Anthropomorphic Taxidermy Classes! Powerpoint Film! The Occult in Art! Upcoming Events at Observatory

Anthropomorphic taxidermy! Powerpoint films! The occult in art! Hope to see you at one or more of these great upcoming events at Observatory.

Also, please note: although the next two mouse taxidermy classes are now sold out, there are newly scheduled classes taking place on Tuesdays January 10, January 24, February 14 (special Valentine's Day edition!) and February 21. There is also a very special Holiday-themed Anthropomorphic Chick Taxidermy Class on the first night of Hanukkah, December 20 (click here for more). If interested, please send number of party and first and second date choice to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com. Please note: these classes tend to sell out VERY quickly, sp email me as soon as possible!

taxidermy_yellow
Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Back by Popular Demand
Date: Tuesday, November 15th
Time: 7 PM-11 PM
Admission: $60
Presented by Morbid Anatomy
***
SOLD OUT

Anthropomorphic taxidermy–the practice of mounting and displaying taxidermied animals as if they were humans or engaged in human activities–was a popular art form during the Victorian and Edwardian eras. The best known practitioner of the art form is British taxidermist Walter Potter who displayed his pieces–which included such elaborate tableaux as The Death of Cock Robin, The Kitten Wedding, and The Kitten Tea Party–in his own museum of curiosities.

On Tuesday November 15th, please join Morbid Anatomy and taxidermist, tattoo artist and educator Susan Jeiven for a beginners class in anthropomorphic taxidermy. All materials–including a mouse for each student–will be provided, and each class member will leave at the end of the day with their own anthropomorphic taxidermied mouse. Students are invited to bring any miniature items with which they might like to dress or decorate their new friend; some props and miniature clothing will also be provided by the teacher. A wide variety of sizes and colors of mice will be available.

No former taxidermy experience is required.

Also, some technical notes:

  • We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.
  • Everyone will be provided with gloves.
  • All animals are disease free.
  • Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone.
  • All animals were already dead, nothing was killed for this class. All mice used are feeder animals for snakes and lizards and would literally be discarded if not sold.
  • Please do not bring any dead animals with you to the clas

You can contact Sue with any more questions by clicking here.

Leonora Carrington  "La maja del tarot"  1965

The Occult in Modern Art 101
An illustrated lecture by Pam Grossman
Date: Friday, November 18th
Time: 8pm
Admission: $8
Presented by: Phantasmaphile

Though few history books make mention of it, many of our most lauded artists — Picasso, Kandinsky, Mondrian, Duchamp, to name but a few — were deeply influenced by the occult. The imagery and tenets of arcane traditions including alchemy, Spiritualism, Theosophy, and shamanism have infused the work of artists through the ages. Beginning with the Symbolists, then spiraling through such periods as Cubism, Dada, Surrealism (with its wonderfully witchy women), Abstract Expressionism, and the visionary art of today, this evening’s lecture will be a visual primer on the existence of magic in our museums and galleries.

Pam Grossman is an independent curator and lifelong student of magical practice and history. She is the creator of Phantasmaphile, a blog which specializes in art and culture with an esoteric or fantastical bent. Her group art shows, Fata Morgana: The New Female Fantasists, VISION QUEST, and Alchemically Yours have been featured by such outlets as Boing Boing, CREATIVE TIME, Time Out New York, Juxtapoz, Arthur, 20×200, UrbanOutfitters.com, and Neil Gaiman’s Twitter. She is a co-founder of Observatory, where her programming aims to explore mysticism via a scholarly yet accessible approach. By day, she is the Creative Planning Manager for Getty Images North America.

Image: Leonora Carrington "La maja del tarot" 1965


poster-no-comp-is-island1
“No Computer Is An Island” : PowerPoint Film with Live Musical Accompaniment
Film by James Bell and music by Paul Deuth (a.k.a. Meteorologeist)
Runtime approx 1 hr.
Date: Saturday, November 19th
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $5

Presented by Morbid Anatomy

“No Computer Is An Island” is a silent movie animated entirely in PowerPoint and accompanied by electronic music, mixed live during the presentation. Utilizing inventive music and limited animation presets, a depressing world of office life, shallow relationships and adult responsibility is presented in 256 colors. The presentation follows a day in the life of one workflow shape, appropriately named Bubbles, as he goes about the business of being a detached thought bubble. Other workflow characters overlap and interrupt his story, creating images that exploit the constraints of PowerPoint as an animation tool by using the conventions of silent film. “No Computer Is An Island” engages the timeless need for narrative, inviting the viewer to create meaning slide by slide.

James E. P. Bell regularly makes PowerPoint presentations in an office building in midtown Manhattan. A founding member of the interactive performance group PowerPoint, James has explored the aesthetic potential of MicroSoft Office applications in productions such as “Introduction to Change Management” (1999), “Violence in the Workplace” (2003), and now “No Computer Is An Island” (2010).

Paul Deuth is an electronic musician/composer/producer (A.K.A. Meteoro
logeist) and director of photography. With an extensive career in television, Paul most enjoys expressing himself in multi-media artistic ventures including projects with PowerPoint, Fire and Ice, Hold Please, and the Prospects. You can experience some of Paul’s music at http://www.myspace.com/meteorologeist

Onwards and Upwards:

Tuesday, November 29:

Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Back by Popular Demand. 7-11pm/$60 *** SOLD OUT

Monday, December 5: Photographing the Dead: The History of Postmortem Photography from The Burns Collection and Archive: Illustrated Lecture and book signing with Stanley B. Burns, MD, FACS 8pm/$5

Saturday, December 10: Grand Guignol Variety Show at The Coney Island Museum: Featuring classic Grand Guignol performances, antique 3D stereoscopic slides, puppet and toy theatre, song, dance, film and more, followed by after-party with cocktails courtesy of Hendrick’s Gin; support this project on IndieGoGo by clicking here 8pm/$25

Tuesday, December 13: The Missing Dimension: A Cultural History of 3D Images - Anaglyphs, Stereographs, View-Masters, Holograms, and Flaming Arrows Coming Right at You!: Illustrated lecture on and in 3D (glasses provided) by artist and NYU Professor Chris Muller 8pm/$5

Saturday, December 17: “Oddities” Marathon and Season Launch Party: Screening of TV’s “Oddities” followed by after party with MC Lord Whimsy, giveaways, special drinks, and DJ 8pm/$8

Tuesday, December 20: Anthropomorphic Chick Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Limited class size; must RSVP to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com 7-11pm/$60

Sunday, January 8: CLASS: Dissection as Studio Practice: Lecture and Studio Art Class with artist Laura Splan *** Class size is limited; Must RSVP to morbidanatomy[at]gmail.com 1-4pm/$60

Thursday, January 26: The Search for Granny-Dump Mountain: Illustrated lecture by Journalist Justin Nobel 8pm/$5

Sunday, January 29: Class: Mummification: Learn the art and ritual of animal mummification with instructor Sorceress Cagliastro *** Limited Class Size; Please RSVP to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com 1-4pm/$65

Thursday, February 2: PERFORMANCE: Buried Alive! A Matchbox Theatre: A matchbox theatre performance by Deborah Kaufmann 8pm/$12

Friday, February 3: PERFORMANCE: Buried Alive! A Matchbox Theatre: A matchbox theatre performance by Deborah Kaufmann 8pm/$12

More on Observatory can be found here. To sign up for events on Facebook, join our group by clicking here. To sign up for our weekly mailer, click here.

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Cars Anatomy by Jake Parker

Jake Parker cars anatomy lightning mcqueen

Jake Parker cars anatomy tow truck

I don’t know about you, but I have definitely wondered how exactly the cars in Cars were supposed to be alive, at least, in the weird half real, half not real world that is Cars. These rad rendering were done by illustrator Jake Parker and he does a much better job of articulating this bizarre thought:

I grew up in AZ and am very familiar with small towns strung along old highways. It struck a chord with me, and left a good message: Slow down, look around, and enjoy life for a moment. However, every other Pixar movie took either a living creature and anthropomorphized it (bugs, fish, monsters, rats) or in the case of Toy Story took inanimate objects and bought them to life, but did so with in the realm of our world. Cars is the only movie they’ve done where they’ve extricated the experience from our world and put it somewhere else completely. And that leads me to the one thing that didn’t sit well with me: the strange machine/flesh hybrids Pixar came up with to populate this world.

I had that exact same thought when I first saw Cars, glad I’m not the only one! I don’t recall them ever needing to eat in the first film, but this at least clarifies some of the anatomical mechanics that could be involved. Now I guess I should watch Cars 2, no doubt with this in mind.

[via designyoutrust]

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Decadent Paris Weekend (with Complementary Absinthe!): Morbid Anatomy Presents at Observatory, This Week and Beyond


This weekend, you are cordially invited to join Morbid Anatomy at Observatory for a "Decadent Paris Weekend" comprised of two amazing lectures devoted to cornerstones of fin de siècle Paris--Grand Guignol horror theatre and diabolical liquors--augmented by complimentary absinthe (!!!) provided by our weekend's sponsor La Fée Absinthe.

Night one--Friday November 11th--of our weekend will feature one of my alltime favorite rogue scholars and public speakers, Mel Gordon, delivering an illustrated lecture on The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962. Copies of his out-of-print and groundbreaking book by the same name will be on hand, substantially discounted and available for signing.

Night two-Friday November 12th--will bring many time Observatory lecturer (1, 2, 3) and Midnight Archive creator Ronni Thomas back to Observatory for an ode to "Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris" in the form of an illustrated lecture, a screening, and a liquor tasting.

You wil find full information below for both events, followed by a list of newly announced events including a lecture on postmortem photography by Stanley Burns, the man who literally wrote the book on the topic; a class by the amazing Laura Splan on Dissection as Studio Practice; a lecture on the cultural history of 3D images in full 3D (glasses provided!); and an Oddities season launch party and viewing marathon MCed by the ever charming Lord Whimsy.

Hope to see you at some or all of these fantastic events!

The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962
Illustrated lecture/booksigning with author and scholar Mel Gordon
Date: Friday, November 11th
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $8
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

Complimentary absinthe provided by our sponsor La Fée Absinthe, the first traditional absinthe distilled in France since the 1915 ban and is the only absinthe endorsed by the Musée de l'Absinthe, Auvers-sur-Oise
***Signed copies of Gordon's long out-of-print Grand Guiginol will be available for sale at $30 (copies generally go for $60-150)

Decadent Paris Weekend Event # 1 (For Decadent Paris Event #2, Click here)

Hidden among the decadence and sleaze of Pigalle with its roughnecks and whores, in the shadows of a quiet, cobbled alleyway, stands a little theatre... --"Grand Guignol: The French Theatre or Horror," Hand and Wilson

From its beginnings in turn-of-the-century Paris and through its decline in the 1960s, the Theatre of the Grand Guignol--literally "grand puppet show"--gleefully celebrated horror, sex, and fear. Its infamous productions featured innocent victims, mangled beauty, insanity, mutilation, humour, sex, and monstrous depravity in a heady mix that attracted throngs of thrill-seekers from all echelons of society. By dissecting primal taboos in an unprecedentedly graphic manner, the Grand Guignol became the progenitor of all the blood-spilling, eye-gouging, and limb-hacking "splatter" movies of today.

Tonight, join Professor Mel Gordon--author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror--to learn about the largely forgotten history of the Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol in this heavily-illustrated and highly engaging lecture.

Mel Gordon is the author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror, Voluptious Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, and many other books. Voluptuous Panic was the first in-depth and illustrated book on the topic of erotic Weimar; The lavish tome was praised by academics and inspired the establishment of eight neo-Weimar nightclubs as well as the Dresden Dolls and a Marilyn Manson album. Now, Mel Gordon is completing a companion volume for Feral House Press, entitled Horizontal Collaboration: The Erotic World of Paris, 1920-1946. He also teaches directing, acting, and history of theater at University of California at Berkeley.

Image: Grand Guignol Poster, from the collection of Mel Gordon

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris: Lecture and Tasting
Illustrated lecture and liquor tasting with film maker Ronni Thomas
Date: Saturday, November 12th
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $10
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

Complimentary absinthe provided by our sponsor La Fée Absinthe, the first traditional absinthe distilled in France since the 1915 ban and is the only absinthe endorsed by the Musée de l'Absinthe, Auvers-sur-Oise

Decadent Paris Weekend Event # 2 (For Decadent Paris Event #1, Click here)

On Saturday November 12th, join Ronni Thomas and Observatory for an exploration of the exotic and often diabolic liquids of France's antiquity featuring absinthe, a liquor known in fin de siècle Paris as "the green fairy" for its bewitching allure and poetically transporting nature. Among history's most infamous and romanticized liquors, absinthe became a symbol of decadence and was drink of choice of such bohemian luminaries as Oscar Wilde, Charles Baudelaire, Vincent van Gogh, Alfred Jarry, Édouard Manet, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, and Pablo Picasso.
By 1915, it was widely banned after having been publicly tied to sensational stories of madness, murder and degeneracy; recently re-legalized, it has developed a passionate contemporary fan base.

Tonight, absinthe devotee Ronni Thomas will deliver an illustrated lecture on the history of absinthe and other great elixirs of fin de siècle Paris--such as green chartreuse, armagnac, and ricard--complete with artwork and video excerpts; he will also screen his own contribution to the absinthe mythos: a promotional video he produced for contemporary absinthe maker Le Tourment Vert. Liquor samples for tasting will also be available throughout the evening, including complimentary absinthe from our sponsor La Fée. There will also a Francophile music-filled after party. It will be a night straight out of Brassaï's Paris right in the heart of Brooklyn.

Ronni Thomas filmmaker and creator of The Midnight Archive web series is an avid drinker who appreciates both the history of antique spirits and the effects they have on his self esteem. Incidentally, his favorite absinthe is tonight's sponsor La Fée.

Image: "La Muse Verte" (The Green Muse), Albert Maignan, 1895

And also:

More on Observatory can be found here. To sign up for events on Facebook, join our group by clicking here. To sign up for our weekly mailer, click here.

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Decadent Paris Weekend (with Complementary Absinthe!): Morbid Anatomy Presents at Observatory Tonight and Tomorrow Night!


This weekend, you are cordially invited to join Morbid Anatomy at Observatory for a "Decadent Paris Weekend" comprised of two amazing lectures devoted to cornerstones of fin de siècle Paris--Grand Guignol horror theatre and diabolical liquors--augmented by complimentary absinthe (!!!) provided by our weekend's sponsor La Fée Absinthe.

Night one--Friday November 11th--of our weekend will feature one of my alltime favorite rogue scholars and public speakers, Mel Gordon, delivering an illustrated lecture on The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962. Copies of his out-of-print and groundbreaking book by the same name will be on hand, substantially discounted and available for signing.

Night two-Friday November 12th--will bring many time Observatory lecturer (1, 2, 3) and Midnight Archive creator Ronni Thomas back to Observatory for an ode to "Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris" in the form of an illustrated lecture, a screening, and a liquor tasting.

You wil find full information below for both events, followed by a list of newly announced events including a lecture on postmortem photography by Stanley Burns, the man who literally wrote the book on the topic; a class by the amazing Laura Splan on Dissection as Studio Practice; a lecture on the cultural history of 3D images in full 3D (glasses provided!); and an Oddities season launch party and viewing marathon MCed by the ever charming Lord Whimsy.

Hope to see you at some or all of these fantastic events!

The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962
Illustrated lecture/booksigning with author and scholar Mel Gordon
Date: Friday, November 11th
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $8
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

Complimentary absinthe provided by our sponsor La Fée Absinthe, the first traditional absinthe distilled in France since the 1915 ban and is the only absinthe endorsed by the Musée de l'Absinthe, Auvers-sur-Oise
***Signed copies of Gordon's long out-of-print Grand Guiginol will be available for sale at $30 (copies generally go for $60-150)

Decadent Paris Weekend Event # 1 (For Decadent Paris Event #2, Click here)

Hidden among the decadence and sleaze of Pigalle with its roughnecks and whores, in the shadows of a quiet, cobbled alleyway, stands a little theatre... --"Grand Guignol: The French Theatre or Horror," Hand and Wilson

From its beginnings in turn-of-the-century Paris and through its decline in the 1960s, the Theatre of the Grand Guignol--literally "grand puppet show"--gleefully celebrated horror, sex, and fear. Its infamous productions featured innocent victims, mangled beauty, insanity, mutilation, humour, sex, and monstrous depravity in a heady mix that attracted throngs of thrill-seekers from all echelons of society. By dissecting primal taboos in an unprecedentedly graphic manner, the Grand Guignol became the progenitor of all the blood-spilling, eye-gouging, and limb-hacking "splatter" movies of today.

Tonight, join Professor Mel Gordon--author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror--to learn about the largely forgotten history of the Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol in this heavily-illustrated and highly engaging lecture.

Mel Gordon is the author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror, Voluptious Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, and many other books. Voluptuous Panic was the first in-depth and illustrated book on the topic of erotic Weimar; The lavish tome was praised by academics and inspired the establishment of eight neo-Weimar nightclubs as well as the Dresden Dolls and a Marilyn Manson album. Now, Mel Gordon is completing a companion volume for Feral House Press, entitled Horizontal Collaboration: The Erotic World of Paris, 1920-1946. He also teaches directing, acting, and history of theater at University of California at Berkeley.

Image: Grand Guignol Poster, from the collection of Mel Gordon

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris: Lecture and Tasting
Illustrated lecture and liquor tasting with film maker Ronni Thomas
Date: Saturday, November 12th
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $10
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

Complimentary absinthe provided by our sponsor La Fée Absinthe, the first traditional absinthe distilled in France since the 1915 ban and is the only absinthe endorsed by the Musée de l'Absinthe, Auvers-sur-Oise

Decadent Paris Weekend Event # 2 (For Decadent Paris Event #1, Click here)

On Saturday November 12th, join Ronni Thomas and Observatory for an exploration of the exotic and often diabolic liquids of France's antiquity featuring absinthe, a liquor known in fin de siècle Paris as "the green fairy" for its bewitching allure and poetically transporting nature. Among history's most infamous and romanticized liquors, absinthe became a symbol of decadence and was drink of choice of such bohemian luminaries as Oscar Wilde, Charles Baudelaire, Vincent van Gogh, Alfred Jarry, Édouard Manet, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, and Pablo Picasso. By 1915, it was widely banned after having been publicly tied to
sensational stories of madness, murder and degeneracy; recently re-legalized, it has developed a passionate contemporary fan base.

Tonight, absinthe devotee Ronni Thomas will deliver an illustrated lecture on the history of absinthe and other great elixirs of fin de siècle Paris--such as green chartreuse, armagnac, and ricard--complete with artwork and video excerpts; he will also screen his own contribution to the absinthe mythos: a promotional video he produced for contemporary absinthe maker Le Tourment Vert. Liquor samples for tasting will also be available throughout the evening, including complimentary absinthe from our sponsor La Fée. There will also a Francophile music-filled after party. It will be a night straight out of Brassaï's Paris right in the heart of Brooklyn.

Ronni Thomas filmmaker and creator of The Midnight Archive web series is an avid drinker who appreciates both the history of antique spirits and the effects they have on his self esteem. Incidentally, his favorite absinthe is tonight's sponsor La Fée.

Image: "La Muse Verte" (The Green Muse), Albert Maignan, 1895

More on Observatory can be found here. To sign up for events on Facebook, join our group by clicking here. To sign up for our weekly mailer, click here.

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Decadent Paris Weekend (with Complementary Absinthe!): Tonight and Tomorrow Night!


This weekend, you are cordially invited to join Morbid Anatomy at Observatory for a "Decadent Paris Weekend" comprised of two amazing lectures devoted to cornerstones of fin de siècle Paris--Grand Guignol horror theatre and diabolical liquors--augmented by complimentary absinthe (!!!) provided by our weekend's sponsor La Fée Absinthe.

Night one--Tonight, Friday November 11th--of our weekend will feature one of my alltime favorite rogue scholars and public speakers, Mel Gordon, delivering an illustrated lecture on The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962. Copies of his out-of-print and groundbreaking book by the same name will be on hand, substantially discounted and available for signing.

Night two-Tomorrow night, Friday November 12th--will bring many time Observatory lecturer (1, 2, 3) and Midnight Archive creator Ronni Thomas back to Observatory for an ode to "Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris" in the form of an illustrated lecture, a screening, and a liquor tasting.

You wil find full information below for both events; Hope to see you there!

The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962
Illustrated lecture/booksigning with author and scholar Mel Gordon
Date: Friday, November 11th
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $8
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

Complimentary absinthe provided by our sponsor La Fée Absinthe, the first traditional absinthe distilled in France since the 1915 ban and is the only absinthe endorsed by the Musée de l'Absinthe, Auvers-sur-Oise
***Signed copies of Gordon's long out-of-print Grand Guiginol will be available for sale at $30 (copies generally go for $60-150)

Decadent Paris Weekend Event # 1 (For Decadent Paris Event #2, Click here)

Hidden among the decadence and sleaze of Pigalle with its roughnecks and whores, in the shadows of a quiet, cobbled alleyway, stands a little theatre... --"Grand Guignol: The French Theatre or Horror," Hand and Wilson

From its beginnings in turn-of-the-century Paris and through its decline in the 1960s, the Theatre of the Grand Guignol--literally "grand puppet show"--gleefully celebrated horror, sex, and fear. Its infamous productions featured innocent victims, mangled beauty, insanity, mutilation, humour, sex, and monstrous depravity in a heady mix that attracted throngs of thrill-seekers from all echelons of society. By dissecting primal taboos in an unprecedentedly graphic manner, the Grand Guignol became the progenitor of all the blood-spilling, eye-gouging, and limb-hacking "splatter" movies of today.

Tonight, join Professor Mel Gordon--author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror--to learn about the largely forgotten history of the Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol in this heavily-illustrated and highly engaging lecture.

Mel Gordon is the author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror, Voluptious Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, and many other books. Voluptuous Panic was the first in-depth and illustrated book on the topic of erotic Weimar; The lavish tome was praised by academics and inspired the establishment of eight neo-Weimar nightclubs as well as the Dresden Dolls and a Marilyn Manson album. Now, Mel Gordon is completing a companion volume for Feral House Press, entitled Horizontal Collaboration: The Erotic World of Paris, 1920-1946. He also teaches directing, acting, and history of theater at University of California at Berkeley.

Image: Grand Guignol Poster, from the collection of Mel Gordon

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris: Lecture and Tasting
Illustrated lecture and liquor tasting with film maker Ronni Thomas
Date: Saturday, November 12th
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $10
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

Complimentary absinthe provided by our sponsor La Fée Absinthe, the first traditional absinthe distilled in France since the 1915 ban and is the only absinthe endorsed by the Musée de l'Absinthe, Auvers-sur-Oise

Decadent Paris Weekend Event # 2 (For Decadent Paris Event #1, Click here)

On Saturday November 12th, join Ronni Thomas and Observatory for an exploration of the exotic and often diabolic liquids of France's antiquity featuring absinthe, a liquor known in fin de siècle Paris as "the green fairy" for its bewitching allure and poetically transporting nature. Among history's most infamous and romanticized liquors, absinthe became a symbol of decadence and was drink of choice of such bohemian luminaries as Oscar Wilde, Charles Baudelaire, Vincent van Gogh, Alfred Jarry, Édouard Manet, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, and Pablo Picasso. By 1915, it was widely banned after having been publicly tied to sensational stories of madness, murder and degeneracy; recently re-legalized, it has developed a passionate contemporary fan base.

Tonight, absinthe devotee Ronni Thomas will deliver an illustrated lecture on the history of absinthe and other great elixirs of fin de siècle Paris--such as green chartreuse, armagnac, and ricard--complete with artwork and video excerpts; he will also screen his own contribution to the absinthe mythos: a promotional video he produced for contemporary absinthe maker Le Tourment Vert. Liquor samples for tasting will also be available throughout the evening, including complimentary absinthe from our sponsor La Fée. There will also a Francophile m
usic-filled after party. It will be a night straight out of Brassaï's Paris right in the heart of Brooklyn.

Ronni Thomas filmmaker and creator of The Midnight Archive web series is an avid drinker who appreciates both the history of antique spirits and the effects they have on his self esteem. Incidentally, his favorite absinthe is tonight's sponsor La Fée.

Image: "La Muse Verte" (The Green Muse), Albert Maignan, 1895

More on Observatory can be found here. To sign up for events on Facebook, join our group by clicking here. To sign up for our weekly mailer, click here.

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Frida Kahlo

The Two Fridas (Los Dos Fridas)

Frida Kahlo Recuerdo

Mexico’s Frida Kahlo remains one of my favorite painters of all time. I am continuously taken aback by the honesty of her work. Often projecting the world and her experience of the world through self portrait. Of which she explains, “Since my subjects have always been my sensations, my states of mind and the profound reactions that life has been producing in me, I have frequently objectified all this in figures of myself, which were the most sincere and real thing that I could do in order to express what I felt inside and outside of myself.” In this way, Frida describes herself as a realist, although she is often regarded as a surrealist.

Featured above are Recuerdo (el Corazón) and The Two Fridas (Los Dos Fridas), the first large-scale work painted by her.

My blood is the miracle that travels in the veins of the air from my heart to yours.

[source: PBS The Life and Times of Frida Kahlo]

 

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TrustoCorp Phonebooth Takeovers

TrustoCorp Will You Be Famous Phonebooth takeover Manhattan

TrustoCorp Cosmetics Phonebooth takeover Manhattan

TrustoCorp American Family Phonebooth takeover Manhattan

TrustoCorp How Will You Die At Night Phonebooth takeover Manhattan

New anatomically themed work from New York based artist(s), TrustoCorp in Lower Manhattan.

TrustoCorp is:

…dedicated to highlighting the hypocrisy and hilarity of human behavior through sarcasm and satire. TrustoCorp targets areas in the public domain typically reserved for messages of trust and authority and subverts them with messages of mayhem and absurdity hijacked from the visual style of our authorities.

If you’re in New York City, check out TrustoCorp’s map of the city to find their work!

[spotted by Jana Millier]

 

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Richard Wilkinson

Richard Wilkinson chimerism

Richard Wilkinson cellphone face-itis

Richard Wilkinson Healthcare will not reform itself

Richard Wilkinson Fresh whole mind

Richard Wilkinson Preventative

Richard Wilkinson Intestines

Richard Wilkinson, an English artist and illustrator, is currently represented by Central Illustration Agency (CIA) in the UK and by Bernstein & Andruilli in the USA. He has some pretty big name clients including Time Magazine, GQ, Penguin Books, and The Telegraph. Big shot, amirite?!

I love how cartoony and soft his work is without compromising the delivery. The messages are often subtle, but never missed. Very clever indeed. Wilkinson seems to be pretty keen on anatomy, as I’ve only included a small portion of his anatomy related work here. To browse through his portfolio and many other anatomical gems head to his website, richard-wilkinson.com!

If you want to purchase prints you can head to his CIA shop or his Big Cartel. Although, there are only a few prints available for purchase.

 

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Hoxton Street Monster Supplies

We’ve posted about the Hoxton Street Monster Supplies before on Street Anatomy and on my recent trip to London I had the pleasure of visiting the little shop and getting an inside look at what monsters need to survive.

Hoxton Street Monster Supplies storefront

Hoxton Street Monster Supplies is, as the name says, situated on the eclectic Hoxton Street on the East End of London.  Nestled among restaurants, shops, and small grocery stores, the Monster Supply shop is actually quite unassuming.  A simple sign telling of the goods sold inside and an impressive establishment date of 1818—everything about this shop is serious to the last detail.  Their famous line of Tinned Fear encompasses all forms of fear including Moral Terror, Escalating Panic, and A Vague Sense of Unease.  They even have a cat bed tucked away in a corner of the shop with a sign above it warning children to, “Please take care when stroking the invisible cat…may scratch if provoked!“  It’s all of these little details, combined with gorgeous design, by London-based design studio We Made This, that perfects the integrity of the monster fantasy.

Hoxton Street Monster Supplies inside the store

Hoxton Street Monster Supplies

Hoxton Street Monster Supplies line of jams

But there’s more to this little monster supply shop than meets the eye.  Behind a secret door in the shop lies something much grander, the Ministry of Stories (MoS), a creative writing and mentoring center for the young people of east London. I had the great opportunity to meet with the lovely Lucy Macnab, co-director of the MoS, who showed me the wonderful space hidden behind the small monster storefront.  An inspirational environment where children ages 8-18 are mentored one-to-one to encourage imaginative stories, improve language skills, and increase abilities in communication.  Above all the MoS aims to inspire young people to transform their lives through writing.

The Ministry of Stories is inspired by American novelist Dave Eggers’ 826 movement and is continually fundraising to ensure that children can continue to benefit from such an inspiring institution.

A recent project by the children of the Ministry of Stories, called the Awfully Bad Guide to Monster Housekeeping, contains a “wealth of monster wisdom from housekeeping to fashion, food and more as well as activities for the brave reader to try“.  It is the first full-length project created by the children of local primary schools with the help of top poets and illustrators and funded entirely by donations.  Watch the video below to get an inside look at the wonderful project. The complete set of 4 books are available from the new Monster Supplies online store!

Awfully Bad Guide to Monster Housekeeping Ministry of Stories

If you live in or around London, or are simply visiting, be sure to stop in the Hoxton Street Monster Supplies for an incredibly unique treat or at least to take home a tin of Mortal Terror.

Not in London? Shop for your favorite monster goods at the newly opened Monster Supplies online store!

Opening hours:
Tuesday to Friday, 1pm – 5pm and Saturday, 11am – 5pm
Extended holiday season hours: Beginning Nov 17, we’ll be open on Thursday until 7pm, and Sunday, 1pm – 5pm.
The shop will be closed for the holidays from Dec 23 – January 7, inclusive.
For enquiries contact: shop@ministryofstories.org
Address: 159 Hoxton Street, London N1 6PJ

 

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Amazing Baroque Bone Chapels and Real Life Mad Scientists: Episodes 5 and 6 of The Midnight Archive

The Midnight Archive, as mentioned previously, is a new web-based documentary series "centered around the esoteric and always exotic personalities that spring from Observatory," the Brooklyn-based event/gallery space I founded a few years ago. The series is created and directed by film-maker Ronni Thomas, who has plans to upload approximately one new episode per week to the new Midnight Archive website.

Episodes five and six of The Midnight Archive--A. Head B. Body and Empire of Death--have just been uploaded is now available for viewing! You can view them above or on The Midnight Archive website.

For more on the series, to see former episodes, or to sign up for the mailing list so as to be alerted to future uploads, visit The Midnight Archive website by clicking here. You can also "like" it on Facebook--and thus be alerted--by clicking here.

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