Controversial Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan is infamous for his sculptural portrayals of Pope John Paul II being felled by a meteorite and a childlike Hitler kneeling and praying, as well as a performance piece at the Museum of Modern Art, where he hadan actor don a giant Picasso head and engage visitors. Although it’s been seven years since the 50-year-old Pop-conceptualist has had a solo show in America, Cattelan has been busy in Europe, as witnessed by the survey show of recent works at the Menil Collection in Houston. Integrated by the artist into the museum’s collection of medieval and modernist works, the show presents a dialogue between the present and the past that ironically comments on religion, politics, and art history.
When we came across this fantastic infographic rating the relative trustworthiness of men based on facial hair, we were impressed by the level of detail, but remained skeptical of the findings. After the jump we’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite facial hair in pop culture and decided to test out their ranking system. What do you think: Pink Flamingos-induced childhood nightmares withstanding, does John Waters really deserve to be sitting right next to Adolf Hitler?
The RZA’s The Tao of Wu is part brilliant autobiography, part collection of insights and lessons learned along the way, always tying back to seminal works and natural laws. Last week he kicked off a book tour at Barnes and Noble in Union Square, where he read a few bits from the memoir and answered questions. Virtually everyone in the packed room was a fan, waiting patiently while the catchy, beginning beat of “Shame on a Nigga” played in endless loop. There was one hater in the front row who tried to throw a multi-part question attack. The RZA gracefully deflected those punches with a big smile and positive ideas.
The next day I spent an hour across the table from the RZA, who had on the same sunglasses from the event, but pulled them off for a few seconds to show me his eyes. He’s a tall man, and the height can be imposing, but his smile comes easily and often. And once he starts talking about ideas, his presence is disarming. After the jump, some of the highlights from our conversation.
