2013 Here We Come

Happy New Year, one and all.

This is what my window looked like during the holidays:
* A magnificent and rare printed silk jacket from Liberty of London - $200.
* Beautiful Boss sparkly casual sports jacket - $85.
* Ray Ban sunglasses, Prada Sunglasses, Boss sunglasses - $85.
* A frosty little tree with white lights and balls, with an angel standing by - priceless.

Boxing Sale News

Come and check out the great sale at RM - all suits and jackets, shoes and shirts, leather jackets and pants are 50% off.
It won't last forever.

The Life and Death Of Anna K.

What about this story keeps us tuned, after so many years? Did you know that there are at least 8 versions of the story on film? OK, so some are in Russian and are not counted in North America, but still.
I saw the new one recently. Of course I did. How can I resist time travel that takes me to the best dressed list of Russian society more than 100 years ago? And they were certainly dressed to the nines. The jewellery was quite good too. And the decor. Lovely.
But that's not why we are there. We are there to witness the ultimate woman destroy herself for love. She does it with passion and dedication most of us lack. Who among us would throw ourselves under a steaming train because of raging jealousy? Our destructive compulsions drive most love stricken hearts to open the fridge door and drown their sorrows in something edible. Is it possible people are not compelled to follow suit because the trains are so unromantic now, electric beasts they are today?
Or is it because women ( in the developed world) have more options now and don't have to die once they follow their hearts?
We watch because most of us don't let ourselves go that distance. We watch the kind of love we all wish we could experience once in our life, versus the one most of us have. The rational, composed, regimented life contrasted with the irrational, inevitable passionate choice of Mrs. K. We know she suffered, but we know she would do it all again. And we love her for it.

Dr. Who?

Sometimes, many times in fact, I admit I'm slow to catch on to things others have been on to for years, even decades. Such is the case with The Doctor.
My kids, bless their hearts, have turned me into a Doctor consumer, in all his regenerating glory.
I love his Tardis, his incomprehensible quasi-scientific mumblings, his running all over the universe with his sonic screwdriver (I have a thing about screwdrivers too!!) and how the aliens always have something human in them just to make us pay attention. It's sweet in the most hokey way possible.

Can We Do This In Life? The Picasso Bull

Pablo Picasso created 'Bull' during 1945-6. 'Bull' is a suite of lithographs that have become a master class in ways to develop an artwork from the academic to the abstract. In this series, Picasso strips the image of a bull to the essential lines of its form. Each plate brings him closer to finding the essential 'spirit' of the beast.

It starts with a lively drawing of the bull in lithographic ink. It lays the foundations for the developments to come. Picasso used the bull as a metaphor throughout his artwork but he refused to be pinned down as to its meaning. It has been interpreted in various ways: a representation of the Spanish people; a comment on fascism and brutality; a symbol of virility; and finally a reflection of Picasso's self image.

(I obsess: Why don't they admire Picasso in India, why choose Hitler? Can someone please explain it to me so I can understand?)

And now back to my question: Can life ever go back to the basics without a disaster forcing it upon the human race? Probably not.
I guess that is the reason we have art.

And Now, Think Positive

For there is no other way to combat evil.

Positives in time of darkness (in a wintery sense, not doomsday):

* Cooking simple meals with my boys on cold winter evenings and watching Dr. Who episodes one after another until we fall asleep.

* Planning and attending gatherings with friends, celebrating holidays, birthdays, and life in general.

* Today - leaving the house preparing for a cold day, and finding myself bathing is bright sunlight and mild air. Fantastic.

What Are They Thinking When They Hear the Name "Hitler"

The world is an astounding place.
There is so much to marvel at, to admire, to discover. There is beauty, and wealth of ideas, there is good, and there is, apparently even for a secular person like myself - Evil.
I heard something astonishing last week on CBC radio 1, The Current, a short interview with a lovely sounding Indian teacher which made my jaw drop, and even the radio interviewer, a woman of words in general, was rendered speechless.
The teacher was telling that her students are admirers of Hitler. As a leader, a crusader for Germany, an orator, a truly inspiring persona. I looked it up. Indeed, it is a wildly popular idea all over India.
To think that millions of those idiots, as there is no other word for it, are walking the earth admiring scum of humanity, teaching his ideas to their impressionable youth and propagating their minds with his filth, is simply evil.
But don't just take my word for it.
Read it here, and here. And watch this video of the man who sells the books:

The Sophisticated Party Crowd at the AGO

This museum is cashing in on the under-entertained people of Toronto, and it looks like they are on the right track.
There was a party there last night, amidst the various galleries, winding stairwells, art works and life-drawing opportunities with nude models on different floors, live music in the main hall, and many young and beautiful people eyeing each other and assessing their possibilities for an evening of culture and maybe sex. Yes, the level of sexual frustration in the gathering crowd was screaming at you even louder than the music, which was so loud the bartenders had earplugs securely installed.
However, despite the perfect surrounding, the people felt a bit paralyzed, to me. No one danced, even though there was enough booze, and they all looked all and all conservative and a bit intimidated by something.

Art consumers and artists are not quite the same material, when it comes to parties, it seems. I would have expected things to get a bit more heated. Instead, when the music ended, everyone dispersed. Hmmm. Why didn't we burst into dancing?

It was a good opportunity to explore new territory I have not been to before, on the top and bottom levels of the building. Climbing the beautiful wooden staircase was a considerable aerobic effort but it was worth it. Like climbing a temple of art.

There were interesting modern art pieces up there and we were happy to discover them. One favourite was a replica of a NYC bathroom made entirely, and very accurately of sewn material - brilliant. The picture doesn't do it justice.

Then there was the disturbing exhibition of the three dimensional portraits of people made of silicone, so life like yet distorted in grotesque ways I couldn't bare looking at for long:

And here is my beautiful friend sketching some lines in the live drawing hall:

All in all, a good place to spend Thursday night.

Joseph Sudek Revisited

My favourite, hands down, is this one: a rainy scene of a street in Prague. Everything is in there - the street lamps, the buildings, the umbrellas, the shadows. It swallows you in. You think Kafka is just around the corner, walking there weaving his paranoid tales: