today marks the day that myself & agnes varda (84 & still involved in film) first breathed in oxygen.

'diary of a pregnant woman' (1956)

library pick of the week: jacques demy's donkey skin.

the visuals are really fun, and catherine deneuve is great as the princess who hides as a scullery maid, wearing the skin of her father's prized donkey, to escape having to marry him.

i'm back on the internet grid
thora, who usually greets anyone who walks through the door,  booked it straight underneath my bed covers when the cable guy came over to hook me up. she wouldn't come out until i pulled her out all wide eyed.
i'm not sure what she saw or sensed, but it was super spooky... on that note: here's a 1922 swedish documentary on witchcraft throughout the ages(narrated by william burroughs in 1960)

next week is my friendly print-shop's annual fundraising party: 'love those clothes'. 

i had great fun designing, hand-cutting each color layer out of rubylith, and silk-screening about a dozen variations of the poster... 

a limited edition will be available at the party

gold lion silkscreened prints 

a peach&gold moon silk-screened print that comes in a yellow version, as well 

A PEEK

here's thora inspecting my screened leather pouches before they hit the royal bison fair this weekend.

 in 3 differant sizes, they can hold your change/bills/phone/whatever. 

 vs

as my ami says: dutronc is badass!

geometrica et perspectiva (c.1567?) lorentz stoer

lorentz was over 500 years ahead of the current geometric trend! 

this song has me yearning for a good trip.  

TOOL TIME

it's that time of year again! 

i've got my tools out and am in the midst of designing, printing, hammering, sewing, polishing, and all kind of other 'ings...

here's my favourite sketchbook / utensil satchel that i've re-created out of a beautiful chartreuse/olive leather. so handy!

post-war czech animation

looking for a juicy read?: 'love, terror, and an american family in hitler's berlin' is set in 1933 & focuses on the american ambassador & his daughter, martha who managed to get up close & personal with a few high rolling nazi's /commies

 

watch/listening to a documentary on brian eno, 'the man who fell to earth', while doing some print-work.
 i've gone from the sparkles, outer-space, & oboe solos of roxy music- to the aural-space of another green world...my favourite.(i love eno &all, but bryan ferry... what a fox.)

space needles

ps. let's make some prints this week-end at SNAP!

miracle on the first day of spring

my bike is back!

satchmo & sunday go hand-in-hand

my library pick for this week was the fascinating documentary on henri langlois: 'phantom of the cinematheque'. so good!

'... for 40 years, henri langlois presided over the cinematheque francaise with absolute commitment & unwavering passion.beginning in 1936, langlois' beg, borrow & steal hustling preserved the priceless treasures of an artform then still too new to be recognized as such. through ad hoc screenings in paris apartments, hallways & stairwells, the young langlois shared his love for film art with the enthusiasm of an aesthetic epicure.  under nazi occupation, langlois went underground rescuing & secretly screening banned films under the noses of the s.s.  during the calcyon 60's langlois battled bureaucrats, championed auteurs, & ushered in a new golden age of cinema..."

anyone out here in the northern prairies want to whip-up a few silk screen prints sans digital?

you're in luck! yours truly will be holding a two day handcut screen-print workshop at SNAP March 31st/1st.  

we'll get our x-acto blades/rubylith out & go nuts!

1923

the world reversed, kuhn 1830

norse edda from 1760: olafur brynjulfsson

holger czukay

is it so bad it's good? or is it so good it's bad?  all i know is that the 2:50 mark looks like a good time...

 

here's holger in his more familiar form of krautrock gold: can

another favourite film by svankmajer: 'something from alice'

the animation is incredible (and truly creepy!)

"the hours of catherine of cleves" 

learn more about the history of this amazing illuminated manuscript.

1744

the lip-sync in this is unnerving, but jane & this gainsbourg song are both so pretty...

marcel duchamp's 1934 cover for the surrealist's journal 'minotaure'

 

is it getting noticeable that there's been more film watching than hammering out objects this winter, yet?
forgive me. the days are staying lighter longer & good studio time is near approaching.

anyway,  this movie is perfect simply for the amazing outfits throughout. those dresses! garbo in the craziest silver outfit at the 18 minute mark!
here she is vs. the real gal

gabbo the ventriloquist

1929

 the east anglian film archives site is wonderful.

the crazy world, indeed! and he's still going strong...

georges melies

 

roman signer

to lessen the channelling of my inner winter sloth, i've taken up pilates and living room dancing. 

(headphones & 80's deutsch industrial. things are getting wierd).

murnau's 'der letzte mann' (1924) beautifully restored.

it just hit me- 

david bowie is officially a senior citizen

fully feeling the winter beatdown as of late.

perhaps i'll take a page from christine pizan's  'book of knighthood' (1460) and meet the beasty blues/creative drain face to face.

this documentary on henri makes me hungry for the darkroom. 

2012 starts with bright sunshine, hot coffee, and soviet posters from 1918-22... 

found here 

good-bye & so long to the triumphs & defeats of 2011

time for a new year

i love old calendars 

this one is for my childhood best buddy leah & her grey eyes

the romance of alexander, by flemish artist jehan de grise 1338-1344.

stunning.

from the first eurythmics album(1981) & the only one that i really love... 
must be because it was produced by this guy?

MICHAEL OF RHODES

michael of rhodes, a venetian mariner in the 15th century, wrote and illustrated a text describing his experiences in the merchant and military fleets. 

this site by the museo galileo has me spellbound. there is a translation of each page of the manuscript! love!