Archive for the 'Sublime ridiculosity' Category

Artist’s Choice: The best YouTube instructional videos devoted to art-making.


Creating push-pull a la Hans Hoffman.


How to Jackson Pollock your bedroom while listening to metal.


Glitter poufs. That is all.


Should you sell your art on e-Bay? Or should you listen to that Pink Floyd album one more time?

This is the first post in what will hopefully be a long-running series called “Artist’s Choice.” In which a guest “curator” is invited to share their favorite bizarre/weird/hilarious/absurd YouTube videos. Kicking off the first round is painter Franck de Las Mercedes, who comes through (with flying colors), with a selection of YouTube instructional videos devoted entirely to art.

Thank you, Franck! Now I know what to do with those tired bedrooms walls…

Photo Diary: LACMA rock on the road.

Rolling Rock: Michael Heizer’s muted granite presence drew an estimated 20,000 people while it was parked in Long Beach on Wednesday. Incidentally, I recently learned that the rock is swaddled in high thread-count cotton linens. Fancy! (Photos by C-M.)

My new favorite saint.

San Simón, a Guatemalan folk saint, apparently of Maya origin, who is appeased with food, cane alcohol, cigars or cigarettes. He is generally depicted holding a bag of coins and, according to some cursory internet research, is not only the patron saint of drinkers, but can bless gamblers with good luck. What sold me, however, were his dapper duds and the plate of taquitos at his feet.

Spotted at Gagosian.

“Put Yayoi Kusama on the line. I think someone is trying to bite her dots thing.”

How to create your own Marina Abramovic centerpieces for only $12.

STEP ONE: Acquire Angry Bird piñata.

STEP TWO: Rest on top of performer. As the performer breathes, the Angry Bird is gently raised and lowered — a meditation on awareness and mortality.

IF DESIRED, CONTINUE TO STEP THREE: Place Angry Bird head on a Lazy Susan. Inspire grotesque discomfort in your dinner guests by forcing them to confront the probing stare of another as they sip cocktails and dine on tuna tartar.

Happy Labor Day.

Thank you, Brian Braiker.

Photo Diary: San Pedro, Belize.

The Jaguar’s Temple Club. (Photo by C-M.)

Things that make me snort-laugh.

I’ve seen lots of crazy shit that uses the rainforest as marketing ploy (Rainforest Cafe, anyone?), but this is pretty spectacular: Costa Rican Rainforest Premium Water. Only $3.50. (U.S. dollars, of course.)

The Art of Graceland.

Continue reading ‘The Art of Graceland.’

Photo Diary: Spanish-language TV as visual poetry.

Because we don’t have cable television, Celso and I often spend our evenings flipping through the variety shows, telenovelas and dubbed-over ’80s action films on one of the four Spanish-language channels our digital converter allows us access to. Needless to say, it’s a phantasmagoria of bright colors and histrionics (not to mention, dubbed-over Rob Van Dam movies). And, it probably goes without saying that the roles women are cast in are total crap. But galling sexism aside, the visuals are always worthwhile, if not bordering on surreal. Herewith, a record of some of the finer moments of our last few months of TV viewing. Buen provecho.

Continue reading ‘Photo Diary: Spanish-language TV as visual poetry.’