tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post2121822564861397259..comments2024-03-28T07:52:07.647-04:00Comments on venezia blog: Il Pagliaccio on the Vaporetto, This AfternoonSteven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-9514254071902631792014-03-13T14:23:30.734-04:002014-03-13T14:23:30.734-04:00I haven't seen that series, Sasha, but your re...I haven't seen that series, Sasha, but your reading of it, and of the whole zombie obsession, is an interesting one. There's something deeply fatalistic about it, regardless of how much it's pitched as just a good old disturbing "diversion." What's more, I just find it boring.Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-86646228560826907462014-03-04T09:38:05.458-05:002014-03-04T09:38:05.458-05:00I was watching Walking Dead TV-series for two seas...I was watching Walking Dead TV-series for two seasons and had an impression that all that zombie discourse is a kind of testing grounds preparing populace to a scenario of catastrophic scarcity of resources that will result in a large portion of their neighbors becoming excessive burden for the neighborhood. These 'surplus" people will become hungry, dressed in rags, dirty, barely moving because of undernourishment, guided by the most basic instinct of getting any supplies anywhere there are still some - they'll closely resemble zombies of today's mass culture. And the mechanism of alienation, the readiness to consider these former colleagues and neighbors as someone "already doomed" is being installed in the mass consciousness with every zombie movie. <br /><br />As for the Lenin I'm 98% sure he never was in Venice. But I know how he lived in other European cities and can practically see Ilyich strolling calli e campi:)Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05288500845815423152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-44597604442422691912014-03-01T14:20:14.366-05:002014-03-01T14:20:14.366-05:00That sounds like an interesting event, Francesco, ...That sounds like an interesting event, Francesco, and sounds more in keeping with what I understand was the original impetus behind the people who reintroduced Carnevale to Venezia. Sometimes people still make attempts these days, but they are uphill battles, it seems. Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-11121739928307775672014-03-01T14:17:06.816-05:002014-03-01T14:17:06.816-05:00Yes, I don't really get the Zombie Walks. I me...Yes, I don't really get the Zombie Walks. I mean, I understand that zombies are now the standard metaphor for mindless (Capitalist) consumption, and I imagine at one point Zombie Walks may have had something a bit subversive about them--at least, folks of a certain age in Asheville, North Carolina seemed to believe so--but now...? <br /><br />By the way, did Lenin actually ever visit Venice? Everyone else did, including Nietzsche, and of course Trostsky lived in NYC for a time. Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-35941819095957945982014-02-25T06:26:38.285-05:002014-02-25T06:26:38.285-05:00I agree that such Zombie Walk may be just a commer...I agree that such Zombie Walk may be just a commercial over-exploitation of something which has no link with Carnival. Some 15-20 years ago (time pass quickly indeed) I remember that at Campo San Maurizio there was a celebration of "Carnevale della Morte" which was so deeply entrenched into the essence of carnival itself. There it really looked like we were living a deep sense of Carnival, and understanding more about the city itself and its contrasts.Francesconoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-44290669505393197812014-02-25T02:01:53.617-05:002014-02-25T02:01:53.617-05:00I think that the Carnivale visuals should be enric...I think that the Carnivale visuals should be enriched by something original and unexpected. Staging that Zombie Walk the organizers just added a well-established, even overexploited discourse to the the one that is equally void of surprises. It's something purely mechanical, I think.<br /><br />I was shooting a toy polar bear in Venice - something to add an element that is not usually included in a postcards of the city. Next December I'll make photos of Venetians admiring a bust of Lenin -"Lenin in Venice" will be a chapter in my book, a tongue-in-cheek parody of pseudo-research. <br /><br />Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05288500845815423152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-44071134371177124682014-02-24T14:08:17.324-05:002014-02-24T14:08:17.324-05:00I think a couple Lenins or Stalins may be exactly ...I think a couple Lenins or Stalins may be exactly what this Carnevale needs, Sasha, but I've yet to see any. You'd think any worthwhile Lenin or Stalin impersonator would make it a point of pride not to let the cold get to them. <br /><br />I went to one Zombie Walk in 2007 in Asheville, North Carolina and that was enough for me. I think I'll leave that subject to others as well. Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-11457917786998147742014-02-24T14:04:38.797-05:002014-02-24T14:04:38.797-05:00Yes, you wouldn't think two sequins positioned...Yes, you wouldn't think two sequins positioned as tear drops would create such an effect--but he does really suggest something of Leoncavallo's famous aria. Without the sequins, I think he'd just look thoughtful, or bored.Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-57970398736860775022014-02-24T05:06:43.564-05:002014-02-24T05:06:43.564-05:00At Saturday near Red Square I was planning to shoo...At Saturday near Red Square I was planning to shoot portraits of Stalin and Lenin impersonators that are posing there professionally. There were 3 Stalins and at least a couple of Lenins, most of them resembled the dead stars only vaguely - like the most weird Elvis "twins" echo Elvis in a very strange yet discernible way. <br /><br />But the wind was so chilly making the guys sulk so I decided to do it some other - warmer - day.<br /><br />Will you write about Zombie Walk? Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05288500845815423152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-33517129554723612652014-02-23T18:07:37.141-05:002014-02-23T18:07:37.141-05:00He looks so sad....He looks so sad....Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15305773287880023217noreply@blogger.com