If you’re looking for something fresh to do this Saturday you’re in luck. I’ve done the research on this week’s Digital Schowcase presented by Austin Museum of Digital Art, and they’ve got some serious players on the roster. For one, Takuya Hosogane of Japan has agreed to screen some of his musically inspired works (Vanishing Point, above, will give you a taste), along with some powerhouse firms like Mirrorshade and Meta Atom, who have done full length motion-graphics pieces for Siemens, AIG, and other global clients. Add an international lineup of DJs from France, Portugal, Sweden, and Austin, and you can be sure there will be some fresh new beats to accompany what’s on screen(s).
8 Bones (Free with SXSWi Badge)
Club DeVille
9:00pm – 2:00am
I know it’s SXSW and all, but I got so excited putting together announcements for Arthouse programming at Fusebox I just couldn’t help but throw this up.
KAIJI MORIYAMA is an acclaimed Japanese performer, and perhaps the most significant figure in Japanese contemporary dance today. Jointly presented by Arthouse and testperformancetest, he will be performing The Velvet Suite (American Debut) with live violin accompaniment April 21-22 (opening weekend of Fusebox) at the Paramount Theatre.
Check out the above video for trippy crazy goodness, and get excited for what promises to be a riveting opening weekend of Fusebox Festival 2010.
You know Terry Richardson, right? If you think you don’t, believe me, you do. Richardson is single-handedly responsible for the dominance of the overexposed, washed-out-by-flash aesthetic in current fashion and pop photography. You think American Apparel came up with that look? Try again, it was Terry Richardson.
The son of fashion photographer Bob Richardson, Terry eschewed rigs worth tens of thousands of dollars in favor of disposable cameras and cheap drug-store 35mm’s. His work is characterized by a candid documentary frankness, cut with a big dose of humor, and of course, lots of gorgeous and usually naked women. Many of the shots feature Terry with his subjects, clad in flannel and plastic aviators, wearing a goofy smile and giving his signature thumbs-up to the camera (see Barack Obama, et. al.).
Since riding his distinctive style to prominence a decade ago, Richardson has become one of the most in-demand photogs in the world, shooting countless high fashion campaigns, magazine covers, and the like. Walked by a newsstand in the last five years? Then you’ve certainly seen a few or more covers shot by Terry Richardson. As I said, even if you don’t know the name, you know his work.
A few months ago, Richardson started publishing a photo blog. It’s an interesting look into the strange and decadent world of Terry Richardson, and a damn entertaining way to kill an hour.
Carbonara is one of my standbys—simple, fast, easy. My version isn’t as complex as one of my favorite restaurant versions, but like any recipe I make over and over, I keep tweaking and perfecting. And my fellow diners last night cleaned up their plates, so I think I’m getting there. Here’s my recipe, serves 4:
Ingredients: 16oz linguine
6 eggs
Hunk of Parmigiano Reggiano—none of that fake DiGiorno shrink-wrapped crap
8oz Pancetta
Salt, Pepper, Olive Oil
Boil half a stock pot full of water. Chop the pancetta in half-inch strips. Whisk the eggs, a couple full handfuls of grated parm, salt, and pepper. Throw the pasta in and while it’s cooking, cook the pancetta over medium heat with a bit of olive oil. Strain the pasta and combine the pancetta, sauce, and noodles in the stock pot over medium heat. Give it about a minute over the heat, and then transfer to a serving bowl and grate some more parm over the top.
I can’t say how I got onto the illustrious Victoria Collins’ mailing list at DWR Austin, but as you may be able to tell from my recent post, I’m digging their events. Up next, Collins and co. present a private screening of Visual Accoustics. Directed by Eric Brecker, this acclaimed new documentary chronicles the accomplishments of Julius Shulman – perhaps the greatest architectural photographer who ever lived.
Shulman, who passed away this year, captured the work of nearly every modern and progressive architect since the 1930s including Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, John Lautner and Frank Gehry. His images epitomized the singular beauty of Southern California’s modernist movement and brought its iconic structures to the attention of the general public. -www.juliasshulmanfilm.com
VISUAL ACOUSTICS won the Mercedes-Benz Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Austin Film Festival, the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the Lone Star International Film Festival and Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Filmmaking at the Newport Beach Film Festival.
Thanks to all the folks at DWR for putting on a delightful series for the design inclined right here in Austin, TX.
EVENT DETAILS:
Thursday, March 4 | 6-8pm DWR Austin RSVP by March 3 to get on the list:)
In founding Apolis Activism, the three Santa Barbara born brothers behind the brand sought to create “a unique bridge between commerce and sustainable development.” Throw them together with the cycling obssessed boys at Rapha and you’ve got the Nepal Project, a collaboration that meshes the two detail oriented brands with weavers in Nepal. The final product is the artisan-woven limited edition Transit Elite Sweater, a slim-fitting striped blue number that harkens back to the wool cycling jerseys of the 1960s.
Connecting the third world to the developed world in a fair-trade relationship and producing a cool product in the process? I’m all about it. And I’m damn jealous of those guys in the video riding in Nepal.
I was reminded by someone yesterday that we here at what.it.is use some pretty snazzy notebooks.
Whitelines are our current choice. Swedish designed, orange and white on the outside, gray and white on the inside—the pages are reversed-out, with the grids and lines in white on very light gray paper. It means that the lines don’t distract from your writing or drawing, and they disappear when you photocopy the pages.
Pick ‘em up at Domy Books in Austin or check their website for where to buy near you.
Let me just preface my excitement about Gaspar Noé’s Soudain le Vide (Enter the Void) with the plain fact that I, like many a child of nihilism, am fascinated by the deeply disturbing films that have grown out of the decayed decadence of the post-post-modern epoch. This drugs and sex and more drugs genre provides for entrancing portrayals of spectacular lows, and often lends itself to avant-garde filmmaking.
Enter the Void is just such a film, a perspectival journey told through the drugged, bleary eyes of a brother and sister traipsing through the dark depths of the Tokyo underworld. The script had been brewing in Gaspar Noé’s brain since he was seventeen, and the finished film, which premiered at Cannes this year, stands as his attempt to arrest the audience in the terrors of a far out drug trip. And from the the descriptions of jarring visual and sonic landscapes, I’ve heard it’s quite successful at doing so (check out the opening credits, they’re crazy and awesome).
And the best part? After showing at Sundance, Enter the Void is set for its second US release March 15 at SXSW film. Can’t wait.
Two nights ago we went to see Shutter Island. Now, you may be surprised this made it to the blog, so let me clear this up right now.
Shutter Island is here for 2 reasons: 1) the off-chance you read an idiotic negative review that makes you feel like no, maybe you just shouldn’t bother with Scorsese’s first venture into HORROR; and 2) with the myriad incredible performances, mind-numbing plot twists, perfect cinematography and a throw-back original score that would have pleased Hitchcock, this film is so amazing it’s all I’ve been able to think about for two whole days.
SO if you haven’t already, locate a theater near you – they will have this movie – and make time. You won’t regret it.
While the author of this video tries to connect its glitchy animations to an obtuse narrative, the connection is flimsy. Regardless, it’s still damn cool to watch. My point: if it stands on its own visually, why muddy it with pretentious prose? So ignore the passages—just enjoy the ride. And play it full screen.
