Napoleon’s English Letter Sells at Auction for $410,000

A rare letter written in English by Napoleon Bonaparte has fetched €325,000/$AU410,000 at auction in Paris.

The single page letter – dated March 9, 1816 – scribed by Napoleon during his post-Waterloo exile on the South Atlantic island of Saint Helena, it is one of just three known to be in existence, auction house Osenat said :: Read the full article »»»»

Kick Gallery: CRAIG MACDONALD

Award winning sculptor Craig MacDonald has a show running at Kick Gallery ‘Memento‘ This latest show follows on from his 2010 exhibition ‘Rocket Science‘. Mr MacDonald works are standout, his works live so well in three dimensions it’s hard to flatten the descriptives to words, except perhaps to say wow, they are seriously inspired. His use of bronze is cleverly hidden by an overlay of pure originality. Each piece in this show is so filled with imagination and exquisite craft that one finds several views are still not adequate. MacDonalds’ show runs until December 10.

In February this year, MacDonald was awarded the Montalto Sculpture Prize. MacDonald received the $20,000 award ahead of a strong field of other significant recognised Australian sculptors. The winning work ‘Witness’ was described by Montalto as “‘Hovering just above the surface of the ground, Witness appears as if from another time – aged and totem like, its presence and movement is a reminder that time is not static and what has been seen before can be witnessed again” Witness is on display at the ‘Memento‘ exhibition. Read the full article »»»»

Kick Gallery: The Aerosol Assassin

The Aerosol Assassin: Refining the spirit of graffiti, of guerrilla art can be a tricky practice in contemporary arts. Although contemporary and post graffiti has become an important genre within art today, it is still too often viewed with a specious eye. Talking about contemporary graffiti in art history, the discussion generally starts with Keith Haring or Jean-Michel Basquiat and ends with Banksy.  All this in mind, John Williams  - DUEL – sidles the thin boundary between contemporary art and his much loved street work, a foot either side of a distinct line. Duel’s technique is much lauded by his – street – contemporaries, it is also easily recognized by those who gaze on contemporary abstract art. Duel’s refined stensiling style drags the mind back to Post-Painterly Abstraction and Abstract Expressionism, in this vein Duel is very much an Action Painter,

Duel’s Aerosol Assassin exhibition is a little reminiscent of Mark Tobey’s more intricate works, and like Tobey Duel’s pieces are infact works within works, multi layered, multi messaged geometric abstract works that begged a viewer to seek THE hidden meaning. Amusingly the artist informed me that each picture has a hidden word, then warned he’d had people stand in front of a picture for 45 minutes trying to find it. This latest show is a serious collision of gestural abstraction and guerrilla street art, the works lift Duels art to his next level. The works are intricate, layered and spontaneous. Bursts of color have always been part of Duels form, many of his current works simply pop with color, line and contrast.

“A big part of the inspiration for this show came from Denny Dent, his art and his physical movement making his art really triggered something” said Duel “A big problem in moving from painting the sides of trains to a studio is getting that high, the high you get from running, how do you move that to a studio? “

Attraction to street based works has to be partly based on a seemingly energetic approach, almost an attack on canvass. Staying true to this is a hardship, we all have to make a living and the pressures of conforming to moderation is a hard thing. Duel, fortunately doesn’t seem to suffer any need for an arithmetic mean. His measure is well entrenched  in a glorious history of mischief, a bounding talent and an eye that is well attached to a weirdly wired mind. Duel has realized what many miss, that getting any word out there in a single medium is laborious, and getting the word out is what it’s all about.

As a culture, street art is a complex being, a crew, a need for adrenalin, an eye for good spaces, and a style with the ability to stand out from a sea of layer upon layer upon layer of color. Being pursued down the street at speed by angry land owners and city officials also qualifies as a talent, though Duel says he talked his way out of most tight place. His reputation as one of the worlds finest street artists is important, it keeps him grounded, we are after all what we do. Duel it seems has a need for a public, an audience, his art is and always has been as much about performing as technique, her will doubtless be an interesting - at the least - artist to watch.

“I want different people to view my work in different environments, I like to watch people watch my art, it must be the performer in me, an audience is a good thing”

Duel’s Exhibition Runs Until August 6

Kick Gallery is at 4 Peel Street, Collingwood

For further information visit www.kickgallery.com/duel/

or contact the gallery on info@kickgallery.com

MORE Dirty Pictures Please!!

WE Want Your Trash . . .

Favorite New Thought: Retro is My New Old

All of my favorite people have one thing in common – STYLE - that’s definitely a broad, sweeping statement, before you jump in with your penny worth of sayso. Style for me is more than a copied look, much more than a Vogue Cover or Ready Hung Department Store Frocks. Style for me is all about smarts, a reflection of just how clever you are. A beautiful face framing a dull mind is Not Smart, just as a nice frock on a donkey is not beautiful. My favorite new thought in style is that stalwart – retro – time tested and true, I love her, the only thing I love more than the embrace of retro, style and smarts are the people that espouse the preceding. The secret to retro is inspiration, please feel free – get out there - rummage and get inspired.

Piper Weiss, goddess of retro homage, write and curator of My Mom the Style Icon, has a witty new book that compiles the mountains of submissions – envy, from her trillions of followers – her blog gets on übercool closet discovered clothing. Weiss was inspired after discovering a cache of groovalitios clothes in her mothers closet, she realised that the woman sh’d grown up with had been hip’n happening long before her daughter had come along. She translated this eureka moment into her blog. The book My Mom the Style Icon chronicles the premise ’Moms are people too’ Before we came along to yank on their skirts, they showed leg, sported killer bangs, and flaunted bikinis. Some even wore feathers and halter tops and drove around on motorcycles. Was their style shocking? Yes. Covetable? Absolutely. Based on Piper Weiss’s hugely popular blog of the same name, this book features 200 color photographs from decades past of moms showing us how it’s done. A perfect gift for mothers, daughters, and style mavens, My Mom, Style Icon is an entertaining celebration of the very first—and most important—style icon in a young woman’s life.  Weiss, is a Senior Features Editor at Shine. My writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, on VH1′s BestWeekEver.tv, Glamour, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency and New York Magazine. I’m obsessed with cults, cats, Alan Alda, Men Who Look Like Zach Braff, and this video of Elvis. Born and raised in Manhattan, I currently live in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. In the past year, I helped co-write a comedy on a New York tour-bus, played a disturbed young mother in an award-winning movie called “Without” and launched a column in the back page of Lucky Magazine based on this here blog. With the help of over 100 moms and their kids, I also put together a book version of the site called My Mom Style Icon, in stores May 1, 2011. I also think dads are cool. We love this girls wit, she’s clever, fresh and so so followable!

Candice Deville, in proof that I speak the truth – style is reflection of just how clever you are – Candice Deville is a goddess in all facets of retro style, pose, and poise. Having such exquisite g_dgiven good looks and smarts is surely a handicap?! Deville – I must admit –  is the inspiration for this piece. Deville describes herself as a multi-disciplinary artist, specialising in style and vintage glamour. With over twenty years experience as both a vintage fashion collector and lifestyle enthusiast, Ms Deville has combined her multitude of skills to provide a singular solution for those seeking a serious dose of glamour for themselves, their clients or campaigns. Her experience both in front of the camera and behind the scenes, brings an insightful approach to creating a sense of authentic “Old Hollywood Glamour”. In a new world twist on her old world look, Ms DeVille is also recognised as one of Australia’s most iconic bloggers. What a package?! Deville exudes all that my meek mind has attempted to scribe on retro style. DeVille travels both Australia and overseas offering workshops on a variety of topics – Deportment and Pose, A thoroughly Modern Lady, Vintage Dressing and How to Get an iconic 1950′s Look From Modern Clothing – Deville als offers one on one advice and tutorial sessions. Checkout Deville’s Upcoming Workshops for 2011 and her wonderfilled website at www.candicedeville.com.au

Charlotte Smith, author of Dreaming of Dior: Every Dress Tells a Story, is one fortunate gal. Get this: Her American Quaker grandmother had a passion for vintage clothing and gathered pieces from greats like Dior, Chanel, Vionnet, Galanos, and more throughout her life. At the age of 87, she decided to pass on her treasures to her granddaughter. In this book, Charlotte showcases her grandmother’s grand collection with illustrations, including notes that detail the stories that revolve around each dress. Sounds magical! Charlotte Smith’s life story reads like a Hollywood script. She has lived her life to the full in London, Paris and New York – including hobnobbing with the likes of Princess Diana and the Sultan of Penang – before settling in Australia’s Blue Mountains.Her relatively quieter life in Australia was shaken up though when she discovered that she had inherited a priceless vintage clothing collection from her American Quaker godmother, Doris Darnell.Hundreds of boxes began arriving on her doorstep, crammed with more than 3000 treasures, dating from 1790 to 1995. These included originals by Dior, Chanel and Balenciaga to wedding dresses and a pioneer woman’s best and only dress.

Just to deviate – I like to do that – for a moment, the flip side of wearing retro are the wondrous folk who’ve chronicled the form. Anton Bruel – currently on exhibition – did just that while retro wasn’t retro. Yes even retro was once new. Anton Bruehl was one of the most successful celebrity portraiture, advertising and fashion photographers in New York from the 1920s to the 1950s – and he was Australian. Bruehl was at the top of his profession for 40 years, regularly producing work for the top Condé Nast publications and photographing the stars of stage and screen. Bruehl was at the forefront of fashion and advertising magazines moving from illustration to photography. A generation of Australian photographers such as Max Dupain and Athol Shmith admired his work and dreamed of his success.Gael Newton, Senior Curator of Photographs, The National Gallery of Australia says , “Bruehl pioneered a new colour separation process and produced hundreds of colour photographs for magazines such as Vogue and Vanity Fair.” ”It’s very evocative of the Mad Men era and a reminder that it started long before the ’50s. It’s also characteristic of his use of colour and his slightly strange, surreal composition.” American photographer Ansel Adams described his work as being “entirely contrived, and yet absolutely sincere” The National gallery of Australia has a travelling exhibition of Bruehl’s works, currently it’s heading for Melbourne. Checkout MGA www.mga.org.au for dates. Get Out, Get Inspired.

Tim Vagg: Kick Gallery, The Boxer

TIM VAGG

The Boxer Paintings

Exhibition runs June 07 – June 25 2011

Tim Vagg’s latest showing at Melbourne’s best contemporary gallery – Kick - is outstandingly, unapologetically coloquial with a smirkish twist. Mr Vagg’s inspiration seems – in part – to be the cringe factor Australians feel for their own Aussiness. His works are brilliantly gregarious, as always masterly crafted and sit squarely on Kick’s walls.  The always dapper Mr Vagg, opened his show to a packed house, his opening comments a toast to his very oddly angled eye – we do love a touch of irony – commenting on a perspective that is seldom seen from within Australia, an introverted view of ourselves – our history – thought out from an outside point of view and painted by one of our own.  OK, that may have been a little carried away. Vagg’s works are quite outstanding pieces, his homage to – inspiration came from Les Darcy and Lionel Rose – our fighting spirit, our obscure almost freakish embrace of the different.

Those who have followed Tim Vagg’s work over recent years, will have watched this artist develop a style that is uniquely his own. Cohesive, considered and engaging, Vagg creates rich, high key, colourful artworks that appear to almost come alive on the canvas and immediately engage the viewer. Increasingly, Vagg has added a socio-political commentary to his work, through a combination of historical research and intuitive artistic invention. The artist allows us to reconsider and reassess the layers of narrative tied up in the pursuit of the ‘The Australian identity.’ As his raw material, the artist draws on various icons, events, and historical figures to form a visual ‘urban folk-art’ language.

This combination of Tim Vagg and Kick Gallery truly is hand in glove, Jacob Hoerner knows his stuff and brandishes this knowledge masterfully; Great Opening, Great Exhibition!

Facebook | Twitter | Live |  michael@highpants.com