The inimitable Pierrot costume from ‘Ashes to Ashes video; a Polaroid of the costume from ‘Labyrinth’. It sounds like the set-up to a really bad joke: how many Bowies can you fit into a museum? Happily, the answer is- very many. There were so many Bowies, and so little time to process them all, asContinue reading “Bowie On Tour: V & A,Dundee- A Response”
Category Archives: Art
This Is Halloween
Few things are cuter than this wonderful song. Enjoy this thin veil betwixt the dead and the living, however you celebrate it. Jack Skellington is a mensch.
Vintage Halloween
Look at these amazing Halloween costumes from the early -mid 19th century. No plastic in sight, and extremely eerie. I’m pretty sure that the second one inspired Angine de Poitrine…
The Pitiful Commodification of Goth
Queen Nephie, subtle as ever, but more covered up here. There’s been a lot of discourse of late of the seemingly ubiquitous commodification of goth. While I can accept that this is par for the course, and has been happening since the teddy boys were appropriated by the media in the 1950s, there’s a horribleContinue reading “The Pitiful Commodification of Goth”
Too Much Nostalgia
Recently, I heard a radio interview with Adam Curtis, the brilliant documentary maker, whose style is that of cross-reference and visual metaphor. Broadly speaking, his intertextuality focuses on politics, lived experience and the way media is consumed. Often, he’s been criticised for a bleak worldview, a tendency to zoom in on all things Orwellian. ButContinue reading “Too Much Nostalgia”
In Praise of Louise Bourgeois
Louise Bourgeois, the French – American artist who died in 2010 at the age of 98, was pure punk. She was best known for her casts of clothes, bodies and meat, but also her incredible large-scale sculptures, like the 30 foot tall spider called ‘Maman’. The reason for its title was that she adored herContinue reading “In Praise of Louise Bourgeois”
Goodbye Dr. Bonnie Greer
Bonnie Greer, who has passed away after a short illness at seventy seven years old, was a courageous writer, playwright and broadcaster. She could often be found on ‘Question Time’ squaring up to right-wing bigots like Lawrence Fox and Nick Griffin. She was never bolshy, quiet and measured but outspoken. We are lesser without thisContinue reading “Goodbye Dr. Bonnie Greer”
T Shirt Day 2026
Do the Kardashian family or Justin Bieber really like metal? I can’t imagine either Kim, Justin or many of these other vain, moneyed celebs actually listening to metal, let alone going to their gigs, but at the risk of sounding like a gatekeeper, I will say it’s up to them. This led to Steve Lamacq,Continue reading “T Shirt Day 2026”
Farewell, Polka Dot Queen 🎨
Id been thinking a lot about the great Yayoi Kusama lately, about how indefatigable she was. Now she’s passed away at the age of 97 and I wished I’d written about her sooner. The Polka Dot Queen is dead. She represented modernity in art like few others, painting garish polka dots and pumpkins onto prettyContinue reading “Farewell, Polka Dot Queen 🎨”
Kate Bush’s Influences
Pics of Kate Bush: John Carder Bush J W Waterhouse, ‘The Lady of Shallot’. Kate Bush was always upfront in her literary and artistic influences. She essayed The Brontes of course, but also Tennyson, Shakespeare and John William Waterhouse. Her Pre-Raphaelite aesthetic was unique in a time of punk, prog and so on, but theContinue reading “Kate Bush’s Influences”
