John Waters' Art Exhibit: RUSH

I went to see John Waters’ art exhibition today at the Rena Bransten Gallery on Geary Street in San Francisco. It's called RUSH. The exhibit closes on July 10. Try to go see it. It's worth your while.

I’ll talk about my favorite pieces in a minute. Right now I want to focus on several of his pieces which were collages of photos taken from images on TV. I really liked many of them. The show is smallish so there aren’t that many of any one style. But you do get a sense of how he's using these -- and he definitely inspired me.

You walk into the gallery and there’s a beautiful collage of TV photos of Johnny Mathis. I loved that one very much.

I was drawn to these because I have taken photos from the TV for years. And they're really difficult to do because you get all kinds of distortions. One of my earliest ones was a photo of Elsa Lancaster as the Bride of Frankenstein -- she has just waken up from death and is all twitchy. I took the photo before she sees her lover-to-be and lets out a blood-curdling scream. Lancaster is in profile with dark lipstick, slightly bulging eyes, and that wavy hair -- she looks gorgeous!

[got this from the internet ... unknown photographer]

I took a silk screening class -- oh, this must be 1981 or 1982 -- and made a silk screen of this image. If you want to see a clip of the Bride coming to life on You Tube -- it's very trippy: Click here.

Tonight I made a crude version of my simulation of what John Waters did with his TV photos. It’s a photo of Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Ice Man in Batman and Robin. I took these photos a couple of years ago.


Originally, I created a post card with one of Arnie's faces and text next to it that is a quote from Arnie: “I think that gay marriage should be between a man and a woman.” Actual quote, by the way.


Back to Waters ... John Waters also puts words very effectively between photos in the collage. I’m not sure if the words are photos taken from TV images or not.

And, of course, his humor is a big presence in many of the pieces. Maybe I should rephrase that ... his SICK humor is a big presence. For example, he has a collage of 12 or more photos of Audrey Hepburn ... in her elegant outfits and hats -- with hickeys all over her prominent neck. And, you guessed it, the last two photos are from The Nun’s Story.

Okay, here were the other ones that I really liked:

• TV photos, about 6 of them - each photo shows the progression of someone opening a folded piece of paper ... about photo #3 you can read what the paper says: Lezzie ... so the last three photos the word Lezzie is completely visible. So simple. But it says so much. To me anyway.
• Close up of a dog whose eyes are blazing with fury.
• “Undertaker” - Collage of photos of various celebrities in movies where they are lying in a casket. The word “Undertaker” is in the collage several times.
• A photo of a painting of John Waters -- at least I think it's a painting -- John Waters at about 11 years old ... the photo includes the frame. And the same wood is used to frame this photo of the painting! (He is so nutty-funny.) But the funny part is that he must have retouched the photo because this little young Johnny Waters has a pencil-thin mustache. (Love that mustache!)
• A parody of those SMILE Foundation ads where you see photos of a lot of kids with cleft palates -- his version is a collage of photos of celebrities (retouched) so that all of them have cleft palates.
• A collage of bums (booties) -- most of the photos are of TV photos being projected onto bare bums. Quite good. And erotic.

See my earlier post about attending the City Arts & Lectures event: John Waters in conversation with Kevin Berger.

Oakland Museum of California Opens After Major Renovation

all photographs (c) 2010 K. Smokey Cormier

Last night I went to the grand opening of the Oakland Museum of California. It was exciting and the museum, which has undergone major renovation, is gorgeous. A delicious orange color pulls the museum’s ensemble together beautifully. It starts with the exterior signs -- beautiful against the sky.

The art gallery is so much bigger. It feels good walking through. I realize now how pinched I felt in the old, much smaller gallery.

Don't lick the paintings

The California History exhibit spreads out now too and the museum can show off their collection. The gardens are open and have tables so you can sit out there. (It was a bit too cool to sit there last night but I look forward to those warm Oakland days.)

The museum's store has been enlarged too and it dazzles. Make sure to stop by and say hello to all the friendly and helpful clerks.

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Disclosure: A dear friend works there. But I loved the Oakland Museum before he started working there so I feel perfectly comfortable singing its praises. And another thing, I love Oakland and will always point out something wonderful here.
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I love bringing my daughters to this museum. It makes us all feel good -- there's something about the architecture here and the natural light as you travel through the levels. I love the way the walk-through is a series of broad steps up and then a series of steps down. However, don’t fear -- the museum is wheel chair accessible too.

You can read more about the design and read more information about the museum here.

Why is this museum and its renovation important for the residents of Oakland? We are inundated with depressing stories about Oakland too often. To me, the museum is like the Oakland Rose Garden (also called Morcom Park) -- it is a treasure, someplace to visit that makes you feel good. And I love art. I find the Oakland Museum so accessible. It’s so easy to go there. Since I’ve lived here in Oakland, I have always wanted to support the institutions that uplift our spirits. Plus, did you know that lots of community events happen at the Oakland Museum? Yep. They’ve got lots of spaces.

I love all the nooks and crannies at the museum. I can sit and relax for a moment before I go on to the next activity.

I took lots of photos ... so keep scrolling and you’ll get a little taste of the museum’s new look. And, if you have time tomorrow or Sunday (1 May 2010 and 2 May 2010), go and visit. The Oakland Museum of California will be open from 11:00 am Saturday until 6:00 pm Sunday. Yes, that’s right -- it will be open all through the night! It's free to get in during that entire period.

I’m sorry I didn’t get the names of the pieces or the artist ... I had limited time there last night. I’m going back tomorrow night.

This is one of the gardens. You can see the Alameda Country Superior Court just beyond.

Tortilla Art - this guy was doing silk screens on tortillas -- and they were edible!

Note: The new cafe won't be ready until July.