Get thee to the Drawing Center

-

What could be better than an engineer-turned-architect-turned-experimental composer? How about one that fought against the Axis of Evil and had his eye blown out by a tank?

Iannis Xenakis' show at the Drawing Center is quite simply off the hook. I suggest getting to it if you are going to be in New York between now and April and have a bit of time on your hands. While his drawings are the focus of the exhibition, the multimedia stations steal the show. In one booth, a computer program written by Xenakis simulates synesthesia by translating his 2-D structures into symphonic poems allowing the viewer/listener to "see" the music and "hear" the drawing. The effect was both striking and subtle, way more interesting than being comforted by the "stranger" after a long night cocktails and awkward conversation.

This video doesn't do it justice, but may give you an idea:

35 Rhums

-

The more I turn things over in my head, the more flaws and imperfections get to the surface. I sat down to write a brief praise of 35 Rhums as a great, possibly overlooked film of 2009 but it's going all Monet on me. I mean are you still allowed to wait patiently and drop the title of your film into the dialogue? Is this just another plodding French film with a barely discernible plot line? The answer is yes.

That's what's great about it. The story is told with broad, controlled, and perhaps elegant strokes. The drone of the train and the monotony of the passing skyline, the angst of politicized youth, and the solace of home and it's routines are just a few images captured. The absences are even more telling, a mother, a budding relationship, and latent Freudian sexuality are all just shy of the lens.

I'm American. I'm usually waiting for a storyline to jump out and bash me in the fucking head. It's nice to just watch and wonder sometimes.