The Solo Career of Lou Reed by Erich Kuersten (A Continuing Series in ART DECADES)

Hopefully everyone reading is familiar with Erich Kuersten and his amazing writing. If not, please stop reading and head over to Erich's essential blog Acidemic immediately and experience some of the best writing on film you'll ever read online or in print. Erich was one of the first writers I thought of more than a year ago when I first began planning ART DECADES and I am thrilled that he has appeared in both of our first issues (and his appearance in Issue 3 is on the horizon). Erich has been exploring the solo works of my favorite artist Lou Reed for ART DECADES. His look at Lou's work in the seventies was spread about between Issues 1 and 2 and Issue 3 will contain his look at Lou in the eighties. I've loved reading Erich's distinctive takes on my Lou's wildly influential solo career these past few issues and I trust fans of Lou and Erich are enjoying them as much as I am!

Issue 2 can now be ordered at Amazon.

Please, like ART DECADES at Facebook and Follow us at Instagram and Twitter. Thank you! Continuing

ART DECADES Profiles PAULINE BOTY by TARA HANKS (Issue 2)

Among the finest pieces in ART DECADES issue 2 is Tara Hanks' wonderfully informative and moving article on the much-missed British Pop Artist Pauline Boty. Tara's near eight page article on Boty is a fascinating look at a true feminist pioneer and one of the great artists of the sixties. More information on Boty can be read here and please visit Tara's official site as well.

Issue 2 can now be ordered at Amazon.

Please, like ART DECADES at Facebook and Follow us at Instagram and Twitter. Thank you!

ART DECADES Interviews MARY WORONOV (Issue 2)

Issue two of ART DECADES features an exclusive new interview with cult film legend Mary Woronov conducted specifically for us by our contributor Dave Stewart. This lengthy chat finds Mary discussing her entire career and what it was like to work with everyone from Andy Warhol to The Ramones. She also discusses her passion for painting and much more.

Issue 2 can now be ordered at Amazon and more information about Mary can be found at her official website.

Please, like ART DECADES at Facebook and Follow us at Instagram and Twitter. Thank you!

ART DECADES Issue 3 Cover Featuring Maria McKee Photographed by Jim Akin

OUT IN EARLY APRIL!!!

ART DECADES (Issue 2) Featuring The Raveonettes is Now Available!

COPIES CAN BE ORDERED AT AMAZON, CREATESPACE OR DIRECTLY FROM US VIA PAYPAL:

THANK YOU!!!

ART DECADES (Issue 1) is Now Available to Order

 

OUR FIRST ISSUE IS NOW AVAILABLE OVER AT CREATESPACE. IT WILL BE AVAILABLE AT AMAZON BY THE WEEKEND.  

Information on Issue One of ART DECADES plus subscription info

 

Issue one of ART DECADES will be out later this week.  It will initially appear for order on our Createspace page and then over at Amazon.  Our first issue ran much longer than expected so the price is a bit higher than we wanted it to be.  Because of this we are going to wait until Issue 2 to go with expanded distribution to keep the price as low as possible.  Future issues will be both cheaper (in the fifteen dollar range) and shorter (around 100 pages).  Kelley, Whitley and I are super proud of the issue though and we hope everyone enjoys it.  Putting together our first printed publication, with no previous experience, was a challenge to say the least but the numerous problems we faced will only make our upcoming issues all the better.  Here are a few details regarding Issue 1 and a few subscription/fan club opportunities for those interested.  Thanks to everyone for all the support...what a wild ride this has been!

SUBSCRIPTION/FAN CLUB PLATFORMS:  PAYABLE TO OUR PAYPAL ACCOUNT (mooninthegutter@gmail.com)

THE 'REED ROTHCHILD' ($60.00):  A Year's subscription (four issues) at a discounted rate.

THE 'ROLLER GIRL'  ($70.00):  A Year's subscription (four issues) at a discounted rate plus a free poster of your choosing.

THE 'JACK HORNER'  ($80.00):  A Year's subscription (four issues) at a discounted rate plus a free poster and shirt of your choosing.

THE 'DIRK DIGGLER'  (85.00):  A Year's subscription (four signed issues) at a discounted rate plus a free poster and shirt of your choosing.

THE 'FLOYD GONDOLLI' ($100.00):  A Two Year subscription (eight issues) at a discounted rate plus a free poster and shirt of your choosing. 

ISSUE ONE:  $21.00, full color 138 pages. 

The Early Films of William Lustig: THE VIOLATION OF CLAUDIA (1977)

 

Most moviegoers back in the early eighties wouldn't have have blinked an eye at the casting but, for those in the know, Sharon Mitchell's brief bit as "2nd Nurse" in William Lustig's ferocious 1980 masterpiece Maniac was a small but significant milestone for the both of them.  The New Jersey native Mitchell was just shy of a year younger than the Bronx bread Lustig when they first met during a New York casting session in early 1977.  The close proximity of their ages wasn't all Mitchell and Lustig had in common during that first fateful meeting.  They were both hungry (literally and figuratively) and struggling to make a name for themselves in the electric, and sometimes insane, world of film in the New York cinema in the seventies.  Just past twenty in 1977, Mitchell was smart, feisty, lovely to look at and a junkie.  A former N.Y.U. film student, Lustig had a very small pot to piss in at the time but he had managed to find a small handful of investors in that sweltering summer of 77 to fund what would turn out to be his first feature as a director and Mitchell was his ideal, if surprising, leading lady.  Inexperience and youth be damned, the two were an perfect team and the little film they made together, The Violation of Claudia, would help launch two extraordinary and wild careers that would be as unpredictable as they were influential.  New York in 1977...a year of blackouts, Berkowitz and Billy 'fuckin' Bagg.

 

Written, edited and directed by William Lustig under the pseudonym Billy Bagg in just a few days for a measly budget even the most seasoned filmmakers could have barely cut a trailer on, The Violation of Claudia is a shockingly well made and effective feature.  An adult take on Bunuel's 1967 stunner Belle de Jour, Lustig's first film is a fascinating hour long time sex film that is both erotic and witty.  Label it exploitation but it is intellectually driven exploitation crafted by a man clearly immersed in film history and captivated by all things cinema.  

 

Dealing with sexual repression in an openly sexual arena, The Violation of Claudia would be an essential entry in William Lustig's filmography even if it wasn't his first feature.  What could have been a by the numbers quickie becomes a truly rewarding and satisfying experience.  You can sense Lustig's creativity and drive in every shot of The Violation of Claudia.  For a film shot so quickly by an artist so young, there is a real clarity and fluidity in the direction of The Violation of Claudia and Sharon Mitchell's performance as the frustrated title character is really quite wonderful.  Had she been around in Hollywood's Golden Age, Mitchell could have been a real contender, a Myrna Loy with a 'fuck me' smile.  Sharon Mitchell is more than a good actress, she is a unique one and her work in The Violation of Claudia is both endearing and surprisingly touching.

 

Mitchell isn't the only on-screen powerhouse appearing in The Violation of Claudia.  The mighty Jamie Gillis turns in a typically strong supporting turn and the legendary Long Jeanne Silver also makes a brief, but memorable, appearance.  

 

Distribpix's new special edition of The Violation of Claudia is another grand slam.  Paired with Lustig's second feature, Hot Honey (post coming soon), The Violation of Claudia has never looked or sounded better and the extras Distribpix have assembled include the original trailer, a slideshow of vintage articles, clippings and pictures and a terrific hour long podcast featuring Lustig talking about his background and films with Distribpix's Steven Morowitz.  The best extra is the incredibly informative and entertaining commentary track featuring Lustig and the extraordinary Nicolas Winding Refn.  Recorded while Refn was filming Drive, the commentary track alone makes this one of the great releases of this now not so young year.  

 More information on this release can be found the Distribpix blog, their main site and their sales section.  It can also be ordered at Amazon.

-Jeremy Richey, 2014-

DistribPix unleash the long awaited William Lustig 'Billy Bagg' Special Edition!!!

Before he electrified audiences with his legendary Maniac, filmmaker William Lustig shot two underground New York classics under the name Billy Bagg, The Violation of Claudia and
Hot Honey.  These long hard to see features, starring the likes of Sharon Mitchell, Jamie Gillis, Long Jeanne Silver and Serena, have been finally restored by the great folks at Distribpix and they are getting ready to come out on DVD via a brand new special edition set.  Special features include trailers, slideshows and best of all new audio commentaries with Lustig and Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn!  This collection promises to be one of the essential releases of the year.  More info can be found here.