DRESSED FOR DALI
“Although androgyny is rooted in antiquity, it carries a powerful message for our own time. Spiritual perfection depends precisely on rediscovering one’s androgynous nature. Androgyny knows no boundaries. It leads us beyond the tyranny of convention. Androgyny may indeed be the guiding principle of the new age. It is the incarnation of totality.”
STEVEN ARNOLD
LA GRANDE DAME OF THE UNIVERSAL OPERA
- An original, never-before seen etching from the mid-sixties.
“We are just waking up to the new age and the ancient teachings. We can collect, cross-reference and compute these teachings into one ever-changing structure. Finding the forms to communicate our collections is the key.”
STEVEN ARNOLD
REMINDER: BARCELONA SCREENINGS THIS THURSDAY
A still from Steven's film "The Liberation of Mannique Mechanique."
WHAT: SCREEN FROM BARCELONA FESTIVAL
WHEN: THURSDAY, JANUARY 19
WHERE: Palau de la VirreinaDESCRIPTION:
SESSION 4 : QUEER SURREALISM (I)
Presentation by James Boaden
Screenings: Steven Arnold, The Liberation of Mannique Mecanique, (1967,15 min., mute)
+ Luminous Procuress (1971,74 min., V.O.S.)
Taking as a starting point Cahun’s relation to surrealism, this session explores, what could be called “queer Surrealism” in the films of Steven Arnold. Photographer and filmmaker, Arnold created, in the early 70′s, movies with wild, bizarre and psychedelic worlds, in which the actors blurred the gender boundaries. Protected and influenced by Salvador Dalí (who invited the actors of the film at the opening of his museum in Figueres), his works share with Cahun the use of masquerade and the subversion of gender identities using sharply surreal resources. At the same time, the figure of Arnold links surrealism with the work of renowned contemporary artists like Mike Kelley and Ryan Trecartin. Proposed and conducted by James Boaden, this session meticulously weaves multiple references, materials and time frames.
“MESSAGES, MESSAGES” PART OF DIRTY LOOKS ROADSHOW
Steven’s film Messages, Messages, which won him an invitation to the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes Film Festival, has been included in the DIRTY LOOKS, NYC Roadshow, as part of the exhibition Female Trouble, which explores gender identity on film using examples spanning 5 decades.
SHOW DATES FOR DIRTY LOOKS’ FEMALE TROUBLE:
2/12/12 SAN FRANCISCO, CA: YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS
2/16/12 LOS ANGELES, CA: HUMAN RESOURCES GALLERY
2/21/12 PORTLAND, OR: PACIFIC NORTHWEST COLLEGE OF ART
2/23/12 PORTLAND, OR: GRAND DETOUR
PANDORA-A-LA-GAGA
This San Franscisco Magazine cover, which could nearly pass for a modern day Lady Gaga article, was taken from Steven’s 1971 full-length surrealistic film Luminous Procuress, and features Pandora, Steven’s life-long friend, muse, and collaborator.
RARE SET OF PHOTOS FROM AFTER DARK MAGAZINE
This rarely seen set of photographs, influenced by Giuseppe Arcimboldo, was created for After Dark magazine April, 1979. After Dark was an entertainment magazine that covered theatre, cinema, stage plays, ballet, performance art, and various artists, including singers, actors, and dancers, among others.
