Sunday, June 13, 2010

Exit Through the Gift Shop

I recently caught a film at The Uptown Lagoon Theatre called Exit Through the Gift Shop. I had heard little about this film, only that it involved a very well known (and liked - by me) street artist known as Banksy. The film started out promising, showing a somewhat goofy and likable man, Theirry Guetta, who enjoyed nothing more in his life but filming. I won't give away the pace or events of the movie, but this love transforms into somewhat of an obsession. Through connections he gets to observe some of the most notorious street artists in the world.

If you're not familiar with the works of Shephard Fairey, as I was not, remember this image?
This is by far Fairey's most universally famous print. However, he's quite well known for his images of Andre the Giant and others plastered on buildings. Fairey, as well as most street artists, has taken a page out of the pop art book and made repetitious marks on the cities as trademarks and political statements. None have done so much "damage" as Banksy. His identity remains unknown to the authorities, which for him is quite a good thing. He appears quite a bit in the film, presenting hilarious commentary, however, you never do get to see his face. Banksy's art has always inspired and bothered people in his native UK because he's really not afraid to expose his opinion. Case and point:
This film was not only interesting because it showed the process of the street art - in some cases involving Disneyland security - but because it opened the discussion for what defines "art" quite poignantly. *See previous post on Jeff Koons for more opinions* As Banksy points out in the film, Andy Warhol repeated images to make them meaningless, when someone else copies Andy Warhol now....what would that mean? If nothing at all? Overall, it exposes the art world as being pretentious sheep who would never stop and ask themselves these questions. Does the viewing public even care at all?

Go see it : )

FINISHED - for now...

Saturday, June 12, 2010

The Depot Tavern


I woke up this morning with the dream of watching excellent futbol with a Guinness in one hand and a fork in the other shoveling a Cornish pasty into my mouth. Unfortunately, more than just I had this dream. So when we came bounding expectingly at the door of Brit's Pub we were met by more than 100 people just lined up around the side of the building waiting to get in. Not wanting to wait in the rain for a very packed bar, we checked out the Local...then Newsroom...then Keirans. All were packed full to the brim with fans and non fans alike. We were hungry......SO hungry. Looking across the street, we noticed that the Depot Tavern, attached to First Ave, was finally open! The giant garage door was open, providing a rain-free, empty tabled haven to us weary travelers.

The service was quick, food was great, and viewing was fantastic. Because they'd only been open a couple days, the owner was giving out some samples so we got to try the delicious cheese curds....and oh my. Oh my. Cheese curds.... They have an afternoon deal, which I got, for a Leine's, burger or hot dog and fries for $9.95. The burger was big and delicious, fries were great, and a Leine's is always good. Then, free pints for every US goal! (Unfortunately we only got the 1 goal...) Other than the specials and free cheese curds, they do have quite the beer selection and everything on the menu looked fantastic. Case and point, Lindsay and her Diamond Dog. I'm pretty sure this was a hot dog wrapped in bacon inside a pretzel roll...
The game was great - as was the venue - overall a wonderful afternoon. Check out The Depot Tavern the next time you're in Downtown Minneapolis!