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MATTHEW COUPER : DESERT INVENTORY -- COLLECTING CONTEXT IN LAS VEGAS
Film by Eric Minh Swenson. Music by Mountaineater
Los Angeles
filmmaker Eric Minh Swenson traveled to Las Vegas to visit New
Zealand-born artist Matthew Couper, who recently immigrated to the USA.
In
his apartment in Las Vegas, Couper's collection of religious Spanish
Colonial paintings from Mexico provide a rich cache of narrative and
allegory that inform the artist's reactions to his new and unique
environment. Over the past two years, Couper's paintings have collected
and collated visual and psychological symbols of Las Vegas, culminating
in a hybridized form which Huffington Post art writer John Seed suggests
is 'a pagan Catholic Cirque du Soleil', accentuating the artist's
'Kafkaesque view of the world'
For more info on Eric Minh Swenson or project inquiries visit his website www.thuvanarts.com/take1
DOMINGO, EL VIENTE DE FEBRERO, VEINTE-ONCE
Kurt Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994). Happy Birthday Kurt!
MARTES, EL VIENTIUNO DE DECIEMBRE, VEINTE-DIEZ
R.I.P. Captain Beefheart. Click here to read my friend, Simon Sweetman's obit on Blog On The Tracks.
VIERNES, EL VEINTIDOS DE OCTUBRE, VEINTE-DIEZ
I'm heading to Interpol tonight at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. I saw them first in Wellington in 2005 (I think). Here's a link to the new Charlie White video for 'Lights'
DOMINGO, EL DIECISIETE DE OCTUBRE, VEINTE-DIEZ
We headed out to the Arts Factory last night to catch some of the performances that's part of the 'Off The Strip' exhibition, there was a lot of stuff on, including the weekly painters on the patio, combined (perhaps dangerously) with a beer-tasting festival and free concert, including Kid Meets Cougar's last gig for a few months. Was really impressed with musicianship and multi-tasking. Probably the best use of visuals I've seen a band use ever.
Then to the Huntridge for beers and chats...
Sorry no pics (I need to get a phone with a camera) so here's a picture of a dog having a champagne breakfast.
JUEVES, EL SIETE DE OCTUBRE, VEINTE-DIEZSpeaking of left-handed retardedness, my new guitar arrived yesterday - a cheap Silvertone that I picked up for a very cheap price. I found a 40 watt Fender amp at a thrift store a couple of weeks back so it made sense to buy a guitar for it. I like the guitar, it's got the faintest twist in the neck, but the intonation is good and the tuners are solid, the humbucker pickups are grunty, especially through the amp, so it'll do me fine for noodling around. In the picture on the right, you can see a couple of retablos with left hands in them. It's a theme I've been looking at for a while now. I'll elaborate on that a bit later on. (photos by JK Russ)
DOMINGO, EL OCHO DE AGOSTO, VEINTE-DIEZ
Thinking about New Zealand today, especially Whanganui. It is our friend Al's memorial service at 9.30pm (USA time) today. Miss you Al.
SABATO, EL SIETE DE AGOSTO, VEINTE-DIEZ
A drawing of Michael Brassell, aka Mike J. Hex of Squirm and Hiss Explosion. He passed away in 2004 from complications with pneumonia.
There's a very good interview with him from 2004 here.
MIERCOLES, EL CATORCE DE JULIO, VEINTE-DIEZ
A sign on the way back from Sth Berkeley down Shattuck Ave, nearby is the Berkeley Bowl, a great place for fresh bread, great produce and a stunning collection of beers including Scrimshaw Pilsner.
LUNES, EL DOCE DE JULIO, VEINTE-DIEZ
Bye bye New Zealand, especially Whanganui.
(Photo by JK Russ at 'Eye of Night' (RIP) circa Nov, 2009)
JEUVES, EL DIEZ DE JUNIO, VEINTE-DIEZWhoops, I missed my cue for this particular image: it's a detail of the poster for the Sex Pistols seminal gig at the Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall. I was born on this day, 1976. Apparently in the crowd were the members of the soon-to-be Warsaw, who turned into Joy Division and to a lesser extent, Mick Hucknell from Simply Red. Needless to say, the effects of the Pistols playing in Madchester wasn't all positive.
LUNES, EL DEICISIETE DE MAYO, VEINTE-DIEZ
Some more works in stock at PAULNACHE in Gisborne. I took these works up with me to Gisborne last weekend. These works on paper were completed in early 1999, but weren't exhibited until March 2001 at Enjoy Gallery in Wellington. You can see installations of the work here and here. (By the way, Barraud's dog's name was Nipper, not Tito)
LUNES, EL DIEZ DE MAYO, VEINTE-DIEZJust got back to Whanganui. Here are some more photos of the musicians and bands that played at the opening. I didn't catch the name of the guys featured top-left, but top-right is Brian Campbell, renaissance man and below him, Naked Brunch (Jack and Tim). Thanks heaps to Jo and Phill for the photos.
You can see more image on the PAULNACHE website here.
MARTES, EL SEIS DE ABRIL, VEINTE-DIEZA photo of Benedict Quilter by J.K. Russ at the opening and book-launch of Blue-Eyed Son at Manky Chops, Cuba Street, Wellington. The book Blue-Eyed Son, a limited edition, hardback, full-colour, 44-paged book is available to purchase from Manky Chops at $100 each.
DOMINGO, EL CUATRO DE ABRIL, VEINTE-DIEZ6pm this Monday, Blue-Eyed Son, a book launch and exhibition of featured artworks of Kurt Cobain, is opening at Manky Chops in Wellington.
Monday is the 16th anniversary of Cobain's Death.
The limited-edition, hardback book features writing by its author and editor, Benedict Quilter and artworks by forty artists responding to Kurt Cobain. I've included my image on the right - a pencil drawing of a short-haired Cobain, sporting a Daniel Johnston 'Hi, How Are You? The Unfinished Album' Tee-shirt. In the original photograph, Cobain is standing with Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers.More details about the booklaunch are on the base of the poster on the left - just click on the image below.
LUNES, EL OCHO DE MARZO, VEINTE-DIEZTwo years today. This ex-voto seems all that bit more relevant now with the Pixies playing Doolittle in its entirety in Auckland this coming Thursday and Friday.
DOMINGO, EL VEINTIOCHO DE FEBRERO, VEINTE-DIEZI took an epic, yet uber-quick trip down to Wellington to see The 3ds play at San Francisco Bath House on Friday night. It was a stunning gig, with an almost identical setlist to what they played at the Laneways Festival about a month ago. I love the inclusion of The Young and The Restless from The Venus Trail, one of my favourite all-time songs (second on the setlist). A couple of strange events happened that evening too, for instance,I found out that it was David Mitchell's son Oscar who rescued myself and my friend Aaron from being crushed by a massive garden umbrella at Nikau Cafe by the City Gallery, just hours prior to the gig.
Below are a couple of terrible cell-phone pics of David Mitchell.
MARTES, EL DOS DE FEBRERO, VEINTE-DIEZ
from left to right: Dirty Three; Warren Ellis going nuts, the 3d's: I saw there last concert in Wtgn in 1997 - watching them at Laneways was liked they never broke up. Me after the gig with wristbands - red one is the VIP tent band courtesy of Si and Katy, who I hung out with, along with Aaron and Heidi and Tom and Kathleen.
