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Death: A Graveside Companion 

Thames and Hudson

Not sure if you concur with Socrates in that death may the greatest of all human blessings but it is certainly a topic that is relevant to every mortal and has been explored in a myriad of ways.

With over one thousand images, Death: A graveside companion is an opulently illustrated tome whose four hundred pages shed light on the intersections between life, beauty, spiritualism, mourning and death and its perception and depiction in different cultural contexts and through the ages.

Rituals, celebrations, sacraments, customs are depicted with images mainly based on the collection of one Richard Harris and help to understand that what is perceived to be the common perception of death is merely a one-sided view that helps to deal with a taboo subject that does not discriminate.

What can be a morbid and voyeuristic affair, has been resolved by editor Joanna Ebenstein’s dignified approach to mortality, the curation of the depictions and the essays contributed by authors, medical professionals, academics, cultural critics and spiritual luminaries.

The essays are often scholarly in nature yet accessible for the uninitiated as well as diverse with the background of the individuals not being rooted in a singular discipline, but presenting a wide range of perspectives.

Ebenstein’s approach tackles the sujet from different angles – be it myths, pop culture, metaphysics or science – and thereby creates a stimulating and inspiring source of insights.

A beautiful, handsomely bound and superbly edited compendium dealing with the inescapable and capturing attitudes, thoughts, ideas, interpretations, traditions and musings on the biggest mystery there is.

Degas: A Passion for Perfection

by Jane Munro

Yale University Press

Edgar Degas (1834-1917) is heralded as one of the founders and masters of the impressionist movement, with the core of his oeuvre focusing on the life in Paris (think belle arts, ballet, café and theater) – nudes, lots of pink and white, the depiction of ornate clothes, exquisite dancing girls but more often than not mundane yet magic moments that are often overlooked: Ballerinas lost in mundane tasks and everything other than dancing.

Cue classical beauty, voyeurism par excellence and modern realism.

Degas considered himself an artist in the vein of Michelangelo, a book on which is reviewed in another recent blogpost,

What is interesting with Degas is that despite being influenced by the grand master Michelangelo, Degas had a weak spot for asymmetry, was an avid proponent of dramatic effect and averse to traditional composition.

What he achieved by that was scratching the surface and putting the focus on the hard work of ballet dancing and beauty in general that can be found beyond the surface.

A hundred years after Edgar Degas’ departure, the book is a well-made document that sheds light on Degas’ legacy and the influences it exerted on other significant artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, e.g. Francis Bacon, Picasso and David Hockney among others, comprising depictions not only of his more prominent and well-known paintings and sculptures, but also lesser known etchings, monotypes, and counter proofs, some of which are sources from private collections and shed light on for the first time, that give insight into the his creative processes.

Having a luminary like Jane Munro at the helm of the operation as her background and work for the University of Cambridge (as curator of the Fitzwilliam Museum as well as Director of Studies in History of Art at Christ’s College) ensures that her selection of contributors and their emissions is relevant and reveal interesting takes on Degas’ work.

The Ivory Mirror

The Art of Mortality in Renaissance Europe

Yale University Press

www.footprint.com.au

Renaissance - what associations does the term invoke with you?

An age of achievement, “eureka” being shouted and enlightenment? Progress in a range of fields? The creation and celebration of both artistic and technical accomplishments? The emergence of clear, forward pointed thoughts?

It might have been all that but there was more to it. A darker, macabre side: Musings on the need to be and vivid depictions of what might expect us on the other side once we have crossed the river Styx and exited this mortal coil, i.e. decay, lethality, doom, gloom and all things morbid.

The Ivory Mirror reflects and documents in detail that very imagery by depicting and illustrating nearly two hundred artworks, ranging from sculptural manifestations of death via paintings and ornaments to jewellery. It thereby sheds light on the darker side of an age and its protagonists trying to come to terms with “dem Weg alles Irdischen”.

Not unlike today, things were becoming more complex and with the advancement of technology and the means at disposal, contemporaries were considering how a legacy could be created that would outlast the mundane existence as they became acutely aware that no matter how much they were being held in high esteem, eventually they would end up being food for worms.

The beautifully illustrated book is framed by essays focussing on the art of transformation and its significance, exploring themes that have not only not lost significance as time went by but are more relevant than ever before in our day and age.

An enlightening tome that tries to feel out and calibrate the navigation between rectitude and mortality – a balance act with the trappings of egotistical, mundane Eigennutz on one side and the pursuit of a greater common good on the other.

A memento mori par excellence and food for thought...

Cattle Decapitation

Bald Faced Stag Hotel

Sydney, Australia

February 16, 2018

First and last time I came across Cattle Decapitation was with the release of their “Ten Torments of the Damned” 7” in the mid-'90s. Fast-forward a more twenty years, and their mélange of grindcore, power violence and metal has made them a veritable big player in the more violent realm of what is labeled as Death Metal.

Cattle Decapitation’s appeal back in the day as well as in 2018 is that it is not merely an exercise in being extreme for the sake of shock value, but it is solidly based on their credo and disgust with the way the race of humankind is devolving.

In a live environment, Cattle Decapitation is a precise, well oiled machine that is surprisingly nuanceful when it comes to administering their technical assaults of brutality, effortlessly amplifying velocity or stripping it back, all with their own groove to play with dynamics and keep the audience on its toes.

With a lot of the bands of Cattle Decapitation’s ilk, novelty vocals run danger of quickly outlasting their allure, but somehow Travis Ryan manages to keep it at an interesting level throughout their performance running the gamut of extreme onomatopoeia, which serves as an instrument in itself.

Brutality and controversy, which is often based on their explicit cover artworks and the band crossing into more mainstream waters, aside: Cattle Decapitation is first and foremost an accomplished band that does not have to rely on shock antics and tonight’s show was a testament to their virtuosity and song-writing abilities.

It was interesting to see how they have evolved and started to incorporate to subtly incorporate melodic passages, which gives their onslaught another dimension.

Sunnyboys

Factory Theatre

Sydney, Australia

February 10, 2018

Oh goody!

The Sunnyboys.

One of the most influential Australian bands with a back catalogue that is hard to f with no matter where you personal preferences on the spectrum of alternative music are benchmarked.

They call and the audience beckons enthusiastically with sold out shows paving their way all around every time they decide to reconvene for a good ole time.

Rightly so.

An ode to joy.

Sunny Boys in a live environment is a sonic experience to behold. Focusing on the music without further ado, the five gentlemen channel equal parts Wipers-esque melancholy, a mélange of the original punks’ The Kinks and Neil Young influenced rock staples and garnish it all with power pop elements in the vein of pioneers like Badfinger.

A lineup with all original members intact ensures that the original spirit is conveyed, with the audience lapping it up and celebrating every minute of their performance.

The Sunnyboys are first and foremost a live band and it shows that they are enjoying it still as they carve their way through the many highlights of their near flawless catalogue.

Bands that almost forty years after their first incarnation have the vigor to carry the spirit in such a soulful manner, especially via the heartfelt vocal arrangements, are far and few between – qualities that are inherently epitomized by The Sunnyboys.

They are touring periodically and you would not want to miss out if they ever play near you...

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photos by @k.a.vv