In the new film Make It New John, Irish-born artist Duncan Campbell takes on the persona of John Delorean, the realization of the DMC-12 and the Belfast plant where the car super car was built.
The film, which runs just under one hour, is on exhibition at the Artists Space in New York City through May 1. Make It New John was screened to London and Glaswgow audiences in late fall, but this is the first opportunity to view it stateside. Campbell, who is based in Glasgow, was in New York City for the March opening.
“John Delorean’s life story really sort of fascinated me,” he said. “That’s a major thread of the film. You can extricate the mythology that surrounded him, this person who stuck it to the bureaucratic culture and went on his own stand for the little guy and the consumer. He had sort of a maverick management style at GM. His life story is kind of Shakespearean; it’s a real rags to riches story.”
The imaginative sculpture of the Delorean still piques the psyche – with a two year production run that eroded in 1981 and so does the drama the man, who rose up the ranks at Chrysler and GM before forging out on his own. Both the object and the man have become a symbol for the 1980s American culture.
What casts an interesting element on Campbell’s perspective is his read on the Delorean manufacturing process. The factory was operational in the midst of Nothern Ireland, and employed both Catholics and Protestants — a rarity in those times. “With the factory being in Belfast, that’s another sort of paradox building this in the middle of the trouble,” he said. “The perspective you get in Britain and Ireland is that its’ not so much the car as a consumer object. It’s got to do with the factory and the climate it created. It was massively funded by the British government. There was a lot of accusations of fraud and embezzlement.”
Campbell filmed some of the scenes himself and drew bits and piece from archival footage including out takes of interviews. He’s on the fence about his interpretation of Delorean. “He’s a decisive character. People seem to like him or loathe him. I’m somewhere in the middle.”
Unlike most who have taken on the Delorean story who’ve been automotive writers, Campbell is uniquely qualified. He has recently shown at the Museum Moderne Kunst, Vienna; The Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh aand the Tate Britain, London. In 2008 he was the recipient of the Art Basel Bâloise Prize as well as the renowned Paul Hamlyn Award. In an earlier film, Bernadette, he took on the young Northern Irish socialist Bernadette Devlin.
But the Delorean DMC-12 ultimately takes on a character of its own. “Of course all the Back to the Future stuff is unavoidable,” he said.
The film was commissioned by Film and Video Umbrella and is part of a series of upcoming events including Duncan Campbell in conversation with Thomas Beard Fri. March 12. For more information check out Artists Space.
The first brand the fashion industry types came across was not Halston, Rodarte or Marc Jacobs. That distinction belonged to the event’s title sponsor whose logo was plastered on closeups cutaway shots at Bryant Park. It was Fall 2010 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, the last season for the Bryant Park Tents. At the overcrowded tents, the traffic-stopping Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and Mercedes-Benz E-Cabriolet managed to cut a sharp figure. For those who wandered close enough to take a peek, product specialists were on hand to provide details about both cars’ nifty features, which go on sale later this year, as they waited to be harangued into the show of the hour at the 2010 Mercedes-Benz Fall Fashion Week.
The view from Mercedes-Benz seats at Tadashi Shoji, Feb. 15, 2010
While some would argue that fashionable women and men could care less about cars, it’s undeniable that the title sponsor adds to the ambiance — hinting at a world where the finer things in life are indeed still a possibility. As the dirge of shows commenced, details were being finalized for the automaker to expand their roll even further when the New York Fashion Week moves permanently to Lincoln Center in September for Spring Fashion Week 2011. “The important piece is to relate the brand to the style, the quality and the craftsmanship of Fashion Week,” said Lisa Holladay, Manager, Brand Experience Marketing at Mercedes-Benz USA, who has overseen the German automaker’s relationship since signing on for sponsorship in 2008. “We’re in discussion over a multiple year contract. It’s a very important platform for us and we planning to grow that on a more meaningful level. Lincoln Center will be great because of the fact that we have big sexy cars to move, and it makes it easier for us to actually drive the cars.”
Eric Villency, Manager of Brand Experience Marketing Lisa Holladay, and Adam Paige of Mercedes-Benz attend Fashion Week Spring 2010 presented by Mercedes-Benz at Bryant Park on September 12, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz)
The fashion industry, faced with cost-cutting measures, is particularly reliant on sponsor dollars and the Mercedes-Benz Presents Designer program (featuring past pairings with Yigal Azrouël, Chado Ralph Rucci, Badgley Mischka, Diane Von Furstenberg, 3.1 phillip lim, Michael Kors, Tommy Hilfiger and Narciso Rodriguez) carries a certain amount of cache. This season, the program centered on the pairing of Rodarte and Alexander Wang’s collections with photographer Nick Knight’s SHOWStudio — a well-placed tie-in for an automaker that strives to highlight its technical prowess.
During Fashion Week, Mercedes found clever ways to connect with prospective customers through invite-only online groups such as Generation Benz. Selected members were invited to Bryant Park to witness the action up close from the vantage point of the Mercedes-Benz backstage lounge. “Mercedes-Benz owners put an importance on fashion. Fashion indexes high with current consumers and prospects,” Holladay said. Wedged between the IMG and W Hotel lounges, celebrities, newscasters, fashion editors and a designer or two wandered in and out of the lounge for a cocktail and to plop down on the fluffy white sofas. There was a bit of tittering when someone new strode through the door as the guests nonchalantly whispered among themselves, “What show is he on? Oh, I don’t watch Gossip Girl.”
The Complete Wallpaper 10 City Guide iPhone App Collection
Forget about Radio Free Europe, take an iPhone to Berlin and make use of the new Wallpaper* City Guide iPhone App. Berlin is part of the free promo, but cities including including New York and Los Angeles, are available at the iPhone App Store. Each app is available for $3.99.
New York, New York
Wallpaper* City Guides was launched by Phaidon Books in 2006, with print guidebooks available for over 80 cities that fit in the back pocket.
Lee Quinones and Tamara Warren played tag team with the 2010 Taurus for the annual holiday round trip trek on Rte 80. What made this bullish journey more interesting: They drove two different Tauruses — a dogged-out press car on the way out of rotation, and a brand spanking Taurus Limit back to NYC in the perils of likely lake effect wintertime. Read on to see how the bull took the horns of the 600-mile journey.
Lee says:
The new Ford 2010 Taurus smashes into the national and international stage with a lot of good news and a speck of nick. First and foremost, it comes with a firm comfortable split bucket 10-way power seat arrangement in what seems to be the new Ford stable comfortable leather interiors. I like the charcoal black leather color on this one.
The second notion for comfort during these times is a relief to the wallet itself when it comes to fuel economy. The 3.5l Duratec V6 coupled to the 6 speed automatic is humble on the highway trails and seems to do the same on the streets with its 263 horses. it still packs a decent punch when the go pedal is abused.
The projector automatic high beam feature is a nice touch during dark highway cruising. It even senses upcoming traffic and gives the courtesy shut off. The trunk is a much awaited treat that has eluded most cars in this platform. It has mad room and then some. Fold down the rear seats and you pretty much have the real estate luggage area of the legendary country squire station wagon.Handling manners on the long trek from Detroit to New York were exceptional.
The one draw back that I discovered had to do with the exterior design. The charcoal gray plastic ground panels that run along the kick sills, doors and quarter panels act as catchers smith for road salt and grime. When we arrived in New York after navigating through a nasty wintery mix, I had enough salt packed in between the plastic panels and the steel doors to spread all over New York itself. Maybe just a little design tweaking on the ground package may fix this potential rust menace. People on the road were seemingly happy to see the Taurus’s return. All in all, The Taurus charged in like a Bull.
Tamara Says:
We attracted admiring looks from our friends when we made a stop at their house in the Taurus on our journey back east. They happen to be highway cops who get to see just about everything, and Taurus stopped both of them in mid-sentence with it’s sophisticated angles- a new phenom for the jazzed-up Taurus exterior.
But the secret weapon of the 2010 Ford Taurus is in what’s not so obvious from the outside — solid confident handling, mad trunk space and a cool minimalist interior in both SL and Limited editions. (Of course, the SHO takes it a few steps further into cool territory.)
En route, our test vehicle was used to cart boxes for storage, while on the return boxes of gifts were packed into the cavernous space. (Spoiled, yes.) This modification is particularly significant for this segment as families and athletes with gear opt to move back into the sedan market.
The driver and passenger seats were quality — and on par with the Corollas and Accords of the segment. We switched in and out of the back seat during the journey, which were not so spacious for tall chics like me. While I missed the additional legroom, at times from previous gen Taurus, I preferred the extra trunk space. As a member of the car seat segment, I found the constructive proportions of the seats ideal for moving car seats in and out with little fuss.
In Car #1 the steering was solid, but the stitching used on the steering wheel was harsh on the hands. This issue was resolved in Car #2 — the Taurus Limited.
Ford touts Environmental Protection Agency’s rating is 18 miles a gallon in town and 27 on highway – and our numbers cleared those readings. Here’s the car for those looking to switch up — it’s a cozy winter sweater car, that seems to work just about anywhere, and goes with anything. It’s worth noting Taurus received the coveted 5-star safety rating earlier this month, and our vehicle handled like a champ on icy stretches of the Ohio turnpike. It was also named Urban Auto of the Year by OnWheels Magazine. It passed our New Yorker/Detroiters test with solid marks.
Next time around the coming additions of heated steering would be a bonus for a December trip in the 2011 model year.
(Ed. Note: * Thank you to the Motor City Solutions team who sent us home with holiday cookies, brownies and pistachio cake from their holiday party — that’s our kind of Holiday car exchange.)
I can see Canada. When I land in Detroit, I never feel like I’m home until I drive to the edge of the Detroit River and look out on the horizon. It feels so close that if I shout with all my might, someone across the border may hear me. But the closeness is an illusion, much separates the two sides of the water’s edge.
The international border is the least of Detroit’s news, but there’s something inspiring about living on the edge of the country; its a place of beginnings and endings, of bridges and tunnels.
I can see Canada, because I’m at General Motors world headquarters, looking ahead to 2010 – a new era in automotive thinking. GM will launch the Chevy Volt, and that’s much of what I’m here to learn about, how the nuts and bolts of the Volt will jolt the marketplace with plug-in technology, figuratively and metaphorically. I’ll also learn about the roll Buick, GMC and OnStar will take in the company’s future.
I’m here to visit Ford Motor Company and to get updated on the implementation of green initiatives, and to take a peek at the new Ford Mustang, a pony car after my own heart.
I started my day 600 miles away, but it could have been a million. I ducked in an express train to 59th St, in the holiday hustle and bustle of New York City, toasting the end of 2009 with Mercedes-Benz president, pr and media at Ed’s Chowder House. I quibbled over infrastructure and executive decisions, and reflected a bit on the E-class, too.
But now, I’m here, back in Detroit, my beginnings. Where I learned to write. about music. about cars. about people.
I’m hear to listen, to car executives, to the musicians I seek out for a dose of Detroitism and to the people I care about, who draw me here, no matter how far I wander.
It’s a busy time for most everybody, a flurry of activity capping off a year of wild unpredictability. From my vantage point of the moment, here, in the Renaissance Center, bracing for the unknown roads ahead, there is no map. No magic GPS. No sign. Just observation, experience, and a bit of pioneering.
Tonight, I can see Canada. It’s quiet and thoughtful, here at the end and beginning.
The 25 artists in the show represent a cross-section of background with divergent work. Yet, the work was cohesive and vibrant, perhaps inspired by the common cause of healing, cures and the fortitude of Armstrong. Artists included Rosson Crow, Jules De Balincourt, Shepard Fairey, Futura, Andreas Gursky, KAWS, , Yoshitomo Nara, Catherine Opie , Os Gemeos, José Parlá, Richard Prince, Ed Ruscha and Kenny Scharf.
Crow’s bicycle exhibition from the late 1800s was particularly moving. Attendees at the opening clamored to get their pictures taken with this piece. On view through Nov. 21.
Juan Gomez
Columbian-born painter Juan Gomez is showing at the newly-opened Charlie Horse Gallery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Gomez’s work teases the eye, elongated limbs of babies and women presented in backdrops of color.
The exhibit for Gail Buckland’s photographic overview of rockshots opened at the Brooklyn Museum, with rock’s biggest stars caught in the flash bulb. While the stars steal the stage, the emphasis is on the rock photographers that have documented everyone from Elvis to Lil Kim. A small room with imagery devoted to Grace Jones is a particular highlight. But nothing beats a brunette Deborah Harry performing with Blondie at the opening. Guitarist Chris Stein’s photography is also included in the show. On view through January 2010.
M-3 on M-5, I-696, I-75, M53, M-14, I-94, The Lodge Freeway, Michigan Ave., Woodward Ave., 12 Mile Road. Jefferson Ave. I spent some serious seat time in the 2009 BMW M3 in Michigan last week traversing the entirety of the metro region. Big large open, uncrowded roads afford the perfect American version of Autobahn. It makes you understand why car magazines stay put in Detroit and Ann Arbor, where you can actually drive most of the time, (minus a short rush hour and summer construction) unhindered by the traffic nightmares of other driving metropolises. They complain about potholes in Michigan, but there no where as treacherous as the FDR in New York City.
I’m the unashamed backer of all things Detroit, from muscle cars to Vernor’s to Smokey Robinson, vying for American cars, but that’s not to say that I don’t advocate driving an M-3. In fact, if you live in Michigan and are prospering enough to drive an M3 convertible these days, chances are you can probably afford a Chevy Camaro, too. (My test model was priced at $79,170)
Some BMW car purists have come down upon the M3 convertible, scoffing at the beastly version of the 3-series. As Automobile tech editor Don Sherman writes:
When I see the M – for magic – badge, I expect a clenched fist ready to hammer the road into submission. I want a ripped engine note, racy suspension tension, and a blood-thirsty bearing. None of that is present in this car, which reinforces my worst fear – that BMW is softening its most enjoyable products.
This sect believes that the under-performing convertible is sacrilege to this performance oriented badge. Phewy, I say. What’s in a name after all?
In fact, I would argue that the M3, with it’s formidable power is the perfect mesh of speed with sass. There’s nothing like the pure essence of performance in the open air. Not that there was that much open air in Michigan during October. I mostly cruised windows up, and the hardtop cuts a clean unassuming line without telltale gaps.
The M3 convertible reminds that this car is intended for the art of driving, with cup holders tucked in the glove box and storage spaces added like an after thought. In fact, my version, felt fresh out of Germany, ash trays and all.
The interior was neat and sophisticated, wrapped in the right places with tasteful leather.
Onto the business of driving — the M dual-clutch automatic gearshift lever definitely takes some getting used to, and is prone to driver stumbles even after several days on the road. Occasionally, I punched into neutral when I got too fancy and free with the shifter and I second-guess myself on reverse. The shifter is spunky, but it seems as if it’s still evolving, as most auto sticks do in comparison to the satisfaction of shifting manually. (Call me old fashioned.) Once I got the hang of the driving protocol, the 414-hp V-8 M was a vigorous performer.
So who is the BMW M3 convertible? I’d say this is not intended for the average M3 driver. It’s an M3 taster with olfactory additions found in the open air. Ideally, it seems appropriate for summer trips to Martha Vineyard and South Hampton, or visiting wineries in Napa Valley. Bu then again, my mother had a lot of questions about the M3 Convertible. By the end of the trip, she was a fan from the passenger side, in awe of all the tightly wound wunder-machine.
We send our new Gotryke correspondent photographer/blogger Priscilla Vazquez into the depths of CMJ shows armed with her ears and eyes:
I couldn’t help but be reminded of my Great Aunt’s living room upon entering Cake Shop (152 Ludlow St). As the scent of stale beer and floor cleaner filled my nostrils, my eyes took in the wooden paneling on the walls, the record bins at the entrance and I made my way to the basement door. I paid the $8 cover and was told not to worry I was supporting the bands. “I would have rather bought an album,” was all I could think. Subbacultcha, along with Pukekos and Viva Radio, was hosting a showcase of mostly Amsterdam-based artists. They were promoting their analogue issue, a tribute to vinyl and cassettes.
I arrived just as Hospital Bombers was doing their sound check. Their soft rock sound mixed with folksy strings guided me to the front and I sat down to enjoy the show. Next up was Best Coast, a duo based in LA. Smooth, low-key vocals accompanied their fuzzy, surf rock guitar sounds. Their song “The Sun Was High (So Was I)” was one of my favorites that night.
The Moi Non Plus followed with their much heavier rock sound. They put on a much more energetic live show than the previous bands (and the following ones for that matter). Drummer Leon Caren is the founder of the underground Collective SUBBACULTCHA! [click to continue…]
It used to resemble a community center, with telltale signs of it’s history as a public classroom, the answer to a demand for artistic representation. African Americans and Puerto Rican parents, teachers, and community activists in central and East Harlem lobbied for an institution that celebrated the arts of their people. A grassroots effort realized in 1969 has indeed blossomed into a vibrant and progressive institution after 40 years with it’s latest refinishing. Now it looks like a real museum, rising to the occasion of it’s all too important mission — to represent the Latin American art community with some of it’s acquired 6,500 works, and many more stories and cultures interwoven in the fabric of it’s visual representations.
El Museo del Barrio opened their doors to members and special guests this week from the art world. The mood was festive amid the salsa and chatter of new patrons, ushering in the 44-million-dollar renovation by architect Jordan Gruzen. Wood, glass and metal beckoned to passerbys on 5th Ave.
Inside were the coming-out exhibits Nexus New York: Latin/American Artists in the Modern Metropolis curated by Deborah Cullen, Director of Curatorial Programs, which centered upon New York-based artists of Latin American and Caribe descent who produced works from 1900 to 1942. Voce y Visiones, curated by Elvis Fuentes, is a broader examination that covers the depth of the museum’s collection. Here are two diverging shows with the common theme of a museum putting it’s best foot forward.
The corridors were packed with work in both shows — maximizing the space to the gills in a rich and authoritative brush stroke on the Latin American art movement. The recognizable icons Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo were intermixed with Joaquin Torres-Garcia’s “Fourteenth Street.”
Small crowds of people marveled around contemporary work like Ester Hernandez’s provocative “Sun Mad” and a work by Marcos Dimas, discussing the context. The 1987 piece “La Cama” by Pepon Osorio was a focal point in the midst of it all.
The big opening is Sat. It’s free, and rain or shine, it will be busy.
courtesy of NY Times
Fifth Ave. at 104th St. (212-831-7272)—“Voces y Visiones: Four Decades through El Museo del Barrio’s Permanent Collection.” Opens Oct. 17. | “Nexus New York: Latin/American Artists in the Modern Metropolis.” Opens Oct. 17. through Feb. 2010 (Wednesdays through Sundays, 11 to 5.)
All dressed up, but where to go? Our colleague and compatriot food and travel critic extraordinaire Salma Abdelnour has launched a Salmaland — the new where-to-go domain for all things fanciful, filling and fresh in New York City. Salma will reveal where you’ll really find the best NY burger, and she’ll share industry gems along the way, such as” too much demand is the road to sloppiness.” This is not your average food blog –Salma was the travel editor at Food & Wine and the restaurant editor at Time Out New York. She left her job as food editor at O, The Oprah Magazine, to be a freelance food and travel writer. You can’t get much better taste buds than that.
Here’s an excerpt from the world according to Salma:
Café Gitane sums up what’s enchanting about Nolita—and what’s so damned annoying about it. A little café on a side street with deliciously potent coffee; a laid-back, vaguely French-Moroccan vibe; glossy international magazines to browse through; sunlight pouring through the streetside windows. You could spend hours here. Except you can’t get a table, ever. (Unless you show up around 9am on a weekday morning.) Order a cafe creme and the baked eggs with basil or an open-face sandwich of chili-spiked avocado on whole-grain toast, and be reminded why you’re alive, why you’re in this crazy town, and why it’s all worth it. The couscous is better than it needs to be too, especially when you spike it with the harissa that comes on the side. But for that, you’ll have to show up at midday or evening rush hour—and, yes, wait.
Café Gitane. 242 Mott St. between Prince and Houston Sts.; (212) 334-9552.
Prices/Features: C, V (See “How Salmaland Works” for key to letter abbreviations.)
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