Devendra Banhart playing in Moscow on October 20, at the opening of Garage Center For Contemporary Art's opening of the pavilion in Gorky Park near Pionersky pond, a new venue for exhibitions, lectures, workshops and more. The pavilion is designed by internationally acclaimed architect Shigeru Ban. photograph by Maxim Ksuta
Jeremy Kost’s celebrity paintings–silkscreened on large-scale canvases from Polaroid images–are paired here with Polaroid facsimiles by Andy Warhol from the 70s and 80s. Both artists share an inquisitive lust to understand fame in all its dramatic guises and extravagant poses. Occasionally they share a subject–Liza Minnelli, Dolly Parton, Keith Richards–though Kost approaches these iconic individuals from a very different perspective. In some cases they are obscured or abstracted; occasionally disembodied, as with Madonna’s head, which appears to float on a sea of silver, or Grace Jones, who dissolves into a beautiful haze of flowers and tapestries. By translating his original photographs into these slick yet gritty canvases, Kost has given his unique vision a new sense of monumentality. In these works, which came from his Polaroid photographs, celebrity is both celebrated and complicated. We see the mobs of paparazzi themselves, clamoring for a shot, and the polarized finish of the paintings themselves is simultaneously glamorous and anti-glamor–just as Beyonce here appears both as a superstar and a sort of monster, caught in the camera’s flash. Like his forbearer Warhol, Kost is a participant in the world he depicts and also somewhat of a voyeur, diligently capturing all the madness and the romance of celebrity, all the while translating a sense of intimacy and access. Jeremy Kost: Always The Center of Attention will be on view until November 18 at Galerie Nuke, 11 Rue Saint Anastase, 75003 Paris, France
Warby Parker teams up with Pencils of Promise, a non-profit devoted to building schools in the developing world, to created two limited edition pairs of sunglasses.
Anja Rubik models for the first collection of Saint Laurent by Hedi Slimane. photograph by Hedi Slimane
A circular artwork featuring butterfly wings by artist Damien Hirst at Gagosian Gallery at FIAC 2012 (International Contemporary Art Fair) at the Grand Palais in Paris on view until October 21, 2012. photograph by Francois Mori
Douglas Gordon's piece Self Portrait of you + me, (oversized Jackie) at FIAC 2012 (International Contemporary Art Fair) which be on view until October 21, 2012, at the Grand Palaise in Paris. photograph by Francois Mori
Oliver Maxwell Kupper’s Canon F-1 at Tartine. photograph by Brad Elterman
The Pierre Balmain Spring/Summer 2013 collection is inspired by glamour under the sun, notably the grand hotels of Nice and the French Riviera, the chic styling of iconic French actress Jeanne Moreau as seen in Jacque Demy’s classic 1963 film La Baie des Anges, and the renowned Parisian club in the 80s Les Bains Douches. With a palette of graphic black & white mixed with sun-kissed brights, the women’s pieces strike a balance between strong tailoring and delicate romance; the perfect coral lace dress, feminine shorts, peasant skirts, worn with classic biker or tuxedo jackets. While the men’s provides featherweight playboy essentials; the slim tailored jacket, fitted cardigan, and the perfect shirt signed with a fine black stripe. See the amazing fashion film starring model Anna Selezneva.
David Byrne hanging out in the Mission, riding his bike past Valencia and 19th Street, killing time before his talk on City Arts and Lectures. photograph by Brad Elterman
Kôji Wakamatsu has passed away this morning in Tokyo. The 76-year-old director was injured when he was struck by a taxi while crossing a busy Tokyo intersection. He never recovered from the injuries. Koji, who directed Go, Go Second Time Virgin and Ecstasy of Angels was one of the most important directors of the Pinky film (pink eiga), a genre known for its copious amounts of horror, sex and violence often folding in elements of rape and bondage.
Copenhagen based Reptile Youth have invited ten directors to each direct a video for their new album. For the latest video, for the track Dead End, they have invited Rei Nadal. Rei Nadal is an artist based in Barcelona. Born in Sevilla, Spain, Nadal went on to complete a fashion design degree before beginning an internship with fashion brand American Perez. She has garnered attention for her unique and intriguing esthetics. She intersperses imagery from fashion editorials, art photography, and video, alongside candid self-portraits and text. As part of the annual CMJ 2012 music festival, Reptile Youth will give four performances, starting with one gig at Alphabet Lounge, October 17th , followed by shows @ Spike Hall, Webster Studio and finally @ Drom – Nicky Digital Showcase on October 20th.
A lunch at Tartine Bakery in San Francisco with photographer Brad Elterman. photography by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
Gallery Brown presents Matter of Time, an exhibition of new paintings, works on paper and sculpture from artist Gregory Siff. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Gregory officially made Los Angeles home in 2009 where he has since established himself as a recognizable cultural influence. Gregory’s distinct handmade style merges unique elements of abstraction, street, and fine art; his technique coalesces the voice of a fearless child with the wisdom of a seasoned warrior. His influences include Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, RETNA, Ray Johnson, RISK, David Shillinglaw, Louis XXX and his father. Matter of Time is an examination of fame, idolatry, memory, determination, kingship and heart. Gregory's half-whispered thoughts are painted out in full roars on found material, handmade panel and canvas. Matter of Time will be on view from October 20 to November 10 at Gallery Brown, 140 South Orlando Ave, Los Angeles, CA
Opening night of Kembra Pfahler's solo exhibition Fuck Island which was on view until October 14 at Participant Inc. in New York. Fuck Island is a protest anthem, love song, and manifesto written for her band, The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black. As Pfahler describes this song-as-exhibtion: “It’s the first annual Karen Black cock festival. But it’s really more like a happy funeral. We are celebrating the death of the patriarch, and you are all party to this secret.” photograph by Walter Wlodarczyk
Jeu de Paume organizes a major exhibition by the internationally recognized artist Antoni Muntadas (Barcelona, 1942), one of the early practitioners of conceptual and media art. The show will survey Muntadas' prolific career, from the seventies to present days. His art practice spans four decades, in which he has utilized actions, video, photography, multi-media installations, publications, public art, the internet, radio and other media to address key political and social issues of our time. Incorporating in-depth research and astute readings of cultural situations, his incisive works have addressed ideas such as the relationship between public and private, the flows of information along the media landscape, and the inherent power of architecture and other social frameworks. Muntadas. Entre / Between will be on view until January 20, 2013 at Jeu de Paume, 1 place de la Concorde 75008 Paris
Heritage brand Schott NYC, who has outfitted many a rock star and icon of rebellion including none other than James Dean, is turning 100 and to celebrate is teaming up with UK designer Henry Holland for a capsule collection that be available this November at Selfridges.
Created in collaboration with Japanese hair salon/publishing house Salon Shizen a new book featuring photographs by Richard Kern, entitled 10:41, it features new images of young bodies "frolicking in the leafy Connecticut countryside." The series features very prominently Kern's favorite symbole of youth and nubile eroticism: the cell phone; hence the name of the book is the time on most everyone's phone when he took them and put them in a pile. The book is is available at Salon Shizen and Opening Ceremony. Come March, Kern is set to release Shot By Kern, his first Taschen book in four years, chronicling his experience doing a video series for Vice called Shot By Kern, in which the magazine films his shoots and interviews his models. The monograph is to be accompanied by an hour and 20 minutes of footage and a New York exhibition some time in the next year.
Actress Amy Adams in Boy by Band of Outsiders, shot at The Autry in Glendale, California
Commissioned from M/M (Paris) to celebrate both their twentieth anniversary and the publication of the definitive monograph of their work, the exhibition of elaborate rug designs acts like a condensed catalogue - or Carpetalogue - for M/M's practice. Michaël Amzalag and Mathias Augustyniak originally established M/M (Paris) as a graphic design studio in 1992. Their close associations with the music, fashion and art worlds have led to their becoming one of the most distinctive and acclaimed creative voices of their generation, within graphic design and beyond. The hand-knotted wool carpets, specifically produced for the exhibition by Abhishek Poddar in Varanasi, India, will be sold as limited editions through the gallery. The monograph, M to M of M/M (Paris), written by Emily King, designed by Graphic Thought Facility and with a foreward by Hans Ulrich Obrist, will be published by Thames and Hudson and launched during the exhibition. M/M (Paris) Carpetologue 1992 to 2012 will be on view until December 15 at Libby Sellers Gallery, 41, 42 Berners Street, London.
Private—a word from the past, or so it would seem these days. A word of hardly any relevance in an era when everything—from one’s favorite recipe to one’s current relationship status—is posted on Facebook. Exhibitionism, self-disclosure, the delight in telling stories, showing off, and voyeurism are the social strategies in today’s world—a world that has long since undergone a structural transformation of the public sphere. In contemporary art, domestic scenes and personal secrets are mirrored in photographs, Polaroids, cell phone photos, objects, installations, and films. The familiar and intimate are put in the picture. Through a consideration of numerous contemporary approaches the Schirn investigates the dwindling private sphere and the “publicness of the intimate.” Aiming her camera through a rear courtyard window, Merry Alpern captures blurred scenes of hurried sexual encounters; in his romantic video piece Akram Zaatari explores an online chat between two men; and Fiona Tan combines private snapshots from different countries to create large tableaux. The exhibition undertakes memorable excursions to the fragile borders between the self and the other. Other artists include Dash Snow, Mark Morrisroe, Ai Weiwei and Marilyn Minter. Privacy will be on view from November 1, 2012, to February 3, 2013 at the Schirn Kunsthalle, Romberg, 60311 Frankfurt