ANDY WARHOL
NEWS ARCHIVE 2007
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December 2007Online video of the Stedelijk Museum's Warhol exhibition
The Stedelijk in Amsterdam has put online a video of their current (excellently hung and curated) Warhol exhibition at http://www.stedelijk.nl/content/other%20voices%20other%20rooms.wmv.
The exhibition, "Andy Warhol - Other Voices, Other Rooms" continues until January 13, 2008. Details on the museum's website at http://www.stedelijk.nl. Among the films being screened are all of the 42 episodes of Warhol's various cable television programs.
Three Graces by Paul Swan: $10,000
[Note: This painting has now been sold to a private collector in California. g.c. (8 Jan. 2008)]
The owner of the painting Three Graces by Paul Swan is selling the painting for $10,000 (a bargain). The work measures about 7x5 feet and was reproduced in the Paul Swan biography, The Most Beautiful Man in the World: Paul Swan, from Wilde to Warhol by Janis and Richard Londraville.
The current owner of the work, James Kieley, can be reached at JRKieley@SIKORSKY.com.
The AbeBooks page for the Paul Swan biography is here.
Peter Gidal's book on Andy Warhol's Blow Job to be published in April 2008
Peter Gidal's book, Andy Warhol: Blow Job, is due out in April 2008. The Amazon U.S. page is here. The Amazon U.K. page here.
Blow Job (along with some of Warhol's Screen Tests) is currently being screened at the Barbican in London as part of the "Seduced - Art and Sex from Antiquity to Now" (Over 18) exhibition. A site user sent me his comments:
Pokerface:
"...had a fabulous grubby day yesterday, went to the barbican to see the seductions exhibition, it was trully fantastic... there was a film being played onto a wall, which was just a face of a guy, making sex faces, so i was watching the film, and i couldn't work out if it was a warhol film or a derek jarman film. so i walked to find a guide to ask, as i was doing this, a very attractive woman came up to me, and asked me if i was asking the guide about the film, so i said yes, then she said its a film called BLOW JOB, which made me go red in seconds as i know i was at a erotic exhibition but bloody hell to see and hear a well put together woman talk blow jobs with me did catch me off guard. i should have chatted to her more, But i was frozen to the spot."
Details on the exhibition at http://www.barbican.org.uk/artgallery.
Matt Wrbican on Andy Warhol's Time Capsules
The Telegraph newspaper in London recently printed an article about Andy Warhol's Time Capsules with Matt Wrbican of The Warhol museum talking to journalist Alistair Smart about their contents and the task of cataloging them. The article can be found at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2007/11/18/sv_insider18.xml.
Boy on a Pony by George Abagnalo
Six years ago George Abagnalo, one of the screenwriters for Andy Warhol's Bad who also appeared in Women in Revolt, wrote Boy on a Pony - a fascinating novel set amidst the underground world of medical S & M. The book was published by an independent publisher who later went out of business and the book went out of print. Copies are now avaliable again through Amazon. The Amazon U.S. page for the book is here. The Amazon U.K. page is here.
Live at the Masque to be published December 7, 2007
Live at the Masque: Nightmare in Punk Alley, a collection of text and photos about the infamous L.A. punk rock hangout, will be available from Amazon from December 7, 2007. Photographers include Warhol star Bibbe Hansen. Bands represented include the Alleycats, Zeros, Dils, Screamers, Germs, Weirdos, Avengers, Black Flag, Mau Mau's and just about everyone else that was around at that time.
The AbeBooks page for Live at the Masque is here.
New photography book by Kitchen photographer
A new book of photographs by Paula Court - the "resident photographer" at the Kitchen in New York - is out now. New York Noise, features more than 400 photos from the New York club/cultural scene during the late 1970s/80s, including William Burroughs, Patti Smith, Madonna and, of course, Andy Warhol.
Anita Sarko [Journalist and New York DJ]:
"When I arrived in downtown Manhattan from the Midwest in the late 1970s, I thought, ‘This is it... It was like life as performance art, but without the creepy pretentiousness. Whatever you wanted to do, you did it.... Then there was Danceteria, which we held in a mansion on Second Avenue near Gramercy Park that we rented off this old gay guy. Everybody was having sex in every corner and on every staircase. Madonna was a regular and she was really awful. When she got famous she became very nice, but back then I’d get into big fights with her — she would scream for me to make the music louder but the owner had a big padlock on the amp. I also played at Andy Warhol’s funeral wake in 1987. I ended up next to him at some dinner party once. He was very sweet, but one of the most boring people I’ve ever met."
The AbeBooks page is here.
Billy Name exhibition continues at the Albert Shahinian Fine Art Gallery
The exhibition of photographs by Billy Name at the Albert Shahinian Fine Art Gallery in his hometown of Pougkeepsie continues until January 6, 2008. Details at http://www.shahinianfineart.com. Billy Name is represented by Kevin Kushel of Ovoworks (http://ovoworks.smugmug.com).
Major Andy Warhol retrospective opens in Australia on December 8, 2007
Australia's first major Andy Warhol retrospective will be held at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane from December 8, 2007 March 30, 2008. It will include screenings of 53 films and 279 Screen Tests. Details at http://www.qag.qld.gov.au/exhibitions/coming_soon/andy_warhol.
Andy Warhol's Electric Chair at the Hayward Gallery
Andy Warhol's Electric Chair is currently on view at the Hayward Gallery (possibly the most user-friendly museum in London) as part of their "Painting of Modern Life" exhibition which runs until December 30, 2007. Highly recommended. Details on the gallery's website at: http://www.haywardgallery.org.uk.
Andy Warhol's late works to be exhibited in Milwaukee
An exhibition of Andy Warhol's late works is currently being planned by the Milwaukee Art Museum (http://www.mam.org) for the autumn of 2009.
The Eternal Now ends December 22, 2007 in Sligo
"The Eternal Now: Warhol and the Factory '63 - '68" closes at The Model Arts & Niland Gallery in Sligo, Ireland on December 22, 2007. Details at http://www.modelart.ie.
Silver Factory perfume launch in NYC with photographs by Billy Name
Bond No. 9 will be launching their Silver Factory perfume at a special event on December 11, 2007, from 7 - 9 p.m., at Bond No. 9, 9 Bond Street, New York which will feature an exhibition of photographs by Billy Name. Press enquiries to Trisha White at Bondno9newyork@aol.com.
Billy Name is represented by Kevin Kushel at Ovoworks (http://ovoworks.smugmug.com).
November 2007
Andy Warhol's Screen Tests inspire striking writers
In support of the Hollywood writers' strike twenty-one short silent commercials, filmed in the style of Andy Warhol's Screen Tests, are to be shown on American television. Titled Speechless, the films feature Hollywood stars who support the strike, including Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon, Harvey Keitel, Martin Sheen, Ed Asner, Woody Allen, Jane Fonda, Charlize Theron, Ethan Hawke and Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
Details at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/nov/22/writers.
Moderna Musset's Brillo Boxes are fakes
According to a report by Stockholm's National Museum of Modern Art the six Brillo Boxes owned by the Moderna Musset museum are fake. The sculptures were apparently part of 105 Brillo Boxes created in 1990 (three years after Warhol died) for an exhibition in Saint Petersburg. The Expressen newspaper reported earlier in the year that the boxes were built in Malmo in southern Sweden and that the former technical chief of Malmo's cultural centre claimed responsibility for them.
Details at: http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hJ3fys0T31990ijIy9O4AeIGZsLQ
and http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jDAgyYnPUvVmF2_exDRmZSf6o1hQD8SUT9KG1.Hugh Grant's Warhol Liz goes for less than estimate
The Liz painting by Andy Warhol owned by actor Hugh Grant went for less than its low estimate at Christie's in New York yesterday (November 13, 2007). Two bidders competed for the painting which had a low estimate of $25 million and went for $23.5 million (including buyer's commission).
Also at Christie's, the media entrepreneur, Lord Black of Crossharbour, sold a portrait of himself by Andy Warhol for $240,000 in order to, according to The Times, "pay off his debts." He is currently awaiting sentencing for criminal fraud. The buyer, Los Angeles dealer Michael Kohn, commented “I thought it would be great to have a felon hanging on my wall.”
Details at: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article2872602.ece.
Billy Name exhibition in his hometown
An exhibition of Billy Name's photographs, along with the paintings of Margaret Crenson, opens on November 17, 2007 at the Albert Shahinian Fine Art Gallery at 198 Main Street in Poughkeepsie. The opening reception takes place on the 17th from 5 pm to 8 pm and the exhibit runs until January 6, 2008.
Details at http://www.shahinianfineart.com/calendar.htm#cal2007.
Billy Name is represented by Kevin Kushel of Ovoworks (http://ovoworks.smugmug.com). A reproduction of the exhibition poster can be found on the Ovoworks site at:
http://ovoworks.smugmug.com/gallery/983754/1/221172717#221172717-XL-LB.Shooting Andy Warhol in Exeter
One of the pieces at Cory Arcangel's show at Exeter's Spacex Gallery is a video game where the user takes the role of Valerie Solanas and tries to shoot the figure of Andy Warhol when it appears without shooting the other characters (Colonel Sanders, the Pope etc...). Details on Keith Stuart's Guardian blog at: http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/games/archives/2007/11/13/shooting_andy_warhol_in_exeter.html.
Cory Arcangel currently has an exhibition on in London which runs until December 16th at the Max Wigram Gallery on New Bond Street - see http://www.maxwigram.com/exhibitions/91.
More info. on Cory Arcangel at: http://www.beigerecords.com/cory.
The Tavels: La Mama Coffeehouse Chronicles: November 17, 2007
Andy Warhol's scriptwriter Ronald Tavel and his brother Harvey will be discussing the founding of the Theatre of the Ridiculous at La Mama ETC as part of the Coffeehouse Chronicles series.
Details at: http://www.lamama.org. Ronald Tavel's website is at: http://ronald-tavel.com.
DIA plans major Warhol exhibition for 2010
Details are yet to be released but you can find a list of other upcoming exhibitions at the DIA at: http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071104/ENT05/711040578/1035.
Legends of the Chelsea Hotel
Legends of the Chelsea Hotel, the book by Chelsea Hotel blogger, Ed Hamilton, is out now (published November 7, 2007).
From The New York Times Book Review:
“One of the recurring pleasures of Ed Hamilton’s Legends of the Chelsea Hotel is his sly rendering of its former proprietor, Stanley Bard, an eccentric patron of the arts…There’s something remarkable about the way the author manages to celebrate the Chelsea’s singular atmosphere without ever forgetting how toxic the air is for many of the people who come desperate to breathe it…What really resonates in the book, what makes it so sorrowful at times, is Hamilton’s evocation of all the young and old hopefuls who have just enough ambition to push their lives past the point of no return. Legends comes close to convincing you that, as destructive drugs go, self-delusion has heroin beat.”
The Amazon U.S. page for the book is here. The Amazon U.K. page is here.
The Chelsea Hotel Blog is at: http://www.hotelchelseablog.com.
Factory Friends and Lovers: November 17, 2007
A program of films by Warhol cohort Danny Williams will be shown as part of the NYC LGBT Experimental Film Festival at the Mix Factory, 72 Greene Street in New York on November 17th.
Details at: http://mixnyc.org/2007/index_schedule.htm#.
Candy Darling R.I.P.
Candy Darling's friend/ex-roommate Jeremiah Newton recently buried Candy's ashes in a grave plot at the Cherry Valley, New York, Cemetery. Footage of the ceremony was shot for the ending of the forthcoming documentary Beautiful Darling: The Life and Times of Candy Darling, Andy Warhol Superstar (http://www.beautifuldarling.com).
Jeremiah Newton:
"This past Saturday, October 27th, I buried Candy's ashes in the historic Cherry Valley, New York Cemetery along with my mother, Katherine Newton. There is a beautiful white marble stone with Candy's name on it, as well as my mother's name and my own name. There were about 25 people present along with Candy's half-brother and sister-in-law. It rained hard. There was a Catholic priest, and when the ashes were interred the sun came out... The grave is by a stream with the woods in the back of it. If they so choose, friends can drive to the grave site and pay their respects."
The documentary is being directed by James Rasin and produced by Newton (who also contributed to My Face for the World to See: The Diaries, Letters, and Drawings of Candy Darling, Andy Warhol Superstar
.)
Clips from the documentary will be shown at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York on November 10, 2007. Details at http://www.movingimage.us/site/screenings/pages/2007/index_andy_warhol.html.
Hugh Grant to sell Elizabeth Taylor
Actor Hugh Grant will be selling his Andy Warhol painting of Elizabeth Taylor at Christie's in New York on November 13, 2007 (Lot 29). The work is expected to fetch $ 25 - 35 million. Grant bought the painting for $ 3.5 million six years ago.
Billy Name exhibition on The Paris Blog
The exhibition of Billy Name's photographs in Paris - "Andy Warhol's Factory People: Inside the 60s Silver Factory" - has been mentioned on The Paris Blog by Matthew Rose who worked for Interview magazine in 1983.
The exhibition at the Gallerie L’Univerre, 12 rue Thorigny, 75003, continues until November 30, 2007. Details of the exhibition (and screening details of the work-in-progress Factory People documentary) can be found on Rose's "blog" at http://www.theparisblog.com/2007/10/31/andy-in-paris-factory-people.
Surviving Warhol
Surviving Warhol, a film by David Pablos, is currently in post-production. Although I've not yet seen the final edited version I have seen some of the footage and it is fascinating. Pablos has captured the Warhol survivors as they are in real life, now. The effect is both mesmerizing and moving. There is nothing glamorous about the film. It is dark and gritty and real. Interviewees include surviving superstars Taylor Mead, Chuck Wein, Billy Name, Holly Woodlawn, Ultra Violet, Penny Arcade.
Pablos is currently seeking financial backing in order to complete and distribute the film. If you or your organization are able to help, please do. It would be a shame if this film did not make it to the screen. Pablos can be reached at space_monkey_2001@yahoo.com.
A selection of of stills from the film can be found at: http://warholstars.org/survivingwarhol/survivingwarhol.html.
Major Andy Warhol retrospective opens in Australia on December 8, 2007
Australia's first major Andy Warhol retrospective will be held at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane from December 8, 2007 March 30, 2008. It will include screenings of 53 films and 279 Screen Tests. Details at http://www.qag.qld.gov.au/exhibitions/coming_soon/andy_warhol.
Penguin Classics to publish new edition of Popism in the U.K.
A new edition of Popism by Pat Hackett and Andy Warhol, published by Penguin Classics and featuring a photo of Andy Warhol and Edie Sedgwick on the front cover, will be available in the shops from November 15, 2007. The Amazon U.K. page for the book is here
. Press enquiries to preena.gadher@uk.penguingroup.com.
Nan Goldin is not indecent according to the Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service in England has determined that a Nan Goldin photograph of two naked girls owned by Sir Elton John and seized by authorities last month (the day before it was to be go on exhibit at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead), is not "indecent." The photograph is one of 149 Goldin images owned by John. The CPS ruled that "the evidence is insufficient to justify proceedings for offences of possession or distribution of an indecent photograph."
Rome and London Pop
"Pop Art! 1956 - 1968" which promises to be "the most important exhibition ever organized in Italy on international Pop Art" opened at Rome's Scuderie del Quirinale on October 26, 2007 and continues until January 27, 2008. In addition to Warhol's Marilyns it includes Harold Stevenson's 11 foot long portrait of Sal Mineo and Ray Johnson's Elvis #2. Details on the museum's website at: http://english.scuderiequirinale.it.
In London there are two Pop shows on at the moment. "Pop Art Portraits" at the National Portrait Gallery (http://www.npg.org.uk) runs until January 20, 2008. (Great merchandising for this show. A selection of prints can be found at http://popart.npg.org.uk/index.cfm?event=catalogue.productGroup&groupKey=popart. They are also doing a great Ray Johnson fridge magnet which you can find in the gift shop. Enquiries to tstewart@npg.org.uk.)
The other London show is "Pop Art Is...." exhibition currently at the Gagosian Gallery which finishes on November 10, 2007. (http://www.gagosian.com/exhibitions/britannia-street-2007-09-pop-art-is.)
Andy Warhol's Electric Chair at the Hayward Gallery
Andy Warhol's Electric Chair is currently on view at the Hayward Gallery (possibly the most user-friendly museum in London) as part of their "Painting of Modern Life" exhibition which runs until December 30, 2007. Highly recommended. Details on the gallery's website at: http://www.haywardgallery.org.uk.
Andy Warhol film series blog
Mal Ahern, an intern at the Museum of the Moving Image, has started a blog about their Andy Warhol film series at http://warholalog.blogspot.com. The blog is from a personal perspective and, as it says in the disclaimer on the site, the "views expressed herein do not always reflect those of the Museum's (amazing) curators, (generous) donors, or (universally well-liked) members." The blog can be read at http://warholalog.blogspot.com.
Gender Bender 2007
Andy Warhol's Hedy and an assortment of Screen Tests will be shown as part of the Gender Bender 2007 festival in Bologna. Hedy will be shown on November 2, 2007 and the Screen Tests on November 3rd. Details about the festival on their website at http://www.genderbender.it. A free program of films and events can be downloaded at http://www.genderbender.it/download/gb07_pro.pdf.
Andy Warhol's late works to be exhibited in Milwaukee
An exhibition of Andy Warhol's late works is currently being planned by the Milwaukee Art Museum (http://www.mam.org) for the autumn of 2009.
The Eternal Now ends December 22, 2007 in Sligo
"The Eternal Now: Warhol and the Factory '63 - '68" closes at The Model Arts & Niland Gallery in Sligo, Ireland on December 22, 2007. Details at http://www.modelart.ie.
New book on Ad Reinhardt to be published
No Warhol connection here - but thought it might be of interest to fans of Abstract Expressionism. Ad Reinhardt by Michael Corris will be published on November 15, 2007. Amazon USA page here. Amazon UK page here.
Andy Warhol Silver Factory - and now the perfume
Bond No. 9 has announced that their new perfume, Andy Warhol Silver Factory, will be released on December 1, 2007. If you ever wanted to smell like the Silver Factory, now's your chance.
Robin [from Now Smell This]:
"Silver Factory opens on citrus and lavender, lively, but still more soft than sharp (the complete notes: bergamot, grapefruit, lavender, violet, incense, jasmine, iris, amber, wood resin and cedar). The incense and woods are present from the start, and as advertised, a metallic note runs through the proceedings. There is something ever so slightly off-kilter (in a good way) about the early stages, maybe a touch of birch tar or leather? Patty at Perfume Posse calls it 'metallic rubber.'"
Dupont Twins in New York magazine
An interview with the Dupont twins recently appeared in New York magazine:
Robert:
"We went home to Rupert’s place, and at ten the next morning Rupert took me to the Factory. Paloma Picasso was there. When Andy came out and said, “You must be Robert,” I thought it was so nice that Rupert had called to say he was bringing me. 'When am I going to meet your twin brother?' was the first thing Andy asked. Then he showed me some portraits he was doing, as if he was trying to get me to buy one..."
Richard:
"I was excited to meet Andy because I heard that his boyfriend, Jed Johnson, was a twin. I wanted Andy to like me. I later read in his diaries that the publicist Susan Blond had told Andy that I was in love with him. His response was mean: 'All I do is hold his hand and feel him up.'
... I mean, I did piss on his “Piss” paintings, but that was later, and he wanted me to. I would bring cute friends of mine, and Andy would watch. He didn’t touch himself, but he did this moaning. 'Oh!…Oh!…' It was like he was having an orgasm while he watched us. Or at least faking one. And then he would take us to lunch and give us $100, or some of his silk-screen wallpaper of the cow or of Mao."
The full interview can be read at http://nymag.com/arts/art/season2007/38966.
October 2007
Andy Warhol film series begins Saturday October 20, 2007
at the Museum of the Moving Image in New YorkWarhol's World, an extensive series of films by Andy Warhol, begins on Saturday at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York with screenings of Haircut #1, Kiss, Couch, Harlot, Blow Job and Tarzan and Jane Regained, Sort Of...
Highlights of the series include a panel discussion featuring Amy Taubin and Callie Angell (author of Andy Warhol Screen Tests: The Films of Andy Warhol Catalogue Raisonne, Volume One) on Sunday October 21; a screening of Esther Robinson's award winning A Walk into the Sea on November 10; a screening of the new "work in progress" documentary about Candy Darling, Beautiful Darling, with the director James Rasin showing clips from the film on November 10; and a screening of a new print of Lonesome Cowboys on November 11 (the film that resulted in Andy Warhol being investigated by the F.B.I.).
The series closes on November 11 with a screening of Mrs. Warhol and one of my personal favorites, Sunset, featuring a voice-over by Nico.
Details on the Museum of Moving Image website at http://www.movingimage.us/site/screenings/pages/2007/index_andy_warhol.html.
Billy Name's work to be shown in Paris
Paris Photo, the world's premier fair for still photography, will take place this year from November 15th - 18th with more than 100 galleries and publishers taking part. Billy Name's photographs will feature at the fair's celebratory soirèe on November 16, 2007 beginning at the Cinema Le Grand Rex and continuing at the adjacent Rex Club. From 10:00 pm to 11:00 pm at the cinema, scenes from the forthcoming (work-in-progress) three hour mini-series and feature film version of Andy Warhol's Factory People by Emmy award winner Catherine O'Sullivan Shorr will be shown. This will be followed by a club night at the Rex Club based on the original, silver Factory featuring Billy Name's photographs of the Factory and projections in the tradition of Andy Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable.
Information about Paris Photo 2007 can be found at: http://www.parisphoto.fr.
From October 29 through November 29, the works of Billy Name and other Warhol Factory Superstars will be on exhibition at Paris’ L’Univerre Gallery. Participants will include Bibbe Hansen, Ultra Violet, Brigid Berlin, Allan Midgette, Ivy Nicholson and Factory inspired artists John Santanello, Editta Sherman, Amy Cohen Banker, Theresa Kereakas, Joe Major, Miestorm, Joseph Freeman and others. The exhibition is being curated by Kevin Kushel and OvoWorks, Inc.
L’Univerre Gallery is located at 20 rue des Coutures Saint Gervais, Paris, France (Telephone: 01 44 61 04 81) and is open Monday - Saturday from 2:00 pm - 7:00 pm.
Images and information about Billy Name and other OvoWorks represented artists can be found at: http://www.ovoworks.smugmug.com.
A in Amsterdam
Andy Warhol's book, A, has been adapted for the stage as a musical titled The Best of A in conjunction with the Stedlijk's Warhol exhibition, Andy Warhol: Other Voices, Other Rooms (see below). The muscial will premiere on October 28, 2007 at the bar/restaurant Club 11 on the top floor of the SMCS (The Stedelijk) and is part of the program of the Andy Warhol Club. It will also be performed on November 11th and 25th and January 6th and 20th.
Details at: http://www.hetbesteuita.nl.
Holly Woodlawn, Bibbe Hansen, Mary Woronov & BillyBoy in Switzerland
Holly Woodlawn, Bibbe Hansen, Mary Woronov and BillyBoy will be participating in a panel discussion on October 13, 2007 at the Lausanne Underground Film & Music Festival.
Holly recently gave a fascinating talk at the Drill Hall in London in conjunction with Sadie Lee's exhibition of paintings of her - a very memorable evening hosted by Rupert Smith (author of Physique: Life of John S. Barrington
and co-author of Jayne County's autobiography, Man Enough to Be a Woman
), with an excellent montage of clips from Holly's films put together by Robert Coddington. (Holly looked and sounded great,) Prior to her appearance an interview with Holly appeared in the Guardian newspaper on September 26, 2007 (see http://arts.guardian.co.uk/theatre/drama/story/0,,2177314,00.html).
The website for the Lausanne Underground Film & Music Festival is at: http://www.luff.ch.
Details of the Sadie Lee exhibiton at the Drill Hall in London at: http://www.andthenhewasashe.com.
Ralph Pomeroy
John Pomeroy, the great-nephew of Ralph Pomeroy, is currently archiving Pomeroy's papers and working on a biography of his great-uncle. John would like to make contact with anyone who knew Ralph or has information about him. Ralph, who died of cirrhosis of the liver in 1999, collaborated with Andy Warhol on A la Recherche du Shoe Perdu in 1955. He had met Warhol through the artist Dudley Huppler.
(See www.warholstars.org/warhol1/6bonwit.html)In addition to his collaboration with Warhol, Ralph Pomeroy was a poet, the author of several books, and wrote about the arts for various magazines. His excellent 1971 interview with Mark Rothko's assistant Roy Edwards is at: http://www.americanpainter.com/rothkointv.html.
John Pomeroy can be contacted at theonlyconstant@gmail.com.
Pop Art Portraits at the NPG
"Pop Art Portraits" opens at the National Portrait Gallery in London on October 11, 2007. Andy Warhol is represented by four works - a 1964 Self-Portrait (or "Self-portrait" as indicated in the catalogue), a 1967 Self-Portrait, a Marilyn (1967) and Double Elvis (1963). Other iconic Pop images include three works by Ray Johnson - Oedipus (Elvis #1), James Dean (Lucky Strike) and Hand Marilyn Monroe as well as work by British artists Eduardo Paolozzi, Pauline Boty (The Only Blonde in the World), Patrick Caulfield, Peter Blake, Richard Hamilton and David Hockney. A modest selection of works by American artists Jasper Johns, Claes Oldenburg, Robert Indiana, Larry Rivers, Jim Dine, Tom Wesselman, Robert Rauschenberg and James Rosenquist is also included.
The show continues until January 20, 2008 and then travels to the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart from February 23 to June 8, 2008. Highly recommended.
Full details on "Pop Art Portraits" can be found on the National Portrait Gallery website at: http://www.npg.org.uk.
Caffe Cino on air
The gay TV magazine show, In the Life, will be broadcasting an episode with a segment about Caffe Cino as the birthplace of gay theater on Sunday, October 7, 2007 at 10:30 PM on Channel 13 (PBS). Appearing on the segment will be Robert Patrick, Magie Dominic, John Gilman, Helen Hanft, Bob Heide, William M. Hoffman, Marshall W. Mason, Claris Nelson, Doric Wilson and Lanford Wilson.
An excellent book on the Cino, Return to the Caffe Cino, which includes 20 plays and more than 30 brief memoirs of people associated with the venue, can be found on Amazon U.S. here. (Amazon U.K. here.)
Andy Warhol at the Stedelijk Museum
A major Warhol exhibition, "Andy Warhol: Other Voices, Other Rooms," opens at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam on October 12, 2007 and runs until January 13, 2008 before traveling to the Moderna Museet in Stockholm (February 9 - May 4, 2008).
Curated by Dr. Eva Meyer-Hermann, the exhibition includes 27 films and rarely screened video tapes and audio recordings of the artist, in addition to Warhol's art. Of particular interest are the Time Capsules whose installation was supervised by Matt Wrbican of The Warhol museum who traveled to Amsterdam for their installation.
Details about the exhibition can be found on the museum's website at http://www.stedelijk.nl.
The Andy Warhol Club, based in Amsterdam, can be found at: http://www.andywarholclub.nl.
Bob Colacello's new book is published.
Bob Colacello's new book, Out, is now out. Colacello was an editor at Andy Warhol's Interview magazine and wrote the column "Out!" for the magazine. The book promises many hitherto unpublished photographs of the celebrities associated with Warhol. Details on the Amazon U.S. page here. (The Amazon U.K. page is here.) Colacello's gossipy account of his years with Warhol, Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Close Up, is also still in publication and is available from Amazon U.S. or Amazon U.K.
A recent interview with Mr. Colacello that appeared in The Daily Telegraph can be found at:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2007/09/23/sv_bobcollacello.xml.A Walk into the Sea in London
Esther B. Robinson's award winning film, A Walk into the Sea: Danny Williams and the Warhol Factory will be screened as part of the 51st London Film Festival on Monday October 22nd and Thursday October 25th. The October 25th screening is sold out but some seats are still available for the October 22nd showing.
The festival will also be showing a selection of the films shot by Williams during his Factory days on October 23rd with music performed by T. Griffin and Catherine McRae of The Quavers.
Details on the festival's website at: http://www.bfi.org.uk/whatson/lff/.
The website for the film is at: http://www.awalkintothesea.com.
Andy Warhol in Utah
"Andy Warhol's Dream America," opens Thursday, October 4, 2007 at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts. Details for the exhibition are at: http://www.umfa.utah.edu/index.php?id=MzA=&news_id=79.
An article on the show can be found at: http://www.sltrib.com/ci_7038666.
September 2007
(news items are added throughout the month)Holly Woodlawn in London: September 30, 2007
Holly Woodlawn, star of Trash, Women in Revolt and Lou Reed's song Walk on the Wild Side will be appearing in person at the Drill Hall in London on September 30, 2007 in conjunction with the Sadie Lee exhibition (see below). Holly is a true survivor - she has been there, done it, done it again (and again) and miraculously survived it all. This will be the first time that Holly has appeared in London since the 1970s and is a rare opportunity to see a true icon of underground cinema gone overground. As the Drill Hall website states, expect "This Is Your Life in full drag."
Details at http://www.drillhall.co.uk/pl285.html.
More about Holly at: http://www.warholstars.org/indfoto/iholly.html.
Marisol Escobar retrospective at Neuhoff Edelman in New York
The Neuhoff Edelman Gallery on 57th Street is hosting a not-to-be-missed retrospective of the art of Marisol (recently referred to by The New Times as "The Garbo of Art") from September 20 - October 27, 2007. Art writers have run through a gamut of labels when referring to Marisol's work - from new realist to neo-dada to pop. Like many artists involved in the pop art revolution of the early sixties she often incorporated found objects (trash) into her work although she recently commented that "There's no good garbage out anymore."
Andy Warhol (via Pat Hackett in POPism: The Warhol Sixties
):
"When I was with the Stable Gallery from the end of '62 to early '64, Marisol and Bob Indiana were, too. We used to go around to openings and parties together, and they were both in some of my early movies. The painting style that everybody accepted and that dominated the art scene was still Abstract Expressionist... The resentment against Pop artists was something fierce, and it wasn't coming from just art critics or buyers, it was coming from a lot of the older Abstract Expressionist painters themselves. The attitude was brought home to me in a very dramatic way at a party given by an Abstract Expressionist painter, Yvonne Thomas, mainly for other Abstract Expressionist painters. Marisol had been invited, and she took Bob Indiana and me with her... When we walked into that room, I looked around and saw that it was chock full of anguished, heavy intellects. Suddenly the noise level dropped and everyone turned to look at us. (It was like the moment when the little girl in The Exorcist walks into her mother's party and pees on the rug.) I saw Mark Rothko take the hostess aside and I heard him accuse her of treachery: 'How could you let them in?' She apologized. 'But what can I do?' she told Rothko. 'They came with Marisol.'"
Details at: http://www.frenchculture.org/a_-marisol-a-comprehensive-survey-exhibition-of-the-_1180.cfm.
Gallery details at: http://www.neuhoffgallery.com.
Merce Cunningham Dance Company at Andy Warhol's Shadows
The Merce Cunningham Dance Company will be performing in the gallery housing Andy Warhol's Shadows at Dia: Beacon in upstate New York on September 30, 2007 as the inaugural event for the gallery's "Beacon Events" series. Further performances by the company will take place at Dia: Beacon on January 12 and 13, 2008.
Details at: http://www.diabeacon.org/prg/special/merce.
Damien Hirst does Andy Warhol
On Saturday, September 8, 2007, British artist/ex-restauranteer/interior decorator/businessman and now, apparently, clothing designer Damien Hirst presented what Elle magazine is calling "his first collection for Levis entitled Warhol Factory X Levi's Damien Hirst" at the Gagosian Gallery in Chelsea. Vincent Gallo and Mary-Kate Olsen attended.
Details at http://www.elleuk.com/elle/fashion/news/damein-hirst-does-fashion-week/(gid)/143150.
Ronald Tavel returns to New York
Andy Warhol's screenwriter, Ronald Tavel, who currently lives in Bangkok, will be returning to New York during the month of November to appear at La Mama E.T.C. to talk about his 40+ plays and scripts and the Theatre of the Ridiculous. The event begins at 3.00 pm on November 17, 2007 and is part of their excellent Coffeehouse Chronicles series. Not to be missed.
Ronald Tavel's website is at: http://ronald-tavel.com/home.htm.
The La Mama E.T.C. website is at: http://www.lamama.org.
Major pop exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery
A major pop exhibition, "Pop Art Portraits" opens at the National Portrait Gallery in London on October 11, 2007. It will feature numerous works by Warhol including 10 Marilyn silk screens, two self-portraits, Double Elvis and the Salvador Dali screen test. Other artists in the show include Ray Johnson, Robert Rauschenberg, Jim Dine, Claes Oldenburg, Roy Lichtenstein, Jasper Johns, Peter Blake and David Hockney. Of particular interest is Ray Johnson's Elvis (Oedipus) which pre-dates Warhol's Elvis. Johnson's Hand Marilyn Monroe collage will also be shown. Ray Johnson, who assisted Andy Warhol with the filming of Jill Johnston Dancing, committed suicide in 1995. (see NY CORRESPONDANCE SCHOOL and Last Post: Ray Johnson).
Events associated with the exhibition will include a Sunday collage session on October 7, led by artists Wendy Scott and Shelley Wain, where museum visitors will be encouraged to re-interpret Peter Blake's Sgt. Peppers Beatles image using family photos and celebrity magazine images; a Music: Pop Art evening on October 12; an opportunity to create a large scale Pop portrait on October 13 as part of "The Big Draw Goes Pop;" a talk by Linzi Stauvers on Warhol's Queen Elizabeth II on October 23 and a Pop Art Portraits Study Day led by curator Paul Moorhouse from 10:30 am to 5:00 pm on November 23 with guest speakers.
The website for the National Portrait Gallery is at: http://www.npg.org.uk.
Pop Art Is... at the Gagosian Gallery
Ray Johnson's work will also be featured at the Gagosian Gallery in London which will be hosting a pop exhibition during September titled "Pop Art is...." In addition to Johnson and Warhol, the show will include work by Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Claes Oldenburg, Roy Lichtenstein, Yayoi Kusama, Ed Ruscha, Jeff Koons, Richard Prince, Mike Kelley, Damien Hirst, Takashi Murakami, Rachel Harrison, Mark Lancaster, Nate Lowman, and others.
Details on the Gagosian website at: http://www.gagosian.com/exhibitions/britannia-street-2007-09-pop-art-is.
Penny Arcade to reenact Bitch!Dyke!Faghag!Whore! on September 11, 2007
Warhol star Penny Arcade will be performing Bitch!Dyke!Faghag!Whore! in New York for the first time since 1993. Her performance will take place at Spiegelworld at the Fulton Fish Market at South Street Seaport (Pier 17) on September 11, 2007 at 10:00 pm.
Details at: http://www.pennyarcade.tv/news/index.html and http://www.myspace.com/pennyarcadeny.
Tickets for the event can be purchased by ringing (212) 279-4200 or ordering online through Ticket Central at: http://www.ticketcentral.com/showdetails_f.asp?i=1345.
Bibbe Hansen, Mary Woronov and Holly Woodlawn at Lausanne Underground Film Festival
Warhol stars Bibbe Hansen, Mary Woronov and Holly Woodlawn will be appearing at the Lausanne Underground film Festival which runs from October 10 - 14, 2007. Details on their website: http://www.luff.ch/site/.
Andy Warhol film series continues at British Film Institute
The Andy Warhol film series at the British Film Institute (the largest showing of Warhol's films that has ever taken place anywhere) continues in September with some key works being shown, including Bike Boy (with Brigid Berlin, Viva and Joe Spencer); The Chelsea Girls, I A Man (featuring the woman who shot Andy Warhol,Valerie Solanas, and Tom Baker); The Loves of Ondine (screen debut of Joe Dallesandro and Viva), Nude Restaurant (Warhol's anti-war film with Viva, Taylor Mead and Julian Burroughs); Imitation of Christ (with Andrea Feldman, Brigid Berlin and Ondine), and all of Warhol's restored Screen Tests. Not to be missed.
Details on the British Film Institute website (B.F.I. Southbank) at: http://www.bfi.org.uk/whatson/southbank/seasons/warhol/.
Broken Goddess to be shown as part of "And the He Was a She" at the Drill Hall
Holly Woodlawn's film, Broken Goddess, with be shown as part of the exhibition of paintings by Sadie Lee of Ms. Woodlawn. The exhibition at the Drill Hall in London opens on October 1, 2007 and Holly will be making a personal appearance on September 30th.
Special "Friend of the Artist" V.I.P packages are being sold for the exhibition which include an invitation to the private view, a copy of the exhibition catalogue signed by Sadie Lee and Holly Woodlawn, your name listed in the catalogue and priority booking for Holly's personal appearance on September 30th. Enquires to MavisS@drillhall.co.uk.
Exhibition details: http://www.andthenhewasashe.com/exhibition.html.
August 2007
Holly Woodlawn in London
Holly Woodlawn, star of Trash and Women in Revolt, will be coming to London in September to launch an exhibition of paintings of her by the British artist Sadie Lee at the Drill Hall. The exhibition, "And Then He Was a She" will open on October 1. Holly will be appearing, along with Sadie Lee, on the afternoon of Sunday September 30th, in conversation with Rupert Smith, to chat about her life and career as a Warhol star.
The Drill Hall is also offering visitors the chance to become a "Friend of the Artist" and attend the opening private view of the exhibition on Thursday September 27 in the presence of Holly Woodlawn and Sadie Lee. Champagne and canapés will be served and each friend of the artist will be given a talk by Sadie Lee on the making of the exhibition and will meet Holly Woodlawn. The cost to be a "Friend of the Artist" is £250 which includes an invitation to the private view, a copy of the exhibition catalogue signed by Sadie Lee and Holly Woodlawn, your name listed in the catalogue as a "Friend of the Artist", and priority booking for the Rupert Smith/Holly Woodlawn/Sadie Lee event on the 30th. If you would like to become a "Friend of the Artist" contact MavisS@drillhall.co.uk.
The Drill Hall's website is at http://www.drillhall.co.uk.
Callie Angell book signing at the BFI Southbank
Callie Angell will be signing copies of her book, Andy Warhol Screen Tests: The Films of Andy Warhol Catalogue Raisonné: v. 1 on Friday at 7:40 pm at the British Film Institute Southbank as part of their current Warhol film series. The BFI Warhol series, which runs throughout August and September, is the largest exhibition of Warhol's films that has ever taken place anywhere - including the states. All the restored films are being shown. Details on the British Film Institute website at: http://www.bfi.org.uk.
Andy Warhol vs. Banksy at the Hospital
"Warhol vs. Banksy" - an exhibition at the Hospital in London in conjuntion with Pollock Fine Art, opens on August 7, 2007. The show, named in homage to the 1985 "Warhol Vs. Basquiat" exhibition at the Tony Shafrazi Gallery, will feature about 15 works from each artist, including Banksy's Kate Moss à la Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe.
The Hospital details: 24 Endell Street, Covent Garden, London. Telephone: (020) 7170 9100.
Website: http://www.thehospital.dreamhost.com.
New Candy Darling website
The official website of the estate of Candy Darling is now online with biographical information, photographs and information about the forthcoming documentary on Candy.
The new website is at: http://www.candydarlingsuperstar.com.
Andy Warhol at National Gallery
A major exhibiton of work by Andy Warhol opens at the National Gallery in Ediburgh on August 4, 2007. Included in the exhibition will be a special room of Warhol's Silver Clouds and a recreation of the 1983 exhibition "Paintings for Children" (with paintings hung at child's eye level).
Some of Warhol's Time Capsules will also be shown. The Edinburgh College of Art will present a series of Warhol's films during August and September to coincide with the exhibition. The Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow is also showing about 125 Warhol posters (from 1964 - 1988).
National Gallery press release is at http://www.nationalgalleries.org/media/files/andy_warhol_pr.pdf.
Details of the Edinburgh College of Art's Warhol film season are at: http://www.eca.ac.uk/ecalite/ecanews_detail.cfml?nav2ID=51&nav3ID=436.
Details of the Glasgow Warhol poster exhibition are at:
http://www.glasgowmuseums.com/venue/showExhibition.cfm?venueid=3&itemid=168.Stephen Shore's Velvet Years in London
An exhibition of Stephen Shore's excellent photographs of the Velvet years at the Factory, which opened at the end of July, continues until August 26, 2007 at the Monika Spruth Philomene Magers gallery in London.
Gallery details: 7A Grafton Street, London W1S 4EJ, Tel: 20 7408 1613.
Exhibition details at http://www.spruethmagerslee.com/exhibitions.php?e=147&sub=w-1.
An interview with Stephen Shore appears in Wallpaper magazine here:
http://www.wallpaper.com/art/Stephen-Shore-exhibition-exclusive/1607.Arthur Danto to appear at Warhol: Larger than Life
Art theorist Arthur Danto will be speaking about Andy Warhol at the Winnepeg Art Gallery on October 18, 2007 in conjunction with their "Warhol: Larger than Life" exhibition which opens on October 5, 2007.
Details at http://www.wag.mb.ca/htmlfiles/EXHIBITIONS/CURRENT_/warhol.asp.
Andy Warhol films at the British Film Institute
The British Film Institute has finally released details of their series of Andy Warhol films to be screened at the B.F.I. Southbank during August and September. All of Warhol's restored films will be shown during the two months including some rarities that have never been seen before in London such as Screen Test #1 starring Warhol's then-boyfriend Philip Fagan.
The author of the Andy Warhol film catalogue raisonné
, Callie Angell, is being flown in from New York to introduce the series and to answer questions about the films during the first week. Her first appearance will be at the August 7th screening of Elvis at Ferus and Tarzan and Jane Regained, Sort of... (This will be a longer talk as it is the introduction to the whole series.) The other programs at which Angell will be speaking are: August 8 (Kiss, Haircut and Eat), August 9 (Blow Job and Henry Geldzahler), August 9 (Screen Tests) and August 10 (Soap Opera and Couch).
A list of all the Warhol films being shown during August and online booking information can be found on the BFI website at http://www.bfi.org.uk/whatson/southbank/seasons/warhol/titles.php (If you plan on attending any of the Callie Angell evenings, I would book now as these will most likely sell out quite quickly.)
July 2007
Andy Warhol in Scotland on Sunday
The latest issue of Scotland on Sunday includes an article in which Sylvia Miles, Pat Hackett, Vincent Fremont, Brigid Berlin and Taylor Mead comment on their memories of Andy Warhol.
The article is online at http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/review.cfm?id=1136652007.
Pat Hackett:
"People think Andy's art was easy to do. He couldn't have been more careful about it, always making subtle changes. He worked hard, even weekends and holidays. Sure, I still miss him. I loved him, especially his nutty sense of humour and his laugh. I miss that voice on the phone saying, 'You won't believe this..."
Stedelijk Museum's Andy Warhol Club planning a trip to Scotland
The Andy Warhol Club at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam is planning a trip to Scotland on September 27 and 28 to visit the Andy Warhol exhibition at the National Galleries in Edinburgh. The theme of the trip is "modern art inside and outside the museum walls" which means "that we are not just there to visit museums, but also to explore the artistic nightlife, dinner in the hip restaurants and stay at the design Point Hotel."
The flight to Edinburgh will leave Thursday morning, September 27, flying from Schipol Amsterdam, returning on the 28th. The cost will be around €350, including flight, lunch, diner, overnight stay, tours and access to the museums.
To make the trip happen the Andy Warhol Club needs 18 reservations before July 31st. To make a reservation, or for more information on the trip send an e-mail to andywarholclub@stedelijk.nl or call +31 20 5732 675.
Gavin Turk does Andy Warhol
British artist Gavin Turk has adopted Andy Warhol's persona (or at least his wig) in his latest work currently being exhibited at the Riflemaker gallery in London which features an image of Gavin Turk's face under a translucent layer of coloured camouflage à la Warhol's self-portraits from the 1980s. On July 16, Turk will be doing a "special live oxidisation performance" at the gallery in homage to Warhol's piss paintings. Details on the Riflemaker site at http://www.riflemaker.org.
Andy Warhol films to be shown at The Wapping Project in London
A series of films by Andy Warhol will be shown at The Wapping Project in London during July and August 2007 as part of their "Warhol - A Snapshot" exhibition. The exhibition consists of work by master printer Roy Snell who was inspired by Warhol's Factory and whose clients include David Hockney, Ken Griffiths and Tessa Traeger. Details of the film (DVD) screenings are below (to access info on a film/superstar on Warholstars, click on a highlighted title and/or cast member or use the search box at the top of this page):
July 2007
16 July: Afternoon (1965) (Edie Sedgwick, Ondine, Dorothy Dean) 8 pm £7.50
22 July: Beauty #2 (1965) (Edie Sedgwick, Gino Piserchio) 1 pm £7.50
23 July: The Chelsea Girls (1966) (Brigid Berlin, Ondine, Ingrid Superstar and everyone else) 8 pm £10.00
29 July: The Closet (1966) (Nico, Randy Bourscheidt) 1 pm £7.50
30 July: Couch (1964) (Gerard Malanga, Billy Name, Jane Holzer, Jack Kerouac, Mark Lancaster) 8 pm £7.50August 2007
5 August: Haircut #1 (1963) (Billy Name, Freddie (Freddy) Herko) 1 pm £5.00
6 August: Harlot (1964) (Mario Montez, Ronald Tavel (off-screen) 8 pm £7.50
12 August: Lupe (1965) (Edie Sedgwick, Billy Name) 1 pm £7.50
13 August My Hustler (1965) (Paul America, Ed Hood, Dorothy Dean) 8 pm £7.50
19 August The Nude Restaurant (1967/68) (Viva, Taylor Mead, Louis Waldon, Julian Burroughs) 1 pm £7.50
20 August Paul Swan (1965) (Paul Swan) 8 pm £7.50
26 August Poor Little Rich Girl (1965) (Edie Sedgwick) 1 pm £7.50
28 August Vinyl (1965) (Gerard Malanga, Edie Sedgwick) 8 pm £7.50The Wapping Project is located in London at the Wapping Hydraulic Power Station, Wapping Wall, E1W 3ST (nearest tube: Wapping). For information on the film screenings ring 020 7680 2080. The website for the gallery is at http://www.thewappingproject.com.
(Note: The BFI Southbank (British Film Institute) is also planning a series of Warhol films to be shown in August/September - details yet to be confirmed.)
Kersten Lindholm loses appeal for Andy Warhol's Red Elvis
In an court ruling released on Monday, June 25, 2007, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that Peter Brant, and not Swedish heiress Kersten Lindholm, is the rightful owner of Andy Warhol's Red Elvis. Lindholm had loaned the painting to Swedish art dealer Anders Malmberg for a traveling exhibition of Warhol's work only to find that Malmberg sold the painting to Brant for the bargain price of $2.9 million. Lindholm never received any money from Malmberg and at the time of the sale there was a court order barring the sale of Lindholm's property while she was divorcing her husband, Magnus. Malmberg is now serving a three-year prison sentence for theft in regard to his sale of the painting.
Despite the fact that Malmberg was convicted of stealing the painting, the Stamford Superior Court decided in 2005 (after a three year legal battle) that Brant was indeed the rightful owner of the painting. U.S. law states that as long as the buyer of a work of art makes a reasonable effort to confirm that a dealer is authorized to sell a painting, then the buyer is protected under law as the rightful owner. Lindholm appealed the decision to the Connecticut Supreme Court and the Court has now upheld the previous ruling for the same reason.
Chelsea Hotel under new management: the end of an era?
The Chelsea Hotel is under new management as a result of a power struggle between Stanley Bard and other shareholders on the board which owns the building. In late June the board voted to replace Mr. Bard and his son with a new management team led by BD Hotels who are also in the process of developing a hotel in TriBeCa with the actor Robert De Niro.
A campaign has been started by Chelsea Hotel bloggers in support of the old management. (See http://www.hotelchelseablog.com.) Warhol star Viva has contributed a statement in support of the Bards (scroll down when you reach the site.)
Andy Warhol's Dream America opens in Ohio on June 29, 2007
The traveling show opens on June 29, 2007 at the Toledo Museum of Art. A "Warhol Wig-Out" is planned for June 28, 2007.
Details on the museum's website at: http://www.toledomuseum.org and in the Toledo Blade newspaper at: http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070624/ART16/70622031/-1/ART.
Andy Warhol in Scotland
The largest collection of Andy Warhol's work ever exhibited in Scotland opens on August 4, 2007 at the National Galleries of Scotland. The Director of The Warhol museum, Tom Sokolowski, will be giving an illustrated talk on the opening day and on August 20, Mark Francis (Director of the Gagosian Gallery in London and formerly founding Director and Chief Curator at The Warhol) will be speaking on Warhol's installations. Details on the museum's website: http://www.nationalgalleries.org.
Gary Indiana on Andy Warhol's Soup Cans
A 200+ page book on Warhol's Soup Cans with text by Gary Indiana is scheduled for publication by Basic Books in November 2007.
New Andy Warhol biography for young adults to be published in December 2007
The biography, Andy Warhol, Prince of Pop, is geared toward Grades 6-9. The authors are Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan who also wrote Runaway Girl, a biography of the sculptor Louise Bourgeois for young adults which won the Bccb Blue Ribbon Nonfiction Book Award.
Andy Warhol Posters at the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow
The Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow is having an exhibition of Andy Warhol posters from June 28, 2007 to September 2, 2007. Included will be promotional materials for The Chelsea Girls. Events planned during the exhibition include family Warhol workshops in July and August. Details on the gallery's website at: http://www.glasgowmuseums.com/venue/index.cfm?venueid=3.
Andy Warhol prints to be auctioned at Christie's London
Christie's in London will be auctioning six lots of Warhol graphics as part of their Prints and Multiples sale on July 18, 2007 in London. Items include a Mao screenprint on wallpaper (est. £1,000 - £1,500) and a signed and numbered 1972 Mao screenprint (by Castelli Graphics and Multiples Inc.) (est. £10,000 - £15,000). Details on Christie's website at http://www.christies.com.
Major Retrospective of Andy Warhol films at the Museum of Moving Image
The Museum of Moving Image in Astoria New York is planning a major exhibition of Warhol's films for November/December 2007. Details of which films are being screened will be posted on their website when confirmed (see http://www.movingimage.us/site/screenings/mainpage/upcoming.html).
June 2007
John Giorno at the Barbican Art Gallery
John Giorno, poet, performer and star of Andy Warhol's Sleep will be performing at the Barbican Art Gallery in London this Saturday June 23, 2007 at 5:00 pm in conjunction with their (highly recommended) "Panic Attack!" exhibition of the Punk era. (The Giorno event takes place in the Gallery and is FREE to same day ticket holders.)
Details at: http://www.barbican.org.uk/artgallery/event-detail.asp?ID=5992.
Andy Warhol Club Event in Amsterdam
The Andy Warhol Club of the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam will be hosting a "Factory Club" night in a supper club in Amsterdam where Warhol fans will be able to meet each other over a three course (Warhol style) meal on June 25th from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. The evening will include short clips of some of Warhol's films, performance artists and guest D.J.'s.
The flyer for the event is here (in Dutch) or here (in English).
Also, the club is currently working on the possibility of foreign membership so that people outside of the Netherlands will be able to join - hopefully by July. Details when known will be posted here.
Ronald Tavel on Gordon Scott
Gordon Scott (aka Tarzan) died in Baltimore at the end of April. Andy Warhol's script writer, Ronald Tavel, has written an obituary on the screen icon for Warholstars at: http://www.warholstars.org/articles/tarzan.html. Scott starred in what is aknowledged as the two best Tarzan films ("more Joseph Conrad than Edgar Rice Burroughs") - Tarzan's Greatest Adventure (1959) and Tarzan the Magnificent (1960). Ronald Tavel's website, which features free downloadable copies of his Warhol scripts (as well as other goodies) can be found at: http://www.ronald-tavel.com.
Andy Warhol at Christie's London: June 21, 2007
A series of works by Andy Warhol will be featured in Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Art auction in London on June 21, 2007, including two Flowers paintings from 1964 and apparently a Marilyn from 1986. (The Marilyn is signed by the artist with a further notation from Fred Hughes - "I certify that this is an original painting by Andy Warhol completed by him in 1986 Frederick Hughes" - although the Lot Detail does not indicate that it has been stamped/numbered by the Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board). Details on Christie's website at: http://www.christies.com.
Broken Goddess on DVD
Holly Woodlawn's 1973 film, Broken Goddess, is now available on DVD. The film had its New York premiere on Holly's birthday, October 26, in 1973. It was filmed surreptitiously from 4 a.m. to dawn over two months in the summer of 1973 at Central Park's Bethesda Fountain in Manhattan. A preview of the film can be found at: http://highbergermedia.com/Preview-Broken-Goddess.html.
Women's Wear Daily called the film "Exquisite" and "Haunting." The New York Daily News referred to it as "a dramatic tour-de-force" and Film Comment commented "La Woodlawn's performance is a blazing thing, a highly stylized exposé of glamour-as-terror!"
Each DVD of the current limited edition release (available through Highberger Media) has been personally autographed (and lipstick kissed) by Holly Woodlawn (available while supplies last).
Details on all Highberger Media DVDS, including the new release of the 2003 revival of Jackie Curtis' Glamour, Glory and Gold (starring D'Arcy Drollinger as Nola Noonan) can be found at: http://highbergermedia.com/DVDs.html.
An article on the making of Broken Goddess by the director is at:
http://www.warholstars.org/andywarhol/articles/woodlawn.html.Leee Black Childers, Geraldine Smith, Taylor Mead
and Ultra Violet at La MamaAs part of its Coffee House Chronicles series, La Mama E.T.C. in New York will be presenting a discussion panel featuring photographer Leee Black Childers along with Warhol stars Geraldine Smith, Taylor Mead and Ultra Violet on June 2, 2007 at 3:00 p.m. Details at: http://www.lamama.org.
Sneak Preview of Candy Darling Documentary at La Mama
A sneak preview of clips from the work-in-progress, Beautiful Darling, The Life and Times of Candy Darling, Andy Warhol Superstar, a film currently in production being directed by James Rasin, will be presented by Jeremiah Newton at La Mama's Coffee House Chronicles on June 16, 2007 at 3:00 p.m. Along with Newton will be George Abagnalo, co-screenwriter of Andy Warhol's BAD and good friend of Candy Darling's. The film is being produced by Paul Morrissey and Michael Newman. Details at http://www.lamama.org.
The Chelsea Girls at MOMA
The Museum of Modern Art will be presenting Andy Warhol's film, The Chelsea Girls, for an entire week, from June 2 - 9, 2007. On June 4th, the film will be introduced by Callie Angell, the world's foremost authority on Warhol's films and author of Andy Warhol Screen Tests: The Films of Andy Warhol Catalogue Raisonné, Volume One.
Details at: http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/film_exhibitions.php?id=5089&ref=calendar.
May 2007
The Andy Warhol Club
The Andy Warhol Club is currently accepting members. The club held its launch party in February 2007 with a screening of The Chelsea Girls in Amsterdam. Members of the club will be considered "VIPs" on the official opening of the upcoming Warhol exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and will receive discounts on Andy Warhol Club activities. Among the activities being planned are Warhol film screenings, Factory-style parties, theatre pieces inspired by Warhol's work and lectures/public events relating to his artistic legacy, particularly in regard to his films. In addition, there is the possibility of organising short trips to other expositions on Warhol including to Warhol's country of origin Slovakia and their Warhol museum in Mrbzilaborce. Members can be of any age, nationality or background, but should share a mutual interest in Warhol and modern art in general.
To join send an email to andywarholclub@stedelijk.nl.
The club's website (www.andywarholclub.nl) currently features information on the original launch party but will be updated at the end of June to include future activities.
The club has been created in conjunction with the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam which will host the exhibition, "Andy Warhol. Other Voices Other Rooms" from October 12, 2007 - January 13, 2008. The website for the museum is at http://www.stedelijk.nl.
BFI announces summer season of Warhol films in London
The British Film Institute will be presenting a series of films by Andy Warhol in August and September 2007 at the Southbank centre here in London. Exact details and dates are yet to be announced but I will post them here once known. The website for the BFI is at: www.bfi.org.uk.
Warhol statue to be installed in SoHo's Father Fagan Park
A 5 foot 8 inch 300 pound bronze statue of Andy Warhol, created by Jack Dowd, is to be installed in New York's Father Fagan Park as a memorial to the artist. The finished statue features Warhol in wig and glasses crossing his arms. It is expected to be erected in the park by the summer. Father Fagan Park is in the Soho area of New York on Sixth Avenue, between Prince and Spring streets.
James Lyons dies
Jim Lyons was both a filmmaker and actor. He played the part of Billy Name in I Shot Andy Warhol and, as a filmmaker, was working on A Short Film about Andy Warhol before he died - a six minute film featuring Gus Van Sant as Andy Warhol. (The project description can be found here: http://channel.creative-capital.org/project_873.html)
As a film editor, he co-edited the new documentary about Warhol cohort Danny Williams - A Walk into the Sea: The Danny Williams Story (see below) and was also the editor of four Todd Haynes films including Far From Heaven and my personal favorites, Poison and Safe.
A short biography of Lyons by Scott Macaulay and tributes from those who knew him can be found on the Filmmaker magazine website at: http://www.filmmakermagazine.com/blog/2007/04/james-lyons.php.
Ronald Tavel update
Andy Warhol's script writer, Ronald Tavel, has not only finished his latest novel but has also found the time to add more interesting tidbits to his website which already contains downloadable versions of his scripts and plays. Additions include a radioplay, My Foetus Lived on Amboy Street, written by Tavel and performed by Harvey Fierstein. The President of the National Federation of Broadcasters said that Tavel's radioplay "defies categorization: it is the best radioplay I have ever heard and it contains the best radio performance I know of. I had to replay sections of it in disbelief of what that actor can do with his voice!"
The Fierstein performance can be listened to by clicking on "Stageplays" once you get to the main page of the site at www.ronald-tavel.com.
Two new Holly Woodlawn DVDs to be released in the summer
Highberger Media will be releasing two new DVDs featuring Holly Woodlawn this summer - Broken Goddess directed in 1972 by her friend Dallas (see The Madness of Making a Movie with Holly Woodlawn) and Holly Woodlawn LIVE - a video of a 2006 performance by Holly. Both DVDs will be released in special personally autographed editions via the Highberger Media website.
Currently there are several other films on the Highberger Media website which are of interest to Warhol affecionados - Superstar in a Housedress: The Life and Legend of Jackie Curtis (winner of the Best Documentary at Toronto's Inside Out Film Festival), Jack Mitchell: My Life is Black and White and two Jackie Curtis performance videos - Jackie Curtis Off Broadway! and Cabaret in the Sky: An Evening with Holly Woodlawn and Jackie Curtis. The Jack Mitchell film is particularly interesting - an insightful documentary about a a truly fascinating man and the celebrities and artists who posed for him. Interviewees include Edward Albee and Merce Cunningham.
The Highberger Media site is at: http://highbergermedia.com.
Sleep at the Tate Modern
Andy Warhol's Sleep will be shown as an endless loop at the Tate Modern in London on May 27th from 7:30 pm to 2:00 pm the following afternoon, accompanied by Eric Satie's Vexations (see notes on John Cage, Eric Satie's Vexations and Andy Warhol's Sleep).
The event at the Tate will be introduced by a "special performance" by John Giorno, the subject of the film, and a panel discussion with Giorno, Gavin Bryars, David Nicholls, moderated by art historian, Pamela M. Lee. on May 27. Tickets for the panel discussion are £10 and available on the day on a first/come first/served basis. Tickets to both the concert and panel discussion can be purchased for £25.00 which guarantees a seat for the panel discussion.
Details on the Tate Modern website at: http://tate.org.uk/modern/thelongweekend2007/9028.htm.
Andy Warhol "superstars and friends" photographic prints
A collection of photographs of Andy Warhol's superstars and friends (1969 to 1972) by Laura Rubin are now available for sale via Shepherd Galleries in New York. The collection is comprised of 45 vintage prints, limited to 1-4 copies per print. Most are from the original print runs and Rubin assures buyers that the images will not be reprinted. The negatives are held in The Warhol museum in Pittsburgh. Included are photographs of Holly Woodlawn, Mario Montez, Francis Francine, Geraldine Smith, Andrea "whips" Feldman, Penny Arcade and Tony Conrad. The most recently printed photographs are ones of Candy Darling, printed in 1997 for the "Always a Lady" exhibition, which are in mint condition. Collectors and dealers can contact David Wojciechowski at Shepherd Galleries located at 58 East 79th Street in Manhattan (shepherdny@aol.com/tel: (212) 861 4050). The website for the gallery is at www.shepherdgallery.com. A selection of photos by Laura Rubin can be found at www.rasa.com/warhol. An interview with Laura Rubin, featuring samples of her work, can be found at: www.warholstars.org/articles/laura/laura.html.
Andy Warhol's Pork + Candy Darling film at La Mama
Two interesting Warhol-related events at La Mama are being planned for May and June. On May 5th, Leee Black Childers and Tony Zanetta will be "recalling" Andy Warhol's play Pork, and on June 16th Jeremiah Newton will be showing clips from his upcoming documentary, Beautiful Darling: The Life and Times of Candy Darling, Any Warhol Superstar.
Details at: www.lamama.org/performances/coffeehouse.html.
U.S. premiere of Danny Williams documentary
Esther Robinson's documentary on Danny Williams, A Walk into the Sea: Danny Williams and The Warhol Factory will have its U.S. premiere at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival. The festival will run from April 25 - May 6, 2007 this year. No specific screening date has been announced yet for Robinson's film but the schedule should be available soon on the festival's website at: www.tribecafilmfestival.org. The film recently had its European premiere at the 2007 Berlinale Film Festival where it won the Best Documentary award.
The film's website is at www.awalkintothesea.com.
April 2007
Warhol photographer, Curtis Knapp, returns to New York
Curtis Knapp, whose photographs of Andy Warhol were published in Unseen Warhol
and, more recently, in Cast A Cold Eye: The Late Work of Andy Warhol
, has returned to New York from Japan after an absence of 20 years. A selection of his photos is reprinted here. A more comprehensive selection of photographs can be found on his website at www.curtisknapp.com/DOCUMENTS/portraits_06/35b_p_andy_warhol_page.html. He can be reached via his website at www.curtisknapp.com.
Jackie Curtis, Holly Woodlawn, Living Theater DVDs
Highberger Media has announced the release of four new DVDs: Jack Mitchell: My Life is Black and White; Cabaret in the Sky, an Evening with Jackie Curtis and Holly Woodlawn, Jackie Curtis Off-Broadway! and Turning the Earth featuring Julian Beck and Judith Malina of the Living Theatre. Details at: http://highbergermedia.com/DVDs.html.
New Tere Tereba blog
Tere Tereba, who was in Andy Warhol's Bad and wrote for Interview magazine, has started a new blog on her website at: http://teretereba.com (designed by Tere and Brian Hamilton).
Holly Woodlawn in U.K. Metro
A short interview with Holly Woodlawn recently appeared in London's Metro newspaper and can be found on the internet at: www.metro.co.uk/fame/interviews/article.html?in_article_id=41373&in_page_id=11.
The Return of Dorothy Podber
A longer version of the interview with Dorothy Podber, which originally appeared in Metro (and mentioned here in February 2007), can be found at: http://joybergmann.wordpress.com/2007/03/23/surrender-dorothy-podber/. The author of the interview, Joy Bergmann, also took photographs of Podber during the interview and will be posting them on the site.
Ronald Tavel online
Ronald Tavel has uploaded additional pages to his website which features downloadable pdf files of many of the film scripts he wrote for Andy Warhol in addition to his plays, poetry, essays and even a novel. The fact that all can be downloaded without charge is refreshing in a cyberworld where more and more sites are charging for the information they provide - particularly given the wealth of information that is on Tavel's site. His accounts of his Warhol years are revealing - the truth is often different than the oft-repeated stories that have become part of Warhol's legend. For instance, his account of how he became Warhol's screenwriter, which appears on the site in his introduction to Screen Test No. 1, differs from the version in Popism. Tavel's site is one of the most interesting (and entertaining) Warhol related sites out there. Go to his site and READ what's there. Don't just click and go. You will be pleasantly surprised. During the 1960s, Tavel was referred to as the "American Aristophanes" by New York Times theater critic, Mel Gussow, and Jack Kroll of Newsweek wrote that "Ronald Tavel may well be the best young playwright around." (Hello off-Broadway - isn't it time for a Tavel revival?)
Tavel's website is at: www.ronald-tavel.com.
Did you know Philip Fagan?
Philip Fagan's nephew is doing research for a book on his uncle and would like to hear from anyone who knew Philip. Philip was in a relationship with Warhol during the early 60s and the subject of Screen Test No. 1 (written by Ronald Tavel) and the film project that has been referred to as Six Months, described by Callie Angell in volume one of the Warhol film catalogue raisonné as one of Warhol's "most ambitious ventures into serial portraiture..." (see Andy Warhol Screen Tests: The Films of Andy Warhol Catalogue Raisonné, Vol. One).
Philip's nephew, who is also named Philip, can be reached at: peanuts@ticnet.com.
Andy Warhol in France
A Warholstars regular and member of La fanfare de la fatalité writes from France:
"For some reasons, there’s a huge Warholian activity in here ! there are so many releases you can hardly buy all the books and DVD’s ! Unfortunately, some of them aren’t really worth the money...
First, they go on releasing the little “chronicle” books, with pictures grouped by topic. The books are rather cheap, easy to handle, the pics are well printed, but I really thought it was a bit anecdotal. (see: www.et-alors.net/articles/108) Now they’ve released “fashion”...it’s a bit less controversal! Then, J.M Vecchiet (the man who made the dvd “vies et morts d’Andy Warhol” ) made another movie, “Andy Warhol, l’oeuvre incarnée”! I’ve seen an ad about it, and they say that there’s an interview of Holly Woodlawn as a bonus on the dvd ! I want it I want it ! But it seems the DVD is not released yet... They also released the movie BLANK GENERATION with Richard Hell, Carole Bouquet and Warhol. Other HUGE release ! They’ve AT LAAAAST translated POPism !
Now, let’s talk about Disappointments : “WARHOL GEANT” which was released by Phaidon editions in late 2006... Of course, the pictures and reproductions are huge, really various, and beautifully printed...BUT : Half of the pics are captioned “ ANDY WARHOL with an unknown person” whereas every newbie could recognise Viva, Taylor Mead...I guess they didn’t even watch the movies they refer to, because there’s a pic from “women in revolt” with Candy Darling and my beloved Michael Sklar, and the only caption is “candy darling with an unknown man”...
And in last month’s magazine “Les inrocks 2” : they made an “Andy Warhol de A à Z” special.. they wrote ABSOLUTELY anything ! For example, they say that Joe Dallesandro is the man on the sleeve of “sticky fingers”,
( but you can easily notice he’s NOT because you can see him naked in all of his films and this is definitely NOT him !) Or there’s this famous pic on which Andy, Edie, Chuck Wein and Gerard Malanga play with their arms like some kind of indian god, and the caption is “ Andy, Edie, BABY JANE HOLZER and Gerard Malanga !” They can’t even recognise a man from a woman ! Top of the flops : they also say “andy used to give nicknames to his assistants, for example he gave his german assistant Brigid Polk the easy nickname of BERLIN” That’s just complete nonsense ! it’s precisely the opposite, and she’s as german as I’m japanese!"Anne Wehrer dies
Anne Wehrer, who appeared in Andy Warhol's film Bike Boy, died in her sleep on March 27, 2007 after a short stay at the Coming Home hospice in San Francisco. In addition to appearing in Bike Boy, Anne helped to establish the ONCE Festival of New Music in Ann Arbor, Michigan and toured the country with ONCE during the 1960s. She also wrote for various magazines and co-authored the Iggy Pop biography, I Need More: The Stooges and Other Stories. Wehrer suffered various serious illnesses during her life - at the age of 18 her left leg had to be amputated due to bone cancer and in 1997 she began to develop dementia. She was looked after by her daughters who continued to provide care and stimulation until her death, helping her to remain mobile and in good spirits despite the dementia. Anne Wehrer is survived by five children, their father, five grandchildren and a brother. A memorial gathering is being planned for later in the Spring.
(www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/25/MNWEHRERAN50.DTL)Brigid Berlin and Michel Auder at the Gershwin
Brigid Berlin will be giving a rare public performance at the Gershwin Hotel in New York on April 3, 2007 along with a screening of a selection of Michel Auder's videos. Details on the Gershwin's website at: www.gershwinhotel.com (click on "love" and "special events").
The Real Edie Sedgwick at MOMI: Update
The Museum of the Moving Image in New York has now placed on their website the details for their upcoming series of Edie Sedgwick films which will be shown from March 31 - April 8, 2007 under the title of "The Real Edie Sedgwick." Films will include Horse, Beauty #2, Kitchen, Outer and Inner Space, Vinyl and Restaurant. On the last day of the series there will be a special screening of the David Weisman/John Palmer film starring Edie - Ciao! Manhattan - preceeded by an 8 minute segment featuring Edie from Richard Leacock's Lulu.
Details on the MOMI site at: www.movingimage.us/site/screenings/pages/2007/index_edie_sedgwick.html.
Andy Warhol gets closer to Picasso
The gap between Andy Warhol and Picasso is narrowing - at least auction-wise. Artprice published its 10 most traded artists list last month and as usual Picasso came first and Andy Warhol second. However, there was a 28% increase in the number of Warhol lots sold compared to Picasso's 18% increase. Warhol and fellow Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein (who came in 10th) are the only U.S. born artists on the list.
Full list: 1. Picasso ($339,245,929); 2. Andy Warhol ($199,392,442); 3. Gustav Klimt ($175,143,589); 4. Willem de Kooning ($107,373,446 ); 5. Modigliani ($90,713,845); 6. Marc Chagall ($89,038,897); 7. Egon Schiele ($79,081,455); 8. Paul Gauguin ($62,312,914); 9. Henri Matisse ($59,723,249); 10. Roy Lichtenstein ($59,670,946).
Will Lemon Marilyn break the bank?
Andy Warhol's Lemon Marilyn is set to break a new record at Christie's N.Y. at their auction on May 16, 2007. According to press reports it is being sold by its original (unidentified) owner who purchased the work for $250 from Eleanor Ward's Stable Gallery in 1962 at Warhol's first New York gallery exhibition of his Pop paintings. Estimated to sell in excess of $15 million, it will probably go for considerably more. An Orange Marilyn was sold for $16.3 million last year.
Homage to Nam June Paik
The second of two performance events presented by Larry Miller in homage to Nam June Paik will take place April 14, 2007 at 6:00 pm at the James Cohan Gallery in New York. Seating is limited. For details and reservations go to: www.jamescohan.com.
Additional Warhol week photos on Ovoworks
More photos (by Joe Flocco) have been published from Warhol Week (the superstar awards) at: http://ovoworks.smugmug.com/gallery/2510454#136196893.
Tally Brown sings David Bowie's Heroes
If you would like to see Tally Brown sing David Bowie's "Heroes" go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZRttYQ9SqE&NR. Tally appeared in Andy Warhol's Camp and **** (Four Stars).
Stuart Davis catalogue raisonné to be published
A three-volume Stuart Davis catalogue raisonné will be published in September 2007. Davis' work is often considered as a precursor to Pop. Amazon is offering a substantial discount on the $300 cat. rais. on pre-orders here.
A major Andy Warhol exhibition at Scottish National Galleries to open August 2007
Andy Warhol: A Celebration of Life ... and Death will run from August 5th to October 2007 at the National Galleries of Scotland and will include a recreation of Warhol's 1983 exhibition for children with the art hung at a child's eye level.
Details at: http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=288702007.
March 2007
The Warhol Effect is online
The one hour BBC radio documentary, The Warhol Effect, which was broadcast in the U.K. on February 27th, can be listened to over the internet via the BBC Radio 2 website at: www.bbc.co.uk/radio2. (Click on the link under "Listen").
The programme includes new interviews with Lou Reed, Billy Name, Joe Dallesandro, Nicky Haslam, Bob Colacello, Nat Finkelstein, Nathan Gluck, David Bailey, Gerard Malanga, Paul Morrissey, John Cale, David Bowie, Tom Wolfe, Nick Rhodes and others.
Living Theater to re-open in March with new production of The Brig
The Living Theater will re-open in March at its new location on Clinton Street with a new production of The Brig - the last play produced by the group at their previous14th Street venue (which housed the Living Theater from 1959 - October 1963 when it was closed down by the IRS). (GV40/45). Mekas' film of the production was shot secretly, after the IRS had closed down the theater. According to the introduction for a 1997 interview with Mekas by Tessa Hughes-Freeland, Mekas and the actors gained access to the theatre by climbing through a coal chute, shooting "quickly during the night, rotating three single system Auricon camera in 10 minute takes, whilst the guards stood outside watching the padlocked doors." (NL115) During a 1978 interview with Patrick Smith, however, Mekas mentions only one camera, saying that he shot the play "in the early Spring of '64."
In his biography of Andy Warhol, Victor Bockris claims that the same camera used to shoot The Brig was used to shoot Empire but Mekas does not make this claim in the Smith interview. In the Smith interview Mekas says that Warhol "was interested [in the Auricon] because he wanted to get used to it because he wanted, he said, he wanted to go and use it to shoot sound films with it. You know: in the way of The Brig." (PS416) Given that The Brig was shot in the Spring of 1964 and Empire in the Summer of 1964, it is unlikely that Mekas would still be renting the same camera when Empire was made. According to Gerard Malanga, the Auricon used for Empire had been rented from F & B Ceco on West 43rd Street - the rental arranged by John Palmer. (GMW90)
The original cast of The Brig included Rufus Collins who also appeared in Warhol's Kiss, Batman Dracula, Soap Opera and Couch (as well as playing a Transylvanian in the non-Warhol film, The Rocky Horror Picture Show). (AD54).
Details on the new production of The Brig can be found on the Living Theater's website at: www.livingtheatre.org.
Andy Warhol's doctor dies
Andy Warhol's doctor, Dr. Denton Cox, died on March 3, 2007 while recuperating from burns. When he was admitted into hospital WABC news reported that he was hospitalized "with severe burns after an alleged sexual encounter" (see below). On March 6, the New York Post reported that "Cox had told staffers who found him last month that he had been attacked. Authorities initially suspected he was the victim of a gay tryst gone wrong. They now believe he accidentally scalded himself in the shower." The New York Times paid obituary notice published on March 5, 2007 did not mention the cause or circumstances of his death. Cox was one of the defendants when Warhol's estate brought a legal action against New York Hospital and his doctors for wrongful death, arguing that Warhol died from "internal drowning" after being given too many liquids while in hospital. (Sullivan, Ronald, "Suit over Warhol's Death to Begin Today," New York Times, December 4, 1991)
Holly Woodlawn to sing in new movie
Holly Woodlawn's new movie, East of the Tar Pits, is currently in post-production. A song titled Girl, You're Gonna Lose Him, with lyrics and music by the film's director, Gary LeGault, has been added to the film as well as a "drag" race scene between Holly and co-star Robert Sherman.
Photos from the newly added scenes are at www.warholstars.org/news/hollywoodlawn4.html.
Atlanta Conquers NYC at Eyedrum
Pinkeye presents L.A. based "queer archivist" Robert Coddington on March 14th in an evening hosted by Jayne County at the Eyedrum Gallery in Atanta. The evening will include the U.S. premiere of Nelson and Christina, produced by Coddington from Nelson Sullivan footage. (The film will have its U.K. premiere at the London Gay and Lesbian Film Festival on March 28, 2007.) Also being shown during the evening at the Eyedrum is Ru Paul's Star Booty and a Tom Rubnitz retrospective. Details on the flyer here.
Trannyshack CD/DVD to be released March 3rd
The trannies of U.K. club night, Trannyshack, will be releasing a CD/DVD of their music and performances on March 3rd. No Warhol stars here - but who cares? Some great performances from the crème de la crème of the UK tranny scene, including Dusty O ("Pistol in My Pocket"), Glendora ("Slag in Drag"), Tasty Tim ("Beat Me Bite Me") and others.
Trannyshack U.K. can be found on My Space at: http://www.myspace.com/trannyshackuk.
Andy Warhol's doctor recuperating after being attacked
Andy Warhol's doctor, Denton Cox, was hospitalized after allegedly being "beatly beaten" by an "attacker" just two days prior to the February 22nd anniversary of Warhol's death. Cox was admitted to hospital with 40% of his body covered with chemical burns.
Details at http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local&id=5059630.
Marianne Faithfull sings on new Patrick Wolf CD
Marianne Faithful sings on one of the tracks ("Magpie") on the new (excellent) Patrick Wolf CD, The Magic Position, out in the UK this week. Wolf was, during the mid-1990s, a member of Minty - the band started by Leigh Bowery and Richard Tory in 1992. Wolf performed with the band after Leigh's death when he (Wolf) was only 14 years old. His music encompasses so many different musical influences that it's difficult to characterize. He has been compared to Sparks sound-a-like Mika (currently at no. 1 in the U.K. charts with the single Grace Kelly), but Wolf's music goes way beyond Mika's. Think The Divine Comedy meets St. Etienne meets Gonzales meets the Austrian String Quartet - at a gay disco. Recorded in Vienna and London with all songs written, produced and arranged by Wolf.
Samples of the music can be found at: www.patrickwolf.com.
The Magic Position can be ordered at Amazon UK here, or as an import through Amazon U.S.A.
