A fine art, film, history and literature site oriented to, but not exclusively for, the gay community. Please be aware that there is mature content on this blog. Information on images and links to sources will be provided if known. Enjoy your visit and please subscribe.
Caravaggio, “Abraham Sacrifices Isaac”, Oil on Canvas, 1603
The animation was done by Rino Stefano Tagliafierro, an art director, graphic designer, and video artist from Italy. In 2015 his ADV “Untouched” for Coke won the Gold Award at the LIA AWARDS 2015 in London and the CLIO Award at NY-CLIO Festival. He also created music videos for major Italian and international artists as Four Tet, Stumbleine, and Digitalism. He has collaborated with several studios and in movie projects such as “A Rose Reborn” by Park Chan-wook and “David Lynch – The Art Life” by Jon Nguyen.
In 2013 he cofounded the studio KARMACHINA, producing, among other works, the video installation for the opening ceremony of the Yerevan Golden Apricot Film Festival 2014 and the art direction of the Tree of Life evening show at Expo 2015.
Tinush puts his own interpretation on Aretha Franklin’s “A Deeper Love,” and renames it “Struggle.” While Aretha’s version fits perfectly with the gospel/house genre that was popular in the 90’s, Tinush‘s remix brings a musical experience that feels more serious, more closely aligned with the lyrics.
Tinush begins the track with a soulful piano solo, then begins layering drum loops, breaking at times for other instrumental solos. After a two minute build, Aretha comes in over a Tinush piano solo. Her vocals are clear, strong, untouched except for the reverb added to the last word she sings, “inside.” In case you’ve forgotten how the lyrics go…
“People let me tell you I work hard every day
I get up out of bed, I put on my clothes
‘Cause I’ve got bills to pay
Now it ain’t easy but I don’t need no help
I’ve got a strong will to survive
I’ve got a deeper love, deeper love.”
Photos with white background were taken by Rio-based Daryan Dornelles who is well known for his magazine and compact disc covers and his photographs of musicians and celebrities.
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, “Deutsch: Nollendorfplatz”, 1912, Oil on Canvas, Museum of Modern Art, New York
“Deutsch: Nollendorfplatz” reveals Kirchner’s shift in subject matter from the female nude to depictions of the metropolis. Here, the perspective is skewed, a clear rejection of his previous study of architecture. The quick, gestural use of line creates a sense of immediacy and speed within the piece, capturing the essence of a busy German city. The use of clashing blues and yellows to depict the cityscape is typical of Kirchner’s style during the Die Brucke years, though the distorted imagery of the city may also have been inspired by an exhibition of Italian Futurist art that he saw in the year that this was painted.
“He foresaw his pale body reclined in it at full, naked, in a womb of warmth, oiled by scented melting soap, softly lavered. He saw his trunk and limbs riprippled over and sustained, buoyed lightly upward, lemonyellow: his navel, bud of flesh: and saw the dark tangled curls of his bush floating, floating hair of the stream around the limp father of thousands, a languid floating flower.” – James Joyce, Ulysses
Emil Kosa Jr., “The Big Top”, 1951, Oil on Canvas, 60.1 x 66 cm, Hilbert Museum of Calfifornia Art, Chapman University, California
Emil Kosa Jr. was born in Paris, France on November 28, 1903. He moved to the United States with his family at the age of four. Kosa studied at the Prague Academy as a teenager and then at the California Art Institute in Los Angeles in 1927. He returned to Paris later in 1927, and studied under Pierre Laurens at l’École des Beaux-Arts. In 1928, he returned to Los Angeles and studied and later taught at Chouinard and the Otis Art Institutes.
The 1930s were a prosperous decade during which Kosa established himself as a leading West Coast watercolor artist. He experimented with techniques and styles but always preferred to paint outdoors. His work was widely exhibited throughout America, including at New York’s American Watercolor Society and the National Academy of Design. Although he was gaining fame as a watercolorist, his income from his watercolors was not enough to support his family. He took a job in 1933 in the newly-formed special effects department at 20th Century Fox Studios. He was given the role of the art director and held this position for 35 years. In 1963, Kosa won an Oscar for his work on Cleopatra.
