Latest faves.

Bette Burgoyne.

Stumbled upon this artist via one of my favourite blogs. Her most recent works were made with nothing more than a white prismacolor pencil and black paper. And imagination and talent, of course. I can only marvel at how something so simple can become something that appears so complex. This is her website, and this is a preview of her work. If you like what you see here, I suggest you refer back to A Journey Round My Skull, which seems to have extra works not displayed on her website.

Primordia, 2009. White pencil on black paper.

Fountain, 2009. White pencil on black paper.

Whisper Vapor, 2009. White pencil on black paper.

Auricula, 2009. White pencil on black paper.

Paper Ashes, 2010. White & silver pencils on black paper.

Mondays are the days on which I wallow in my own crapulence.

Today has consisted of:

- reading The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami and sitting outside in the sun

- listening to John Cale, John Coltrane and acoustic Yeah Yeah Yeahs

- painting my nails

- looking for flats - I gave up on that pretty quickly. It was bitterly depressing.

- applying for jobs - also kinda depressing, especially when you call the one you really want and the lady says "I'll call you back"...and then doesn't. And suddenly you've wasted a whole day.
- So I'm going to cheer myself up by once again visiting the work of one of my favourite photographers of all time, Joel-Peter Witkin. So here you go. Be cheerful with me.

Melvin Burkhart: Human Oddity, 1985

Portrait of a Dwarf, 1987

Las Meninas, 1987

The Graces, 1988

Apollonia & Dominetrix Creating Pain in the Art of the West, 1988

A Woman Once A Bird, 1990

Feast of Fools, 1990

Still Life With Mirror, 1998

Anna Akmatova, 1998

Poussin In Hell, 1998

Queer Saint, 1999

Severed Leg Weathervane, 2004

Night In A Small Town, 2007

Objects Near a Window, 2007

History of the White World: Arabia, 2008

And finally, my favourite artwork of all time:

Cupid & Centaur, 1992.

More here and here.

I'm Not There/Sonic Youth

things are crashing down, she's all too tight

in my neighbourhood she cries both day and night

it's a milestone but she's down on her luck

days make her so lonely and it's so hard to buck

now and then

i believe that she'd stop him if she'd find the time to care

i believe that she may look upon deciding who's to care

and i go by the lord, anywhere she's on my way

but i don't belong there

no, i don't belong to her, i don't belong to every choir

she's my christ-forsaken angel but she don't hear me cry

she's a long-hearted mystic and she can't carry on

when i'm there she's alright then she's not when i'm gone

heaven knows that the answer she don't con no one

she's the way forsaken beauty, she's mine for the one

and i lost her hesitating about temptation as it runs

she don't harm me

i'm not there, i'm gone

now i've cried tonight like i cried the night before

and i'll feast on the highway but i'll dream about the door

it's alone she's forsaken by her fate with to tell

it don't have approximation she is smiling fairly well

her smile is contagious, i was born to love her

but she knows that the kingdom waits so high above her

and i run by the race but it's not too fast stayed

but i got the fever i'm not there, i'm gone

well it's all about diffusion as i cry for her veil

i don't need anybody now beside me to tell

and it's all affirmation, i'm asleep but it's not

she's a lone-hearted beauty but she don't like spot

and she calls

yeah, she's gone like a rainbow that was shining yesterday

but she's home now beside me and i'd like her to stay

she's a lone forsaken beauty and she don't trust no one

and i wish i was beside her but i'm not there, i'm gone

it's too hard to stay here and i don't want to leave

it's so hard for so few but you see she's hard to, hard to me

it's a load, it's a crime, the way she mauls me around

but she don't phone to hate me but it's down to make her crown

yes, i believe that it's rightful, i believe it in my mind,

i've been told like i said for carrying on crying

yes, the soul gypsy told her like i said carry on

wish i was there to help me but i'm not there, i'm gone

Posting some Goya. Because I love him.

Mining sucks (fuck the government).