Tri-State Travel Weekend

Our friend Maureen had her MFA thesis show this past weekend at the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, S.U.N.Y. We left Philadelphia around 3pm, expecting to be there by 6pm, but after battling Philly, Central Jersey, and New York Thruway Traffic, we didn't arrive until 8pm. We missed the formal reception which was a bummer, but Maureen and friends were able to give us a personal tour of the studios that night, as well as the gallery and her exhibit the following day. Inside the SDMA Exhibit.

That night we enjoyed the nightlife of the rural, new age, main street of the town. We stuffed ourselves at the Mexican Restaurant on the strip, followed by dancing at the jiggy hip-hop spot across the street. This lasted until about 3am when we migrated to another bar, where a jam band was playing old hardcore covers. We did a few shots of Lime SoCo's and called it quits when SLAKR deceivingly caught mean streak tags on the bar's Chalkboard.
A branch of our syndicate hunting for breakfast, New Paltz, NY.

The next morning we ate bagels, toured the SDMA, hung out in the courtyard, then said goodbyes to our hosts as well as to our friends who also came, by way of Boston and NYC. We were planning to visit the Dia: Museum in nearby Beacon, but we were running very late, so we skipped that move. Dia:Beacon

We headed back south and once again got caught in a nightmare of traffic and wrong turns in Central Jersey. The recurring bit of advice that highlighted the trip was "You should get GPS...." I know. Well we finally made it to Philly for the Gigantic Miniature Holiday Extravaganza Art show put on by the folks at Dutchman Studios.Dutchman Studios, South Philly

There was some great work done by local Philly and nearby New Jersey artists, with a percentage of the sales donated to AIDS research. It was a great turnout and there was also musical performances by Digs Darklighter and others.
Work by Curve TGE, 2007

At some point in the night I left to go watch the Hatton-Mayweather Fight, a fight I had been wanting to see for the past 2 and a half years now. For full effect we watched the fight in a Center City Irish Pub crowded with Brittish Hatton fans. Needless to say Hatton got his ass handed to him, losing the scorecards before getting K.T.F.O in the 10th round. Ricky Hatton, with girlfriend, after receiving an MBE honor from the Queen of England.

The next morning more travel involved a trip to Hoboken, New Jersey. We met up with friends from Jersey and New York in hopes of seeing the Patriots lose to the Steelers, only to see the opposite happen in dramatic fashion. At least the beer and food was great. That and seeing old pals, and filling out the potential of what a 2 and a half day span can hold, is what a good weekend is about. *posted by Jaguarman

Everything Lost: The Latin American Notebook of William S. Burroughs

People who are really into William S. Burroughs, in my experience, have either been heavy drug users or the type of people who seemingly have used heavy drugs for quite some time but do not do drugs and do not drink alcohol either (for the most part). Like drugs though, Burroughs has the ability to bring people together who are worlds apart who might not otherwise communicate with one another.
With the passing of Burroughs in the summer of 1997, I felt as if I would not see any work from him unless someone got all up in his shit and dug something out. I was ecstatic about the release of “Last Words,” which was his journal the last couple years of his long life. There have been books about Burroughs, but not by Burroughs.
That time has arrived with “Everything Lost: The Latin American Notebook of William S. Burroughs.”
I have had the opportunity to talk with Prof. Oliver Harris, of Keele University, in England, about the book. Harris is a true Burroughs scholar, editing the 50th anniversary edition of “Junky,” working on the Burroughs/Allen Ginsberg collaboration “The Yage Letters Redux,” and quite a number of impressive others. He is even working on the 50th anniversary edition of essays regarding “Naked Lunch,” an anniversary edition of “Queer” as well as a new book of letters. The dude knows what’s up.
We discussed how diaries/notebooks allow the reader to get close to the artist we admire. I am a huge fan of reading the diaries or notebooks of artists/authors. They permit you to “get inside” the artist and see what was going on inside their head during a specific period, or see some works or sketches that may have not been published in a collection previously, or that evolved into something else later on. They allow us, the reader, to see something “outside” of their writing, as Harris put it, and we both absolutely agreed upon.
I am very anxious to get my copy of the book delivered, as its set to be released in about a week or so. I am not sure what to expect from it, being Burroughs. His favorite book of mine though is a collection of essays, collected in “The Adding Machine.” He goes an about the process of teaching creative writing, to essays on books/writers that have influenced him, to discussing what the Johnson code is all about, something I know people reading this will be, and actually probably are, practicing already.
And so the book is coming out soon, compiled by a man who knows exactly what he is doing and is one of the most educated people in the world on Burroughs. Get it.
edit: I have learned some more about this book, and would like to add that the book is like no other Burroughs book that has been published; being this was never meant to be published at all. The original notebook is put side-by-side with the transcription. I have seen some of the handwriting and it is not easy to decipher what it states, in fact, it is quite easy to misinterpret what the handwriting says. Having a thorough knowledge of Burroguhs, as Harris does, qualifies him to correctly lay out some precious work for us to enjoy.
*posted by Dan

George Catlin 1796-1872

I was reading some history books when I happened to come across quite an interesting 19th Century painter by the name of George Catlin. His story intrigued me....He was a lawyer from Philadelphia in the 1800s who decided to quit his practice to become a full time artist and documentor. He had a fascination with the 'Vanishing Race' of the North American Indians, after visiting an American Indian delegation in Philly, and set out to record the appearance and customs of these native people.
So he traveled all over North America, searching for remote tribes not yet discovered by European settlers, accompaning General William Clark(of Lewis and Clark fame) up and down the Mississippi, the Missouri, Arkansas, and Red Rivers, also to Florida and the Great Lakes up North, basically all over. He did this adventure and travel for years, making peace with Indians and painting their life and culture.
He then travelled all over Europe exhibiting over 600 paintings in a traveling Indian Gallery where he'd deliver public lectures in places like London, Brussels, and Paris. The nearly complete surviving set of Catlin’s first Indian Gallery painted in the 1830s is now part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's collection. Some 700 sketches are in the American Museum of Natural History, New York City. I also stumbled upon a dozen or so of his paintings in the Philadelphia Museum of Art. They're pretty detailed and amazing. But did I happen to mention the best part? Aside from Living in Philadelphia to Practice law, he was born and raised in our hometown of Wilkes-Barre, PA, the town of Luzerne, to be exact. Shouldn't there at least be a statue or plaque in his honor? Is there one I don't know about? *posted by Jaguarman

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Darien St. Christmas Special

The kids at Darien St. Studios have been putting up some pretty fun parties and art shows. This weekend will be a group show similar to the Good Money show they had back in August, which was a real fun-filled event featuring many tri-state area graff writers and music acts. This time around the theme focuses on many of the same artists but with smaller and more affordable works, perfect for the holidays (give that special gift of a hand-crafted painting!) as well as AIDS awareness month. Works by kids like Distort, Ntel, Dutch and the Jersey AIDS crew, Tacoe, Gage, Curve, Dever, Niser, Dan Zomack, Melissa Enders, etc. and Performances by DIGS Darklighter and others. Proceeds to help benefit AIDS related charities. 1414 Darien Street, Philly. *posted by Jaguarman*

Stieglitz-O'keefe-Norman

Alfred Stieglitz Icy Night, 1907

Stieglitz was an important photographer that helped solidify Photography as an art form in the late 19th to mid 20th century. There is an ongoing exhibit at the Perelman building highlighting some of his work. It's easy to relate to him in that it appeared he likes to take alot of pictures of the city and city life, as well as quiet photos from the countryside. He lived in New York City and retired to peaceful Lake George in Upstate New York. Georgia O'Keefe Summer Days 1936

Stieglitz was married to a famous painter many are familiar with by the name of Georgia O'Keefe.
Dorothy Norman, Luise Rainer, Woods Hole 1945

Once Georgia O'keefe got famous she spent much of her time living in New Mexico. While she was gone Stieglitz had an affair with, and took many photos of Dorothy Norman, a noted Poet, Writer, and Photographer. (The above photo isn't her, its a photo she took of her friend Luise Rainer). These are some things I learned at the Pereleman Building. *posted by Jaguarman