The Vietnamese called it the “American War,” and on March 16th, 1968, the Americans of Charlie Company marched into the hamlet of My Lai on a “search and destroy” mission. The soldiers of Charlie Company were directed by Captain Medina, who had issued orders to raze the village. Charlie Company encountered no resistance, but for 4 1/2 hours they burned…
Lately I’ve been reading the autobiographies of artists from the past. In part as a defense against the trivial and insipid postmodern art world, but also as a genuine search for inspiration. Not too long ago I read Writings of a Savage by Paul Gauguin, and was struck by his eloquence and abilities as a writer. Gauguin was of course…
On January 29, 2005, I wrote about Body Worlds being one of the most popular exhibits ever to have been presented at The California Science Center in Los Angeles’ Exposition Park. Body Worlds is hailed as art by some, and was conceived by Gunther von Hagens. His “artwork” consists of actual human bodies that have been injected with molten plastic…
Today marks the 1,502 US soldier to die in Iraq since Mr. Bush launched the war in March 2003. From the time when the Commander in Chief announced “Mission Accomplished” in May of 2003, 1,364 US soldiers have lost their lives. How are these service men and women being remembered? Perhaps America is beginning to realize that it is actually…
Here’s a perfect example of why “news” distributed by mainstream sources should always be taken with a grain of salt. The Press Association, “the UK leader in news and sports information,” distributed a news release on Feb. 22nd that was picked up by a number of news websites, like the Manchester Evening News. The story concerns a painting of singer…
Slash Magazine of Los Angeles was the first punk publication to emerge on the west coast of the US in 1977. I consider myself fortunate to have worked there for a time, designing pages and graphics and also creating two cover illustrations for the notorious periodical. Slash did more than just challenge the prevailing ideas of the day regarding music,…
Starting February 16th and running until May 30th 2005, the Philadelphia Museum of Art will present Salvador Dalí, a broad retrospective of the artist’s works -the first in the United States in over 60 years. Co-curator of the exhibit, Michael Taylor, said “It’s astonishing, the range of his work. It’s really crucial, I think, to the re-evaluation of his career.” As…
As Christo and Jeanne-Claude prepare to inflict The Gates upon New York’s Central Park, the famous commons is beginning to look as if it’s under police siege. Several hundred police will flood the park around the clock to guard the installation for sixteen days starting Feb. 12th. Private security, park enforcement, and hundreds of police officers both uniformed and undercover,…
