Art & Authenticy

At first glance, one might look at this exhibit and dismiss it for another weird concoction of Modern Art.  I mean, you’re sitting (or standing, unlucky you) and watching seemingly unrelated videos of women doing wacky things over and over.

But if you squint your eyes a bit, you might catch a quick glimpse of a deeper meaning.

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Titanic– The Artifact Exhibition

Rating: 4 stars

Reasons:

For as long as I remember, I have loved Titanic (the movie) with all my heart. Of course, this affinity has something (or everything) to do with Leonardo Dicaprio being the main actor. So out of curiosity, I visited the Titanic exhibition at the Artifact museum.

Their slogan for the show tugs at my heart string: “97 years later, the Titanic arrived at New York City.” I had a tear in my eye just thinking about the amount of people dying, and the love story that also went to the bottom of the ocean. The clocks, hats, money, photographs and footage of people and the Titanic exemplified my experience at that museum. The whole time, I was looking for artifacts that could reassure me that Jack and Rose (from Titanic) were a real love story.

Disclaimer: If you don’t like artifacts or like the movie Titanic, you will not like this museum.

Who Shot Rock & Roll–Brooklyn Museum

Rating: 4.5 stars

Reasons:

I don’t think we, as the young generation, care about who actually shot rock and roll, but what did they shoot it of. In other words, we don’t care about the photographers; we only care about their photographs.

I was not expecting to see such a contemporary artist’s image in the exhibit since the hype of Rock & Rock passed with the 60’s and 70’s. So I was automatically drawn to Amy Winehouse’s photo when I saw it in the exhibit. I love her music and I love her style (for some reason, the big hair, the exaggerated eye liner, and animal-print bras are extremely attractive). I even went as far as dressing up as her for Halloween.

Oh, and can someone explain to me why Jay-Z’s picture was there, please?

Vermeer Exhibit At the MET–The Milkmaid

Rating: 5 stars plus permanent admiration

Reasons:

Ok, first, let’s address the naughty aspects of Vermeer’s maids. I didn’t put naughty in my title only to make you read my blog.

1. There is a subtle kind of sexuality and desire in Vermeer’s paintings that is hard to find by the modern-day public.
2. Maids of the 17th century  = Pin-up girls of the 40’s and 50’s = Playboy Bunny of the 21st century = sex symbol.
3. In the 17th century, the opening of the jug that the maid is holding can be interpreted as THE part of a female’s anatomy.
4. The Maid is thinking of her lover. How can we tell? Through the depiction of Cupid and a man on the tiles, near the bottom of the painting.
5. Male patrons usually bought Vermeer’s paintings to fantasize about a possible relationship they could have with their maids. Many of these patrons actually had sexual encounters with the maids.

And secondly, why do I love Vermeer so much? The answer is simple. It’s because no one says, “Less is more” as beautifully as Vermeer does.

My favorite poet’s, Rives

Meet the Artist- Poetry reading

Rating: 5 stars and much more

Reasons:

I came to Meet the Artist a few months ago, expecting to hear a middle age man talk about the art of poetry writing, but I got four amazing poets in return. The experience is so powerful that I am inspired to participate in a writer’s retreat for my next summer.

The poems ranges from the bitting off of a nipple to inspirational figures to the Iraq War to drug use and hand-me-down Halloween costumes. It was not only the content that got me so mesmerized, it also the poets’ voices that got me so intrigued. Listening to them makes me scare to read my own poetry; comparing to these professionals, I don’t slam my poems, I simply put them on the table.

Side note: I think you should check out my favorite contemporary poet: Rives.

Wasp- Short Film

Rating: 4 stars

Reasons:

I am a big fan of short films and the reasons are simple: they are short and straight to the point. And that’s why I enjoyed watching Wasp.

The main female character in Wasp is the epitome of teenage mothers in America– running around the street, trying to balance out their hormones and their children. It is scary to see the possible future for many women after they have kids and have no husband/boyfriend/family relative to help take care of their kids. This movie makes me wonder: is having kids at a young age without any support be a reason for the increasing of the poverty rate in a single-mother family household?

Looking at Music- MOMA

Rating: 4.5 stars

Reasons:

I went to the MOMA and BAM, photographs of legendary musicians of the 60’s were surrounding me. I love the up close and personal aspect of this exhibit as the viewers are able to see their favorite artists in various points of view. From all of the work, I only recognize The Beatles, David Bowie, and Yoko Ono; the rest of the artists were unknown to me. And the only reason why I know who Davis Bowie is because his name and face were featured in the HBO show, Flight of the Conchord Season 2.

The Beatles and Yoko Ono, however, I grew up with. My dad would play The Beatles in the morning in place for the sound of an alarm clock. And if you know The Beatles (specifically John Lennon), then you definitely know Yoko Ono. For many hardcore Beatle fans, Yoko Ono is not known for her art, but for “breaking up the band.” However, my point of view is: let the woman and the man be in love!

On a brighter note, listen to The Ballad of John and Yoko if you have no idea who they are.

Joseph O’Connor’s book reading

Rating: 3.5 stars

Reasons:

1) Likes:

He is really Irish and he doesn’t mind showing it in his writing. His knowledge is so immense that I have to look up his references. His accent is beautiful. The man is great at writing poetry (how many middle-age men can actually put Eminem into their poems?) And his jokes are hilarious.

2) Dislikes:

There are too many Irish writers who write about the solemnness and sadness of Ireland that having Joseph O’Connor as another player in the game doesn’t really make a difference. And for me, I personally didn’t like the love letter that he was reading out. It’s too slow, too dense, and too out of a-cookie-cutter format.

If you want to see what Joseph O’Connor is all about straight from the horse’s mouth, check out his interview at Indentitytheory.com.

ICP Exhibit

Rating: 5 stars

Reasons:

All of the photos are extraordinary in someway. Let’s look at three examples:

1) The first set of three photographs about African American women were so colorful and eye-popping that viewers can’t help but feel the subculture of African Americans, I’m guessing, in the 70’s and 8o’s.

2) The black and white images of the train conductors scream out RUSSIA, oppression, and monotony in ways that viewers don’t even have to look at the caption to understand their meaning.

3) The set of photographs with Afro-Brazilian women wearing animals body parts as decoration and accessories for their clothing. If these photos doesn’t surprise you as a viewer, I don’t know what will.

I especially like the idea that the museum is revolving around one theme–fashion. By looking at the individual artist’s work, I can hardly tell that he or she was focusing on fashion; however, to look at the exhibit as a whole, I can really see the cohesiveness of the theme coming together.

Short films are exactly what they sound like – “short”, “films”. The first two minutes was as confusing as putting together a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle.  The opening scene was a man getting out of the bed after intimacy. Malcolm, a man working to get others to convert to his faith, wasn’t converting Carmel’s faith, but her life.  She asks him to never return to her house, but he insists that he does. He wasn’t doing this for the sake of the church or god, but for his own interests and needs. When Malcolm was invited into the home of his mistress, I knew something bad was waiting to happen. Carmel was pregnant, “after years of trying”, with Malcolm’s baby, but Carmel’s husband does not know this. Miracles happen but not like this! As a woman, she, her actions, and her ability to continue standing disgusted me. Someone as filthy as that, should feel ashamed to breathe another breath or ashamed to lie about her baby’s father; she is neither. Maybe it’s “an American thing” as Chi likes to call it. If so, I am no American!

If you weren’t in class that day, click onto this!

He looks like a hero in the picture.. He’s more of a kid though, seriously.