Blek Le Rat @ Metro Gallery, Armadale December 2 - 24

James Bond', acrylic on canvas, 100 x 100 cm

The first time I saw Blek in 1991 he was stenciling his Madonna character. Caravaggio’s masterpiece brought alive to everyone by modern means, I was intrigued. We started talking and haven’t stopped ever since. My struggle is to put this into a few words.

But the art of Blek le Rat doesn’t need many words because, as he says : “If you want to know me, just look at my stencils. His paintings just give themselves away.

After having studied the art of etching and architecture (a family tradition) at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, Blek, then simply Xavier Prou, realised that one couldn’t paint like Caravaggio or even Picasso on the edge of the 21st century. In oil on canvas, everything had been said and done. Inspired by graffiti he had encountered in New York in the early 1970s and a slumbering childhood memory of a Mussolini stencil he had seen in Italy in the sixties, he painted black life-size rats running along the walls in Paris in 1981 with a stencil. The rat, frightening, clever, revolving (regenerative) and most importantly omnipresent in Paris as well as in any urban space, is said to survive the human mankind in case of an apocalypse, and thus became Blek’s trademark and furthermore the metaphor of Street Art. And if rat symptomatically bears the anagram of art, urban art has spread throughout the world. So far that Blek le rat is coming to Metro, Melbourne, for his first show down Under, as we call Australia at the other end of the world.

“Warhol turned to photographs of stars, as the Renaissance turned to antiquities, to find images of gods,” art critic David Sylvester says. Blek, true heir Andy Warhol’s, followed and continued the way paved by his master : he’s turned to the people themselves. The stencil became the key to the world of art, litterally opened the doors both to spectators and creators. People who would not necessarily walk into museums encounter art on their way to work. Whether they like it or not, the fact that they didn’t pay and thus didn’t expect to see it, engenders an always authentic and private alliance between the passer-by and the the image on the wall. And just like Warhol made us reconsider the myth of the painter, Blek says, “you don’t need to go to art school to make a stencil”. The stencil has become the favourite mean of expression in Urban Art, if not the very symbol of the democratization of art.

Some would argue that Street Art doesn’t belong in the closed space of a gallery. It is true that the aha-reaction is unique in the living environment of the public space just like one has to have seen a movie at the theatre before viewing a dvd. If Street Art is by its very nature ephemeral, photographs are the sole witnesses, the Memory keepers of what has become the biggest art movement ever and that is the point. Yet, the stencil is more than a young art technique, it has eventually become an art form of its own, a style. “Le Ciel Est Bleu, La Vie Est Belle “is proof of it.

Blek‘s first exhibition on Australian ground is an iconographic journey featuring more than 30 ( ?) works including iconic characters stenciled on wooden panels, spraypaints on canvas, screen-prints and photographs. “Le Ciel Est Bleu, La Vie Est Belle “, The sky is blue, life is beautiful, thoroughly ironic, traces Blek’s œuvre from the early eighties over iconic characters to most recent works. The exhibition will be on view from December 3 through …….., 2009 at Metro Gallery, Melbourne.

“I want to give food for thoughts,” he says

Since Blek started the stencilism back in the 1980s he has been a witness of his time who looks back and forward, invents but actually mirrors what happened (The revisited theme of Adam and Eve, happens (The beggar-child and the old homeless who is none other Victor Hugo, author of Les Misérables, with whom Blek tackles the problem of the homeless) or is going to happen like “The Venus of Milo” who shows, true greek comedy style, her middle-finger to the declining macho world.

Although Blek enjoys swapping images, he has too much respect for the feelings and thoughts of the others to turn turn his stencils into distateful or vulgar characters. He wants “to give food for thoughts”, never kidnappes the beholder, always leaves some private space for imagination, sometimes is ahead of his time.

Sybille Prou
November 2009

'Jesus' (limited edition), screenprint on 300 GSM paper, 88 x 73 cm

@'Metro Gallery'

John Cage

I once had a wonderful book that collected a lot of John Cage's written scores. A remarkable and beautiful body of (art) work.

"I have nothing to say and I am saying it!"

-John Cage

(Thanx Stan)

Lovely ladies

"Oo-er missus"

Padma Lakshmi

Whatever did this godess see in Salman Rushdie?

Charlotte Gainsbourg and Beck - Heaven Can Wait

 I watched Lars von Trier's 'Antichrist' the other day. A very powerful and thought provoking film!

Birthers say Obama now a Brit!

An ad that ran in The Wahington Times!
Also nice that he is portrayes as a monkey again (sarcasm).

HA!

WTF???

Cheney was asked if he thinks the Bush administration bears any responsibility for the disintegration of Afghanistan because of the attention and resources that were diverted to Iraq. “I basically don’t,” he replied without elaborating.

@'Politico'

Zombie Reagan back from grave to lead the GOP

Sacked UK government drug adviser says Gordon Brown is from another universe

The scientist who was sacked as the government’s chief adviser on drugs has mocked Gordon Brown as someone whose views come from “some other universe”.

An unrepentant Professor David Nutt reiterated his controversial position that horse riding was more lethal than Ecstasy and suggested that smoking cannabis during pregnancy was less dangerous than drinking alcohol.

At a conference of Students for Sensible Drug Policy, an organisation which calls for the legalisation of many drugs, Prof Nutt accused the Government of failing to protect people against the dangers of drugs.

“We have a Prime Minister whose view (on drugs) is formed in some other universe,” he said.

He was sacked this month as head of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs by Alan Johnson, the Home Secretary who accused him of ”crossing a line into politics” after he criticised the decision to reclassify cannabis as a Class B drug.

“When I was sacked Alan Johnson said he was ‘big enough, bold enough, strong enough’ to make the decision. I’d say he’s not big enough, bold enough or strong enough to tell the truth about drugs,” he said at the conference at Leeds University on Sunday.

He also attacked Mr Johnson’s predecessor, Jacqui Smith or “Jackboot” as he called her, saying that she phoned him 30 minutes before she was due to answer questions about her expenses. He added: “When Charles Clarke was Home Secretary he didn’t like my advice, but at least he had the courage to accept it.”

During his 10 years on the advisory council he said he found talking with politicians very difficult and that fewer people were now voting in elections because the House of Commons is nothing more than a “pantomime”. He said: “I never realised how unintellectual politicians are.”

In answer to a woman’s question about the harm of cannabis, after she admitted smoking it while she was pregnant, he suggested its use while pregnant was less harmful than drinking alcohol – because the cost to the public of dealing with alcohol abuse is far higher than any illegal drug.

He said: “Alcohol costs £1,000 pounds per year in excess health care costs and about three times that of other costs.”

Since he was dismissed the professor said he said he had received hundreds of emails from people, of which 95 per cent have been supportive.

After his dismissal five members of the advisory board handed in their notice from the unpaid posts leaving the entire committee’s place within Government in some doubt. Prof Nutt said: “The Government will find it very difficult to appoint a new chairman.”

He said he will continue to offer advice to the Government and is planning on setting up a parallel committee to work side by side with the committee he was removed from.

He said: “Hopefully, this new independent board will be the first port of call on drugs policy in the UK.” In the future he said he wants to look into the possibility of creating a new, legal drug which could be a safer alternative to alcohol.

@'The Telegraph'

Acid Pauli VS Johnny Cash VS Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - I See A Dark(er)ness

Full version

HERE

Mark Bradley – Absolution [basses frequences, 2009]

listen: Mark Bradley
Label: basses frequences
buy: discogs

Tracklist:
01. Evolving
02. Harmonium
03. In Unison
04. Absolute

——————————————-
Mark Bradley is a solo performer, portraying emotional states of being through his audio. Once you immerse yourself in this claustrophobic and atmospheric ambient world, you become oblivious to your surroundings. High level deep listening. A man of few words and full of mystery Smoke and mirrors. Brainwave entertainment. Moonlight ambient. (Basses Frequences)

Get it

HERE

A weird slice of synchronicity as just yeasterday I was chatting to a friend who had been offered a deal with a record label and was asking for some (general) advice...

As I am opposed to the ways of most of the record companies I was pointing out that these days there are other ways to get your music out there and I mentioned that one of the ways is thru the use of blogs, and I did mention bolachas.org.

Anyway when I came home I had an e/mail from Mark Bradley asking where was the review of the record above on 'Exile'?

Now Mark maybe you would like to get back to me and explain why you choose this route to get yr music out?

Do grab the album while you are here, it certainly ticks all the boxes if you are into ambient/drone/noise. 

Ghost Inna Dub (Adrian Sherwood Mix) - Screaming Soul

    

Screaming soul dub hop ghetto priest sandman undali lucid movement

Taken from the forthcoming album "Ghost Inna Dub" from Screaming Soul, available early 2010.

Is Sting Dead? (some correspondence)

1. what?
   
   
   
       +3
   
   ~Davide
   06.26.09 at 10:39 am
   
   
2. ehm?
   
   
   
       --1
   
   ~dave
   06.26.09 at 11:40 am
   
   
3. Sting is dead?!
   
   
   
       --3
   
   ~Davide
   06.26.09 at 12:21 pm
   
   
4. I heard the cast of the hit series Lost, died in a plane crash yesterday as well. Crazy day
   
   
   
       --1
   
   ~Kyle
   06.26.09 at 12:25 pm
   
   
5. I heard about Michael Jackson but Sting too? Can you give a source of this information?
   
   
   
       --2
   
   ~JeZZoo
   06.26.09 at 4:36 pm
   
   
6. i read this on a german website:
   Der schwarz-weiß bemalte Sting, einer DER Stars von World Championship Wrestling ist tot.
   translation: the black and white painted Sting, a famous wrestler, is dead.
   the “real” Sting is alive ;)
   
   
   
       --1
   
   ~deinemudda
   06.28.09 at 7:56 am
   
   
7. ha ha ha ha haaa haa haagg haaagha hagum gmmhhuaagh
   ahum grra hum….gr grr gr gr gr
   uh uh
   aaaaaaaagggggggggghhhhhhhhhhaaa……………………………..
   me 2 ohh i’am dead….
   
   
   
       --3
   
   ~Ron
   06.30.09 at 1:14 pm
   
   
8. tortured to death by amazon indians
   
   
   
       +2
   
   ~shoe
   07.02.09 at 4:48 am
   
   
9. He isnt dead.
   Where is your source
   
   
   
       +0
   
   ~Lucky
   07.09.09 at 6:51 am
   
   
10. Ha Ha some people people are far too serious.
    
    
    
        --2
    
    ~mat
    07.09.09 at 7:30 am
    
    
11. What???
    There is not!
    
    
    
        --2
    
    ~Patric
    07.10.09 at 12:32 am
    
    
12. No Sting is dead…
    
    
    
        +0
    
    ~Igor
    07.11.09 at 4:55 pm
    
    
13. Hi is not dead…realy
    
    
    
        --2
    
    ~e$c@nder
    07.12.09 at 2:29 pm
    
    
14. All I found was this: http://exileonmoanstreet.blogspot.com/2009/04/breaking-news-sting-dies-in-tragic.html . Then again, there’s Johnny Rotten who called him a dead corpse a couple of years back.
    The director of the movie “Sting” died in 2002. As for Sting the wrestler, he became a born-again christian, but that’s brain-dead; not the same thing.
    Looks like your carreer as an investigative blogger is off to a nad start. Well, back to comedy.
    
    
    
        +0
    
    ~silexmt
    07.16.09 at 8:57 pm
    
    
15. fuck
    
    
    
        +1
    
    ~smith
    07.17.09 at 10:35 am
    
    
16. It was my April Fool’s Day prank and if you grabbed the download it was Jackie Leven’s tall tale entitled: “Sting’s Dead”! Made me laugh…
    regards/
    Mona
    
    
    
      +0
    
    ~Mona Street
    07.17.09 at 11:00 am
    
    
17. hey, are you kidding or what? Sting is vegetarian, he doesn’t smoke and does yoga all the time. PEOPLE LIKE THIS THEY DON’T DIE FOLKS! ))))
    
    
    
        +1
    
    ~buzzy
    08.06.09 at 8:11 am
    
    
18. Quote: “Hi is not dead…realy”
    Well, I wish he was.
    
    
    
        --4
    
    ~Tom
    09.08.09 at 8:52 am
    
    
19. VERY STUPID JOKE!ONLY IDIOT COULD DO THIS!
    
    
    
        +0
    
    ~Helen
    10.17.09 at 4:07 pm
    
    
20. Helen - you obviously have NO sense of humour, but even YOU must agree that him inventing CD’s so that they would fit in the mouth of those Amazon Indians that he took on tour is a good enough reason for him NOT to exist!
    
    
    
      +0
    
    ~Mona
    
    
    @The Cleverest'