Blog — Page 170 of 279

MoMA at NGV: 130 Years of Contemporary and Modern Art

National Gallery of Victoria

New York’s Museum of Modern Art’s incarnation at the National Gallery of Victoria was a tremendously successful exposition that allowed Australian to experience such greats as Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Jackson Pollock, Marcel Duchamp, Andy Warhol, Vincent van Gogh, Frida Kahlo, Mark Rothko and many more that do not need further introduction firsthand.

The diversity of the exhibition was underpinned by more than two-hundred creative emissions spanning a period from the genesis of what is commonly referred to as present-day craft by pursuing a distinctly multi-disciplinary approach – i.e. from architectural pieces to exhibits rooted in the realm of free form performing arts and everything in between - and it was the first time that an exhibition occupied the whole of the first floor of Melbourne’s NGV.

The book is an ode to this eclectic display and documents the themes that served as the foundational conceptual foundation for the exhibition.

Choosing Roy Lichtenstein’s simplified composition that made his Drowning Girl from 1963 as the cover image for the catalogue, which an example par excellence for his unemotional reproduction from newspapers and magazines and contemporaneous pop art at large, signifies the DNA of this well-curated tour de force that did not need to rely on the big drawcards as it served enough substance by highlighting finer nuances to carry itself.

The fact that the NGV did not rely on e.g. Andy Warhol as a flagship creative for the exhibition and instead juxtaposed his oeuvre with that of Ai Weiwei in the preceding exhibition speaks volumes about NGV’s curators’ foresight and skill, which adds not only additional levels and dimensions to the emissions of idiosyncratic creators but results in something more integrated than the aggregate of its components would suggest.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

Lewis Carroll

Prince University Press

Toward the end of the nineteenth century, a Victorian algebraist wrote a fairy tale the influence and standing of which would only enhance in the years to come, which is partly due to the underpinning, subtle merging of philosophical, scientific and artistic components.

The result was the creation of a masterpiece based on an unheard of, not only genre pushing but forming unique melange.

As time and reissue after reissue went by, publishers looked at different avenues of making the book appealing to fans and the uninitiated alike: Commissioning the services of the spearhead of the surrealist movement, i.e. Salvador Dali, was a smart move of the publishers as Dali’s input helped not only to make the book contemporary but to elevate Carroll’s emission by adding yet another psychedelic dimension.

The resulting collaboration quickly became a much sought-after collector’s piece, which has been recently re-released a couple of years ago to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’s first release.

Scholarly introductions point out the similarities between Carroll’s and Dali’s approaches, which is well-intended, yet I find the juxtaposition and the contrasts between both more striking and enjoyable than commonly shared ground.

The book is, well, as you would expect - eye candy with its beautifully illustrated fantastic imaginations framing a story that needs no further introduction with its trademark clever humour, neologisms, psychedelic excursions, word play and at time non-sensical yet always eccentric characters.

A classic that is further enhanced by the talents of two maestros being fused and a beautiful addition to any bookshelf, which firmly grounds Victorian fantasy in a surreal world and could not have asked for a better collaboration.

Mystical Symbolism: The Salon de la Rose+Croix in Paris, 1892–1897

Vivien Greene

Guggenheim Museum Publications

Wow.

Now this is one is a beauty amongst quite a few I hold in high esteem when it comes to well made publications on Symbolist art.

It starts with the tactile experience that the front and back covers present themselves as, as part of the front cover and all of the back are dressed in scarlet velvet with gold lettering and the front is adorned by  Pierre Beronneau’s "Orpheus in the Hades" – expertly made to conjure the spirit and ambience of the Salons the book set out to shed light on.

The contents of the book hold what the cover promises: Enchanting essays that substantiate via elaborations what was the an instalment of the Salon de la Rose+Croix, as part of a sequence by French author, critic, occultist and Rosicrucian Joséphin Péladan.

For the uninitiated, “Rose+Croix” was meant to signify the convention of an international committee of luminaries who channelled their art in symbolism in defiance of aestheticism dedicated to the depiction of realism to sharpen their focus and further grind a lense for tenets rooted in mysticism.

Opulently illustrated, the enjoyment ifs further enhanced by the depiction of forty-six colour places, details on each artist – among which rank names such as Pierre Amédée Marcel-Béronneau, Jean Delville, Fernand Khnopff, Charles Maurin, Armand Point, Alexandre Séon and Félix Vallotton – as well as essays on the significance of their art and a bibliography that will lead you down the rabbit hole of Symbolist art.

Wu Tang Clan

Opera House

Sydney, Australia

December 8, 2018

Good god, I don’t even recall how many times I was supposed to witness incarnations of Wu Tang Clan, parts thereof or individual constituents performing their songs.

Needless to say that some shows never eventuated, others did and were “interesting” for everything other than performance reasons. I came close to seeing the collective in Europe at the height of their powers in the 90s, but the group decided that there were other priorities to attend to, i.e. decided to take  a detour to Amsterdam where they stayed with their nightliner to partake in what the city has to offer until their return to the US.

Long story short – I was excited yet wary when I heard that the remaining nine along with ODB’s first-born were announced to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of their genre coining first album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers).

The fact that the actual soundcheck seemed to go on well beyond performance time and the fact that the doors to the auditorium remained closed did not bode too well, however, the Wu descended and what a joy it was.

For the few uninitiated, Wu Tang Clan’s first album is a classic not merely because of the idiosyncratic skills and complexion of the group’s constituents but also because of the underpinning unique melange that forms its foundation, i.e. the Wu philosophy which is part adoration for Motown samples, a faible for obscure kung fu flics, spirituality meeting street husting attitude and their bond as a clan.

What materialized on stage of Sydney Opera House’s stage tonight was testament to the relevance and longevity of the album and Wu Tang Clan at large and cemented that their oeuvre has arrived –from the alleys of Staten Island to the cultural canon of established popular culture.

With the resurgence of hip hop over the last decade and it pervading every facet of mainstream society, it was fantastic to see some of the OGs hitting it and having fun doing so.

An engaging performance throughout in a 360-degree setup, they transformed the Opera House into a bouncing block party with the sold-out audience lapping it up.

Wu-Tang forever – and the next three days of forever they will be continuing their residence at the Opera House.

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Photos courtesy of Pru Upton and Dan Boud

Limeburners

I came across Limeburners at a recent whisky tasting. Given that the other drops on offer were nothing to write home about, it not difficult for Limeburners’ expression stand out, however, it stood out in epic measures.

Situated in Western Australia, Limeburners have continuously upped their game – be it the sourcing of barrels with a history that can be traced back nearly a hundred years in the new world before they helped mature port or sherry for a number of decades and eventually found their destiny helping refine Limeburners’ emissions, or securing their own local peat supply along with building their own customised peat smoker, aiding in peating their own barely.

Limeburners flagship is without a doubt their Single Malt Whisky.  

In 2012 “Tiger Snake”, a ‘sour mash’ mixed grain whiskey, was launched, i.e. an expression inspired by the better Kentucky and Tennessee whiskies.

Whisky-wise, Limeburners’ focus is firmly set on single barrel releases with variants clocking in at a range of ABVs and in peated and unpeated varieties with the occasional cask strength of wine cask expression.

The blessing and curse with Limeburners is that due to the limitation of their releases and cask sizes, the drops are crafted using traditional techniques and paid meticulous attention to yet they are increasingly hard to come by due to the wider whisky loving public catching on to it.

With the Western regions of Australia having not only ideal water for whisky brewing but also a borderline ideal climate whose low evaporation rates and humidity levels are conducive to distilling the quality drops they have become known for.

If I had to pin down the character of Limeburners across the board of its releases and find an equivalent in Scotland, it would be the whiskies from the Speyside region.

Given the fact that Limeburners has only been on the map for less than ten years and seeing what they have accomplished, there is no doubt in my mind that within a short period of time they will not only become a force to be reckoned with on international terrain but also high quality whisky house that does not have to hide behind the great Tasmanian whiskies we have recently covered.

Limeburners’ Single Malt Whisky Sherry Cask is an exercise in complexity exhibiting spicy fruit aromas, hinting at honey-esque vanilla notes and a long smooooth finish.

My favourite is the Peated Small Batch Australian Single Malt Whisky variant, which clocks in at 48%. The smoky flavour is framed by a bouquet of spices and citrussy floral notes with a sheer never-ending finish that is reminiscent of licorice, tannins and blueberries that makes me smack my lips.

Definitely one of my favourite Australian expressions.

Subtle, soft yet flavourful, complex, nuanced and difficult to not abstain from pouring yourself another dram.

Read more Water of Life entries here.

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Photo by T