Harrius – Proud Flesh

Proud Flesh is a 30-minute Western shot mainly in the Dakota badlands by Jenny Graf Sheppard and Chiara Giovando and starring their mothers. It’s a remarkable film, even if it hasn’t been seen much outside of Baltimore.

Until it’s more widely released, there is this trailer: 

And last month, Baltimore’s Ehse Records released the entirety of the soundtrack as an LP in an edition of 300 copies.

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It’s a beautiful thing, made from a private, internal symbolic system and some amazing tweaking of the idea of the Western film and, by extension, America itself.

(Disclosure: although this writer made small contributions to the film and soundtrack, my hand is neither in the till nor on the tiller.)

Ron Rege Jr enters new phase…

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Ron Rege explains on his blog:

At the beginning of 2008 – I started to create a series of numbered 4×6” drawings, as an exercise – to start to flesh out ideas for a kind of “science fiction universe” that I’ve been slowly imagining over the last few years – the idea of a “Cartoon Utopia”. So many imagined futuristic “fantasy worlds” seem to be “dystopian” in nature –dark and pessimistic. I thought it would be nice to imagine a “futuristic” fantasy where humanity had progressed in a more positive way…

While spending time as “artist in residence” (thanks to D&Q!) in Montreal this past summer, I decided to create a series of much larger (18×24”) drawings as part of this “Cartoon Utopia” series. I had begun reading a biography of Manly P. Hall – founder of The Philosophical Research Society, and author of the classic Secret Teachings of All Ages. After finding a worn out paperback on Alchemy on the sidewalk in Montreal, I became totally hooked on looking more into ideas related to “Ancient Wisdom”.

These large drawings ended up containing & being inspired by quotes I had come across in books I had been reading. So, this second phase of the drawings shifted from describing aspects of my fictional “Cartoon Utopia” universe – to presenting drawings based on quotations that help me describe the building blocks of my ideas for this “fantasy world”. I think I’ll be working on this phase of the drawings for quite a while. The more things I read – the more curious I become – and I have ideas for many more drawings, both large and small.

The ideas, and history of Alchemy & Hermeticism have really opened up a new way for me to relate to a wide variety of philosophical, religious, and mystical traditions, as well as modern ideas in both science, and the “New Age” movement. Instead of being universally skeptical of everything, it’s helping me see similarities between all the different ways humans have invented to help describe this wonderful fascinating world we find ourselves in. By taking it all kind of lightly, and by creating “cartoon” artwork about all of these ideas – I feel like a bit of a trickster. It’s really fun.

I don’t want to offend anyone who relates to any of these ideas in a serious fashion, but I find by having fun with all of it – I hope to be able to present some really amazing ideas in a lighthearted way that doesn’t scare people away. In a way that draws them in with a spirit of fun and inspiration.

New Alan Moore/Kevin O'Neill comic out in April…

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Promotional text from great indie publisher, Top Shelf:

League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Vol III): Century #1
View League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Vol III): Century #1 Cover by Alan Moore & Kevin O’Neill

Co-Published By Top Shelf Productions & Knockabout

Top Shelf is proud to announce the all-new installment in the breathtaking series by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill! In The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Vol III): Century #1 (“1910″), our familiar cast of Victorian literary characters enters the brave new world of the 20th century!

CHAPTER ONE is set against a backdrop of London, 1910, twelve years after the failed Martian invasion and nine years since England put a man upon the moon. In the bowels of the British Museum, Carnacki the ghost-finder is plagued by visions of a shadowy occult order who are attempting to create something called a Moonchild, while on London’s dockside the most notorious serial murderer of the previous century has returned to carry on his grisly trade. Working for Mycroft Holmes’ British Intelligence alongside a rejuvenated Allan Quatermain, the reformed thief Anthony Raffles and the eternal warrior Orlando, Miss Murray is drawn into a brutal opera acted out upon the waterfront by players that include the furiously angry Pirate Jenny and the charismatic butcher known as Mac the Knife. This one is not to be missed!

This book will be the first of three deluxe, 80-page, full-color, perfect-bound graphic novellas, written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Kevin O’Neill — with lettering by Todd Klein, and colors by Ben Dimagmaliw. Each self-contained narrative takes place in three distinct eras, building to an apocalyptic conclusion occurring in our own twenty-first century. — 6 5/8″ x 10 1/8”

Zorn, Foreman collab on now in NYC

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From the Ontological Hysteric Theater website:

Richard Foreman and John Zorn join forces with ASTRONOME: A NIGHT AT THE OPERA

This is the historic first time collaboration for two MacArthur geniuses who have, individually, challenged, enlightened and entertained adventurous audiences for years. ASTRONOME: A NIGHT AT THE OPERA is a work dominated by ecstatic groans, grunts and babbling, and explores the initiation of a group of people into a world where ambiguous behavior alone leads to freedom–perhaps under the tutelage of the necessary “false messiah.”

CHIMURENGA!

Above — a webvert for Chimurenga 12 and 13:

“A double-take on sci-fi and speculative writing from the African world, collectively titled “Dr. Satan’s Echo Chamber” after a dub mix by King Tubby. Chimurenga 12 is an all-faxion issue on black technologies no longer secret, featuring words and images. Chimurenga 13 documents the (un)making of: Dr. Satan’s Echo Chamber.”

What is Chimurenga?

“Chimurenga is a pan African publication of writing, art and ideas, out of Cape Town, South Africa. Founded and edited by Ntone Edjabe, the first issue appeared in March 2002.”

More info:
chimurenga.co.za/

hipped to this by Bridget Donahue