells room about half a dozen people were actually watching the film, without shouting out “when’s Emmanuelle on? “ or “I was expecting to see Saw or at least Machete ! “ or “boo I want my money back “ or the funniest “even Gilbert & George is better than this !”.But this was the most execrable, pretentious work I have seen in a long time. Truly dire. Congrats Duncan!

Welcome to New York - 2014

 Dir - Abel Ferrara, 
 Cast - G Depardieu, J Bisset

Following the revelations in Gerard Depardieu's new autobiography that he was a nasty little shit during his teenage years, casting  the obese French star as a thinly disguised, but physically huge and morally grotesque French politician is a masterstroke.

Apparently based on Dominique Strauss Khan (aka DSK),the ageing bon viveur whose time in control of the IMF has set him fair for a run at the next Presedential election. Depardieu is well beyond caring how he may appear while engaging in prolonged panty, pervy sex with a succession of party girls, and surpasses all non-porno male performances in sexual staying power and never ending depravity in the opening 20 mins of this excellent movie. With the exception, perhaps, of Michael Fassbinder in the last 20 mins of Steve Mcqueen's Shame, he lets it all hang out like no other.

Having started his visit to a New York hotel suite with a lengthy and violent looking bj from a blonde, he carries on with a visit from two more hookers for another sex session, the other party people having long gone,  doubtless exhausted.
Depardieu is utterly believable in the role of a sex addict who happens to be a grande fromage in gay Paris.When he drops his trousers ready to be pleasured in the opening scene, his huge gut takes up so much of the shot, only widescreen will suffice  for us to see the rest of what goes on in the room.

The fateful lunge on the unsuspecting chamber maid in scene 3 is another masterclass in unselfconsciousness, while attempting yet another depraved, violent, unpleasant sexual act. Having been arrested and remanded and then ultimately bailed to live in NYC while awaiting trial, he is quite remorseless as he discusses another vulgar embarrassment with his wife - Jacqueline Bisset still looking elegant and sophisticated - who has bailed him out yet again.

He seems quite baffled. What is all the fuss about? He only made her touch his penis with her mouth. He didn't have sex with her or anything like that. "What is wrong with these....people" he spits with as much venom and contempt as is fitting.  And so it goes on, the conversation between them is accompanied by Gerard's increasingly desperate attempts to conjure forgiveness from his bitter wife, who is ever more repulsed by what her husband has become. Theses exchanges are a real treat, Bisset giving another clever acting class as a beautiful, intelligent , wealthy woman who apparently has it all but is trapped by her fame and humbling circumstances. She has to stick by her man by whom she can not bear to be touched, because the alternative - the public shame and indefensible position a "guilty" plea would leave them in, is even worse.

This is a monster protagonist drawn from the real world, not the pages of Robert Harris or JRR Tolkein, Mary Shelley or the Brothers Grimm. Abel Ferrara is perhaps best known for low budget shock horrors like Driller Killer. But the more recent The Addiction and The Funeral from the 90s, as well as the infamous Bad Lieutenant featuring another out-there performance from Harvey Keitel, demonstrated he had class. This tour de force proves it beyond doubt. Lets hope the court case he will no doubt have to fight when DSK sues for libel does not put an end to the career of a talent that is ready for the big time proper. I just doubt that his next release - Pasolini - will be the one to put him there.
P Budgie - for Treedown Gotobed - 06-09-14