It gave shape to the Beat Generation and provided the credo for the Hippie Movement. Yet i
t’s hard to believe that they were only in their mid-twenties when they went on the epic adventure that would eventually provide the material for the bookOn The Road.
Perhaps having grown up through the Depression and having witnessed a World War, everyone seemed an age beyond their years back then.
As a result the cast in the film adaptation of the book- which includes Kristen Stewart from the teen smash Twilight - have a ready-made youth appeal even though the novel is now over 60 years old.
This is perhaps ideal since On The Road is still regarded by many as something everyone should read before they reach twenty – at least once.
Francis Ford Coppola again finds himself as one of America’s most active cultural gate-keepers; he's been trying to get this film made for years. He landed the screen rights back in 1979.
This will be the first time On The Road has been turned into a movie. It's only the second time an actual Kerouac novel has been given the Hollywood treatment. The first, starring a young George Peppard back in 1960 was based on the amazing novella The Subterraneans.
As befit the times it was little more than a teensploitation flick – wild’n’wanton girls!!!! drug taking hoodlums!!!!…etc. It does feature a cameo from Gerry Mulligan who also provides some amazing music.
Directed by Walter Salles (The Motorcycle Diaries) this time 'round Kerouac’s work has been given a completely different quality of attention. The novel is a significant part of the countries cultural heritage (and identity); its adaptation has been approached with sensitivity and an awareness that capturing its essence on film is like taking charge of a national treasure.
Of course the movie will never have the same impact as the book - which honoured marginalised cultures like Bebop, Buddhism and the hobo in a way that remains fixed in America’s consciousness to this day.
Maybe the best Coppola and his young cast can hope is that it’ll become a film everyone should see at least once before they reach twenty; and perhaps that’s enough.
What a spread. The curators proved to have a good eye by putting on the first ever CU+P gallery exhibition and by choice of venue - expansive, unassuming with a maze of wall-space around which to navigate. Sergei was in fine form, as were Juergen Alker (of Alkr) and Francis (of Greensleeves To A Ground). Both, like me, came to share in the enthusiasm.
(Among other things) Sergei wore a beautiful navy blue blazer and a silk/ cotton/ linen off-white button-down Ralphla shirt. Crisp. Francis wore a blue check madras Ralphla tie and a pair of brilliantly beat up All Stars. Over these sneakers we bonded immediately. Juergen rocked a red and blue hi-tech, subtle spec anorak by Staples. Very tasteful.
There's me in a pair of wing-tips in conversation with Francis, as captured immaculately by Sergei himself.
Next day, back in London. Dinner with friends; Sam Bully, Sharp Chris, Kev Rowland, Jimmy Mellor, Ian and Ian from Hunky Dory, Dr Martin and myself.
What a spread. It was the idea of the Hunky Dory crew. It was a great idea. As with Francis, the core of the relationships began with a common interest in clothes. Just as the night before, it felt like the start of something significant - altho I'm not as yet sure what that might be.
There's Dr Martin in a white / blue strip Oxford button-down Ralphla sitting next to Jimmy in a Brooks Bros white / blue Oxford button-down shirt. Captured, rather clumsily by me.
Next stop, Paris for the Paul Smith Show. The adventure continues...
A note about Hamburg: really amazing place; met some incredibly hospitable people there - special thanks to Dennis Tietz and Julia for the totally spontaneous guided tour!
The way he looks is part of the Gould effect.It is not so much that he seems so ordinary as that he seems so little like a star.
His clothes, whether custom-made suits or crumpled fatigues, never quite fit; his hair could use a trim; and he can raise a heavy beard (as he is now doing) in a matter of days.
Time Magazine, Sept 1970
In his latter years, Gould and legendary Hollywood comedian Groucho Marx became friends. Gould remembers:
Once "when I was in my long-hair-and-overalls period, I changed a lightbulb over Groucho's bed. He said, 'That's the best acting I've ever seen you do.'
Wrote a feature for Grafik Magazine a while ago; pivotal moments in fashion photography and menswear.
At certain points unrelated elements collide, having a major impact on how we dress and how we view ourselves as men. Bailey's portraits of the Krays; Bryan Ferry dressed GI style, for example.
If I wrote a piece on what's happening now, I'd kick off with CLOSE UP AND PRIVATE - a completely radical take on menswear photography.
It's not just the hard crops, the brilliant styling, the lack of credits or concern for branding, or the playfulness. It's all of the above done seamlessly, employing a language all it's own.
There's an economy here that owes more to abstraction in art than to contemporary photography.
It's as if Denmark's Sergei Sviatchenko took Man Ray as a role model, deconstructed the history of street photography and then applied the modernist principle less is more to his work.
It blurs the lines between documentary, portraiture, surrealism and fashion; and that's what I'd say. I'd also explain how this new aesthetic has inspired other photographers, brands, websites, e-shops and bloggers.
They all fall short of the mark, demonstrating that, like the clothes explored in the images, CUAP's apparent simplicity is amazingly deceptive.
I'd tell the reader that last year Sviatchenko, better known in fine art circles, was voted Best Dressed Man in Denmark and that this year he's been selected as one of the top collage artists in the world.
I'd explain, how the popularity of Ivy League clothing has helped propel this gallery way beyond the art world and has become the regular go-to site for many men on a what-to-wear mission each morning.
I'd say to the editors at the mag, that while CUAP might not be everyone's cup of tea, I think it's certainly important enough to deserve the front cover.
I'd also suggest that the feature on CUAP have as many great pictures as possible; like this one.
CUAP have a debut gallery show this month featuring photography by Sergei Sviatchenko and CUAP paintings by Sergey Nielsen. Starts 17th June @ Kaufmannshaus, Bleichenbrücke 10, Hamburg.
