SALT
Director: Philip Noyce
Stars: Angelina Jolie, Liev Schreiber, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Daniel Olbrychski
Sony

IF ever there were an argument in favour of formulaic film-making, Angelina Jolie is the sum total of its premise.

Continue reading “Reviews – Film: Salt” »

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS:

C. Mason, Upper Coomera, Qld

M. Bilney, Loganholme, Qld

D. Robert, Beaconsfield, Vic

D. Stubbings, Childers, Qld

R. Berry, Grovedale, Vic

E. Donato, Wantirna South, Vic

S. Johnston, Queanbeyan, NSW

L. Courtney, Dongara, WA

T. Boulter, Port Denison, WA

M. Bembo, Avondale Heights, Vic

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It’s been a while since I have posted … but thought what better time than now … while I enjoy the beautiful sun and white sand beaches in the Caribbean. I have attached some pics for you all to enjoy!

Continue reading “Jewell – Enjoying the Caribbean” »

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS:

D. Robert, Beaconfield, VIC

D. Donato, Wantirna South, VIC

L. Linas, Kardinya, WA

M. Coventry, Green Fields, SA

T. Boulter, Port Denison, WA
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CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS:

A. Bembo, Mill Park, VIC

D. Chant, Alexandra Headlands, QLD

G. Davies, Narara, NSW

J. Atkins, Robina, QLD

K. Anglelides, Strathfield, NSW

L. Courtney, Dongara, WA

L. Williams, Brinkworth, SA

M. Coventry, Green Fields, SA

M. Werner, Nanango, QLD

M. Bilney, Loganholme, QLD

M. Bembo, Avondaleheights, VIC

M. Gillies, Salisbury Downs, SA

R. Williams, Middle Camberwell, VIC

S. Johnston, Queanbeyan, NSW

T. Boulter, Port Denison, WA
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What the hell is going on with online censorship? What will the proposed online filter really mean for everyday Australians, and is derailing such a filter the best solution to Australia’s censorship problems?

Story: Meg White
Continue reading “Feature: Internet Mythology” »

Australia’s so-hip-it-hurts art gallery, Outré Gallery, will play host to Los Angeles artist SHAG (aka Josh Agle) next month, when the artist arrives in Australia for a three-city tour to present his new works, under the title Inscrutable Mystery Guide.

Inscrutable Mystery Guide

The exhibition is set to embrace Shag’s new direction towards a darker mood, more surreal subject matter and more complex compositions. Shag takes an sidestep away from the retro iconography and lifestyle that has marked his career, with a whole new realm of crisply rendered dream-scenes, perfectly balanced hues and amazing narratives.  These new style works will sit next to a collection of older prints and rare editions from the past.

The name of the exhibition refers to an exclusive (and mysterious) book that the artist has produced to accompany the paintings.

“Inscrutable Mystery Guide is actually the little book that accompanies each small tiki painting,” says Josh. “It’s my hope that the books won’t be seen by anyone except the person who owns one of those paintings. I want to bring them into my own little cult and tell them some secrets.”

Outré will host a series of gala openings across the three cities with the artist out from for the events.  There will be book signings with the artist on the first Saturdays in each city for his title Autumn’s Come Undone.

———————————————————-

One-on-One with Shag

What is the mood of this body of work?

This work is playful, but I’ve tried to throw a couple spanners into what people might expect from my art.  I’ve created 99 small, colourful paintings of tikis, but each tiki bears a symbol. Each painting will be accompanied by an Inscrutable Mystery Guide, a small book I’ve made that attempts to decode the symbols and idea behind the work. In addition, I’ve created several large, panoramic canvases which will give further clues as to what the whole thing is all about.  In the past year my work has gotten darker and moved into new themes and imagery, but I’m trying to reconcile my old body of work with my new work, and trying not to be as manic depressive and serious as I was in the last year or so.

How would you describe the palette of colours?

Though I’m known for bright colours, my recent work has gotten darker and grayer.  The small tiki paintings retain the old, bright classic Shag palette, but the larger canvases are more muted, reflecting the heavier or more personal themes in those images.

What artists have influenced you in this body of works more so than previously?

My biggest influence in the last year has been Hieronymous Bosch.  I saw his original Garden of Earthly Delights tripych at the Prado in Madrid a couple years ago and was really affected by it.  I’d seen it in books, but the sheer scale and detail was surprising.  I wanted to capture some of that with these large canvases.  Pieter Bruegel has also influenced these works, though I’m sure he was heavily influenced by Bosch himself.  More contemporary or recent artists who’ve been influential include Leonora Carrington, Marcel Dzama, Luigi Serafini and Eric Fishl.

What sparked your shift which was marked by Autumn’s Come Undone?

About 18 months ago, I reached a point where I realized I had accomplished much more in my life than I ever expected.  I looked at what I had achieved, and the material things these achievements had brought to my life, and I wasn’t sure if  it was all worth it.  Having a big house, expensive cars, a housekeeper and other luxuries suddenly felt like a burden.  I had an overwhelming desire to get rid of it all, to cut back on my work, to downsize my life and focus on things that I began to realize were more important:  my friends, my children, traveling, surfing, etc.  But I have many people who depend on my income, and I have a family that has become very accustomed to the lifestyle they live.  I felt pulled in two strong directions, and began to get mood swings and unpredictable behavior.  A year of that resulted in the exhibit Autumn’s Come Undone.

Are there historical elements that you’ve been excited to bring out?

For this show, I allude to the time when Europeans were colonizing the South Pacific, destroying the old ways and establishing Christianity.  I’m also interested in showing child labor and sweatshops from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  At the same time, you’ll still see traces of my fascination with 1950s and 1960s modernism.

What comments on modern society?

Many people have seen my work in the last year as a comment on society, or our current times, but it’s not that at all.  Almost every element or piece of imagery relates to my own life, or my past, or where I’m afraid I might end up.   Even the use of colonizers and missionaries, child labourers and native slaves is not meant to reflect society or our culture.

What does the title refer to?

Inscrutable Mystery Guide is actually the little book that accompanies each small tiki painting.  It’s my hope that the books won’t be seen by anyone except the person who owns one of those paintings. I want to bring them into my own little cult and tell them some secrets.

Do these works have a self-referential element to them?

These works are very self referential.  Each large canvas contains a self portrait of me!

What are some recurring characters or elements that people will see?

The only recurring characters are me, a boy in a British school uniform with the head of an ant, and of course, tikis.

What works will make up the show?

This show will have 99 small original paintings of an idol, each accompanied by the Inscrutable Mystery Guide.  There will be five large panoramic canvases which all fit together—like a triptych, except five of them—though I don’t think all five will be displayed at a single gallery.  These five are a continuation of other large canvases that were shown in Brazil and Chicago earlier this year.

TOUR DATES

The Inscrutable Mystery Guide

Melbourne

249 Elizabeth St, Melbourne CBD

from Saturday 14 August 2010
(exhibition runs for three weeks)

Sydney

Shop 7, 285a Crown St (cnr Campbell), Surry Hills
from Saturday 21 August 2010
(exhibition runs for three weeks)

Perth

260 William St, Northbridge
from Saturday 28 August 2010
(exhibition runs for three weeks)

Outré Gallery will offer original Shag paintings, super-sized giclee prints on canvas (in especially small editions), new serigraph prints and rare prints. www.outregallery.com

All images used with permission Outre Gallery.

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GOOD TIME GIRL

Originally from the Gold Coast but now living in Sydney, sexy Leelah loves partying…and getting all wet

PHOTOGRAPHY: ALEXA STARR
Shot exclusively at The Daily Planet, Melbourne.

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Australian Penthouse August 2010 is out now!

Get the August issue of Australian Penthouse for the latest on who’s hot and what’s happening in your world today.

THE BABES

Pet of the Month LEELAH; KAGNEY LINN CARTER; SCARLETT; CARLI AND BELLA; SADIE WEST; EJ; HAYLEE AND JOHNNY; AKIRA JADE.

THE ARTICLES

RIDING THE RAILS; VICTORIA CROSS RECIPIENTS AND THEIR STORIES; INTERVIEW WITH BOB WOODWARD; ESSENTIAL MARTIAL ARTS MOVIES AND SO MUCH MORE.

Inception

Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Cillian Murphy, Ken Watanabe.
Warner Bros

WHETHER it’s a superhero-fuelled blockbuster or a smaller scale passion project, the common thread within all of Christopher Nolan’s films is layered character development and an examination of the fears and beliefs that lie within our psyches… this, and perhaps the evocative aural landscapes of composer extraordinaire, Hans Zimmer.

Inception blends Nolan’s knack for three-dimensional characters with Zimmer’s skills with scoring, to create magnificent mindscapes, and to call upon a cadre of Batman Begins alumni to populate his multi-layered world.

At its core, Inception is a heist movie where corporate espionage works very differently. Gone are the days of gallivanting across rooftops and breaking into offices to steal sensitive information. True professionals, such as Dom Cobb (DiCaprio) inhabit their target’s subconscious and extract what they need while their subject is in a dream state.

Each extraction carries its own risks, with Cobb’s own emotional baggage occasionally bleeding through his carefully constructed dreamscapes to wreak havoc on his team’s best laid plans.

When a botched mission leaves Cobb and his crew exposed, their mark, company director, Saito (Watanabe) instead becomes their employer, offering Cobb a chance at redemption, along with a risky proposition.  Instead of teasing company secrets from the sleeping brain of a competitor, Saito suggests inception—where the team must plant the seed of an idea via the power of suggestion, then allow the target’s mind to mature the thought into action, none the wiser that he has been manipulated.

To achieve inception, Cobb recruits a band of specialists to create a tri-layered dream system, with each journey delving deeper into the subject’s subconscious, and each level carrying exponentially greater risks, the least of which are Cobb’s own mental defences.

Keeping his increasingly unstable subconscious a secret from the rest of the team proves a challenge that not even Cobb’s team of skilled extractors are guaranteed to overcome.

The character of Cobb is burdened with emotional guilt and distress, and DiCaprio plays the role convincingly. It’s an intriguing concept—projecting your emotional baggage and insecurities not only on to others but also on to the  world. DiCaprio is solidly supported by Ellen Page (Juno) as skilled architect Ariadne, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (G.I. Joe) as his right-hand man, Arthur, but it is the anchoring performances by the charismatic Tom Hardy (Bronson) and wonderfully understated Ken Watanabe (Letters From Iwo Jima) that truly seals the deal.

Visually, Inception is astounding, with a fascinating blending of the lines between reality, imagination and special effects, providing each layer of the dream worlds with a distinct feel. From the highway car chase and luxury hotel to the snow-capped military base and surreal world of limbo, Nolan has created a lush cinematic playground of both visual and psychological proportions, proving that Hollywood need not focus on remaking already average films when such original thinkers as Christopher Nolan are standing in the wings ready to blow our minds.

Inception opens nationally July 22^nd.