Lux Lotus

Scarlet-Starlet

Conde Nast Traveler has a wonderful article in its September issue ("The Empire's New Clothes," by Dorinda Elliott) that focuses on the avant-garde art scene in Shanghai. Unfortunately, it's not available online, but it's certainly worth a peek.

There are tons of quotable passages about how artists are dealing with explosive economic growth and attendant social change, but this is my favorite by far:

A few years ago, Qing produced a film of a woman's hands massaging a pig -- a simultaneously hilarious and revolting comment on China's new fat cats, the businessmen who visit the ubiquitious massage parlors that front for brothels.

The best part about the magazine is that after a long, descriptive article that inspires burgeoning lust to visit the place in question, one can flip to the back for a couple of detailed pages that list a nearly complete itinerary for the city.

The closest I can get to China these days is Paul Theroux's hilarious and colorful travelogue, Riding The Iron Rooster: By Train Through China, that I'm currently reading and enjoying quite a bit.

Also of note is the exhibition of contemporary Chinese art here in New York:

Between Past and Future: New Photography and Video from China, the first comprehensive look at the innovative photo and video art produced since the mid-1990s in China, will be presented jointly at the International Center of Photography and the Asia Society and Museum from June 11 to September 5, 2004.

I may check it out this week before it closes, so expect more here if I do.

Peace, Girls, & Giant Spiders

The new edition of the "The Smart Set," my column highlighting New York's best bets for the week ahead, is up at literary hot spot MaudNewton.com.

Sensitive Material (Art Party)

This party is highly recommended; as in, I'm actually going.

Frère Independent’s 2004 Sensitive Material-Benefit Party: Art Exhibition, Silent Auction, Raffle -- Thursday, August 26th, @ New York Academy of Sciences, 2 East 63rd at 5th Avenue; 7pm to Midnight.

Exhibiting Artists: Jennifer Brackett, Thierry Alet, Susan Bowen, Juozas Cernius, Eunice Choi, Evelyne Collardeau, Alika Cooper, Jessica Cruz, Marguerite Day, Damion Dreher, BP Fallon, Leon Golub, Trisha Hanudel, Victoria Keddie, L. J. Lindhurst, Emily Lutzker, Alfredo Martinez, Michael Nirenberg, Josephina Posch, Kentaro Totsuka, Amy Touchette, Ben Schachter, Federico Solmi, Ted Stanke, Sarah Small, Richard Todd, Spencer Tunick, Patrick de Warren, Stephen White.

Contributors: The Anthology Film Archives, The Bronx Museum, The Frick Collection, The New Museum of Contemporary Art, The Museum of Modern Art, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, The Whitney Museum of American Art, Art in America, Sababa Toys, ART news, NY Arts Magazine, Thirteen/WNET New York, Moët & Chandon White Star Champagne, Casa Lapostolle Wine, The Brooklyn Brewery, Alizé, and more.

"Frère Independent’s primary goal is to provide visibility to artists that produce outstanding artworks. We implement our mission mainly via the production of the annual PooL Art Fair. There, curators and artist groups are invited to show works in order to generate other projects for themselves as well as sell art."

Cool.

Snapshot

At this very moment, I am envisioning a midnight-blue ombre/tie-dye scarf that would be just right for fall and wondering if I can make it, reading Denise Levertov's Oblique Prayers (noted: "Oblique Prayers is arranged in four thematic sections that, taken together, work toward a mature philosophy in equal harmony with public activism and private reflection"), hoping a secret admirer will surprise me, and loving Ivy's Guestroom album, light and airy as it is.

I'm also: trying to figure out what to "do" "with" "my life," and how to do it. I'm sure an ashram would help. Or, conversely, a terrific job offer. I suppose I should have faith that it will all naturally fall into place, like this afternoon when I found a charming little picnic basket that I never knew I needed (but oh, how I did!) for cheap at a thrift store. Because you know, it always does.

Right Here, Right Now

My picks for this week are up.

Uproarius: It Was Glorious!

When I think of all the fun we had last summer despite the perceived danger of the blackout, I'm reminded of one of my favorite literary works; a pulpy, steamy snapshot of one night in the city during the roaring '20s.

The Wild Party, Joseph Moncure March's jazzy prose-poem, was banned in Boston upon its first appearance in 1928 and then rediscovered as a "lost classic" with new illustrations by Art Spiegelman. To wit:

The gang was there when midnight came.
The studio was lit by candle-flame
...
The party was gettting under way
Stiffly, slowly.
The way they drank was unholy.

Happy Blackout Anniversary, New York!

Bright Young Thing

Just got back from The Daily Show taping -- Bryan is awesome. Catch it at 11 tonight, or when it repeats tomorrow. I met Jon Stewart and Lewis Black, and had a lovely time. Bryan wore a Pucci tie and looked v. sharp. Also, one of my friends (who was there) is buying a gorgeous piece of property in the East Village, and so I'll have a new decorating project. Fabulous.

Notes From The Underground

Don't you love it when you discover something new about otherwise familiar surroundings? By happenstance, I stumbled across the Book Cellar, run by the Friends of the Webster Library, earlier this week. It's in the basement of the Webster Library in Yorkville, and well worth a stop even if you don't live in the neighborhood. All the profits go to city libraries, and the selection and ambiance are really fabulous.

Browsing through an old volume of art criticism ($5), I was fairly stunned when an engraved invitation to the 1951 National Arts Club juried exhibition fell out. Finding a relic like that of another, gilded era made me feel a bit like Auntie Mame, or some Champagne-drenched version of the mid-century, Sedgwick-not-Hilton, Givenchy-not-Juicy, Black-and-White-ball-not-Bungalow-8 socialite that longs to dance within us all.

I passed on the book, but I did get a two-disc set of Brazilian folk music from the '30s ($6), described in the liner notes as:

Fresh as an ice-cold beer and fiery as a shot of neat cachaca, Brazil's vibrant early 20th century musical heritage had a different kind of beat for another kind of lifestyle.

I can definitely dig that jazz.

The Smart Set

I know you already read writer Maud Newton's (who read an excellent short story at Cupcake in June) much-praised blog everyday, but now there's one more reason to on Mondays: I'll be editing events, posting the best of the week to come for the smart set on Monday mornings. So bookmark it now: MaudNewton.com, and send your literary and cultural event listings, not-so-secret party invitations and all of the must-do details to lauren at maudnewton dot com.

So It's Sort of Like Las Vegas, Then?

Right now I'm reading Sherpas Through Their Rituals. Noted:

Indeed, Darjeeling has traditionally been the refuge for the disaffected, or disinherited, or deviant Sherpa.

It's an interesting study of a fascinating culture. Early in the book, a Sherpa villager suggests that they all return to Tibet to avoid the Nepalese government's attempts at land reform, which is quickly voted down for obvious reasons. Topics covered thus far include feudalism, polyandry, social mobility of the nouveaux riches, and the investment value of butter (generally v. good).