LAND (Los Angeles Nomadic Division) presented an All Souls Eve Fête, an "immersive, macabre evening of dinner, cocktails, dancing and live performance," at the historic Ebell of Los Angeles. A live auction, with works by the likes of Aaron Young, Eve Fowler, and Jay Stuckey, was presented by Artsy. photographs by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
2015 is when the zine went mainstream. Some of our fave artists dabbled in the fine craftsmanship of the stapled chapbook that many people think dates back to the early days of punk, but it actually can be dated all the way back to 1776 when Thomas Paine published his famous pamphlet, Common Sense, which rifled enough feathers for thirteen colonies to declare war and independence from the British. Fancy that. However, the modern zine, which is shorthand for fanzine – not magazine as many believe – was a photocopied, hastily stapled together collection of appropriated imagery and art school angst. In 2015, the zine has held true to its DIY Xerox aesthetic, with a few surprising contributions – and of course some obvious contributors from the likes of one of our favorite photographers working today, Sandy Kim, and from one of our favorite new Los Angeles queer-cult collective, Gurt. Click here to check out ten of our favorite zines that came out in 2015, so far.
An exhibition of unseen photographs by Smiler (aka Mark Cawson) of London squats from the late 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s is currently on view at the ICA in London. The content of the exhibition focuses on a body of work that Smiler mainly shot between West London and Kings Cross. The exhibition consists of black and white images taken on an analogue camera. “I used the camera like a storm anchor helping me to navigate and freeze a spinning world of change and flux.” Smiler Against the backdrop of social and political upheaval, young people across the city were drawn to squats by the prospect of a place to live, but also by an identity and a sense of community. Smiler’s photographs document the people who lived in squats across the city, at a time when salvage culture was the norm. Smiler: Photographs of London by Mark Cawson will be on view at the ICA until November 29, 2015, 12 Carlton House Terrace London
Bash to celebrate the release of Brad Elterman's new photo book No Dogs On Beach at Milk Studios in Los Angeles. photographs by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
356 Mission Gallery hosted the closing of the Seth Bogart Show this weekend in Los Angeles. There were wild performances from "celebrity imposters" (featuring the likes of Madonna and Grace Jones) and Bogart's band Hunx and His Punx. Photographs by Keely Shinners
Last night at Milk Studios, Photo15 a live auction benefit, was held for the creation of the West Hollywood AIDS Memorial. For the benefit, dozens of the most iconic photographs from the past 50 years were donated by some of the art world’s greatest juggernaut photographers. Works by Jack Pierson, Herb Ritts, Olivier Zahm, Ellen von Unwerth, Katherine Opie, and many more were represented, and some of the most philanthropic buyers were there hoping to take home a piece of the action. Preceding the live auction, Sharon Stone gave an emotional and sobering speech about the AIDS epidemic and what it has taught us about humanity. In it she says, “This is not a lesson we’re just learning in the AIDS community – it’s a lesson we are learning about humanity. When we judge, when we turn our backs on each other, when we turn away from anyone in need, we have a global crisis.” Indeed, for this event to happen on the same day as a mass shooting in Oregan, we are once again reminded of the obligation we have to band together and put an end to our most deadly manifestations. Last night, hundreds of Angelenos came together to build awareness and honor those who have suffered from the tragedies of the AIDS epidemic. photographs by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
In the following interview, we have a long chat with Mel Shimkovitz about Trans vampires, her Zelig-like position in the music, art and Hollywood worlds, and the media’s sudden shift in focus toward the lives and rights of the LGBTQ community. Click here to read the full convo.
Edwige Belmore, “the queen of punk” has died at the age of 58 in Miami. A great many things can be said of Belmore and yet it seems that the complexity of her journey through life remains all too mysterious. What we do know is that she personally touched the lives of some of the greatest cultural influencers of the 20th century, from Helmut Newton to Andy Warhol. Her life was a beautiful rags-to-riches-to-rags tale of heartbreak and obscurity. From her early years estranged from family to being discovery by the world of high fashion and art, to the end of her life as the resident artist and landscaper at the Vagabond Hotel in Miami. Her LinkedIn account lists “landscaping hobo” and “palm tree studies” as her duties. There is certainly no way to encapsulate all of the moments of her life in a meager list of 10, but since we’ve attempted to all the same since everyone loves a listicle. Click here to read 10 things you need to know about Edwige Belmore.
Harper’s Books, in conjunction with Flying Books, Tokyo, presented an exhibition of new work by Daisuke Yokota over the weekend. Color Photographs marks Daisuke Yokota’s first exhibition in the United States. Celebrated internationally for his interdisciplinary and energetic approach to art and bookmaking, this show will focus on the artist's experiments with color photography, a body of work distinct from the black and white images, zines, and books for which he is known. With this series, as Yokota explains, he “tried not to take pictures,” and instead sought to “draw out the physical aspect of film.” Yokota layered sheets of unused large format color film and applied unorthodox developing methods before scanning the results. Here, documentation is replaced with darkroom alchemy in order to show that the essence of photography rests not necessarily with the camera, but in film itself. You can also purchase a signed first edition monograph featuring these magnificent color photographs. This exhibition will also be view at Harper's Books in East Hampton from September 26 to December 1, 2015. photographs by Adam Lehrer
photograph by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
Hosted by Rose McGowan, the #YESALLWOMEN campaign (spearheaded by Jessie Askinazi) held a silent auction, exhibition, and evening of performances fusing art and activism, to benefit the East Los Angeles Women's Center, whose programs supported 8,300 Los Angeles women, girls, and families affected by violence last year. Featuring renowned and emerging women in contemporary art reflecting on gender equality including: Barbara Kruger, Kim Gordon, Xaviera Simmons, Rain and Summer Phoenix, Kathleen Hanna, Drue Kataoka, Amanda Demme and more. You can donate to the #YESALLWOMEN campaign here. photographs by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
This year's New York Book Fair, hosted by Printed Matter, officially starts today. It will run until September 20, 2015 at MoMA PS1. photographs by Tenlie Mourning
Artist Serge Attukwei Clottey and Nana Ghana At the SOHO House In Hollywood. photograph by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
Jack Pierson’s art is dangerous and seductive with the lure of a sordid kind of glamor. Close your eyes and imagine a motel with a blinking vacancy sign. You’re on the edge of the desert and it’s 110 degrees in the pitch-blackness. Indeed, he is an enigmatic artist with a sense of hopeless romanticism – his work screams this tortured longing. Over the last few decades, Pierson’s art seems to get cooler and cooler – there is a distinctly dreamy and quixotic quality to all of it: the photographs, the collages, the text based works that incorporate rusty and discarded signage and his beloved artist books. Officially launching today at the New York Art Book Fair MoMA PS1 is the third installment of Pierson’s highly acclaimed and groundbreaking publishing project Tomorrow’s Man. Click here to read our exclusive interview with Jack Pierson.
photograph by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
Marc Jacobs threw a raucous party for the late Chris von Wangenheim's monograph, entitled Gloss, at his store across the street from Bookmarc in New York. The theme: ’70s glamour, excess, and gloss. A widely circulated invite called for “fur coats over lingerie, lip gloss, Jerry Hall side-swept hair, sequins, gold lame turbans, Patti Hearst symbionese liberation army gear, rogue, rollerina chic, sheer harem pants, mini skirts and muscular legs, platinum records as head gear, sequins, Grace Jones butch realness, Gloss-y skin, bleached eyebrows, slits, riding in on a white horse, sequins, sky high stilettos, mirrored aviators, metal mesh, cowl neckline halters, or eyes of Laura Mars chic. No flat shoes. No matte surfaces. No natural looks.” Click here to purchase the book. photographs by Christian Högstedt
