Phantasmaphile

Adria Sartore

Adria Sartore  "Isabelle B.4"

Adria Sartore depicts that Balthusian, girl-on-the-cusp juncture which I find absolutely captivating (as long time readers of this blog will note.)  I love her juxtaposition of fanciful elements with the girls' grave expressions and shadowy palette.  It's arresting, beautiful work.

The Color of Pomegranates

I just watched one of the most visually stunning films I have ever seen.  The Color of Pomegranates by Sergei Parajanov depicts the life of Armenian poet Sayat Nova, but it is a far cry from a biopic.  Rather, it is a series of rather surreal images and moments, strung together to tell his life's story.  In fact, there is very little dialog at all.  We are instead left with a loose yet potent sense of this man's journey.  A woman pulls a piece of red lace over her eyes.  A boy appears on a roof filled with dozens of open, fluttering books.  A man is surrounded by a herd of ivory-colored sheep.  Music, snippets of poetry, and of course an endless stream of these magically and meticulously constructed short scenes are woven together to form a true cinematic tapestry.  In fact, I would argue that the "story" and the main character are almost besides the point.  You don't watch a film like this for story.  You watch it to become immersed in a slow, delicious swirl of sensory wonders.  Call it fever dream, call it lantern show, call it what you will.  I call it heavenly.

Dawn Black

Dawn Black  "babu's fantasy"  2009

Dawn Black's gouache and ink pieces make my hair stand on end in the best possible way.  She is a master of scale and space, and her blank paper fields are populated by a cast of seemingly disjointed yet connected figures.  I'm not sure exactly what story they are telling, but therein lies the intrigue.  It reminds me a bit of the end of 8 1/2 where all of the filmmaker's dream characters appear together at once.  Marvelous.

(Thanks, Suzannah!)

So sorry...

...for the radio silence, been snowed under with some personal plans and other projects.  Blogging will commence later this week.  XO, Pam

Tobi Zausner

Tobi Zausner  "The Vertical Horizon" 

I had the great pleasure of taking two of Tobi Zausner's classes about art and symbols several years ago at the Jung Center here in New York.  They were some of the best classes I've ever taken, and this is coming from someone who is a bit of a continuing education junkie!  Ms. Zausner's knowledge of archetypes, mythology, and art history is vast, and her lectures are filled with loads of visuals and interesting insights.  (As a matter of fact, I am arranging to have her speak sometime next year at Observatory, the lecture and events space I help run with a few friends in Brooklyn.)  I was reminiscing about her classes recently, and decided to see what else she's been up to, and came upon her personal web site.  In addition to some fascinating articles she's written, the site contains examples of her own fine art.  As you can see, her technique is impeccable, and her subject matter is every bit as intriguing and oneiric as I would have hoped.  

OMG New Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions album!

On sale September 29th, but you can pre-order it now.  And they'll be touring soon, too.  I could not be more excited!

John Thompson

John Thompson

Last summer, I was in the excellent shop DreamHaven Books in Minneapolis, when I stumbled upon a used copy of John Thompson's Book of Dreams from 1977.  It has a sort of a day planner format, with dated boxes where you can fill in your dreams from that night.  But the best part is, each month begins with one of Thompson's full-page pen and ink drawings, which are examples of spiritual psychedelica at its best.  I bought the book for maybe $4 or so, knowing nothing much about it, except that it was neat.

Since then, I've had trouble finding out more about him, other than the fact that he was a contemporary of R. Crumb, and was involved in the legendary underground comics and poster art scene in San Francisco of the time.  I don't even know if he's still alive.  His drawings show a deep interest in esoterica and erotica, and often blend the two in complicated and highly imaginative imagescapes.  This site has a great slide show of his work, and I highly recommend you watch the whole thing.  You can also read more about him and see some more examples of his work here.  I think it's truly extraordinary, and wish there were more books and web sites about it.

Jindřich Štyrský

Jindřich Štyrský

I had trouble finding one cohesive site that shows multiple works by the amazing Czech artist, Jindřich Štyrský.  A google images search led me to the above image, and I am mad about it.  One of the things I love most about collage is its timelessness.  This piece could very well have been made yesterday, but in fact was made sometime in Štyrský's lifetime, which was from 1899-1942. 

(Thanks, Joanna!)

Randal Roberts

Randal Roberts  "Portrait of Homer Simpson"  2009

My awesome mom brought my attention to artist Randal Roberts this weekend.  The above painting was on the cover of Chronogram, an arts and culture magazine which I always look forward to reading whenever I am in the Hudson Valley.  Roberts' work is of the visionary, Alex Grey-esque variety, with loads of intricate, swirling patterns and psychedelic textures.  Besides being beautiful to behold, his paintings just simply make me feel good.  And that's OK sometimes, isn't it?

Catherine Campbell

 
Catherine Campbell  "In Our Nature"  2009

It is weird weird WEIRD that have not yet posted about Catherine Campbell, as I have been a fan of her work for a long time.  You can purchase prints of her dreamy illustrations of flush-cheeked girls in her My Folk Lover Etsy shop.  Aren't they the sweetest, strangest pictures?  You should also read her blog which features things that inspire her, as well as updates about her work.

All-Star Pattern Seekers Trading Cards

I covet The Imaginary Foundation's new All-Star Pattern Seekers Trading Cards.  So happy to see my main man Joseph Campbell made the cut, and at #3 no less:

Wish there were some more ladies though. 

Via

Andrey Lev

 
Andrey Lev 

I learned about artist Andrey Lev on the lovely Moon River blog, and immediately did some googlespelunking to uncover more about him.  He is a genius of form, melding elements of geometry and spirituality into breathtaking paintings.  Much to my chagrin, I had trouble finding many more examples of his work.  If anyone can type in Hebrew and send me some more information about him, please do so!

Alex Passapera

Alex Passapera  "Conception of the Forest"

The pen and ink drawings of Alex Passapera are thrilling to behold.  Each image flows into another like some sort of visceral phantasmagoria.  You can check out the work in person via his show "Feral" at White Rabbit in NYC, brought to you by the Anagnorisis curation team.  It will be up through the end of this month, so be sure to pop in.

Sophie Alda

Sophie Alda 

I was going to post one of Sophie Alda's delicious medicine man paintings, but then changed my mind last minute to this more surreal one.  There is something so sweetly wry about her work.  I love her pastel color palette and bold graphic sensibility, and the way she balances orphic subject matter with a sense of whimsy.

Via

Musicka Mystica Maxima

I bought my ticket to Musicka Mystica Maxima, and could not be more excited.  What is Musicka Mystica Maxima you ask?  Why I'll tell you!  It is a 2 night music festival taking place on September 21st and 22nd here in NYC at Santos Party House, which will feature music and ceremonies of the magical-with-a-k variety.  Or, as per their site:  "Two nights of musick made by practicing magicians or practicing musicians whose work celebrates the magical lifestyle, as well a public performance of ceremonial magic ritual."

Here is the line-up:

Day One:
GENESIS BREYER P-ORRIDGE with THEE MAJESTY
AMBER ASYLUM
ARRINGTON DE DIONYSO
LARKIN GRIMM
NAUTICAL ALMANAC

Day Two:
MONICA RICHARDS (of Faith & The Muse)
4TH SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE
DANIEL HIGGS
JOHN ZORN & BILL LASWELL

Each night starts at 7pm.  Tickets are $15 per night, or $27 for both nights.  Here are some helpful links for you.  Order Night One tickets here.  Order Night Two tickets here.  Order 2-Night Pass tickets here.  And do let me know if you're going so we can rendez-vous.

Pieter Schoolwerth

Pieter Schoolwerth

The internet needs to get itself some more information about Pieter Schoolwerth.  His work plays with dimension and perspective in endlessly surprising ways.  I love his how cram-packed his paintings are with iconography and weird little sub-vignettes.  Get a load of that baby-faced flower in a jar, for instance.

Via

Fantastic Planet

I just watched Fantastic Planet for the first time last night, and my mind is officially blown.  For those who haven't seen it, it's a stunning full-length animated sci-fi story about a race of quasi-fascist giant blue creatures and the tiny "human" beings - called Oms - they keep as pets.  Eventually the Oms rebel, and an inevitable war ensues.  But really, the plot is beside the point.  The real magic here is the artwork and design that's gone into each and every moment of this film.

Now it must be said that while I like some sci-fi, as you know my own tastes skew a bit more fantastical, and yet this film is one of the most visually surprising I've seen, with all sorts of marvelous images and strange ideas.  And the animation itself beyond impressive, with full shadow rendering and cross-hatching and gradient colors (unlike the smooth color blocks used in most cartoons).  The filmmaker Rene Laloux stated in an interview (also featured on the DVD) that there will probably never be a film made like this again, as it was so expensive to spend so much time on each cell the way they did.  But their efforts were, to my mind, so incredibly worth it, as they created a masterpiece of texture and imagination that is unlike pretty much any other film, animated or otherwise, that's out there.  Truly amazing.