Tickets on Sale for New Matthew Barney Film at BAM

Tickets are now on sale for the premier of Matthew Barney's new film, River of Fundament, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The film, clocking in at nearly six hours (including two intermissions), will have a single daily screening from February 12 - 16. From BAM's web site:

"Visionary artist Matthew Barney makes his BAM debut with the world premiere screening of River of Fundament, a radical reinvention of Norman Mailer’s novel Ancient Evenings. In collaboration with composer Jonathan Bepler, Barney combines traditional modes of narrative cinema with filmed elements of performance, sculpture, and opera, reconstructing Mailer’s hypersexual story of Egyptian gods and the seven stages of reincarnation, alongside the rise and fall of the American car industry.

The film’s central scene is an abstraction of Mailer’s wake, set in a replica of the late author’s apartment in Brooklyn Heights and featuring Maggie Gyllenhaal, Paul Giamatti, Elaine Stritch, Ellen Burstyn, Joan La Barbara, and jazz percussionist Milford Graves. Alluring and intense, this epic, multidimensional experience is a sprawling allegory of death and rebirth within the contemporary American landscape."

Purchase tickets HERE.

River of Fundament to have Australian Premier at the Adelaide Festival

Shortly after it's world premier at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Matthew Barney's new film River of Fundament will open at the Adelaide Festival in Australia. The film will screen on March 2 and 3. Buy tickets here.

 

October Matthew Barney Exhibitions / Screenings

California State University Long Beach will screen all five movies in the Cremaster Cycle next month, in conjunction with their exhibition of Matthew Barney's special effects collaborator Gabe Bartolos: Abhorrence and Obsession  (running through December 8). The screenings will be held on three consecutive Saturdays, October 5, 12, and 19. Ticket info and the full schedule are here.

Also next month, Matthew Barney's drawing exhibition The Subliming Vessel (aka La Chambre de Sublimation) will open at the Bibliotheque National de France in Paris on October 8. A version of the exhibition was previously on view at the Morgan Library in New York, but the French installation will include materials drawn from the BnF's collection that were not shown in New York. The exhibition includes approximately 80 drawings, created between 1988 and 2011 and related to projects from the Cremaster Cycle through the currently in-process River of Fundament. Barney will also create a new work in the Drawing Restraint series at the BnF, in a performance that will be filmed for future use. The exhibition runs through January 5.

Cremaster Week on Network Awesome

Next week (July 25 - 29) will be Cremaster Week on Network Awesome. The site will be streaming the five Cremaster films (one each weekday) plus related documentaries and archival footage. This is a great chance to learn more about the symbolism in the Cremaster films. We at CremasterFanatic.com are very excited!

Here is the week's schedule:

Monday, July 25 - Cremaster 1 with:

Doc - Video: The New Wave (1973)
WGBH documentary about the beginning of Video Art

Collection: The Goodyear Blimp
Interesting video and interviews about the Goodyear Blimp

Talk Show - Matthew Barney at the Hirshhorn
Interview with the director of the museum about his varied work and inspiration

Doc - Busby Berkeley
Amazing Director/Choreographer whose dazzling set-based dance routines broke many barriers in film.

Tuesday, July 26 - Cremaster 2 with:

Doc - Slayer
1988 documentary about the meanest band on the planet

Collection: The Mormon Tabernacle Organ
Video and interviews about one of the world's largest organs. This collection is actually vastly entertaining.

Doc - The Great American Cowboy (1973)
An extremely arty documentary about 2 rival cowboys. Won the Academy award for best Doc that year.

Talk Show - Norman Mailer
He's always provocative, that guy...

Doc - Gary Gilmore
In-depth documentary about the serial killer with a mystic past.


Wednesday, July 27 - Cremaster 3 with:

Talk Show - Richard Serra
Great walk-through interview with Richard Serra on Charlie Rose.

Doc - N.Y.H.C
Get a mosh-eye view from this 90's documentary about the Hardcore scene. Tons of candid interviews and great concert footage.

Talk Show - Aimee Mullins
Brilliant TED lecture on what it means to be a super-hero + a spot from the Today show.

Collection: The Chrysler Building
Short videos and a documentary about the Chrysler Building's history and media legacy (note: includes Godzilla)


Thursday, July 28 - Cremaster 4 with:

Art: Nam June Paik & Ryuichi Sakamoto - All Star Video (1984)
Super psychedelic video art from two of the innovators. Great version for lo-fi quality

An Evening with Fred Astaire
Made-for-prime-time TV special with the kick of the tap dance and a ton of guest stars.

Collection: Nervous Gender
Extremely edgy synthpunk group from San Francisco in the early 80s. Includes a few live concerts and some baffling music videos.

Talk Show- Matthew Barney
Join Matt on elaborate walk-through of his Guggenheim show.

Collection: The International Isle Of Man Tourist Trophy Race
First person view of the world-record breaking fastest lap around the island plus other fun stuff. Again - more enjoyable than you'd expect.


Friday, July 29 - Cremaster 5 with:

Collection: Ursula Andress
See the Swiss sex symbol in a wide variety of silly Italian films + great ultra-mod interview

Budapest 1936-2008
Archival documentary and supplementary video that show the drastic changes Budapest suffered in the war.

Doc - Dead Men's tales: Harry Houdini
in-depth documentary about Houdini's life and carer. Full of jaw dropping footage.

Late Night Cremaster Marathon in Chicago May 24

Chicago-area Cremaster Fanatics can catch a late-night screening of the entire Cremaster Cycle starting at 10 pm on May 24 at Late Bar (3534 Belmont Ave.). We suspect this is an "unauthorized" screening so the quality of the projection may be iffy, but when else will you be able to enjoy a few cocktails while watching the Cremaster Cycle?

Matthew Barney to Premier Drawing Restraint 17 and Receive POV Award in San Francisco

Matthew Barney will receive the Persistance of Vision Award at the 54th San Francisco International Film Festival. The Persistance of Vision Award is given yearly to a filmmaker who works outside of traditional narrative filmmaking. Previous recipients include Errol Morris, Guy Maddin, and Kenneth Anger.

Barney will receive the award at the North American premier of Drawing Restraint 17 at 5 pm on Saturday, April 30 at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas. The award will be presented by critic and curator Glen Helfand, who will also interview Barney before the audience. Admission to the interview and screening is $25. For more information and to purchase tickets visit http://sffs.org/content.aspx?pageid=2145

Guardian of the Veil Screening in Manchester, UK

Matthew Barney's Guardian of the Veil, (which was filmed during a live performance at the Manchester Opera House in 2007) will be screened as part of the Supersonic Festival in Manchester, England from October 22 - 24. This is the first segment of Barney's seven-part Ancient Evenings series (the second part, Ren, was filmed in Los Angeles in 2008; the third segment, Khu, is currently being produced in Detroit), based on a book by Norman Mailer about ancient Egyptian death rites.

The Supersonic Festival states that this is the first time Guardian of the Veil will be publicly projected. However, New Yorkers can watch the video (on a monitor) in the Greater New York exhibition at PS1 through October 18.

Matthew Barney Live in Detroit September 15

We've received confirmation that Matthew Barney will introduce the screening of Cremaster 4 and Cremaster 1 (they're screening the films in the order they were made) at the Detroit Institute of Arts at 7 PM on September 15. Prior to the screening, there will be a cocktail reception with Matthew Barney at 6 PM - tickets are available for $125 (partly tax-deductible). The DIA screenings will continue with Cremaster 2 and Cremaster 5 on September 22 and Cremaster 3 on September 29. To order tickets for the reception with Barney on September 15, contact Tarya Stanford at 313-833-4020 or tstanford@dia.org.

More Cremaster Screenings and Matthew Barney Live Appearance in Detroit

International Film Circuit has updated their list of upcoming US screenings of The Cremaster Cycle, which now includes dates through November. The next stop is Oklahoma City (Aug 26-29), followed by a Labor Day Weekend screening in Chicago (Sept 3-9), then Atlanta, Portland (OR), Cleveland, Washington (D.C.), Houston, Kansas City, and Pittsburgh. Our informant tells us that The Cremaster Cycle will also be screened at The Detroit Institute of Arts on Wednesdays Sept. 15, 22, and 29 and that Matthew Barney (who is currently filming a new project called Khu in Detroit) is tentatively scheduled to make a live appearance in conjunction with the film screening on September 15. We will publish more information on this appearance when we receive it.

Cremaster Cycle and De Lama Lamina Open in Cambridge, MA Next Week

The Cremaster Cycle continues on it's re-release tour across the US, opening next week at Landmark's Kendall Square Cinema in Cambridge, Massachusetts. All five films in the series (and Barney's Brazillian epic De Lama Lamina) will be screened daily from June 25 - July 1.

Cremaster Cycle and De Lama Lamina Open in LA This Friday

The re-release of Matthew Barney's Cremaster Cycle and De Lama Lamina opens for a one-week run in Los Angeles this Friday through June 17. The entire cycle (plus De Lama Lamina) will be screened each day (in numerical order rather than in the order they were filmed) at Landmark's Nuart Theater.

Matthew Barney at IFC FIlm Center New York

The Cremaster Cycle is coming to the IFC Film Center in New York City from May 19 - June 3. One ticket will admit you to a double-feature of Cremaster 1 & 2 or Cremaster 4 & 5, or a single screening of Cremaster 3. There is also a special ticket available for $30 that will allow you to watch the consecutive screenings of all five films. Matthew Barney, himself, will appear for a Q&A following the 7pm screening of Cremaster 4 & 5 on May 20. This show will probably sell out quickly, so buy your tickets now! For more information (or to order tickets), visit the IFC Film Center web site.

Cremaster Cycle U.S. Theatrical Release This Spring

It turns out the Cremaster Cycle / De Lama Lamina screenings in Seattle that we previously reported are part of a wider theatrical release of Matthew Barney's films via International Film Circuit. The films are currently slated to be screened in four U.S. cities: Seattle, New York, Los Angeles, and Boston. International Film Circuit's web site has more information on the venues and dates. After opening in these cities, the Cremaster Cycle will tour across the country over the summer and fall. If you are interested in hosting the films, rental rates (35mm prints) are surprisingly reasonable, starting at $500 per film.

Cremaster Fanatics should note that Matthew Barney will appear for a Q&A session at the screening at the IFC Film Center in New York on May 19 [Note: The date has been changed -- Barney will now be speaking after the 7 pm screening of Cremaster 4 and 5 on May 20]. Also, sadly, the press release states that the, "Epic Masterwork is Not Now Nor Will it Ever be Available on DVD".

Cremaster Cycle and De Lama Lamina Screenings in Seattle

Cremaster Fanatic Julianna informed us that De Lama Lamina and the entire Cremaster Cycle are going to be screened at the SIFF Cinema in Seattle from April 9-15. You can see the screening schedule and buy tickets HERE. For true fanatics, there will be a marathon screening of all five Cremaster films and De Lama Lamina on Sunday, April 11.

Matthew Barney Theater 3000

The EFA Project Space in New York City is holding an event on Thursday, April 23 called The Glorified Docent, a screening of bootlegged art films with live color commentary from guest critics based on the structure of Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K), the American cult television comedy series that aired from 1988 to 1999. EFA has not released a list of the films they will be showing, but rumor has it that at least one Cremaster film will be screened. The guest critics include Art Fag City, David Coggins, Bill Cole, Steve Dumain, the Eh-Team, Sarah Hromack, Lady Rizo, Nathan Shafer, and others. The screening follows a panel discussion (titled "The Future of Panel Discussions") that starts at 6:00 PM.

Drawing Restraint 13 Screening in Dallas, TX

Carolyn Sortor, creator of the Matthew Barney-inspired video Creamistress 6, is curating a series of video (and other media-based art) exhibitions at Conduit Gallery in Dallas, Texas. The series, called The Program, is presented by the Video Association of Dallas and co-curated by Bart Weiss and Charles Dee Mitchell.

As part of The Program, Matthew Barney's Drawing Restraint 13 will be screened on three consecutive Saturday evenings: July 26, August 2, and August 9. Please follow this link for a full schedule and more information.

Drawing Restraint at the Serpentine Gallery

We've started receiving reports on the Serpentine Gallery's Drawing Restraint exhibition, including a number of people who ran into Matthew Barney at the exhibition or elsewhere in London. The Serpentine has a "No Photography" policy for the exhibition, but we've been promised a few clandestine photos.

Cremaster Fanatic Andrew sent us some photographs of the Drawing Restraint Volume V book and the following report:






"As you enter the gallery there is a bank of 8 screens showing various drawing restraints and when you move in to the second room there are the vitrines shown in Drawing restraint Volume 1. IN the first of the large rooms is the Ambergris scultpture which is connected via a long white rope to "holographic entrypoint" in a room on the opposite side of the gallery. In the central atrium he performed a drawing restraint where he climbed the four corners of the gallery to draw on the ceiling. He was supposed to do a fifth climb but it couldn't be completed, he described the work as "a beautiful failure". The exhibition catalogue is about 230 pages and is similar in format to Vols 1-3. It spans the whole Drawing restraint series 1-15 and includes a number of previously unseen images. I've attached some photos (sorry about the quality i only had my phone to hand). The limited edition portfolio is beautiful. The eight images are mounted on paper that is signed, numbered and embossed with the field emblem. They are all housed in a huge white self lubricating resin box. Each box has been individually customised by Matthew with a series of scratches/scores and gouges. In total it weighs apporximately 16.5 kilos!

I also went to the film screening last night where he also did a Q&A session afterwards. The films were great and the Q&A session was interesting. I asked him about how Guardian of the Veil (which is what he called it last night so it appears to be the correct title) and how it related to the cremaster films and he said that Guardian fo the veil is hopefully the start of a longer project where he will depict the seven levels of the descent to death (based on a book he read, the name of which completely escapes me at the moment) and that this first one was meant to be a funeral for the cremaster series. He also said that this new series of work will be live pieces done in real time, i hope they get filmed for a showing though! Aftwerwards he was happy to stay around and talk to everyone and he was incredibly friendly and chatty."

Cremaster 2 @ AFI New York

The Anthology Film Archives in NYC will be screening Cremaster 2 on July 28th and August 1st as part of their "The Mistress and the Muse: The Films of Normal Mailer" series:

www.anthologyfilmarchives.org/schedule/?start=2007-7-22&end=2007-7-31&submit=Search
www.anthologyfilmarchives.org/schedule/?start=2007-8-01&end=2007-8-07&submit=Search

"An elaborate reworking of the gothic western, the second film in Barney's CREMASTER cycle (though the third produced – he didn't make the films in order) takes us to the salt flats of Utah and to the heart of a modern day American myth. Loosely based on Norman Mailer's THE EXECUTIONER'S SONG, CREMASTER 2… explores the mythology surrounding career-criminal Gary Gilmore: his relation to Harry Houdini [as played by Mailer himself]…who was possibly Gilmore's grandfather; his conception; his notorious murder of a gas station attendant; his Mormonism and belief in the redemptive powers of immortality; and his execution, carried out in a final sequence of considerable power… Combining majestic shots of the Utah landscape with a trash aesthetic that takes in rodeo, thrash metal and 1970s kitsch Americana, Barney elevates – much as Mailer did – the tale of Gilmore into a meditation on fate and martyrdom." –CHANNEL FOUR