Nov/090
Irving Penn: Small Trades 11/24/2009 (Getty Museum)
- Milkman (A), 1951 (Irving Penn)
Putting on your “Sunday Best” is a fascinating construct that has emerged out of a willingness to show devotion to one’s faith by casting aside the grubby clothes and accoutrements of one’s trade and “clean up” for worship. After all, religions are inundated with rules and restrictions on work, and in the eyes of their leadership, a place of worship is wholly separate from the venues of toil. Irving Penn [wiki], however, decided to flip these notions upside down in his “Small Trades” [Official Getty Site] body of work, currently on display at the Getty Museum. With a grungy, but otherwise neutral tarp as his cathedral, Penn zealously worshipped his subjects, portraying them with an emphatic sense of dignity; Penn’s world is one where a sewer cleaner occupies the same proud high-ground as the chief firefighter, and this sense of pride does not seem alien, but genuine. Next to their pride, their humanity also radiates through the prints, and the viewer gets the sense that in addition to respecting these people from all walks of life, Penn truly identified with, and understood them. By inviting these people into his studio along with the tools that so intimately connect the worker to their trade, Penn gave his “religious” icons their “relics,” which in addition to providing context to these often rough figures, crucially enabled them to feel more secure.
This concept of security ties into the psychology that is so integral to the suite; the subjects’ demeanor became an interesting facet to the project, and Penn wrote about the ways in which the different workers responded to his calls for subjects. Parisians were skeptics, questioning the project’s motives, the English were punctual and proud, and Americans thought this was their big break into the entertainment industry, often showing up in their “Sunday Best.” Beyond these written analyses, there are subtle reads into the attitudes of the subjects. In addition to the aforementioned pride demonstrated throughout the spectrum of trades and “stations of life,” the exhibit strategically grouped the professions according to location, enabling a viewer to see how a butcher looked and felt in Paris or New York versus London. In addition to variances in attire and tools, you could detect subtle differences in their countenances.
In addition to the more theoretical aspects of the exhibition, the images themselves are aesthetically stunning. In addition to his abilities as a photographer, marked by his command of light, and his excellent eye for making centrally composed images interesting (either by using dynamic poses, or artfully structuring the tools to draw visual interest to certain elements of the frame), the exhibit brilliantly emphasizes Penn’s virtuosic command of the printing of his images. Many casual examiners of photography lose sight of the fact that the printmaking element of photography is an art in itself. Throughout his career, Penn not only mastered silver halide printmaking, but he also dabbled with Selenium toning methods to bring the most out of his negatives. Perhaps his most important contribution to printing, though, were his experiments and advancement of Platinum/Palladium printing techniques. These methods, wherein the exposed image lies on the substrate surface, as opposed to being suspended in a medium, enabled Penn to get the highest possible tonal range in his prints, while also achieving a perfectly matte image. In comparing prints of the same negative with both printing methods, a stunning array of details emerge. While both prints have stunning values present, the Platinum process prints are truly unforgettable, and they seem to add an extra dimensionality to the hauntingly human portraits.
It was an absolute pleasure to visit this exhibition. I am sure that having been exposed to these images will ultimately inform my ads. Each one of these workers has a story, and their humanity would resonate well. I enthusiastically recommend paying the exhibit a visit before it closes January 10th, 2010.
- Steel Mill Firefighter, (1951) (Irving Penn)
- Irving Penn and Chris Gilbert Design, together at last.
Aug/090
Deerhunter 8/27/2009 @ Eagle Rock Center for the Arts
This was sort of last minute, and it was absolutely riotous.
The kickoff to a film festival honoring bikes, Deerhunter took the stage in a venue unlike most I’ve been to. A long narrow hall with columns flanking the crowd proved an intimate setting, and Deerhunter maximized the space with their far reaching, far out sounds. They jammed through their set with a relaxed ease belying the frantic, often jangled collage of distorted sounds. They rocked so hard at one point that the power supplying the makeshift stage went out and there was a brief interruption. When the festivities resumed, front-man Bradford Cox jibed “Okay that was our FIRST set. Round two is all Grateful Dead covers!”
Jokes aside, they meant business, and played a flowing set. The most unique moment, however, was the post-encore sound collage which lasted about 15 minutes on its own. With the trailing sounds of the encore song ending, Deerhunter (led by Cox) began to manipulate the feedback with their impressive array of distortion and effects pedals into a long, coked out tapestry of sound that left a major part of the crowd confused/irritated/and quite frankly lost. Some left, and those who did missed out on a harmonic explosion… A bittersweet symphony of fuzzed out, drone-tastic feedback sounds that actually ended up sounding totally coherent, if not a bit loud.
The spontaneous nature of the outing really made it worthwhile for me. I had only decided to go like 2 days before the show, and it ended up being a great night!
Aug/090
Fishboy (Round 1) 8/23/2009 @ Tribal Cafe
My friend Justin is the Bassist in the seriously rad band “Fishboy.”
It was no surprise, then, that when they arrived in LA for a set at the Tribal Cafe that they’d have at least one “superfan” in the wings waiting for it.
I show up at 7, to watch the end of a Jazz set, before the night’s festivities acts arrived. Hilight was this sweet Jazz guitar solo:
Sweet Jazz Guitar Solo... Didn't catch the band name.
After that ended, the night’s scheduled festivities began.
Some local acts would precede the touring lineup of Fishboy, Iji, and Watercolor paintings.
First up were local industrial folk trio “Black Sparrow Press.” One of the guitarists had a Woody Guthrie homage on his guitar… “This Machine Kills Six-Packs.” Fitting, as at times the trio did have a very Guthrie-referencing repertoire, their Folk ravings inspired in equal parts by the Dust Bowl Troubadour and their home roots of San Pedro.
Black Sparrow Press
Uke!!
Black Sparrow Press Kicks out the Jamz
After Black Sparrow Press’ Screamy Folky goodness, the drummer/uke-ist stayed on to assist local singer songwriter Sean Arenas, or “Sean Homemade” if you prefer. His acoustic set was really subdued in comparison, but he made up for that with meaning, and emotion. He is a talented songwriter that I am looking forward to following.
Sean Homemade
Sean’s set was too short, but with many bands to run through, time was of the essence. Next up was a spirited duo who I think called themselves the Bromantics. They announced that they’d started the band last Thursday (!!) and so the name wasn’t totally finalized. They do power poppy jams, and the guy and girl swapped instruments (guitar/drums) halfway through the set. Slight edge to the guy on guitar, girl on drums, but it was a fun set nonetheless.
Bromantics
After the dancing subsided, fishboy were to take the stage. In between the other sets I got a good chance to get to talk with the guys, who were really appreciative of the fact that I’d showed up in their t-shirt.
Fishboy Taking the Stage
They tore into the set with gusto, and I got some great video footage… The hilight being the final set where Justin handed the final song selection over to yours truly! Between Taqueria girl and Proper Name Spelling Bee, the choice was clear: Spelling. They ended with it and it was a rip roarer… The crowd seemed equally into it, and I’d made the right choice!
Locked and Loaded.
Justin Slappin' de Bass
Adam tickling the Ivories
It was hard to see them leave the stage. They looked and sounded so comfortable up there!
Next up, Iji, who Justin described as “Calypso Fishboy.” Excellent. I met their singer, Zach who seemed really enthusiastic. Their set really took me by surprise. It was phenomenal, and I remarked to him after that performing looked cathartic, and a relief for him. He agreed. His enthusiasm and love of music is infectious and shone through his performance. Amazing.
Iji
After Iji, local (Santa Barbara) favorites Watercolor paintings quietly took the stage. A Sister (harp) Brother (Uke) duo that had to compete with the refrigerator sounds in the Cafe during their blissfully serene and warm set. Beautiful stuff. Contemplative.
Watercolor Paintings
Having lulled the crowd into contemplative relaxation, the curtain call band, Local act “Big Whoop” ended things with a bang. Fun orchestral pop rock made an impression. I look forward to big things from them.
Big Whoop!
After some goodbyes, the Fishboy gang pressed me into coming up with them tomorrow to see the show at Biko Garage in Santa Barbara. Who was I to turn down that kind of offer? I will report on it, assuming I am not rocked into oblivion!
Aug/090
Jay Reatard @ Amoeba 8/18/2009
This was incredible for a few reasons:
1. Free
2. Took the metro rail from my apartment to basically a block and a half away.
3. Stood in the very front, literally 3 feet from the stage.
4. His sound check was the greatest free-flowing heckling fest I’ve ever witnessed. The Amoeba sound guy was inept, and Jay basically had his way with the poor guy behind the boards. When the sound guy reprimanded him for his language: “Seriously? Motherfucking Seth Rogan uses more profanities than I fucking do. PG-13 Amoeba. Fuck.”
5. The set raged. Totally angry, psychedelic, and ruthless. Energy, explosive loudness, and total enthusiasm.
6. Post show signing, he drew devil horns and signed the cover of the new LP for me.
7. Because I was in the front, he decided to have a long chat with me. He was glad I was so enthusiastic/dancing/pumped, and he told me about how he was the highest he’s ever been.
8.
Yeah!
More Photos:
Chuggin a brew
Rockin' the flying V @ Amoeba 8/18/2009