The Hysterical Society

Not too surprisingly, all the hysterical warnings in (eager) anticipation of Hurricane Irene decimating the cultural and financial centers on the East Coast turned out to be just more pathetic attempts by the Corporate Media and Government to unite us in a Climate of Fear. So long as we accept the representations of our lives as presented by the various mass medias we will be the prey of their bogeymen.

Here I would like to present a series of portraits of real people I happen to know, who live their lives as best they can in opposition to the false images constructed and promoted by the dominant culture. It needs to be added, lest any one mistake what these pictures have to do with my tirade, that the individuals pictured (other the person at the top of the post, which is me) all reside on the East Coast and in the path of this fearsome Tropical Storm.

The End Of The City

These are some photos I shot six years ago (if I remember correctly) following the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004 and the Banlieue Riots of 2005. They were the sources for some very fine large scale charcoal and colored ink drawings on mulberry paper, which I showed at Max Fish in April 2006. The little origami towers are meant to represent cities by the water and Rogelio, Thin Mar Oo and I are intended as giants menacing them. We were supposed to represent the forces of Nature taking our revenge on a wasteful mankind.

I suppose that I'm showing them now because of the Hurricane which is rushing up the East Coast of the United States, causing millions of Americans to be evacuated. I rather like a good hurricane. Goodnight, Irene, Goodnight, Irene; I'll See You In My Dreams.

Cinco Retratos Mas

La Ciudad Perdita De Kom

I suppose the only thing remarkable about the following images is that they were deemed unsuitable for another site which displayed far more outrageous content. One can only guess why they were removed. It can only have been for the sake of economic-political laws that were thereby violated. These are various experimental digital portraits organized around the themes of loss, failure, friendship and sensual pleasure. Nothing shown here is as outrageous as the obscene privilege of those corporations which now rule our means of mass communications. I hope I will be allowed to sneak in a few sly subversive missives from time to time. I don't pretend that this is one such message.

Lucian Freud's Work

As mentioned in the previous post concerning Lucian Freud, one of the first paintings of his that I got to see and spend some time with was the one above, Naked Man With His Friend. The paintings below are some of my favorite paintings by Mister Freud. I shall greatly miss the sensation of seeing new work by him, now that there will be no more new work. Among the works, which I've selected here, there are several where Freud has reused a grouping from an earlier artist's painting. The three artists he paid tribute to in this way were Watteau, Chardin, and Cezanne. I've always liked painters who acknowledged their masters.