Theatre Bizarre – The Procession

Artwork Via

Theatre bizarre, the infamous (and illegal) underground carnival created by John Dunivant and Ken Poirier, was originally constructed on a plot of land near Michigan State Fair Grounds. Shut down by the City of Detroit in 2010, Theatre Bizarre now calls Masonic Temple it’s permanent home. With the help of his army of minions, John Dunivant, the mastermind behind this event, transforms all seven floors of the temple into an immersive world of unfettered decadence for one night a year. A devoted crew of artists and volunteers spend weeks painstakingly bedecking the temple with props, banners, hand painted signs, and even replace every light bulb in the building with an amber colored bulb to reflect the autumnal palette of John’s vision. Hundreds of musical acts, sideshow performers, burlesque dancers, fire breathers, and tightrope walkers come together to put on a show like no other. It’s beautiful, it’s indulgent, and to those of us who have been a part of this event for so many years, it’s very, very special.

For more information about Theatre Bizarre, it’s history, and even a tour, go here.

This year, Mike D and I decided to dress as Henry Spencer and The Lady in the Radiator from the David Lynch film Eraserhead. The story centers around Henry Spencer, who is left to care for his grossly deformed child in a desolate industrial landscape. Throughout the film, Spencer experiences hallucinations featuring The Lady in the Radiator.

It’s an incredibly bizarre and surreal film, and I absolutely love it.

I created the puffy cheeks and mutant baby from a combination of Styrofoam, paper mache and gauze fabric.

Below is the “real” baby from the film for comparison.

And, voila!

We were recognized by a handful of people (which is always nice) and we were even asked to have our picture taken a few times! Costume success!

Here are some photos from my phone throughout the night.

To give you a little taste of the event, here are two 7 second videos I shot with my phone.

Basically it’s the greatest party on earth.

Thank you so much to Theatre Bizarre and all of the hardworking artists and crew members who work tirelessly to put this amazing night together.

Until next year!

xoxo

Posted in costume, eraserhead, halloween, henry spencer, john dunivant, lady in the radiator, masonic temple, theatre bizarre // Add a Comment

World Wide Photo Walk – Detroit

Back in August, I received an email from my good friend and old roommate Melinda inviting me to participate in the Detroit leg of the World Wide Photo Walk. After doing some poking around and reading about the walk (it’s an annual social photography event where photographers all over the world gather in urban areas to walk around and shoot photos on the same day), I was all “Yes! Of course! How fun!” and then I saw it started at 7am on a Saturday and I was all “Aw hell no, I ain’t doing that.” and then she was all “Stop being a baby.” and I was all “Stay out of my life!” and she was all “You’re being ridiculous.” and I was all “Fine, I’ll do it.”.  Perhaps this is a bit of dramatization, but you’ve come to expect that from me by now.

And so I got my sorry ass up at 5:30am on October 5th to meet Melinda and a bunch of strangers at Eastern Market, and you guys! It turned out to be a really amazing day.

Our group was led by Chita Hunter, a technology trainer of Adobe Software and an instructor at Schoolcraft College. We joined forces with Shawn Lee, the leader of the I See Detroit bus tour, and together, we made for a pretty diverse group of photographers, tourists, and Detroiters of all ages. Chita (below, in the front row with a white shirt) & Shawn (not pictured) made the day really enjoyable and did a great job of keeping our group together and engaged.

Photo by Chita Hunter

Photo by Chita Hunter

We spent a few hours shooting throughout Eastern Market and The Heidelberg Project, which sadly had been victim to arson early that morning, and then headed to Historic Indian Village where we were given two private home tours (whaaaaat!). We ended with lunch at Milano Bakery in Eastern Market and the entire thing was done by like noon. Noon! Most Saturdays, I’m barely out of bed and onto my third bloody mary before 2pm.  Getting up early, man. You all should try it.

Tangential aside – This event was sponsored by Canon and Adobe, and was founded by Scott Kelby who is a well-known Photoshop instructor. As you can imagine, it attracts super techy (and uber talented) photographers with big fancy cameras who talk about FPS rates and AF exposure ranges and other high-tech terminology that makes me yawny. Don’t get me wrong, I totally respect that method of photography, it’s just not my thing. Although the above photos were shot with my digital SLR (and iphone), the majority of the photos I shot that day were from my 50 year old Polaroid land camera, which I’ll be sharing soon as part of my Instant Detroit series.  I thought for sure I’d get many an eye roll walking around with my wonky old Polaroid, but most people were really interested in it, praised me for keeping film alive, and asked a bunch of questions. Photographer solidarity! Fist bumps!

If you have about 5 million hours to spare, you can see ALL the photos (nearly 10,000!) taken on October 5th,  from all over the world during the 2013 World Wide Photo Walk here. Turns out, playing tourist in your own city is a really fun thing to do.

Stay tuned friends! The parade of Polaroids is coming, and she can’t be stopped.

xoxo.

Posted in detroit, digital, eastern market, heidelberg project, i see detroit, indian village, land camera, polaroid, world wide photo walk // Add a Comment

Outdoor Movie Night!

A few weeks ago we had some friends over for an outdoor movie night, and it was such a great time. The film we chose was Purple Rain because a) Prince is a goddamn genius and b) we wanted something fun and campy, which Purple Rain totally delivers. Not to mention it has a pretty dope soundtrack. Despite it’s misogynistic undertones, I really love this movie. Perhaps it’s because my parents took me to see it at a drive-in movie theatre when I was only 6 years old. (Yeah, my parents are pretty cool, even though they made me cover my eyes a few times).

A friend of ours brought over his projector (similar to this), and within ten minutes he had it connected to our DVD player and stereo. I had no idea it was so easy! For the movie screen, I strung a piece of thick(ish) twine along the side of our garage, attached curtain ring clips, and hung two flat white sheets from the clips. I folded back the extra material at the bottom and placed some rocks on top to keep the sheets from blowing around too much. Super Sexy Instant Movie Theatre? CHECK.

I scattered some blankets, pillows, and a whole bunch of chairs throughout the lawn. Can we talk about my chair addiction for a minute? I set out 14 chairs for this party and still had at least 10 more on deck (no exaggeration). I.can’t.stop.buying.chairs. And garbage picking them. And stalking them on Craigslist. What can I say, I need chairs like Amanda Bynes needs Twitter. I guess we all have our crosses to bear?

I also tucked some candles inside mason jars and scattered them throughout the yard along with some trays for people to set their drinks and snacks on. Once it became dark outside and everything was illuminated by the candles, it looked pretty charming, if I do say so myself.

No movie night is complete without high fructose corn syrup laden junk food, so we put together a popcorn & candy buffet with a variety of popcorn toppings, gummy bears, pixie sticks, twizzlers, and movie theatre candy. And Purple Haze Beer, because duh.

I snapped a couple of pics with my phone after everyone had taken their seats and just before we started the movie.

And then it was showtime…

Boom. Purple Rain effing DELIVERED. We laughed and sang and oohed and ahhed it was SO. MUCH. FUN. I can’t wait to do it again.

And so. Because I love you, I put together a list of things for you to create your very own outdoor movie night.

The Essentials!

• A projector (and either a laptop or dvd player). For extra bonus points, connect the projector to your stereo for better sound quality.
• A white flat sheet (double up if it’s thin).
• Lawn chairs.
• Blankets & pillows for lounging on the grass (plus extra throw blankets in case it’s chilly).
• String lights & candles for ambiance.
• Popcorn and a variety of toppings – cheddar seasoning, melted butter, sea salt, parmesan, black pepper, and whatever else sounds delicious. Maybe shredded coconut & melted caramel? Don’t let me stop you.
• Popcorn & candy boxes
• Movie theater style candy.
• Craft beer & bottled sodas (extra cuteness points if you match your beer to your movie).
• A crowd pleasing film – perhaps a campy horror film for a Halloween themed movie night?

Now get to it because we all know this beautiful weather (at least in Michigan) isn’t going to last much longer! Is it just me or did this summer fly by? There are still so many warm weather activities that I want to do! For example, I really want to go horseback riding bicycling. Does anyone know where I can actually buy this thing?

I keep throwing my wallet at the screen, but nothing is happening.

Hey Summer, don’t leave yet!

xoxo.

Posted in backyard movie, outdoor movie, prince, projector, purple rain, white sheet movie screen // Add a Comment

Majestic Cafe Art Show – Closing Reception

Dear People of my Blog,

Tonight is the closing reception of my latest art show and you’re all invited! I shot approximately one billion Polaroids and this is your final chance to see them before they come down forever.  It’s at Majestic Cafe in Detroit from 8pm to 11pm and it’s free to attend.

And so! Here’s a rundown of what you can expect to see from The Wayward Hussies Closing Reception.

Over the course of the summer I shot all my favorite spots inside the city of Detroit. This heart shaped Polaroid collage is mounted on an old salvaged door from Eastern Market and it’s one of my favorite pieces in the history of the world. I kind of want to see it go to a good home, but I’m also very selfish and want to keep it. But no, I should definitely sell it. But then again, it would look really nice in my living room. No. Yes. No.  Please help.

It was even spotted & approved by The Heidelberg Project!

I also did several Polaroid emulsion lifts mounted onto reclaimed wood from Eastern Market.

Some have already sold, but there are still a few more available! Come buy one and then you can stare at it inside your house and think of me every day. Forever and ever. Until the day you die. Just kidding, you’ll never die.

In addition to my work, there are also paintings from Lisa Marie Krug, Mixed Media pieces from Jessica Brown, and a portrait series by Kim Hoxworth. Below is the photograph Kim took of Mike D and I. It’s a social commentary piece in which we are expressing our feelings about Syria. Or was it Miley Cyrus? I don’t know, pick one.

So come on out and party with me, and maybe pick up a little something to bedazzle your walls. Or don’t, and then regret your life.  YOUR CALL.

Majestic Cafe
4140 Woodward, Detroit

xoxo

Posted in art show, collage, detroit, eastern market, heart shaped, heidelberg project, majestic cafe, polaroid, wayward hussies // Add a Comment

Beach Timez

Last weekend I took a road trip with 17 (seventeen!) of my friends to a beach resort in Oscoda Michigan, about three hours north of Detroit. We rented cottages on Lake Huron and the weather was absolutely perfect.

We sunbathed, swam, played volleyball, canoed, drank cocktails, grilled food, and made a camp fire on the beach every night. It’s times like these that remind me how lucky I am to have an amazing group of funny, creative, smart, and supportive friends. We go on this trip every year and I hope we continue to do so forever!

I shot a bunch of footage with my iphone, and crammed it all into a little video. This song pretty accurately sums up how I feel about these people.

I shot a few photos with some very expired Polaroid sepia film…

We created a unique hashtag (#fauxtiki) for Instagram and Vine to document our photos and videos of the trip. Have you ever done that for a vacation or special event like a wedding or birthday? I’m into it.

The antique shopping in Oscoda was straight. up. fatal. I got all of this crap for like, I don’t know, $5? It was bonkers. This mid-century swag light fixture is so pretty, and although I have no idea where I’m going to put it, I’m totally in love. I want to do mommy & me yoga with it. And a Huey Lewis album for $1? Dude. Yes.

If I know a good time, and I think I do, this weekend was tops.

xoxo

Posted in Beach, Fauxtiki, globe, Great Lakes, huey lewis, instax mini, john lennon, Lake Huron, land camera, lucite, Michigan, mid century, Oscoda, polaroid, Sepia Film, swag light fixture, vintage, wine rack // 2 Comments