“Just because you swallowed a fucking dictionary when you were about 15, doesn’t give you the right to pour a bucket of shit over the rest of us.” Former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating (to Jim McClelland) Gee I miss Paul Keating. Not the older recent ‘I did that, that’s my idea’ Paul Keating. The […]
Tag Archives: australian art
November
19
Aphids 20th Birthday
posted by Natalie Thomas
“On the very cutting edge of irrelevance to mainstream Australia”, said Aphids Artistic Director Willoh S Weiland, at a function to conclude a screen residency at Federation Square last week. Aphids also celebrated their 20th birthday. Aphids is an artist led cultural organization, making epic contemporary art projects, across art forms and borders. There’s video, […]
October
28
Nathaniel Mellors Speaks Good
posted by Natalie Thomas
Artists talking about their works make me nervous. It’s mostly Bill Viola’s fault. Bill talked some years back at the RMIT and it was so dull, that some clown stood up and as he stormed toward the nearest exit, yelled exacerbatedly: “Where can I get my money back?!” (Bill’s talk cost money). It was the […]
October
19
Opening Night: Jean Paul Gaultier
posted by Natalie Thomas
Fashion is more popular than Art. When Alexander McQueen had a show at the Met a couple of years back, it ranked in the top five best attended shows there EVER. More than a million people viewed the spectacle. Art is very different to fashion. Though some artists become so fashionable that they go out […]
October
09
Booby Trap: The Perils of Commemorative War Art
posted by Natalie Thomas
I’ve been thinking a lot about war lately, because of the Australian government. Not only do they fund wars, they fund art about war too. They’ve set aside a wad of cash to commemorate 100 Years of Anzac spirit with the Anzac Centenary Arts and Culture Fund. I am concerned that well funded commemorative war […]
June
26
Coups, Curfews and the National Council for Peace and Order
posted by Natalie Thomas
You can’t make contingency plans when a military coup coincides with your Thailand family holiday (it’s difficult to disagree with people who have guns and shite) and we first became concerned when the 10pm-5am curfew kicked in. Our eyebrows rose higher when we saw real sub machine guns on the streets but the situation really escalated, when […]
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