ArtWalk's - 5 Cool Things - 7/6/22
A Creative Entertainment Newsletter
1) FILM / TELEVISION
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY - (Stanley Kubrick/Director)
*CLASSICS EDITION
You’ve probably seen it. And if you haven’t for some reason, please do. I rewatched Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey a couple weeks ago for probably the 7th or 8th time at this point. It is one of those classic films I need an injection of once every two years or so. Maybe you have felt the same way I have as of late…with the influx of television series after television series and documentaries, docuseries, and plastic built films with no desirable structure to maintain your interest….sometimes you just want something familiar, something with a solid, iron build. A great classic.
It would be easy for me to sit here, writing about, and recommending a classic film, that so many others have deemed a classic in the pantheon of our cinematic history. But what if I asked you to put away the phone, in fact throw it into another room. Turn the lights to black, volume up, and recline. Focus. Allow a piece of film history to envelop you for two hours and nineteen minutes. There is something about this film that works it’s way into you, where it breathes and lives inside of your skin and bones. What that feels like to you upon experience will be yours and yours alone.
When I recommend a classic like this, that is all I can do. Ask to remove all distraction and become one with the experience. And if you have seen it several times before, like myself, watch for new things, laser in on specific characters and their choices, or particular set pieces and “their” reason for being there.
The last time I watched, this scene in particular (below), it was pronounced for me. It is a pivotal moment in the film, sure, but there was something different this time. The subtle direction by Kubrick, the calmness in the acting, the light hiss of the spaceship. Something gave me extreme comfort. I may not even realize what it was, but I truly enjoyed the experience of it.
2) MUSIC / PODCASTS
GOTH BABE - (Alternative/Indie)
“Goth Babe is Griff Washburn enjoying himself. Originally from Tennessee, Griff currently lives in a Tiny House with his pup Sadie in the mountains of Washington. When not on the road touring, Griff and Sadie are off enjoying the outdoors in the great Pacific Northwest. Snow, surf, and trails are plenty to occupy them in their offseason.
Griff has seemed to have picked up on the brighter parts of life. Parting ways with social status and relevance, he's discovered how wonderful living day by day is. Making music to Griff is less a climb to the top, as it is a form of free thinking and enjoyment.” - Goth Babe website
I have really taken to Griff Washburn’s music as of late, or I should say Goth Babe, Griff’s alter ego that performs music. All of his music videos are simply Griff’s adventures captured from simple cameras and smartphone video, compiled into a visual smorgasbord of a music video. His music is light and punchy, with a backbone of “feel good” through the seam of it, and I like it.
Goth Babe Website: https://www.gothbabemusic.com/
3) ART
NAYANAA KANODIA - (Indian Painter)
“Naïve art is usually defined as visual art that is created by a person who lacks the formal education and training that a professional artist undergoes (in anatomy, art history, technique, perspective, ways of seeing). When this aesthetic is emulated by a trained artist, the result is sometimes called primitivism, pseudo-naïve art, or faux naïve art.” - Wikipedia
“A brilliant colorist, NayanaaKanodia, an economist turned painter, is considered to be the pioneer of l'Art Naïf in India, a genre until then unseen and unheard of in a contemporary context. She has since established a rare niche for herself in this very particular mode. Having had a French leave of absenteeism from formal training in art,enabled Nayanaa Kanodia to bring patterns of strong individualism into her work long before it was considered the sought-after approach for unique and contemporary artists of today.” - https://www.nayanaakanodia.com/
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4) BOOKS / WRITING
NAKED LUNCH - (William S. Burroughs)
In great honor of our recent “Bourdain Day” celebration, I am recommending one of Anthony’s favorite books, and authors…Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs. This is a must read for those looking to check off all of the boxes in literary classics. Just hold on for dear life.
PLOT: “Hustler-addict Bill Lee travels from New York to Tangiers, running from the police and searching for a place to take drugs, until he enters the hallucinatory fantasy world of Interzone, where individual freedom confronts the forces of totalitarianism.” - Publisher (Grove Pr)
Special ArtWalk offer: BUY NAKED LUNCH
5) PHOTOGRAPHY / CINEMATOGRAPHY
ZAK VAN BILJON - (South African Photographer)
THE TECHNIQUE
“The technique, developed for military surveillance and crop surveys, captures near-infrared light: wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation that fall between what we see as red and the longer wavelengths used for thermal imaging.
The pigment in plant leaves, chlorophyll, strongly absorbs visible light which they use as a source of energy in the process of photosynthesis.
The cell structure of the leaves, on the other hand, strongly reflects near-infrared light. A strong absorption at these wavelengths would only result in overheating the plant and possibly damaging the tissues. The human eye is unable to perceive infrared light but it is exactly this reflected energy, which reacts with infrared-sensitive material to create electric pinks and vibrant reds.” - Zak’s website
*All images copyrighted to Zak Van Biljon
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zakvanbiljon/
Website: https://www.zakvanbiljon.com/
If you would like to support this newsletter, please consider becoming a paid subscriber (donation based). Thank you for reading. Peace. -AA
"2001" is certainly one of the most beautiful films ever made.