Flying Houses

 

I'll start by saying that I've had a very awkward week. No matter what I'd put into motion, it just felt bizarrely ungrounded, as if another version of me was calling the shots.  And then, late last night, I stumbled upon the beautiful œuvre of French photographer, Laurent Chehere, Flying Houses. They summarize my sense of displacement to a T, and at the same time, remind me that nothing is permanent. From time to time, a toppled occurrence (week) is exactly what one needs to refocus and carry on!

Run-down, decorated with pieces of street art, half-demolished, burning or simply showing their typically Parisian roofs and facades, these buildings populate a fairy tale where the urban social complexities are not eliminated but rather elevated as a symbol of the contemporary world at large. (Frame Magazine)

The Flying Houses series is currently on display at Paris-Beijing Galerie in Paris until December 4, 2012. 

Photos borrowed from Frame Magazine, here and Chehere's site, here.

Hussein Chalayan S/S 2012 Sip Collection...very introspective!

"Chalayan’s inspiration centered around the idea of self-image, so his engineer Robert Davis rigged tiny battery-powered wireless cameras with tilt switches inside champagne flutes, which when tipped 15 degrees, would light up and capture the inside of the models’ mouths. The voyeuristic audience watched the models become the focal point, in a sort of unexpected way, as their lips, teeth and throats were projected onto the canvas behind the runway in real time." The Creators Project

Baryshnikov In Paris...

“Yes, from day to day, from year to year, you wait in secret for only one thing—that moment when you’ll stumble onto happy love. Ultimately it is this hope alone that enables you to live… In Paris”- Quote by Russian author, Ivan Bunin (1870-1953)

All images © Berkeley Repertory Theatre. All rights reserved.

Last time Baryshnikov was in Paris, wasn't he with Carrie Bradshaw? There's something about this man that I find uncontrollably alluring.  Don't you?
His latest venture is a leading role in the play, "In Paris", based on a short story written in 1940 by Ivan Bunin (a Russian writer who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1933), where he acts (only minimal dancing I hear...) in his native tongue.  This month, it finally comes to North America; I can only hope it makes its way to Canada.

USA Premiere: 

• From April 11 - 21, 2012 @ Broad Stage, Santa Monica, California. 
• From April 25 - May 13, 2012 @ Berkeley Rep, Berkeley, California.
• From August 1 - 5, 2012 @ Lincoln Center Festival, New York.

Plot: Two Russian immigrants living in 1930s Paris.
Language: Russian
Adapted from Ivan Bunin's short story. 
Directed by Dmitry Krymov 
Performers Mikhail Baryshnikov and Anna Sinyakina with Maxim Maminov, Maria Gulik and the Dmitry Krymov Laboratory ensemble.

If ever there was a city designed to distract us from our troubles, it would be Paris...

...says Thomas Jefferson, played by Stephen Dillane, to John (Paul Giamatti) and Abigail (Laura Linney) Adams in the HBO series John Adams. 

This past weekend, I stumbled upon this HBO series while walking the aisles of my favorite movie rental spot here in Montreal (Boite Noire) and so far I'm enjoying it very much. Laura Linney's portrayal of Abigail Adams is brilliant. I don't know how historically accurate it is (can anything really be 100%?), but the acting is exceptional. The Paris scenes are delicious.


Image borrowed from here. 

Louise Joséphine Bourgeois. . .100 years old today!

 December 25, 1911 (Paris) - May 31, 2010 (New York). . .Celebrating the birth of a phenomenal artist. 


© Viviana de Loera. Drawing inspired by a photo of Louise Bourgeois wearing the latex costume she created & wore, circa 1975, 
and her 1974 sculpture titled, The Destruction of the Father. 

If you lose your purpose. . .it's like you're broken.

Creativity can feel like a curse when you stop craving inspiration, when you find the work of your peers "better" than your own, when you no longer sense that itch to create anything. It's not depression, its more like dissatisfaction, but with who or what?
Brian Selznick personifies this feeling of absence beautifully through his character, Hugo Cabret: 

  "Did you ever notice that all machines are made for some reason?. . .
They are built to make you laugh. . .or to tell the time, like clocks, or to fill you with wonder, like the automaton.  Maybe that's why a broken machine always makes me a little sad, because it isn't able to do what it was meant to do. . .Maybe it's the same with people. . .
If you lose your purpose, it's like you're broken."  

If you're a fan of the French film, Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain, you will love Scorsese's, HUGO.  It has that same spark of wonder + Paris.  The story originates from a 500+ paged book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, written by author and illustrator, Brian Selznick.  I went into the theater expecting to see a children's film, but it was really so much more: A busy train station in Paris, an enchanting music score, gorgeous costumes, an incredible cast, an automaton that draws, hysterical dogs, antique toys, an inspirational representation of books...and a fabulous homage to Georges Méliès  - the magician/filmmaker responsible for the first science fiction film, Le Voyage dans la lune (A trip to the Moon), realized in 1902. 
Scorsese and Selznick should team up and give a talk about their creative collaboration for this project.  I'm fascinated by Selznick's ability to piece together such a real yet wondrous story.

And so I ponder, when we feel like we've lost our purpose, what then?  Can a conference, an inspirational speaker, a sacrificial pilgrimage etc...break the spell? 

Images below were borrowed from official site, click here. The bubbly display was created by me.

  
Topic No.1: Innovative Conferences, Cosmo THIS! 

here comes The Bride...

Will this be Kate Middleton tomorrow?  Yes, I know, it is silly to get all hyped up over a wedding, but how can one not love the details behind this grand Royal event.  (I am not talking about those silly commemorative plates or bubbleheads, etc...) I can't wait to see the guests' fabulous headdresses! 
And well, if Sarah Burton (...the creative force behind the Alexander McQueen label...) was chosen to design the much anticipated dress...I will be thrilled. There are rumors going around that Kate designed the dress herself. I am sorry, but that would be a huge disappointment!  We are all expecting a breathtaking gown! 


I will be tuning in at 4:00 am eastern time tomorrow...


Images: (Alexander McQueen, Paris Fashion Week, Spring/Summer 2011) borrowed from here.