Posted: September 29th, 2008 | Author: Jauretsi | Filed under: Film | Comments Off
In honor of Paul Newman, and in honor of Paris Fashion week, I thought I’d recommend a film that has both. What more can I say about Paul Newman except he was so cool, so compassionate, and so handsome. He was so much, that he almost didn’t know how cool, compassionate, or handsome he really was. Instead he was always raising the bar — always stepping it up, never resting on his laurels.
The Wall Street Journal said that “Paul Newman gave growing old a good name”. Paul also went to his grave with a pool of work any actor wished they can simply a dip a toe in — Cool Hand Luke, The Sting, Slap Shot, The Towering Inferno, Hud, Hombre, The Hustler, The Young Philadelphians, and Cat On a Hot Tin Roof.
He starred with his wife, Joanne Woodward in several pics: The Long, Hot Summer (1958) which is “long and hot”, Rally ‘Round the Flag, Boys! (1958) about a protest movement against a missile (Dynasty’s Joan Collins is foxy in this). Then there’s From the Terrace (1960) about Wall Street soul-sucking, and Paris Blues (1961) with Jazz-head Louis Armstrong. It was so awesome to see Paul and Joanne act together… like ballet, it was a dance where they fed off each other, and inspired each other. Seeing them do their thing onscreen together was almost a voyeuristic violation into something so intimate.
On acting Paul said: “Study your craft and know who you are and what’s special about you. Find out what everyone does on a film set, ask questions and listen. Make sure you live life, which means don’t do things where you court celebrity, and give something positive back to our society.”
By the time Paul checked out of this planet, he and Joanne raised $250 million for charity. He was a speed-freak and raced cars. By the time he was 70, he became the oldest driver of a team competing in a major sanctioned race in 1995. Can you say “suck the marrow out of life”?
(Eva Gabor, George Tobias, Joanne Woodward, and the awesome Thelma Ritter)
But back to my film recommendation this week, and back to the Paris Fashion shows. In A New Kind of Love, Joanne Woodward plays a head-strong independent career-minded woman named Sam Blake (a masculine name to match her toughness). Sam is a “coolhunter”, if you will, complete with her little spy camera. Her job is to be on top of the latest in Luxury designers (Lanvin, Dior, Balenciaga), only so she can create affordable “knock-offs” for her high-end department store.
(Paris Fashion shows)
(Joanne as Sam in her studio)
Paul Newman plays Steve Sherman, a sports journalist who sees life as one big game. He’s a total “playah” with the ladies, opting for 1 dimensional women whom he can charm and get into bed within 24 hours. Love ‘em and leave ‘em. Not very deep.
Soon he meets Sam Blake played by fiesty Joanne. She calls him on his shit. He hates her. He loves her. He can’t stop thinking about her. She hates him. She loves him. She can’t stop thinking about him. Stir in 1 week of 2 Americans in Paris. Spontaneous combustion.
(Costume Designer Edith Head did the clothes for this movie — SSSSICK stuff)
New Kind of Love is a good “door-opener” if you’ve never seen these two bounce off eachother onscreen. Long Hot Summer is the steamiest though. When asked about his long marriage and the concept of infidelity, Paul responded, “Why go out for hamburger when you have steak at home?”. God, I hope this kind of love can still exist today…
(Paul and Joanne holdin’ it down 50 years)
RIP
Paul Newman
1925-2008
J
Posted: September 29th, 2008 | Author: Jauretsi | Filed under: Art | Comments Off
Recently, the Sunday New York Times Magazine featured these images of LV and CHANEL created by an artist named ZEVS that were featured in a gallery exhibit called “Liquidated Logos”.
(LV by Zevs, installation Zurich Switzerland, 2007)
(CHANEL by Zevs, installation Zurich Switzerland, 2007)
If you took a poll with any graffiti aficionado who follows the streets of New York (a textured gallery unto itself), and showed them these images in Zurich, you’d quickly hear “oh, that’s KR”. It’s sort of a no-brainer, and an embedded artist trademark. KR has been hittin’ international streets with his signature drip for quite some time. So who is KR?
(KR’s signature for the last several years)
Aside from being an artist, KR is known for developing an industrial silver paint that eventually spawned a rainbow of shades (in bottle and marker format). KR started to make these paints in 1993 and shared them with his respected graffiti buddies on a strictly word-of-mouth basis. It wasn’t until 2001-02 that he decided to market and sell his KRINK paints (KRINK.com) due to the loyal demand and dissemination of his product. The paints have now been adopted beyond graffiti, and expanded into the hands of fine-artists.
The big sell with KRINK paints is that they’re made of the highest quality — tough, permanent, and built to last. They have gained tremendous notoriety as “the paint” to use for maverick artists whether in the street or studio. Altogether, the paints have been in existence over 15 years.
(New York Times feature on KR and his specialty paints and “Drip” style)
Back when KR had developed his own style of “the drip”, Zevs had became famous for hitting the streets with his own signature style — “the shadow”. Zevs is known to have pioneered French street art by blurring the lines between vandalism and art. Each natural structure including streetlights or park benches were traced to appear as a forensic outline. In all fairness, Zevs has developed much more works including a lovely collection called “Visual Kidnapping” poking at the saturation of Media culture having us all hostage.
(Zevs shadows, 2006)
It is a little strange to see Zevs, who is an extremely talented artist in his own right, take on the “drip” in such high-doses recently. You may argue, “Yeah but nobody owns the patent on a drip!”. True, but you don’t see a tons of painters dropping paint onto floor canvases a’la Jackson Pollock because, well, that was his style. For someone to come in and start mimicking Pollock’s technique today would just be… um, absurd… and unoriginal. It’s just a respect thing. It’s probably as odd as KR coming out and creating a new series of shadowed outlines on the streets of New York.
(Zevs working in 2007)
(KR Mailbox, NYC, 2004)
(KR Door on Essex Street, NYC, 2004)
I was curious if KR had seen the “Liquidated Logos” exhibit, and if so, what were his thoughts?
“I am familiar Zevs’s work”, KR explained to me. “He’s made some very interesting and unique work in the past. We were featured together in a documentary film called Inside Outside in 2005 and also in a group show in Paris at Agnes B’s Gallerie Du Jour 2006. His LV/CHANEL pieces were created afterwards”.
KR continues: “On one hand, it’s nice to see that someone is inspired, on the other, it’s unnerving to see the KRINK aesthetic so blatantly used in his work. It’s dear to me and a style that I’ve developed over a long period of time. It’s not the first and I’m sure it won’t be the last. I do like his work, and hopefully people will just see and respect my work for what it is.”
(Zevs in yellow jumpsuit at the Agnes B Group show in 2006. A KR mailbox sits behind him)
Parisian-based designer Agnes B. (who owns one of the biggest graffiti collections in the world) commissioned KR to design her look-book and storefront back in 2006.
(Agnes B’s 2006 Commissioned Storefront by KR)
(Agnes B’s 2007/2008 Storefront and Look-book by KR)
(KRINK’s Laptop Case made for Incase & Arkitip magazine, 13″ or 15″)
(Sergio Rossi pumps, sans KR or Zevs)
This is not an isolated incident. Sergio Rossi has got into the “drip” action with their pumps last season. Paul Smith also released a button-down mens shirt exhibiting full drips all around. Neither KR nor Zevs were commissioned to create the Sergio Rossi nor Paul Smith pieces. Perhaps the “drip” has just become part of the collective unconscious today? New iPods anyone?
Inside Outside is the doc which features both men, Directed by Andreas Johnsen & Nis Boye Mller Rasmussen. In addition to KR (NYC) and Zevs (Paris), the documentary follows Swoon (NYC), Earsnot (NYC), OsGemeos (San Paolo), Pigmeus (San Paolo), Ron English (Jersey city), and Adams&Itso (Stockholm). Trailer at Rosforth.com, See Inside Outside. The film is a beautiful glimpse into this competitive underground art scene — and how each individual feels compelled to carve out their own identity on the streets.
My thoughts are, if you need to commission an artist to execute the “Drip” aesthetic, that you call the original artist. Of course anyone can do it for hire, but if you needed chalk babies back in the 80’s, wouldn’t you have call Keith Haring first?
J
Posted: September 29th, 2008 | Author: Jauretsi | Filed under: New Media | Comments Off
There was a report released on Friday from ABI Research which claims Americans are quickly changing their viewing habits for consuming information. The report claims its risen from 32% viewers to 63% viewers who are now going online for “instant gratification” — that’s double the viewers in just 1 year time! Typically, the age veers younger and younger when it comes to quantifying the time spent watching these videos. That means younger people have the patience to view full TV shows and movies online, whereas older folks can only stand to watch a quick clip.
Broadband speeds are only getting quicker too. Hollywood is figuring out that online distribution is the way to go. TV networks are streaming their TV shows for free online (and learning how to monetize it with advertisers). See NBC’s Hulu as the prototype. It’s also just been announced that Universal Music Group is now creating their own Hulu-like site. Not because they are pioneers, but because they figured out that Universal’s YouTube channel has generated 2.6 billion viewers over the past year, making it the most watched channel on YouTube. So I foresee some greedy tug-of-wars for content once Universals site goes up. Lets see how that cookie crumbles…
From our experience at Starworks, some Luxury advertisers are still shy to move online. So if you work for a Luxury brand, it’s a good time to wake-up and start creating new media initiatives for 2009. That’s were all the eyeballs are going! Join or be left behind.
J
Posted: September 25th, 2008 | Author: Jauretsi | Filed under: New Media, SW Events | Comments Off
Diesel has some cojones. Literally. They put together this incredibly creative Viral Video to promote a series of events around the world. It’s a raunchy peek-a-boo fest with grunts and humps intact. The London event (which Starworks is working on) will have DJ sets by The View, Mark Ronson, Mystery Jets, and more.
London’s Starworker, Samantha Marshall, tipped me off this morning with a note that read “The video is amazingly filthy!”
Watch video here on Kanye West’s Blog.
J
Posted: September 25th, 2008 | Author: Jauretsi | Filed under: SW Editorials | Comments Off
(Actress Gillian Jacobs of Choke. Forecasting by Greg Krelenstein)
(Read full feature on Newsstands, October 08)
12 pages
