Speaking From the Diaphragm
The Vaginal Davis Blog
. . .From the Counsel of Inter-Continental Balistic Principalities
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
had little meeting at my studio with Malik Gaines, the adorably sexy cute son of conceptual artist and Cal Arts Professor Charles Gaines. Malik is curating a big city arts doo rag and wants me to represent. One of the venues is the Folk Art Museum on Wilshire across the street from LACMA. Back in the late 70s early 80s i participated in some educational activities with the space as part of my job at the Municipal Art Gallery at Barnsdall Park. Those were the days, my friend, we really knew how to blend our make-up. Malik has pretty cafe au lait skin, and has an art band called My Barbarian that includes Jade Gorden who use to be girlfriends with Marcus Bastida, who i had a nutty affair with years ago when i was young and foolish. To think i was actually far gone on Marcus. He is married now to a psychiatrist. I hope she gives him free psycho analysis. They have a baby together and Marcus, according to everyone who has seen him lately is very fat and middle aged looking. When i had him he was the ultimate fresh beauty. His mother is a Swedish actress and his father is a famous Columbian architect. He was a docent at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions and also going to USC law school, when we first met, and he volunteered to work at the gallery just so he could be in contact with me, which i felt was very romantic. Early in our relationship he said, "I love you, but can't give you what you want.
What i want is to be killed by a sexual maniac.
.: posted by Vaginal Davis 3:03 PM
Tuesday, August 26, 2003
Oh i forgot to mention that one of my editors from the LA Weekly, "Cadillac" Joe Donnelly and his sexy wife Candy came by Bricktops, along with writer John Albert and Ronna. I love Candy Donnelly she is a showgirl/dancer with Celine Dion's big show in Vegas. Actually she told me that she left the show. I don't blame her. I wouldn't want to live in Las Vegas 24/17. I've only been to that city once and once was more then enough. I don't care if i ever go back. I was expecting the Vegas of the Rat Pack, but that is long gone. You know a city is bad if its too tacky for even ME. But i wouldn't mind tacky if it was good tacky. There is a difference you know. The town is more evil then LA if there could be such a thing because Ms. LA is the ultimate Faustian village, but Vegas takes the pies cake.
Last nite met up with Professor Jose Munoz of NYU for a late nite and i mean late night cap at The Spotlight on Selma and Cahuenga in hOllywood proper. The bartender Chris was working alone and we got to talking and i reminded him that i was the queen who had the impromptu Hustler White after screening party. Jeffreyland and his ex neighbor at the Love Boat apt also stopped by the bar. Me and Jose were in high latina gossip mode. I must have had 4 whiskey sours. It was an unusually quiet night at Spotlight. All Johns no hustlers. Thats like being at a place with all Margot's and no Eve's---very strange indeed. A few rent boys did show up later but were very un-focused.
Had breaky with Shannon Kelley who use to work for Outfest but now does independent programming with Sundance and this new festival in Mexico. We had a nice time eating at the Pantry. Shannon is quite a talented Irish tenor and cello player. He performed at Bricktops in March for St. Paddy's and was explosive.
I've been in quite the olde fashion mood. Last night i had dinner at Phillipe's. I love their French dip sandwiches. I need to pay a visit to Cole's on 6th and Los Angeles street---that will make this mood i'm in complete.
Oh the scripts and offers to do TV keep pouring in. Some tired reality show on ABC wanted me. I don't think they realize how much reality they would get from someone like me. Of course i'm not interested in tepid television, or being in mainstream feature films for that matter. I'll leave those roles for Michael Clark Duncan.
.: posted by Vaginal Davis 12:10 PM
Monday, August 25, 2003
I am sick of Bricktops. The club is just too hot and explosive for its own good. Every week is different and I just can’t keep up with it anymore. Mr. Uncertain was in very good form, dazzling and seductive as ever. I couldn’t remember my lyrics but it didn’t really matter, I was ON in other ways. The theme for the evening was Buster Keaton Realness, and Scotland Zeif from NYC was supposed to perform but he couldn’t change his ticket, so it was just me and Mr. Un holding up the fort. Scotland performed along with Maurice’s Little Bastard last week during the Fishnet Floozy show so actually it was all for the better.
It was our most celebrity studded, with fun underground celebs like Rebekah Del Rio from the movie Mulholland Drive. She is the singer in the Club Silencio scene who does the amazing version of Roy Orbison’s Crying in Spanish---"Llorando" Mulholland Drive like Day of the Locust is the premiere film about the evil of Los Angeles and how this city can destroy you. Ms. Del Rio wants to perform at Bricktops and what a coup that will be. Professor Jose Munoz of NYU who is here taking a respite from Man!hattan really bonded with Ms. Del Rio.
Hannah Sim and Mark Steger of osseus labyrint also paid us a little visit, and brought a bunch of French dignateries including Antoine Chatelet, who is the cultural attache with the French Counsel. You better not mess with him, because if he kills you he has diplomatic immunity. He dragged along Violette Villard who is writing an article for French Vogue on cabaret’s and with her Phillipe Liotard a photographer with Elle Magazine, and he came with French director Benoit Jacuot, who brought french actor Melvil Poupaud who came with his polish boyfriend Pawel Szajda who is in the upcoming new movie Under the Tuscan Sun that co-stars Diane Lane who wasn’t there Friday, but should have been. Also Paul Giamatti who stars in American Splendor was with death rock icon David J.(Bauhaus/Love&Rockets) who is doing the music for this new film about The Black Dahlia murder, and brought with him a posse of folks connected to this upcoming feature including its sexy Turkish director Ramzi Abed, Nora (of The Centimeters), who sings the title track from the movie, Kristen Kerr who plays the Dahlia-based character along with sound designer, John Neff (Mulholland Drive, Bluebob), producer, Brett Morrison (The Cooler), orchestrator and musician, Ego Plum ( Ego Plum And The Ebola Music Orchestra), and pin-up girl Masuimi Max (The Tunnel).
Almost unrecognizeable in a tux was heavy metal party boy pianist Andrew WK. Boy is he ever sexy. He really took a liking to Mr. Uncertain----like everybody’s mother’s brother’s uncle. Joining the insanity was Ron Athey with costume designer "Crepe" Suzette Mathelson(Blue Crush,Crazy/Beautiful) Switzerland’s favorite mother/ son art team Cyril and Rosina Kuhn, art star Urs Fisher, Kid Congo Powers(Nick Cave Band) and bubble butt salt n pepper tennis couple James Blake and Robby Ginepri. Whosh!
Went to see Glen Meadmore perform at the Sunset Junction. He was amazing as usual. It felt good to dance to his barndance tunes under the hot sun, but I paid for it with some major heat exhaustion. Some hot hunky men were floating about, but I had to retire to Daddy Athey’s to watch some videos I have to write about for my column.
Finally got a chance to see Darren Stein’s "Put the Camera on Me". I really loved it. He is one perverse princess of Judea. I thought I was a major puta from the g et go, but he was a control queen ma-nipple-lator at age 7.
I think his younger brother has a little suger in his tank as well. Funny the one friend of his childhood that I wanted to know more about was the queeny black boy. Why wasn’t his parents interviewed? I really felt he needed to address how this negro fit into this white/jewish suburban enclave in the early 80s. The darky was also the most interesting intellectually. His comments around the pool at age 6 or so about his blackness was very intriguing and precocious.
Later I went to Jeffreyland Hilberts annual birthday bash at La Plaza. Great seeing all the olde gang, Like Mrs. Glass, Tom Guzman and Elvia and her handsome husband. I stayed for two hours which is amazing since I wasn’t exactly feeling very social. I’m really turning into a recluse. I’m only happy when I’m completely alone.
another sweet little missive from former runaway Kari Krome in NYC:
after spending a lovely summer day at Wigstock in Thompkins Square Park, the next day was spent travelling by train to Robert Moses beach. The trip was a hag but well worth it. The sun was high and shining, the water a gorgeous blue green, almost tropical, and a slight breeze was blowing. We lay on the sand eating fruit, drinking water, and reading rock an roll and fashion magazines. The water was delicious. I just had to get into that healing salt water. On the way back, we dumped all our shit back at the apartment, and then strolled through the neighborhood. As we rounded the corner, a group of
africans were playing congas and bongos and stciks and percussion instruments on the sidewalk next to a graffiti covered van. we walked up and a littl teeny community garden was having a celebration. We sat and watched
a girl whos locks were wrapped up in a cloth so big, she may well of a had a tire on her noggin, dance all over the sidewalk. children ran around shrieking, and women in tribal wraps fed us vegetarian food. Later i stuffed myself full of red velvet cake.a perfect way to end a summer day in the city
this just in from Dr. Doyle in the south of France:
Cherie,
I read your blog and it makes me long for home. you give me the impression that LA is the land of charming cocktail parties and cute scottish boys. nice trick that.
i'm waiting for one of the boys from mon village to come over - Johan - tall, lanky, big blue eyes and a gorgeous mouth; I kissed him once about two weeks ago at a village fete when he was high and drunk. I told him I think he's very sexy (for being all of 20). I don't know if he's actually going to have the guts to come over tonight though.
I've learned this summer that if you are going to make a habit out of seducing younger men, then you have to take them in hand and boss them around. They are too scared to do anything first.
A simple, obvious truth, I guess. But I'm so used to my aggressive sexuality scaring the pants off men (and not in a good way) that it's kindof exciting to take charge of things...
Then again, I'm too lazy to make a career out of that sort of behavior. Push comes to shove, I'm the one who likes to be face down in the pillow.
Anyway, I'm making the most of my last few days here.
Have I mentioned, by the way, that there's always a gaggle of old women in front of my house? They gather here in the evenings - right up until midnight - to gossip.
I learned that the reason why the old ladies always congregate on my front steps is because the house has a reputation - apparently, the woman who used to live here - Marguerite - gave lots of folks here their first real taste of liquor and adult life. The steps are called 'les escaliers de marguerite.'
This is the major reason why I'll be surprised if Johan accepts my casual invitation to stop by for an apero - because to cross my threshold you literally have to ask a bunch of old ladies to get up so you can pass! It's like having four grandmothers eternally perched on your steps.
I figure, in a way, it's a good filter - any man who wants to fuck me should be proud enough to approach the door and face la committee des dames.
I'll be in London for a bit - probably until the 10th. You should use my apartment between the 28th (thrusday) and then. My subletters should have all cleared out by then.
I do hope you apply for the residency in Berlin. I will wither up and die in LA if you aren't there, but then again I can't stand to see you working and hustling they way you are and for what?
And your work is so much better than Lyle Ashton Harris's or anyone else's. A residency like that in Berlin should turn into better things too - a great way to make getting recognition easier.
And then I can come see you in Berlin, and lure you to this little endroit.
By the way, was Phillip of the dinner party from Montpellier? 'Cause that's right around the corner from me....(hours later)
Well - not only did Johan come over, he brought lots of other boys - we drank all night together and johan and I have plans to go to the gay nude beach together tommorrow.
Remy, who also came over, was his usal charming self, and he's to stop by today and help me clean the basement. I'm sure we'll never actually get to do anything that resembles cleaning anything.
The two of them were draped on each arm all night - I thought about trying to arrange a threesome, but thought that might be pushing my luck.
xxoo
Jennifer
oh and everyone wants Ms. Davis to be a part of something or the other. Received this emug from cute and tight bodied young mulatto Malik from the art band My Barbarian
Dear Ms. Davis,
I hope that you will submit work to a major exhibition I am curating.I’ve been hired by the city of LA to organize part one of a three-part survey of LA black art. My section will contain the best of contemporary work (from 1990 to the present) and will open January 17th at the Luckman
Gallery and Fine Art Gallery at CSULA, as well as the Craft and Folk Art Museum on Wilshire (this is going to be a big, crazy show).While the city sees this as an opportunity to historicize black contributions to LA culture (they intend to launch the mayor’s black history month celebration with this exhibition…), I find this whole historicizing scenario to be problematic, verging on boring, and intend to make this a show that is challenging, fun, and dismissive of certain expectations about
black art”. As curator, I have complete discretion to make the show I want, and the show I want includes work from Vaginal Davis, one of the most important artists working throughout LA’s contemporary period.
I’d be pleased to meet with you, or chat by phone or email, to figure out how you think your work could be best served in this exhibition. While I’m most familiar with you as a performer, I know you also have objects, movies,
zines, etc. Please let me know your thoughts. This show would be a mockery without you, so please, consider it your civic duty! I don’t think I can take no for an answer…
Best, Malik Gaines
Also got a letter from England with a formal request to be part of an art show. And all these movie scripts keep coming my way. I'm not an actor and i don't want to be one.
.: posted by Vaginal Davis 4:24 PM
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