Yes, you heard right, after months and months of uncertainty, the wait is over. The best kept secret was revealed via Facebook a few hours we will soon have http://www.facebook.com/212ProductionsPage in Mexico City the pride of seeing the exhibition of paintings of Mr. Manson, now as a plastic artist (name to be confirmed), which has already successfully introduced last year in Athens, Greece.
The exhibition consists of recent works and previous years and will be open on November 5 2011.If you´re a Manson fan go to see this incredible series of works, which have an influence of Expressionist and Surrealism.
MARILYN MANSON fans can buy a piece of the shock rocker's original artwork this Halloween (31Oct10) - his famed Grey Daisy painting is set for auction.
The watercolor painting, one of his most documented and widely-recognised artworks, is set to be sold at The Gods 'n Metal Monsters Auction, which will showcase over 500 rare pieces of rock memorabilia.
It was originally unveiled and sold to a private collector at the rocker's very first art exhibit in 2002, called The Golden Age of Grotesque.
Manson previously called the painting his only "nice" artwork, telling MTV News: "Someone said, 'Why don't you ever paint something nice like a flower?' so I painted one, but I ended up using only the dirty water from another painting. If I wasn't me, I would probably want this one."
Manson's art has proved popular among private collectors and celebrities. His Harlequin Jack and the Absinthe Bunny was purchased by Jack Osbourne and Red Hot Chili Peppers' bassist Flea picked up Elizabeth Short as Snow White at the 2002 exhibit.
The Grey Daisy auction, held online at BackStageAuctions.com, will run through 7 November (10).
They might be referring to this little cute painting:
I think this is what Manson meant so say by his previous posts. The position of the painting is horizontal, so we upload the way that is.
spit in my eye, horizontal pic of progress.
We also suspect that there is a new media being involved such as indian ink. Keep the word "indian" in mind, it sounds like another clue for what we´ll see and hear in the near future.
Not that we´re assuming anything, but according to my Art classes The Black Period was also associated to Pablo Picasso´s, also known as African or Negro, for his love of African art, which can be seen in his inconic painting "Les Desmoiselles D´Avignon"; a nude piece, where if you notice one of the girl´s faces is painted black and in a sort of elongated manner.
Then I immediately compared it to this recent Manson painting:
an untitled portrait of Naveen Andrews, from the Black Period?
Might be just a coincidence, both in our most humble opinion it could be an exploration of a new style. Of course, Picasso was always eager to find new and innovative ways to paint. Maybe we´ll see in the near future more abstract painitings by Manson?
At the same time that Manson is planning to include new band members.
What we don´t get is that these recent paintings are making an alusion to possible members: Naveen Andrews, Fred Sablan...is this artwork probably going to be featured in the booklet? That´d be an awesome idea, pretty much like it was done in Lest We Forget with several watercolors, like Experience Is The Mistress Of Fools.
Vyxsin Fiala and Kynt Cothron, the amazing goth couple from Amazing Race season 12 with friend Lainey on the right. They pose with Marilyn Manson's art, "Baby's On Fire."
Alternative Press is holding an awesome show in LA featuring artwork from different musicians. In this occassion Manson contributed with one of his latest watercolor paintings, "Baby´s On Fire", which title is believed to be inspired from a song by Brian Eno.
The highlight of this exhibition was definitely "Are You Sure You´re Comfortable?" from the Elizabeth Short as Snow White series, inspired by the shocking autopsy pictures taken from the Black Dahlia murders.
Many of the watercolors shown were made as early as 2002, which I would consider this to be Marilyn Manson´s period when "The Golden Age Of Grotesque" came out.
In general the technique expresses and gives a very ephimerous motif, yet the main subject of pain makes them more everlasting than any other work I´ve seen so far. It seems each of the protagonists of Manson´s paintings is clearly defined, however most of the time there is a lack of space and time, like a background. So at the end of the day, this collection of tormented creatures become more of a plaything, which can also lead to yet another interesting path which is self-discovery and finding a comfortable identity.
Despite the scary look of these watercolors such as the case of "I've Got My Arm Around No One" the use of vibrant and decaying colors establishes a certain dialogue with the viewer, which is one of the most important elements of Expressionism.
A very clever phrase I like very much about this interview, from the man himself:
"Painting does not have an audience like music does".
In a way it´s true. Art appeals may be appealing to everyone and they´re always welcome to watch it, no matter how daring it might seem, it´s art. But music for some reason is more personalized, so much that at some point it makes the listener isolate, thus the huge success of portable players.
Congrats to Manson for this show, hope he infects the world with art and not only music. The video of the opening night held at Kunsthalle Wien:
By fait divers Manson could be referring to a French word or slang that means "brief news stories". This is related to yesterday´s post about the current art exhibition called "The Alchemy Of Things Unknown" which is being currently held in LA. He also posted a picture of the painting that´s on display named "When I Get Old".
The image is said to have been inspired by William Burroughs, and according to Manson is an example of what he would look like as an older man. He also holds a cup which presumably containing absinthe. Later on, the same image was used for commercial purposes for Manson´s label of the liquor, Mansinthe.
"The Alchemy Of Things Unknown" (and a visual meditation on transformation)" is the name of a current art exhibition featuring the visual works of Marilyn Manson and other great artists, poets and philosophers of the 20th century; it examines individual works of art in relation to theosophy, sacred traditions and devotional practice.
Artists include Paul Laffoley, Harry Smith, Marjorie Cameron, Willian Blake, Austin Ossman Spare, Scoli Acosta, Kenneth Anger, Aleister Crowley, Zach Harris, Susan Hiller, Alfred Jenson, Angus MacLise, JFC Fuller, and Marilyn Manson. Not sure which MM paintings will be shown.
It´s scheduled since June 10th 2010 until July 31st at Khastoo Gallery in los Angeles, so if you have the chance stop by this weekend!
And who doesn 't remember Marilyn Manson's most androgynous era back when Mechanical Animals came out?
Yes, it was mind-boggling and it really brought back that ultra glam Bowie-esque vibe. The look in Mechanical Animals went quite well with the times due that we were almost at the end of the millenium, but it's no secret either that most of Marilyn Manson's albums have always had an apocalyptic feel, never to be taken literally though.
On this ocassion we make a visual analysis of the first single and video, "The Dope Show"; why? For many reasons, one of them because it was really fun to watch.
So let's start off with one of the first scenes in which Manson lands on 'Earth' as a white androgynous white alien, Omega which is captured and taken into a building that's kind of familiar. Now you might think that it was the Power Rangers base...um, no, the truth is that this building is known as the Brandeis Bardin Institute located in Simi Valley, California. It´s now the Brandeis-Bardin Campus of American Jewish University, a Jewish retreat. It is known for its nondenominational summer programs for children, teens and young adults.
"The Dope Show´s" futuristic laboratory...
The House of the Book building at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute
They say that many inspiration for this video was taken from David Bowie's 1976 film named "The Man Who Fell To Earth", a British science fiction film directed by Nicolas Roeg, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Walter Tevis, about an extraterrestrial who crash lands on Earth seeking a way to ship water to his planet, which is suffering from a severe drought.
As you can see in this scene Manson is taken studied to be studied, and you can clearly see his ambiguous fisonomy. This reminds us of another one of the scenes from the "The Man Who Fell To Earth".
MM taken in to be studied...
David Bowie as Thomas Jerome Newton.
Another aspect that caught our attention was the use of these futuristic sculptures or devices around Manson's body, both of which are supposed to have a function. The first one is these series of red plugs which mimic wiring and circuits. The piece was actually known as "Overflowing Blood Machine" by Rebecca Horn, a German installation artist most famous for her body modifications such as Einhorn (Unicorn), a body-suit with a very large horn projecting vertically from the headpiece, and Pencil Mask, a mesh harness for the head with many pencils projecting out. In May-August, 2005 the Hayward Gallery in London held a Rebecca Horn retrospective.
"Overflowing Blood Machine" was a visual performance, orginally with a male strapped to a series of red tubes, simulating his circulation system and reducing him to nothing but a machine which keeps pumping blood. This is not the first time Manson has used this resource. In the cover art for "Antichrist Superstar" a similar series of tubes were tied to his genitals.
"Overflowing Blood Machine" , recreated for "The Dope Show", by Rebecca Horn.
The original suit by Rebecca Horn, Überströmer, New York 1993
Starting from the song title, "The Dope Show" mocks many of the aspects that make Hollywood so decadent. In the limo sequence where Omega is to be transformed into a rockstar he meets a producer briefly played by Billy Zane, who was worked with Manson several times. Part of the tabloid magazines he's holding resemble the National Enquirer and Spin. This last part could be about an incident which took place back in November 1998, where Spin editor Craig Marks was assaulted by Manson's bodyguards. Ironically, the video was shot in August of the same year...
Cameo by actor Billy Zane, showing parodies of the National Enquirer and Spin magazines.
Next, another interesting Rebecca Horn's sculpture dubbed "Cornucopia" which a molded plastic device set in place with a strap on the forehead that simulates a self-nurturing effect. The piece was conceived back in 1970; the one Omega wears is a more modernized version.
MM, showing a modern version of Rebecca Horn´s Cornucopia.
Rebecca Horn, Cornucopia, 1970
Among the real-life locations that were used in the shooting of "The Dope Show" is the Municipal Traffic Court Building, located in Downtown Los Angeles, with a style known as Brutalist architecture. This was shown in the Omega and the Mechanical Animals ficticious performance, shot while the band was placed on top of the trailer of an 18-wheeler transport truck.
Omega and the Mechanical Animal's performance...
The actual place: Municipal Traffic Court Building 1970 by architect William Allen
Many of the costumes were conceived by Manson along with designer Terri King, who has worked for several artists like Ozzy Osbourne and Iggy Pop. She also designed the transparent feathered suit seen on the "Rock Is Dead" video.
Another outfit designed by Terri King Clothing
In another sequence we see Omega smashing his clonesor copies enraged by what he sees. This evokes Alejandro Jodorowsky´s film from 1973 "The Holy Mountain", but in his case he destroys several mannequins of Jesus. This aspect is incredibly symbolic because Manson has made it very clear by saying that a holy figure or an idol has become a figure of massive consumption:
"People are made to feel so guilty about having human feelings, but then they´re supposed to pray to this phallic symbol with a half-naked rockstar on it." (Revolver Magazine, Winter 2000)
Scene from Alejandro Jodorowsky´s "The Holy Mountain"
The last sequence features a transvestite dancer commonly known as The Goddess Bunny. It´s actually a boy whose real name is Johnnie Baima. He also appears in some deleted scenes from this video in the VHS edition of "God Is In the TV" where he and the other band members are in the back of the limousine.
Johnnie Baima , aka The Goddess Bunny.
So what else can we highlight about "The Dope Show" that hasn´t been said before. The live performance in the 1998 MTV VMA´s included huge signs with keywords like "DOPE SHOW" emphasizing the whole concept about drugs and fame...
"there´s lots of pretty, pretty ones that wanna get you high, but all the pretty, pretty ones will leave you low and blow your mind..."
These lyrics are similar in nature to "Heart-Shaped Glasses":
"that blue is getting me high, making me low..."
As well as "I Have To Look Up Just To See Hell":
"...we reached the high end of low..."
and most recently with the title of the painting "Everyone Has A Blue Period"; a possible analogy for "the low" or deep sadness, depression or a state of calmness or feeling numb.
One of Pink Floyd´s "The Wall" most famous track, "Comfortably Numb" clearly expresses what it´s like to live in a period where there´s absolutely no pain, but it´s also a of limbo which is similar to the concept behind the ficticious character of Coma White. So once again "The Dope Show" symbolizes a futuristic world deprived of feelings, emotions and replaced by artificial thrills.
This, in the end turns out to be a timeless phenomenon covered in the past centuries with the rising of art movements such as Expressionism, and Futurism. It also reminds us very much of the Fritz Lang movie "Metropolis" in which the female character Maria is replaced with a sinister robotic version of her.
The robotic "Maria"; compare to "The Dope Show´s" still of Manson with the "Overflowing Blood Machine" costume.
So please enjoy watching this visually stunning video directed by Paul Hunter. Have a great weekend!
This week we do a time warp back to 1998, when Manson´s paintings started to become notorious and Mechanical Animals saw the light.
Around the same time the movie "Great Expectations" with stars Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow came out and while watching it again I couldn´t help noticing the beautiful watercolors and charcoals that where displayed for the character of Finnegan Bell.
But I´ll leave you with these comparisons as an exercise to see how much Manson has been inspired by the artist. One thing they have in common is their passion for Surrealism and Expressionism.
Guardians, by Francesco Clemente.
And Now a Special Sort of Death for One So Fair by MM.
Virgine, Francesco Clemente, 1995.
Pretty Persuasion, by MM.
Fire,Francesco Clemente, 1982.
Baby´s On Fire, by MM.
Self portrait With And Without The Mask, Francesco Clemente,2005
Just uploaded today, but the interview is actually from Marilyn Manson´s HELL, ETC. exhibit from April 2010.
Among some of the artistic influences he mentioned Expressionism. In earlier blogs this subject was already covered, yet it remains constant in Manson´s watercolors.
Although it´s just concept art we´re already waiting for it! What I still don´t get, is it really coming out on VHS??? Because in a way it evokes the art of the horror movies of the 70´s and 80´s. We DO love horror movies and WE sure love Manson, so this oughta be good...
This is yet another analysis of Manson´s work upon request and this time we cover a little lost jewel known as "Doppelherz", a companion DVD to 2003's The Golden Age of Grotesque.
Well, I was in the mood of pulling out this short film from the vaults anyway. The Golden Age of Grotesque was, by far a labour of love that celebrated visually, literally and musically a 'forgotten´era known as Weimar, heavily influenced by the glamour of Hollywood, as well as other art movements like Surrealism, Dadaism and Expressionism. It lasted about 14 years. This was the time between at the end of World War I in 1918 and Hitler's rise to power in 1933. It was recognized as a "Golden Age" due to its prolific writers, philosophers, artists, film makers.
The Golden Age of Grotesque evoked it in a whole new way, preserving the vision of the Weimar years and combining it with that of Manson's and its view of this modern age. The fans gladly nickanmed these works as "Entartete Kunst" or "degenerate art" term used by the Nazis.
The short film lacks a meaning or purpose, faithful to what was proposed in Dadaism, but some visual aspects of it are really worth comenting. Even some ideas are still used in Manson´s most recent albums.
THE ´PLOT´.
Manson sits in a dark room putting face maks and later on makeup evoking what was known as Blackface. This was a term used many in minstrel shows in the Vaudeville days. Most of the time they were white people imitating or exaggerating the fisonomy of black people.
What´s surprising though are the similarities, although they´re not listed inspiration from another character from the British series "The League of Gentlemen" named "Papa Lazarou". It was known later by Manson himself that the characters looked almost suspiciously alike so he offered to change it, bearing a set of crooked Mickey Mouse ears. The Blackface were accompanied by a Whiteface and became part of Gottfried Helnwein´s exhibitions.
Blackface and Whiteface, the dark and lighter sides
Papa Lazarou bearing Blackface makeup
Example of a Blackface comedian in Vaudeville shows
The next part is followed up by a hunting in the middle of the night in a Jaguar Limousine to catch a very unusual set of Siamese twins apparently joined by the spine. The suit of these twins bears similarities to the art of Hans Bellmer another German artist of the time well-known for his disturbing images of dolls. However, we can also list the work of Austrian painter Egon Schiele, specially for his perverse images of prostitutes as in Sitzender weiblicher Akt, 1914, where her genitalia is exposed. Schiele´s work has also been referenced as a notable inspiration for MTV´s animated shorts, Aeon Flux.
Manson takes the Siamese twins back home where he becomes fascinated with his prey. It is interesting to notice that the 'creature´moves in a similar way to that of a spider as shown in these visual examples, such as mOBSCENE and Phantasmagoria.
The Siamese twins ´joined´ by the spine.
Another pair of twins from mOBSCENE
Wight Spider, a recent watercolor by MM.
A blue girl imitates the legs of the spider, from "Phantasmagoria".
The rest of the film shows random frames taken from Helnwein for promotion for The Golden Age of Grotesque at the time that this phrase is heard:
"our commercials should be faster, because we are all just slow guns, waiting to have our triggers pulled."
so we don´t whether this part is a coincidence or intentional to insert the images for a split second as if these were the 'commercials´that he´s talking about. This reminds us about the use of subliminal messages to capture more attention.
Still from Gottfried Helnwein´s photo session, evoking a painting by Manassé named "Dangerous Passion"
As Manson explained, the use of the Mickey Mouse ears is meant to mock a symbol of our childhood that was considered in its time "degenerate art", while it has been known "unofficially" that Disney has used hidden messages in their own movies for years. So this part let´s think for a moment who is a worse influence or the real enemy.
"love your enemy, because love is the enemy".
THE 'NARRATOR'
Manson does a voice-over which technique reminds of the Dadaist and Surrealist styles which was known as psychic automatism, as described by André Breton. While the phrases are completely random and as the ending credits of "Doppelherz" imply, some of these words were used in the next albums such as Eat Me, Drink Me and The High End of Low".
i am a vcr, a funeral of dead-memory waste i'm a vcr, a funeral of dead-memory waste you can see it on my face i'm a vcr funeral of dead-memory waste you can see it on my face
this phrase was used as part of the lyrics in "Slutgarden", from the Golden Age of Grotesque.
To be equal you have to add or subtract And I have never liked math
part of this sentence has a similarity to that of "Burning Flag" from Holywood (in the shadow of the Valley of Death)
Multiply your death, divide by sex, add up the violence and what do you get?
Another: part of these lyrics were used and rearranged on "Are You The Rabbit?" from 2007´s "Eat Me, Drink Me":
I am a kickstand in your mouth
The insurance won't cover this The insurance won't cover this
could someone please autograph the frontal lobe? could someone please autograph the frontal lobe? the insurance
will not cover this
The Mercury symbol is ´autographed´? close to where the frontal lobe should be
I´m a kick stand in your mouth
And i´m the tongue´s slamming on the brakes
Pull the choke in
Pull the choke in as hard as it will take.
All your pictures are getting dirty
I don´t want anyone else´s hand on my gears.
And i´ll choke on all the diamonds, like a vulture, on your face.
So ask your self before you get in, I know the insurance won´t cover this. Are you the rabbit or the headlight? And is there room in your life For one more breakdown?
Another:
The young are too senile The young sieg heil
Sieg heil refers to a Nazi salute usually followed by the phrase, Heil Hitler. A pun of this chant also appears on the song from The Golden Age of Grotesque "Doll-Dagga Buzz-Buzz Ziggety-Zag".
I'm bulletproof bizzop and swing heil and
I don't really care what gentlemen prefer
Another:
I want downloadable suicide I want a newer version I want downloadable suicide I want a newer version I want downloadable suicide Version I don't know Version I don't point know Version I don't point no Version I point the gun at me Oh Oh Version I don't know Version I point the gun at me point Oh oh oh oh oh I want downloadable suicide
This part is similar to the lyrics in "Vodevil" extracted from the same album:
VIP ADD TRD violent shiny hate crime "Total Requested Dead" it'sVersion point (less) downloadable suicide.The only ones left standing are the ones not demanding This isn't a show, this is my fucking life I'm not ashamed you're entertained But I'm not a puppet I am a grenade I'm not ashamed you're entertained But I'm not a puppet I am a grenade
The part, "point a gun at me" also appears on "Burning Flag":
you can point your gun at me
and hope it will go away if god was alive, he would hate you anyway
Another:
This isn't about music
This is about the difference between you and me
This part is also similar to the lyrics in "Vodevil"
This isn't music and we're not a band
We're 5 middle fingers on a motherfucking hand This isn't music and we're not a band We're 5 middle fingers on a motherfucking hand
Yet another:
We have reached the end of history
The only thing left is cosmetic changes We have reached the end of history The only thing that's left is cosmetic changes
See how this idea is similar to a journal entry called "Putting Holes Into Happiness" that appeared on Manson´s website back in March 3rd, 2003:
In the meantime, try to stay conscious. We are sitting in the EMERGENCY ROOM waiting for the doctor, a newly elected aesthetician, to come and pronounce his diagnosis. The grotesque, malignant cancer that is our expressions and our views is no longer the disease. We are being told that the sounds and images of art are now the symptoms of the creator. We as the artists, are now considered unhealthy and incurable.
So as you can see, the ´script´ to Doppelherz seems more like a manifesto of the new era, resembling the ones made by André Breton named Le Manifeste du Surréalisme
Psychic automatism in its pure state, by which one proposes to express -- verbally, by means of the written word, or in any other manner -- the actual functioning of thought. Dictated by the thought, in the absence of any control exercised by reason, exempt from any aesthetic or moral concern.
Many other things said in Doppelherz are just a reflection of the impact Marilyn Manson´s work in society. Not every single thing is explained here, see if you can figure out other amazing facts.
