Chris Blog

Pre-vacation vacation

Relaxin' on Lake Simcoe...

(thanks Anne!)

Ride the rocket!

Red Rocket Coffee

154 Wellesley St. E., Toronto

Out with the old...

...in with this new fancy template by Tina Chen.

No more H8

I was lucky enough to attend the Canadian premiere of 8: The Mormon Proposition last night.

Please, check your local listings and see this documentary.

Summer of Alejandro

Three months after "Telephone", and just in time for summer, Gaga releases the new video for "Alejandro", directed by photographer Steven Klein.

Coming in at just under 9 minutes, this video stands out as much darker (literally and figuratively) than Gaga's past videos. The overall tone is somber, partly focussed around a funeral (of Alejandro himself?). Gaga takes on multiple roles in this ominous, male-dominated world, including that of a omniscient, monocled leader, perched in her crumbled tower, menacing like a science fiction villain. More notably, she also takes on the common archetypes of Madonna and whore, portrayed as a nun (donning a red pleather habit), as well as a hyper-sexual harlot engaging with multiple male partners in, what feels like, a male dormitory. While the plot is not entirely clear, it seems that the nun ultimately gives into desire, and becomes whore herself (perhaps against her will?) Nevertheless, the final image we see is of the nun, lying motionless in bed, with marionette strings attached to her and extending upwards into the darkness.

My first impression of "Alejandro" was a little tentative. Gaga recently stated: "'Alejandro' is a celebration of my love and appreciation for the gay community, my admiration of their bravery, their love for one another and their courage in their relationships." I think this video subtly touches on the heated 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' debate; one minute, muscular military men are lounging in black bob wigs, fishnet stockings and dancing in corsets (a la "Rocky Horror Picture Show"), and the next minute, they are seen in compromising sex positions with Gaga herself. I think her commentary on the fluidity of sexuality and desire is admirable, but I'm not sure that it actually goes far enough to advance any progressive gay agendas.

Gaga's Madonna/whore imagery is clearly an ode to Madonna herself, and much of the visuals in the video are reminiscent of seminal, groundbreaking Madonna videos (Like a Prayer, Like a Virgin, Papa Don't Preach, Express Yourself, et al). Gaga's queen-like presence early in the video also harkens to Madonna's performance as Evita Perron (1996), which [not coincidentally] involved similar themes of power, sex, war and death (set in Argentina, I might add). The dramatic nun sex / dance sequence strikes a distinct resemblance to the memorable "Tango de Roxanne" sequence from Baz Luhrmann's 2001 "Moulin Rouge", where the rape of a high-class Parisian prostitute is underscored and heightened by a high-octane tango-rape reenactment. And finally, there appears to be glimpses of Bob Fosse's 1972 "Cabaret"; the imposing Nazi Germany tone is hard to ignore, Liza Minnelli's iconic style can be seen in Gaga's wardrobe and gestures, and again, we see parallel stories of vulnerable, polygamous women in tragic circumstances.

While this video may not be Gaga's strongest (or most original) conception, "Alejandro" manages to appropriate a plethora of ideas, icons and styles that may prove the oft-said notion: the whole is sometimes greater than the sum of its parts.

Watch it here.

It's hip to be a square

Hipstamat Ornate typeface, designed by Jason Hill with an iPhone app!

Nature in abundance

A lovely time at the Allan Gardens

(and yes, the third picture is a banana tree with a banana flower!)

The countdown begins

4 weeks until Istanbul...

Above: Nazar boncuğu ornament to ward off the evil eye

Slice and dice

Love this type treatment - delicious!

Weekend wisdom

"To be calm is the highest achievement of the self."

-attributed to Yogi Bhajan

"Typocalypse"

Amazing.

Spring blooms

Truth and lies

“If good design tells the truth, poor design tells a lie, a lie usually related ... to the getting or abusing of power.”

-from Design and Truth by Robert Grudin

Constructing letters

From Ludovicus Simonneau's Design of the Grandjean type for the Imprimerie royale, Paris, 1695

City words

New commission by Barbara Kruger spans the entire length of the AGO facade.

From the AGO's press release:

Barbara Kruger’s graphic works—declarative texts juxtaposed with found images—point to photography’s complicity in reinforcing ideologies of power and control, in maintaining gender stereotypes, and in stimulating consumer desire.

(Another Kruger favourite here)

I am a child.

Meet my new bulldog, Rufus. He's very friendly.

(Get yours here)

That boy is a monster

After winning 8 Elizabeth Sterling Haynes theatre awards in Edmonton, Catalyst Theatre's "phantasmagorical" adaption of Frankenstein arrives at Toronto's Canadian Stage

Runs until April 29th

D.I.Y. is the new black

Three points on the state of design today:

Many people have a high level of design awareness and visual literacy.
There is an unprecedented demand for / access to tools of self-publishing; people want to make and share their own media.
Consumers want to be less reliant on the corporate empire, and aim to redirect the flow of consumption for their own purposes.

-from D.I.Y Design it Yourself

Gaga on top

"She isn't a pop act, she is a performance artist. She herself is the art. She is the sculpture."

-Cyndi Lauper re: Lady Gaga making the Time Magazine 2010 Time 100 World's Most Influential People

Stay for the Shakespeare

After a successful rebrand this winter, The Shakespeare Company launches their first show of their season with Love's Labour's Lost, running May 5-22. If you're in Calgary, check it out!

(They've also producing some promotion videos on YouTube - so great!)

Language of the universe

"You cannot understand the universe without learning first to understand the language in which it was written. It is written in the language of mathematics, and its letters are triangles, circles and other geometric forms. Without this language humans cannot understand a single word of the universe. Without it we wander in a dark labyrinth."

-Galileo Galilei

How do I love thee, let me count the ways...

Fantastic new font by FaceType: Motto Family

Available here.

(The geometry makes me weak in the knees...)

Ready, set, go

B is for bean