On being yourself

This morning, as I was attending a course, I started observing the girls in the room. All of them gave me the impression of suffering: their look was so "perfect" or wanna be perfect, that it was boring. It seemed to as if I could almost feel a big social/familiar pressure upon their shoulders and against their chests. "You must look cute". "You must impress". "You have to get the best guy". Whatever.

Except for the girl sitting next to me. She gave the impression of not giving a damn about anything. She was only tired and her mind seemed to be focusing on it. She was in that sense the only one cool. No boots (Mexican girls have no idea about how to wear them, go to Germany!), rather really nice silver sneakers, torn jeans, which were way too big, but stylish. Who the heck is she? She didn't give a shit for me or anybody else.

Later she said something in poor Spanish and with a terrible accent. A French.

Some societies, like this one here, are a burden for being yourself.

Free me!

Some female values

These pictures are displayed on the shelves of my bedroom for good reasons.

Norman Parkinson

Character

Bettina Rheims

Sexiness

Lady Gaga

Creativity

Head books: Henry Clarke, García Márquez

1955

 1967

Today 29 years ago

The first Mac presentation. 



 

Posted from my microwave-fridge-hairdresser-iPad.

René Burri, René Burri

René Burri copying himself...

Brasilia (1960)

Mexico City (1969)

Takashi Murakami

I'm not a fan of Takeshi Murakami, I rather despise the conceit of Art's Triumviratus, i.e. Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons and Murakami plus their Caesar Larry Gagosian.

There was this Murakami exhibition when I visited Versailles, and it was boring and predictable, not at all worth those millions.

Still, the current exhibition in Hong Kong, Flowers and Skulls, has at least this nice acrylic. Death and life.

Optical distortions: Lartigue, Doisneau

Francisco Rosa

People say, this is the most beautiful street in Mexico City: Francisco Rosa (even in winter).

Arms: Robert Mapplethorpe, Jesus Henry Christ

Inflation

Preis: 1 Billion Mark für ein Brot
29. November 1923

Triangles

Arnold Newman, Stravinsky

I was very impressed earlier this week when I saw this picture for the first time. It looks rather like a painting, its geometry is just perfect. The round belly of the piano is the perfect counterpoint for both triangles, piano's and arm's.

Ralph Gibson

 Ralph Gibson

André Kertész

 Anick Messier

 Eugene de Salignac

Henri Cartier-Bresson

Anne Leibovitz

Henri Cartier-Bresson

 Helmut Newton

Jacques-Henri Lartigue

Richard Avedon

Robert Longo

Manuel Álvarez Bravo

 Manuel Álvarez Bravo

Man Ray

 Man Ray

Man Ray

Anselm Adams

Atget

Giraffes: Berlin, Paris

Aristotle and sex in the 17th Century

It was up to a certain point common to find books "signed" by famous ancient authors, but penned spuriously by other people. Al-Kindi for instance is responsible for a big confusion, since he wrote "The Theology of Aristotle", as if it had being written by Aristotle himself. Thomas Aquinas was the first one, five centuries later, to suspect that that wasn't Aristotle's pen.

In 1684 somebody published –along with some texts by Albert Magnus– a manual for sex and pregnancy, as if the author had been Aristotle: Aristotle's Masterpiece (available online). Due to his authority and to the common sense expressed, it was quite popular.

Congenital malformations and physical defects were explained as a consequence of having sinned while having intercourse.

One might find very actual ideas, such as: "Matrimony, in the present age, is looked upon as a most insupportable yoke."

 

Palindrome: 2013 = Eros

This is the proof!

:-)

Spotted by Sophie Gerber

A perfect 2013

Art

A cool girl

Nice books

Red sneakers

Nature: wooden floor

Freedom: untied laces + unbottoned shirt

A sybaritic narcissist

Camille Paglia on Christopher Hitchens:

“A sybaritic narcissist committed to no real ideas outside his personal advancement”.

I know such people...