ON YAYOI KUSAMA's BIRTHDAY

Excerpt from the 1968 film ‘Kusama’s self-obliteration’ by Jud Yalkut, paired with music from Takashi Kokubo⁣.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the infinitely beautiful and inspiring Yayoi Kusama!⁣

Interview Footage from the ‘Advice to Young’ series by the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in 2015.⁣ Camera by Yudai Maruyama Produced and edited by Roxanne Bagheshirin Lærkesen⁣.

⁣🔴 ADVICE:
‘Young people receive advice and guidance from others.⁣
I believe that advice shouldn’t come from others but that each person should gain a direction for oneself- by overcoming difficulty and a true direction will come from overcoming adversity.⁣
Everyone, think deeply, fight harder and obtain splendid direction for your life.⁣ I wish for you to gain guidance from your deep thinking and spread your ideas all over the world in order to establish a wonderful life and world.⁣
I think that it is very important.⁣
Let’s fight together for it.⁣
It is my strongest wish as an Artist.”⁣

Interview from the 2018 Kusama Infinity Movie, directed by Heather Lenz. Combined with photography of Yayoi Kusama at the age of ten in 1939, on the base of ‘My Flower Bed’ in 1965 and surrounded by sunflowers in 2000 for ‘Flower Obsession’

⁣🔴 FLOWERS:
“ It’s just like when I see the flowers, I see the flowers everywhere…and there are so many and I feel panicked and become so overwhelmed that I want to eat them all.”

Interview from the Kusama Infinity Movie, dir. by Heather Lenz in 2018 combined with footage from ‘Kusama’s self-obliteration’.

⁣🔴 ENERGY:
“The universe is full of nothing, ever-expanding and ever-destroying itself⁣.
Just like a drop that falls in water, I completely disappear in the universe.⁣
I seek the energy of life and I turn it into Art.”


Thank you, Miss Yayoi Kusama…
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Powerful Language

March 18th, 2021

Today started in a minor key, when the results of yesterday’s elections here in the Netherlands, started coming in and sinking in.
It saddens me deeply, that we have a political direction that keeps moving further to the right, driven by a language of dominance, oversimplification and othering.⁣

As I listened to the wisdom of the three people in this post, I thought about how aware we have to be of the power of words and wanted to share them with you.
Because as Ocean Vuong shares in the same interview from the above excerpt:⁣
“We often say ‘the future is in your hands.’
But I think the future is actually in your mouth.
You have to articulate the world you want to live in, first. “

1. OCEAN VUONG
Ocean Vuong’s words from the stellar podcast On Being with Krista Tippet, recorded in March 2020. Paired with footage of Ocean Vuong by the MacArthur Foundation.⁣

2. MAYA ANGELOU
Dr. Maya Angelou, poet, actress, author, civil rights activist and professor in a snippet from her January 2011 appearance on Oprah's Master Class/OWN⁣

3. ELI WIESEL
”Never let anyone be humiliated in your presence”- footage from the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech of Eli Wiesel- author, professor, political activist and Holocaust survivor ⁣

May we listen and consider.
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Basquiat on my Mind

‘I am what I am what I am.’
Basquiat has been on my mind.

There is so little existing interview material of the brilliant, beautiful Jean-Michel Basquiat and the footage I did see, moved and frustrated me…

His silence following questions that are impossible to answer, the physical reaction to being misunderstood and also, the warmth, joy and sensitivity in his eyes when talking to a beloved friend.

From a 1985 interview with Geoff Dunlop andSandy Nairne for the UK Television series ‘State of the Art’.

Footage from a 1981 interview by Marc H. Miller for ‘ART/new york’ in Basquiat’s SOHO studio on Crosby street.

A 1986 conversation with Jean-Michel’s friend Tamra Davis, from her documentary ‘The Radiant Child’.

It’s the words we don’t hear which are the ones that  seem to linger most and this reminded me of what Basqiat once said about his art:
“I cross out words so you will see them more; the fact that they are obscured makes you want to read them.” 

In 1993, Sara Jane Boyers created a children’s book by pairing an empowering poem by Dr. Maya Angelou with Basquiat’s art.
The poem “Life doesn’t Frighten Me” was written “for all children who whistle in the dark and who refuse to admit that they’re frightened out of their wits” .
I have combined imagery of the book with original audio of Maya Angelou reading her own words here:

Thank you Dr. Maya Angelou, for the wisdom you left us with and oh how I wish, wish that you would have had a magic charm, Jean-Michel.

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what he said- Lou Reed

 Lou Reed never wanted to answer any personal questions by the media, everything he wanted to say was already contained within his music.
And music is what he offered to talk about.⁣
He once called journalists “the lowest form of life” and had little tolerance for ‘dumb questions or lazy subjects’- as illustrated by the following interview snippets from 1974 and 1975.

Photography by Mick Rock
Video: Lou Reed in Australia, 1974

Photography by Dustin Pittman
Video: Lou Reed in Australia, 1975

However, in the last interview he ever gave, a conversation with director Farida Khelfa a mere month before his passing, he opened up about what sound meant to him.:

Photograph by Grant Cornett
Video: Lou Reed interviewed by Farida Khelfa for Parrot, 2013.

“I’m very emotionally affected by sound. 
Sounds are the inexplicable.[…]
Sound is like light, what is light?
Or what is sound?
Sound is more than just noise and ordered sound is music.
My life is music.
The first memory of sounds would have to be your mother’s heartbeat, for all of us.[…]
You grow up, from when you’re a peanut, listening to rhythm.[…]
But then there are nature sounds…
The sound of the wind.
The sound of Love…”

Thank you Lou Reed- for doing what you loved, for making me forget myself and for being someone good.⁣

sound /saʊnd/
1. Vibrations that travel through the air or another medium and can be heard when they reach a person's or animal's ear.⁣
2. Sound produced by continuous and regular vibrations, as opposed to noise.⁣

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what she said- Björk

Young Björk sharing thoughts on gender stereotyping, from a 1994 interview for Spanish Television.

Photograph by Juergen Teller

"Men didn’t before have to worry about this.
They can be silly, fat, funny, intelligent, hardcore, sensual, all those different things, philosophical.
But with women they always have to be feminine.
Feminine, feminine.
And what I like most, is not for everyone to say ‘this is the Age of Women’ or whatever, I think this is bullshit, you know.
I just like to see women who can be characters and can be themselves.
Number 1,2 and 3 they are what they are and number...10- yes, they happen to be women. In the same way that you happen to be Spanish and I happen to be Icelandic.”

Thank you Björk Guðmundsdóttir, for being such a bright guiding light for over thirty years- a creative force that never ceases questioning, reinventing, collaborating and inspiring.
And for pronouncing “hardcore” the way you do.

character[ kar-ik-ter ]
1. the aggregate of features and traits that form the individual nature of some person or thing.
2. one such feature or trait; characteristic.
3. moral or ethical quality

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what he said- Muhammad Ali

This week, I’ve been whispering poetic Muhammad Ali trash talk to myself on a regular basis.⁣

Although Ali was dyslexic, he was constantly exploring with language- from creating short and metaphor filled rhyme to mock his boxing opponents, to a moving tribute for the black victims of the 1971 Attica prison massacre, or by sharing one of the shortest poems ever written (see below).

Photograph by Gordon Parks

Transcript:
”That's when little Cassius Clay from Louisville, Kentucky, came up to stop Sonny Liston.
The man who annihilated Floyd Patterson twice.
HE WAS GONNA KILL ME!
But he hit harder than George. His reach is longer than George's. He's a better boxer than George.
And I'm better now than I was when you saw that 22-years old undeveloped kid running from Sonny Liston.
I'm experienced now, professional. Jaws been broke, been knocked down a couple of times, I'm bad! 
Been chopping trees. I done something new for this fight.
I done wrestled with an alligator. That's right. I have wrestled with an alligator.
I done tussled with a whale.
I done handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail.
That's bad!
Only last week I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick! I'm so mean I make medicine sick!
Bad, fast! Fast! Fast!
Last night I cut the light off in my bedroom, hit the switch and was in the bed before the room was dark.
And you George Foreman, all you chumps are going to bow when I whup him.
All of ya. I know you've got him.
I know you've got him picked.
But the man's in trouble.
I'm going to show you how great I am!”

⁣These rap like rhymes that traveled through time made me smile, perhaps they even made me feel a little stronger.⁣
Thank you, Mister Ali.⁣

Great //ɡreɪt/
1. of an extent, amount, or intensity considerably above average.⁣
2. of ability, quality, or eminence considerably above average.⁣
⁣
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Photograph by Gordon Parks

THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what he said- Johnny Cash

Once, when asked for his definition of paradise, Johnny Cash replied:
 “This morning, with her, having coffee.”

He was of course talking about the Love of his life, June Carter Cash.
And although their relationship was undoubtedly complex and turbulent at times, their strong loving bond lasted throughout their lives.

Watch below how first June and then Johnny reveals their “secret” to a happy marriage:

And a quick snippet of these two lovers performing “Jackson”, which always brings a smile to my face:

Below, a moving love letter to June written on her 65th birthday and a beautiful To Do list Johnny wrote ca. 1969.
Furthermore, a simple heartshaped Valentine from 1987 and heartbreaking thoughts written down by Johnny...two months after June passed and just two months before they finally reunited again.

“We're soulmates, friends and lovers and everything else that makes a happy marriage.
Our hearts are attuned to each other, and we're very close.
I'll get up every morning at five o'clock and make the coffee, then start pacing the floor, wanting her to get up. But I'll let her sleep for a couple of more hours.
If she smells the coffee, she's up."
- Johnny Cash about June Carter Cash


paradise /ˈparədʌɪs/
1. A place or condition of great happiness where everything is exactly as you would like it to be

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY/ That's what he said- Paul McCartney

Throughout their twenty-nine year relationship, Linda and Paul McCartney were inseparable.
They never spent a night apart, except for the 10 days Paul spent in a Tokyo jail after being arrested for marijuana possession.
Paul once said: "Every love song I write is for Linda."

Sadly, Linda McCartney was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1995 and passed away three years later at the age of 56 in Tucson, Arizona- where the McCartneys had a family ranch.⁣

⁣The last words Paul spoke to her were as following:⁣
"You're up on your beautiful Appaloosa stallion.
It's a fine spring day.
We're riding through the woods.
The bluebells are all out, and the sky is clear-blue"

Thumbnail Photograph by Harry Benson

So moving and beautiful...simply full of love.⁣

Fine / fahyn/
1. Of superior or best quality; of high or highest grade.
2. Choice, excellent, or admirable.

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Photography by Linda McCartney and Harry Benson (last image only)

THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY/ That's what she said- Cher

Cher’s longtime costume designer and creative collaborator, Bob Mackie (‘the Sultan of Sequins’) once said:
“She’s a chameleon, but you never lose her. You put a blonde wig on her and you still see Cher.”

And maybe that’s it…over the years, Cher changed her careers, looks and sometimes her mind- but she never lost herself or her moral compass. 
Cher is all about equality and has never been afraid to say so.

Watch Cher on Necessities, from a 1996 interview with Jane Pauley, below.

Pauley: “You said a man is not a necessity, a man is luxury,” 
Cher: “Like dessert, yeah.  A man is absolutely not a necessity.
Pauley: “Did you mean that to sound…mean and bitter?” 
Cher: “Not at all. I adore dessert. I love men! I think men are the coolest, but you don't really need them to live.
My mom said to me 'You know, sweetheart, one day you should settle down and marry a rich man'
I said, 'Mom, I AM a rich man.'"

...this wasn’t about RICH or MAN, it was about EQUALITY.
Thank you Cher, for being an icon with such endless style, humor and beauty. 
Please continue to show the world that one can be what-and who ever they want to be, at any given time.


Necessity /nɪˈsɛsɪti/
1. The state or fact of being required.
2. An indispensable thing.

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY/ That's what she said- Grace Jones

Grace Jones on Gender, Sexuality and Identity- from a 1985 interview on an Australian current affairs program called "Day by Day".
Miss Jones never stood any nonsense and refused to be defined, especially by sexist  and narrow minded tv hosts.

“It’s not being masculine, it’s an attitude really. Being masculine, what is that? 
I mean can you tell me? What is being masculine?
I just act the way I feel.
[...]
That doesn’t make me anything.
I think it’s ridiculous trying to categorize people’s feelings.
[...]
It’s just do what you feel, when you feel like it, if you feel like it.” 

Photography Thumbnail: Kate Simon, 1979

Thank you Grace Beverly Jones- for being fearless, beautiful and for giving us such wonderfully clear instructions.


Masculinity /ˌmaskjʊˈlɪnɪti/
1. Qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of men.

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what he said- Adam "MCA" Yauch

When the Beastie Boys released the third single from their 1994 album Ill Communication “Sure Shot”- Adam MCA Yauch explicitly rapped away from sexist behavior of their past and straight into our feminist hearts:⁣

“I’m gonna say a little something that’s long overdue
The disrespect of women has got to be through
To all our mothers and our sisters and our wives and friends
I want to offer my love and respect to the end”

By including this verse, the Beasties not only became men, they turned into allies and humans that grow and learn.⁣
It made me feel warm and excited.⁣

In a Tricycle interview from the same year, Yauch further explained:
”It’s just seeing things from a different perspective.
There was a time when we would joke around and say things that were disrespectful of women and think that it was funny, or that it wouldn’t hurt anybody, or that it would be taken with a grain of salt.
Then it became clear that that wasn’t the case, and we had to go through the process of taking a step back and realizing how those things affect other people.”

It wasn’t just words that the Beastie Boys shared, they continually went on to fight for rights..women’s rights, LGBT+ rights, human rights, both in their songs and in their public appearances.⁣


Thumbnail photograph: Beastie Boys in Los Angeles, 1998 by Danny Clinch

Overdue /əʊvəˈdjuː/
1. Not having arrived, happened, or been done by the expected time.
2. Having been needed for some time.

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what he said- Tom Waits reads Charles Bukowski

In 2008, Tom Waits read the poem “The Laughing Heart”, by Charles Bukowski (August 16, 1920 - March 9, 1994).

It feels to me as if Waits‘ voice takes Bukowski‘s words and helps them up, like a drunk back on their feet after a hard fall on a damp, dark street.⁣
Then, together they look up, to notice the moon.
”That’s a beauty, yeah..”.

THE LAUGHING HEART
by Charles Bukowski

your life is your life
don’t let it be clubbed into dank submission.
be on the watch.
there are ways out.
there is a light somewhere.
it may not be much light but
it beats the darkness.
be on the watch.
the gods will offer you chances.
know them.
take them.
you can’t beat death but
you can beat death in life, sometimes.
and the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.
your life is your life.
know it while you have it.
you are marvelous
the gods wait to delight
in you.

Marvelous /mɑːv(ə)ləs/
1. Causing great wonder; extraordinary.
2. Extremely good or pleasing; splendid.

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what she said- Eartha Kitt

Eartha Kitt on Love and Compromise, from the 1982 documentary "All by Myself: The Eartha Kitt Story".

“It’s not for me to decide [if someone can live with Eartha Kitt].
That’s for someone who decides to live with me to decide.
Not for me.
Compromise? What is compromising? Compromise for what?
Compromising for what? Compromising for what reason?
To compromise for what? To compromise? What is compromise?
[laughs] Stupid.
A man comes into my life and I have to compromise?
You must think about that one again. [laughs. throws her head back in amusement]
A man comes into my life and you have to compromise?
For what? For what? For what?!
A relationship is a relationship that has to be earned!
Not to compromise for…and I love relationships, I think they’re fantastically wonderful, I think they’re great, I think there’s nothing in the world more beautiful than falling in love.
But falling in love for the right reason, falling in love for the right purpose.
Falling in love. Falling in love.
When you fall in love, what is there to compromise about?
I think if you want to think about it in terms of ‘analysing’- yes, I fall in love with myself and I want someone to share it with me.
I want someone to share me with me.
Many times [that has happened] in many ways.”

Com·pro·mise / ˈkämprəˌmīz/
1. To settle a dispute by mutual concession:
2. To weaken (a reputation or principle) by accepting standards that are lower than is desirable

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THE SUNDAY DICTIONARY / That's what she said- Nina Simone on 'Freedom'

On this day, seventeen years ago- Miss Nina Simone passed away in France, at the age of 70.

When remembering Nina Simone, I often think back on this particular interview from a 1992 documentary by Peter Rodis. The intensity of her words, the emotion in her voice and the ever changing expression on her face, tell us hundreds of stories in the span of a mere minute.

Incredibly moving and powerful.

Nina Simone, when asked about what Freedom means to her:

“It's just a feeling. It's just a feeling.
It's like, how do you tell somebody how it feels to be in love?
How are you going to tell anybody who has not been in love, how it feels to be in love?
You cannot do it to save your life. You can describe things, but you can't tell them.
But you know it when it happens. That's what I mean by free.
I've had a couple times on stage when I really felt free and that's something else. That's really something else!
I'll tell you what freedom is to me: NO FEAR!
I mean really, no fear.
If I could have that half of my life. No fear.
Lots of children have no fear.
That's the only way I can describe it.
That's not all of it, but it something to really, really feel.
Like a new way of seeing.
Like a new way of seeing something."

Freedom / ˈfriːdəm /
1. The power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants.
2. The state of not being imprisoned or enslaved.

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