Month: July 2015

Tembladera Feline-Head Bottle

Tembladera Feline-Head Bottle, Ceramic, 9th-5th Century BC, Peru

Ceramic vessels made up a large percentage of mortuary offerings in ancient Peru. Early fine examples were fired to create muted, matte tones of gray, black, and tan, with highly polished or incised surfaces. This tall bottle, with its well-preserved surface paint, is said to come from the area known as Tembladera in the Jequetepeque Valley of northern Peru. A modeled, stylized feline head in profile is worked on the front. The head is upended, and the long, conventionalized snout has teeth that continue almost to the top of the “nose.” A looped-over tongue projects from the mouth. A smaller feline profile appears on the opposite side of the bottle. The feline associations are probably those of the jaguar, the most impressive wild cat of the Americas and one long revered in ancient times for its prowess.

Carlos Amorales

Carlos Amorales, “Black Cloud”, Installation, Black Paper Moths

Black Cloud is an installation by Mexican artist Carlos Amorales involving tens of thousands of black paper months affixed to the walls of large interior spaces. The piece was first installed at Yvon Lambert in 2007 and then in a different configuration at an old baroque church in Spain that was converted to a multi-use space called Espacio AV in 2009.

Mars and Beyond

Walt Disney Studios, “Mars and Beyond”, Computer Graphics, Animation Gifs

“Mars and Beyond” is an episode of Disneyland which aired on December 4, 1957. It was directed by Ward Kimball and narrated by Paul Frees. This episode discusses the possibility of life on other planets, especially Mars. It begins with an introduction of Walt Disney and his robot friend Garco, who provide a brief overview. It continues with an animated presentation about mankind seeking to understand the world in which he lives, first noticing patterns in the stars, and developing certain beliefs regarding the celestial bodies.

John Wood

John Wood, “Narcissus”, Date Unknown, Oil on Canvas

An early version of the “Narcissus” story by Conon, a contemporary of Ovid, tells the tale of Narcissus and Amines . In it, a young man named Aminias fell in love with Narcissus, who had already spurned his male suitors. Narcissus also spurned him and gave him a sword.

Before Aminias committed suicide at Narcissus’s doorstep, he had prayed to the gods to give Narcissus a lesson for all the pain he provoked. Narcissus walked by a pool of water and saw his reflection, became entranced by it, and killed himself because he could not have his object of desire.

Mark Francis

Four Oil Paintings by Mark Francis

Mark Francis is a Northern Irish painter known for his alla prima technique of blurring tones and forms to make photographic effects of glowing light. Like Gerhard Richter’s paintings of aerial photographs or  Ross Bleckner’s depictions of infected cells, Francis’ work focuses on the abstract nature of microscopic images, including those of sperm, fungus, and astronomical formations.Through this imagery, Francis aims to explore ways in which science is impacted by mapping, order, and randomness.

Born in 1962 in Newtonards, Northern Ireland, Mark Francis studied at St. Martins School of Art in London before receiving his MA from the Chelsea School of Art in 1986. While studying in London, Francis associated with the Young British Artists, a movement which also includes Tracy Emin and Damien Hirst. He received critical attention from his retrospective “Elements” at the Milton Keynes Gallery in 2000. His work is held in the collections of the Tate Gallery in London, the Manchester City Gallery, the Dublin City Gallery, and the de Young Museum in San Francisco, among others. Francis lives and works in London, United Kingdom.

Images in Top Row: “Shutdown”; “White Light”

Images in Bottom Row: “Continuum”; “Growth”

The Magnetic Fields, “All My Little Words”

The Magnetic Fields, “All My Little Words”

The Magnetic Fields (named after the André Breton/Philippe Soupault novel Les Champs Magnétiques) is an American indie pop group founded and led by Stephin Merritt. He is the group’s primary songwriter, producer and vocalist, as well as frequent multi-instrumentalist. While the musical style of the band is as malleable as Merritt’s songwriting, its songs are commonly attributed to pop genres such as synthpop, indie pop, and noise pop. The band is often cited as being recognizable by Merritt’s lyrics, often about love and often with irregular or neutral gender roles, that are by turns ironic, tongue-in-cheek, bitter, and humorous.

Known in music circles as a “gay synth-pop” group, The Magnetic Fields consist of four core members: one gay male artist (Merritt), one lesbian (Claudia Gonson), and two straight males (Sam Davol and John Woo).

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)