The rumours were true!

My blog wouldn't be complete if I didn't mention my all time pop idol Kylie. She is a creative genius years ahead of the Beyonce's and Gaga's of this world. Her dedication to glamour and showmanship have inspired both me and my art work. I just love a showgirl!

The divine Minogue brought a huge smile to my face this weekend; On Friday she appeared on Jonathan Ross' talk show and really brought the party when she performed her new single All The Lovers. Ever the entertainer, Kylie seemed to come to life when she got up to sing and obviously made Ross' night by sitting on his knee and serenading him.

Then she confirmed the Glastonbury rumours by making a suprise appearance with the Sissor Sisters when they performed their new single Any Which Way at the legendary festival yesterday. This was Kylie's first Glasto gig after she had to pull out of the 2005 gig due to breast cancer and she didn't stint on doing things with style.

As she strutted on to stage the crowd roared excitment and approval, and she dazzled for the three or so minutes she sang. Complete with kitzch dance moves and a killer outfit (not to mention killer boots!), Kylie put all the welly wearers and mud slingers to shame as only a true professional can!

Why Kylie is an inspiration...

Every now and then I like to post something about an artist I find inspiring or thought provoking, whether that be a burlesque performer or a fellow artist, and after spending a weekend celebrating all that is Minogue I thought, HECK! Why have I never explained my deep appreciation of Kylie?? So here is a breif look at what, for me, makes Kylie Minogue an artist in her own right!

"I delight in being a woman with all it's contradtictions. It's the only way to truely be myself"

Over the years Kylie has taken on many incarnations, and she is a true fan of recreating the female image through showmanship, something I find close to my own heart and I try to convey in my work! Her philosophy is also true of many women, who enjoy the freedom that tranformation gives them.

Inspired by Judy Garland

Playing with extreme looks for the X album


Kylie takes some time out sans make up


Classic Kylie

Kylie is very aware of the impact her changes in style have not only on herself but also on how her audience percieve her. This is best illustrated in her video for Did It Again, where she takes on various personas all of which show us a different side to the Kylie myth.

I think it's Kylie's stage shows which really do it for me, as a lover and performer of burlesque I can see parallels in the creativity that goes into each production. They are sheer artisty involving months of preparation and thought. Her various collabarations with fashion designers and artists also blend to create a full theatrical experience which are hard to surpass:

Even now as she tours the USA she is wowing the fans with out of this world costumes and sets, and has even been asked to take on a residency at Vegas, so suited is her stage show.

Kylie is constantly taking inspiration from fashion, arts and contemporary culture, over the years she has collaborated with Baz Lurmann, Pierre and Giles, Calvin Harris, Nick Cave, Rankin and even her own fans, as can be seen here in a video created by superfan, Rudolph, the winner of a competition held by Kylie.com

There's been various times when I've felt a bit lost and needed to reconnect with my love of feminine allure to get to the heart of what drives my art work, and every time Kylie is there for me, inspiring me and exciting me. She completley personifies the many faceted female personality that exudes glamour, fun, mystery and sensuality, and it's her fascination and drive with feminine creativity which mirrors my own. I love Kylie!

What to do with my website?... and how to relaxxx

This week I've been making some big decisions about my work and my website which you can see HERE

I've thinking about having an update and changing the overall look of the site. I would really appreciate your opinions about the current layout colour scheme and ease of navigation, please let me know what you think. I'm having a meeting with my website guy tomorrow so fingers crossed we come up with something fab!

Other news:

I'm pleased to announce that after months of trying to figure it out, I now have the performance of Never Outfox the Fox by The Chantilly Belles online! This was filmed when we performed at the Silk Stocking Striptease Show at the end of last year! Better late than never huh?

As well as my website, I've also been taking decisive action regarding my current art work and studio time; making timetables and lots of lists and changing my routine. I've been mulling things over for a while and all this thinking has been a bit stressful, which has inspired me to share with you my favourite things that help destress and cheer!:

Firstly I have a new obsession! Last week I was introduced to The Flight of the Conchords, a very funny low key comedy about two novelty musicians from New Zealand who have moved to New York. I can't beleive I only just found out about these guys! I have now watched the entire first series and am enjoying the second one.

Jemaine and Brett are adorable naive and disfuntional and the show is too obscure to relate properly, however each episode follows the boys as they attend band meetings with their manager Murray and try and avoid their number one and only fan Mel. So far they have been mugged, made friends with the muggers, gone on tour to an airport lounge and been published as a musical greetings card! My favourite songs includes the pairs take on rap stars and the David Bowie episode!

I am also enjoying listening to Kylie's track Boombox from her album Boombox. Here Kylie has embraced electro pop to the full and created a great dance track that is fun to sing along to.
I have had this track on lots at the studio while I've been painting. It's great for pepping up your energy! I've got a boombox...You've got batteries!

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned my huge excitment about the new TV drama Desperate Romantics, a series about the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Well, I have been enjoying the show but as a super geek about the PRB's I have noticed lots of tweaking of the truth to condense the story into a six part drama. You can see clips from the show and more info HERE it's well worth a look for the gorgeous costumes the boys wear alone.

I bought the book the serial is based on and have found it fascinating! a full five stars from me! The author Franny Moyle has written a factual intense book covering the reality of the artistic movement and the private lives of it's members. You can really immerse yourself in it which I have been doing mostly on the bus. I highly recommend it!

French kisses xxx

A couple of days ago I rediscoverd the French pop duo 'Air' in my album collection. I put on 'Moon Safari' while I was working in the studio trying to get my head around the drawing for my next sailor tattoo inspired pin up painting, and something just clicked! The tone of the music, it's sultry melancholy sounds, the disco edge mixed with the breathy pop; something just made complete sense with regard to my work!

It's hard to explain, so with that in mind, I thought I'd share a few of my other inspirations which are all being stirred in the melting pot to create the images for my new work:

Pierre and Gilles
These French artists have been a favourite of mine for a long time. Once you've seen one of their magical photos you'll never forget them. Their brand of glamour and iconography is the perfect blend for erotic images of saliors goddesses and fairies.

Oh, and nuns, as you can see here. This image of Kylie Minogue is just one of many celebrity portraits they have produced since the 70's. I love Pierre and Giles work because you can see the work that has gone into every photograph. They don't use computer effects to create the fantastical landscapes and props. Everything is sourced and painted. Even the photos once taken are then painted over which adds to the magical otherworldy quality.

In more recent years the duo have embraced digital technology, which brings me onto my next inspiration; the tour programme for Kylie's X tour 2008.

I knew as soon as I bought it that P&G had something to do with this lush art book. I couldn't find them acknowledged anywhere but my thoughts were confirmed with a little digging on the internet.
The sacred heart motif is a trademark of theirs and here it has been put to beautiful use. The tour and programme also feature heavily homo erotic images of the backing dancers dressed as buff sailors;



The overall link that ties all these subjects together for me is the glamorous and sexy iconic images and narrative which have an underlying hint of drama. Even the music by Air has the same ambience and conjures up the same stories in my head. All these things combined with the sailor tattoo are pushing my work in a glorious melancholy direction. I'm loving putting these ideas down on paper!

Water colours......hmmmmmm?

While I'm typing this I'm listening to an unreleased track by Kylie called Sexual Gold! If you'd like to hear it click HERE. Thanks to Love Kylie for sharing this priceless information!

I have been experimenting with water colour this week for my new work based on sailor tattoos. As I said last week this is probably the best meduim for tattoo style art work as the application and texture is very similar to the real thing. But I am a girl who is used to acrylic, and learning how to handle the watery stuff is not as straight forward as you'd think!

I found a few good water colour technique videos on youtube, but nothing beats just getting stuck in and feeling for yourself how the paint moves and mixes.

It certainly doesn't dry quickly like acrylics and it is much more malleable. You can also re-work the paint even after it's dried completely unlike acrylics. It's advised to stretch your paper before using water colours as they tend to ruckle up the paper otherwise. I bought a special pad of paper glued around all edges so shouldn't have this problem, but I have my suspicions as I covered an entire page in wet paint yesterday and I definately saw some ruckling! But maybe it will look different when it's dry?

So on the whole I'm enjoying the new experience of using water colour and I especially like applying indian ink to the outlines when the paint is dry. So I like water colour and I like acrylic, but which one is better? there's only one way to find out....... Stay tuned!

Other news:
I am soon to be Tart of the Month on the Tart Gallery website! This fabulous website is ran by the Pop Tarts, two female artists based in Vancouver who paint women within a pop culture context. They hold regular exhibits all accentuated by music and costume! The Tart of the Month is a regular feature on the site showcasing other artists with similar themes and styles. I am so excited to be included in this list of sensual and provocative artists, featuring none other than Angelique Houtkamp! (See last post)

I am also to be included in a collaborative virtual exhibition on Second Life in the 3D virtual Tart Gallery with the theme of burlesque! This is extra exciting and new to me and I am really interested to see the results! I am now on Second Life and tentitivley finding my way around, if you bump into me my name is Gemma Vespucciano (You're not allowed your real name).

More info to follow...