#Andrew Purches

[straykatfish]

Held in St Nicholas Church, Bramber.

All the work shown is for sale (with one exception) and wherever possible I will include links to the artist’s website or, if they don’t have one, to their page on the Steyning Arts site. Where possible I spoke to the artist about their work but many had taken a well-earned break on what was an extremely hot day.

These photographs are by Wendy Ball who says she take them for her own pleasure and, although she has won a number of prizes, appears not to have a website. Some of them are printed on aluminium which seems to add an extra layer of cold air to the mostly winter scenes. I found the compositions interesting and the colours, but mostly I was taken by the patience necessary to capturing a moving animal in the right spot at the right time,

These acrylics by Mike Kelly, reminded me of stained glass, fractured and with lead partitions between the pieces. I remember making pictures at school using black paper over red and orange tissue pasted onto cartridge to mimic the effect. 

  These prints are by Andrew Purches who doesn’t seem to have a website. I was drawn to the simplicity of the demarcations in line and colour in these landscapes.

  These are by Carol Wagstaff whose work is both prolific and varied. These two are probably not my most preferred in terms of my own likes and dislikes, but I think they represent her artistry. Her instagram account gives a far better idea of her range and includes portraiture and abstracts from her recent humanitarian project currently on exhibition in Shoreham. She describes her work as “Multi Media Artwork encompassing Painting, Sculpture, Installation, Photography and Print.“

These marvelous little textiles are by Jean Griffiths “Textile Art and 2D”. As someone who has no skill or patience with a needle, this kind of work is a challenge too far. I can imagine making them with inks though – dark umber, gold, and orange. This small group is called ‘Fractured Earth’,

the next two, ‘Violet Sunset’ and ‘Seascape’ which are almost collages of fabrics stitched into their composition.

‘Welsh Landscape’ (bottom right) also includes a section of ordnance survey map.

I met John Corballis at last year’s art trail and saw him several times around the village on his bike. I hadn’t known how ill he was, and perhaps he didn’t either at that time, so his death later that year was a shock to all of us. This is a token exhibition of his work in oils – precise, controlled, and detailed which might be expected of a man whose life had been the law.

Crafty corner! These lovely little pieces are made by Carol Parker using flotsam found on the beach. I find the compositions compelling in their simplicity, balance, and colours.

  These digital photography prints are the work of Andrea Shelton who doesn’t seem to have a presence on the Steyning Arts site. I was attracted like the magpie I am to the bright colours and sense of floating light which reminded me of some of the virtual world environments I have experienced.

Further round the exhibition I found more of Carol Wagstaff’s work. Simple marks with a core subject. Taking photos through glass doesn’t do them justice.

Sarah Duffield ‘Sussex Landscape Artist and art tutor’, is probably one of our more high profile members with her signature style of non-natural colours and simplified shapes, all derived from local landscapes. She uses her instagram account to post preparatory sketches, often in charcoal, and to talk about her work.

I love Janet Butterworth‘s tables; in fact I have one next to my TV with a lamp and a sculpture of Alien made with bits of motorcycle parts on it! Janet ‘distresses’ and rescues old furniture by adding mosaics and colour. All of them sound furniture in addition to being things of beauty. Janet was the only artist there to talk to and she was busy fielding questions about possible purchases of other artists’ work on their behalf. We did have a brief chat but I never made the connection between her and the tables as she was down the opposite end of the church from them.

These are all by Rosalind Landreth who seems able to cover a range from botanical through to photorealistic. Again, glass, reflective in strong light, impairs photographed image,

  I think I would like to make work like these by Alison Millner-Gulland (Mixed media paintings, printmaking and ceramics). Almost cartoons, collaged, a bit abstract but with a message if you can stay to look and read it in there. There’s a lot to look at and so many interesting marks on her various supports. I’m interested in the frames too – how do people choose? How do you find the right one for each piece?

Lino prints by Melissa Birch, ‘Linoprint Artwork and Design’. I have to confess no idea at all how these works are made, my only experience being carving out channels in chunks of old lino at school, plastering the surface with poster paint, and slapping them onto paper to finally reveal an acorn or a spider or whatever we thought we had marked out. I suspect the operation is more sophisticated than that and I should ask – Melissa lives only a couple of hundred yards from me.

Jill Blake – ‘Water Colour and Acrylic Painting‘ – makes originals and prints of natural scenes, objects, and animals. I forget what she calls the technique used in the picture of teasels (bottom left) but it involves leakage.

Finally, these are by Karen Corballis, widow of John. She describes her work as ‘Mixed Media, Oil, Water Colour and Print Making’. The one I like best is a landscape of trees in a left-to-right, background-to-midground composition done in vibrant summer greens and yellows with a slash of dark trunks marking the line, and a sliver of sky above. It’s on her Steyning Arts website.

    Steyning Arts summer exhibition Held in St Nicholas Church, Bramber. All the work shown is for sale (with one exception) and wherever possible I will include links to the artist's website or, if they don't have one, to their page on the Steyning Arts site.

[thotyssey]

On Point With: Sherry Poppins

The posh third of popular Brooklyn nightlife collective STR8 to DVD, Sherry Poppins got her drag start in college and kept the amazing momentum going. Now in addition to lighting up Brooklyn, this queen has crossed over into Astoria to lay down the kiki! 

Thotyssey: Sherry, hello! How’s it going today?

Sherry Poppins: Hey there! I'm doing fine, just relaxing before painting for a gig.

Oh, where are you tonight?

I'm co-hosting CAKES with Mini Horrorwitz.

Werk! Gurl you’re a Brooklyn queen, you’re sometimes a Manhattan queen, and now you’re a Queens queen! Have you done shows in Staten Island yet?

You'd have to pay me a pretty penny to head over there! Though I do love ferry rides...

Where's your hometown?

I'm originally from Oceanside, Long Island.

Bougie!

Haha! I'm so glad i'm not there anymore, though!

You're a SUNY Purchase queen. What did you study there before drag?

I was a fine art photography major, with a minor in Chinese language.

Amazing! Can you still speak Chinese well?

I'm still semi-conversational, actually! I definitely lost it a bit since I don’t have many outlets for practice. I want to go live there eventually, for a time.

You’d be a great fit! So, Purchase has the famous dragstravaganza Fall Ball, which makes it a nest for countless great queens in this city and beyond. What were the circumstances when you first tried drag there?

Miz Jade (The Queen of Shade) was actually the first person to have me painted and got me into drag. At the time, she and FiFi DuBois were THE queens of Purch. Miz Jade had a show on our college's TV channel called "Hot Mess Express," and asked if I would come on to be painted for a "Drag 101" episode. And the rest was history. I was in my fantasy.

You were born on TV! And Purchase is also where you met some of your closest future Brooklyn cohorts.

Yes! Qhrist With a Q, Maxxx Pleasure and I were definitely Purchase family.

Was it always your plan to continue drag after college?

Well, before doing it, I *GAG* never planned on being a drag queen at all! But by the time I was a senior, I was so invested in drag because it was a tool for using gender as an artistic medium... and that seemed so limitless. I definitely wanted to continue.

What are big ways that your drag has changed since the Purchase days?

My makeup has definitely been the biggest improvement. I didn't fully understand my face until after graduating. But performance has changed a lot, too. At Purchase, you're kind of encouraged to do 7+ minute mega mixes. So doing drag out of that environment definitely was a bigger learning curve.

Tell us about the creation of STR8 to DVD--the collective you formed with Qhrist & DJ Ten Yards that presents a showcase monthly at Gold Sounds--and what these shows are generally like.

Our love child! Qhrist and I had known right away that we wanted to be doing drag in Brooklyn. And one night we went out to Rockbar in NYC (out of drag); one of the queens performed "Bohemian Rhapsody.” Qhrist and I were just feeling our fantasies, and the realization that we had to have a show together stuck! 

A good friend of ours from college, Derek, is one of the owners of Gold Sounds. He said we could do a trial show there, and it was a hit! The next day he reached out and said they'd love to have us as a monthly, and here we are over a year later!

The show is pretty wild because anything goes, basically. We knew we wanted to be able to showcase all sorts of queer performers, from drag, to comedy, to burlesque, etc. We started with booking our friends, but as time went on we networked and now it's been picking up interest! Definitely one of the weirdest, messiest, but most wildly entertaining shows you'll see!

STR8 to DVD began as a monthly Monday at Gold Sounds, and now it’s moving to monthly Fridays! It's become a favorite show in Brooklyn, and it showcases a lot of new performers and all around bizarre experiences. 

Yeah, we encourage new performers all the time! Sometimes they're the wildest!

What stands out in your mind as the nuttiest / best performance you saw at STR8?

There's lots of memorable performances, but one of the most jaw-dropping ones for me was when our door goddess Andrew Breitel took to the stage as Spice Baby. She started with boobs made out of a DIY blood sack that sunk to her stomach after thrashing around--so it accidentally looked like she was pregnant. But then she continued by repeatedly stabbing the sack, bleeding everywhere! Everyone was GAGGED. It reminded me of the Red Wedding from Game Of Thrones. That was back in March for STR8 TO DVD: WIG.

Scandalous! The gang will be back at Gold Sounds on July 27th for a new installment...

...but first, you’ll all be present there on Saturday the 21st for an interesting one-off, as Sherry Poppins presents a drag tribute to... Panic! At the Disco! 

Back in October, Qhrist produced an all drag tribute to My Chemical Romance for their birthday. Though my birthday was back in June (Gemini baby), I decided to do the same. Panic! At The Disco used to be one of my absolute favorite bands, and they're still a big throwback love!

Did you feel any sort of way when Panic! frontman Brendon Urie came out as pansexual recently?

I mean, considering I've always found him very attractive, it made my inner teen heart flutter. But I'm proud of him for doing so. It's great to have pansexual representation with a platform like his!

By the way: who is more emo, you or Qhrist?

DEFINITELY Qhrist... and I'm not afraid to say that either, haha! Their references go so much deeper into the emo world than mine. I was definitely more of a "Scene” kid than an emo kid like them, lol!

Speaking of Scene, let’s change the scene entirely... Iconic at Astoria’s  Icon! That’s a weekly drag competition hosted by Heidi Haux that debuted a few weeks ago, and you’re competing in it! What motivated you to enter this?

Ah yes, it's been wild so far! Having been doing drag in Brooklyn for a bit, people know me there now. But I moved to Astoria in December, and it's a completely different scene! It felt like starting all over again for a while. So, doing Iconic is a chance to bring a little Brooklyn drag to Queens, but to also get more of a following here in a different borough. It's been so fun so far, but definitely a big challenge!

You’re like the drag BQE! 

Good luck with that, and everything else. What else needs to be said?

Thanks boo! Yes! The Panic at the Disco show will be at 11pm. STR8 TO DVD will be Friday, July 27th at 11pm. Both are at Gold Sounds. And you can come support me at ICONIC every Sunday at 8pm at Icon Astoria! I might even have a new show coming up in Brooklyn soon, but you'll have to stay tuned to find out more! 

We will! Okay, last question: will there ever be a Cherry Poppins and Sherry Poppins collaboration?

Hahaha! We always joke about it, but i'm totally down! We've still never worked together, so someone book us! Otherwise, she and I might have to create our own thing. We must give the people what they want!

Pop! Thanks, Sherry!

Sherry Poppins co-hosts “STR8 to DVD” at Gold Sounds every last Friday (11pm) at Gold Sounds. Check Thotyssey’s calendar for all scheduled appearances, and follow Sherry on Facebook and Instagram.

On Point Archives

[flickfeast]

I Am The Prize (2020) Film Review

British comedy I Am The Prize is now available to watch on demand. Here is our review:

Marking his feature film debut, Oliver Purches stars in I Am The Prize, which revolves Martin (Purches) and his futile attempts to find a girlfriend. When his best friend Laura (Charlotte Ellis) promises that she’ll help him find someone within six weeks, she sends him on an intensive ‘seduction course’ led by sleazy pick-up artist Sebastian (Andrew Kingston). 

With Purches writing, starring…

[notizieoggi24-blog]

Cosa c'è stasera in tv? I programmi tv stasera 18 agosto

Questa sera in tv c'è una fiction Rai, una nuova puntata di Rex e molti film più o meno popolari. Purche' finisca bene - Una Ferrari per due (21.25 Rai 1) - FICTION Due uomini stanno affrontando la perdita del lavoro ed il nuovo status sociale. Scomparsa nel nulla 2015 (21.25 Rai 2) - FILM Trama: Lisa è in vacanza con la figlia, quando viene fermata da un ambulante in spiaggia, con conseguente sparimento della figlia. Anno: 2015; Durata: 1h 35m; Cast: Angela Dixon, Nigel Whitmey, Lisa Eichhorn Hudson e Rex - Stagione 1 Episodio 5 - Il passato ritorna (21.25 Rai 3) - PRIMA VISIONE Una ragazza è recuperata in fin di vita in un cimitero. È la sorella di un bambino sparito 20 anni prima. Charlie pensa che siano collegati ed inizia le indagini. American Crime Story II: L'assassinio di Gianni Versace (21.15 Rai 4) La mattina del 15 luglio 1997 lo stilista Gianni Versace viene ritrovato ucciso davanti alla sua villa di Miami Beach. Il colpevole viene identificato in Andrew Cunanan, già autore di altri delitti. L'inganno (21.20 Canale 5) - FILM Trama: Ambientato in Virginia nel 1864, mentre c'è la Guerra civile in America, il soldato nordista John McBurney viene salvato in un collegio femminile. Anno: 2016; Durata: 1h 30m; Cast: Nicole Kidman, Elle Fanning, Kirsten Dunst, Colin Farrell E alla fine arriva Polly (21.20 Italia 1) - FILM Trama: Un uomo pignolo si innamora di una donna anti-convenzionale che gli stravolge la vita. Anno: 2004; Durata: 1h 30m; Cast: Ben Stiller, Jennifer Aniston, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Debra Messing, Hank Azaria, Alec Baldwin Giochi di potere (21.30 Rete 4) - FILM Trama: Un ex agente della Cia è in vacanza con la famiglia. Qui arresta un terrorista, durante un attentato dell'Ira ai danni di Lord Holmes. Anno: 1992; Durata: 2h; Cast: Harrison Ford, Anne Archer, Sean Bean, James Fox, James Earl Jones Tutta colpa del vulcano (21.10 Rai Movie) - FILM Trama: Due ex coniugi atterrano a Stoccolma per l'eruzione di un vulcano, mentre erano diretti in Grecia alle nozze della figlia. Anno: 2013; Durata: 1h 30m; Cast: Valerie Bonneton, Dany Boon, Denis Menochet Il colore della notte (21.00 Iris) - FILM Trama: Uno psichiatra traumatizzato dal suicidio di una paziente, va a Los Angeles da un collega, che viene ucciso. Inizierà una serie di eventi che lo porterà dalla giovane Rose. Anno: 1994; Durata: 2h; Cast: Bruce Willis, Jane March, Ruben Blades, Lesley Ann Warren Munich (21.10 La7) - FILM Trama: Un film di Spielberg che racconta le Olimpiadi del 1972 di Monaco, con il commando palestinese che prende in ostaggio degli atleti israeliani, uccidendoli. Una squadra viene messa su per cercare i responsabili e Avner, ex ufficiale del Mossad, accetta di essere capo missione. Anno: 2005; Durata: 2h 40m; Cast: Eric Bana, Daniel Craig, Ciara'n Hinds, Mathieu Kassovitz, Hanns Zischler, Ayelet Zurer, Geoffrey Rush Rex - Un cucciolo a palazzo (21.15 Sky Cinema 1) - FILM Trama: Film di animazione, con Rex, cucciolo della Regina, finisce ad essere un cane da strada. Anno: 2019; Durata: 1h 30m Read the full article

[s33556-blog]

Ancient Mummification By Andrew Hrisak

Life is full of mysteries. One mystery that has riddled both the modern and ancient worlds is death. The Egyptians believed like many other civilizations that death was simply a pass through to eternal life but to get there you had to be preserved through mummification. Mummification in Africa is an interesting topic dating back thousands of years.

In the documentary “Egypt beyond the Pyramids Part 4: 2-1” the director wants the viewer to gain a brief understanding of how and why the Egyptians mummified their dead and their progress over time. The documentary began with the narrator talking about the book of the dead, a set of instruction on the walls of the tomb which was meant to help direct the spirit.

The book of the dead which is the key to the soul finding its body in the underworld and is the first step of the souls journey through the underworld. The director uses the book of the dead  to symbolize the beginning of the documentary since the book of the dead is the beginning of the souls journey. The documentary ended talking about the final steps in the mummification process, embalming, wrapping and covering the mummy. It ended with the final steps of the mummification process to symbolize the ending of the documentary. The director makes us feel as if the mummification process in Egypt is a very large part of human history with a very strong and factual tone and chemical processes.

The Egyptians believed that the bodies of the dead needed to be kept recognizable so the soul could find its body. They also believed that if the body was not preserved there would be no way for the person to live after death. After the soul found its body it was judged and if it was deemed “not worthy” it would be thrown into hell. The Egyptians feared that being sent to hell would bring with it eternal suffering. If you were lucky you would be fed to the beast Ahmed. At first mummies were preserved naturally with the help of the hot desert sun which dried of out the body before it could rot. By 3400 B.C. upper class egyptians could be buried in above ground towns but without the dry sand and sun of the desert the bodies decomposed quickly. Since the egyptians knew that the organs where the first to decay the began removing them around 2600 B. C.. Organs includes the stomach, lungs, liver and intestines. Each organ was placed in its own jar next to the mummy. Like in modern times egyptian families could choose what sort of mummification process they wanted to be performed on the body. Also like modern times the mummification processes used greatly depended on the families wealth. The mummification process for pharaohs took around 40 days to complete. Much of this time was spent applying the body with minerals which included resins, frankincense, mir, cinnamon, and beeswax. The eyes would be stuffed with onions to keep them from drying and receding into the head. After the body was prepared it was covered in linen and place in a sarcophagus.

The video “Mummification (How an Ancient Egyptian Mummy was Made)” created by Simple History shed more light into the process of mummification. The video goes on to give many more important facts about mummification. Egyptians believed that death was a temporary state between life on earth and life in the underworld. For the mummification process the body was first washed with water and salt to clean it. The brain was taken out through the nose with a hook while the heart was left in. Depending on the wealth of the family some bodies were stuffed with spices, others where injected with oils and other where even put in a salt bath for up to 70 days. Most of the pharaohs also had wigs and stone eyes to make them look more life like. These mummies were often accompanied in their tombs by their clothing, jewelry and even animals.

A documentary called “Mummification Pre-Egypt Long Lost Secrets of Libya’s Black Mummy” made by the discovery channel claims that Egyptians were in fact not the first to mummify. In the documentary it talks about a mummified body found in Libya in the late 1950’s. Though the documentary did give factual evidence much of it was outdated. A book published by Cambridge University in the 1980’s provides evidence that states that the dating of the animal skin the mummified child was wrapped in is between 5585 BP and 5225 BP (BP meaning before physics 1950). Though this was once believed to be the oldest mummified human in the world new studies complicate that claim. An article from LiveScience.com states that new evidence from linens of mummies has found that Egyptians began mummifying the dead between 4500 B.C. and 3100 B.C. or between 6450 BP and 5050 BP. Scientists found animal fats along with pine resin and other chemicals on the linens showing that mummies were in fact mummifying around the time the Black Mummy was mummified. Due to this relatively new discovery it seems that the Black Mummy is not the oldest mummy in the world though, because of the large date ranges we cannot truly determine which is older.

From this assignment I learned that to have a well put together article that is reliable and factual you need many sources. I also learned that facts are always changing and you need to always be on the lookout for new evidence that contradicts your articles.In my article I showed digital responsibility for my content by finding the same evidence from multiple sources to make sure all of the facts where reliable and correct. I did not put anything in my article that is not factual just because it might prove my point. I only used reliable sources and included facts that may have even gone against my opinion but did not disclude them for that same reason. Mummification is a remarkable subject that dates back thousands of years and is definitely a topic everyone should be interested in.

Works Cited

Dawson, W.R. “Human Mummy.” The British Museum,

www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?object

Id=117645&partId=1.

Gannon, Megan. “Oldest Evidence for Egyptian Mummy Making Discovered.” LiveScience,

Purch, 13 Aug. 2014,www.livescience.com/47335-oldest-egyptian-mummy-making.html.

logicsolutioncompany. “Egypt Beyond the Pyramids part4 (2-1).” YouTube, YouTube, 24 Feb.

2010, www.youtube.com/watch?v=mj9uw-p3rEQ.

“Mummies, Disease and Ancient Cultures.” Edited by Aidan Cockburn et al., Google Books,

books.google.com/books?id=8KZHa5vHOS0C&pg=PA282&lpg=PA282&dq=uan%2B

muhuggiag%2Bmummy&source=bl&ots=FiHk6ymHZE&sig=mPG_w0KgKzmU0vUu-

Z2vGhBVDsI&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjoiKD-5qbZAhUDYKwKHe58Bjs4ChDo

AQg1MAM#v=onepage&q=uan%20muhuggiag%20mummy&f=false

Simple History. Mummification (How an Ancient Egyptian Mummy Was Made). Youtube, 9 Jan.

2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FiM8S2_nSg.

“Secrets of Libya's Black Mummy and the Long Lost North Africans.” YouTube, YouTube, 18

Oct. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkQgUeupxn8.

Mummy Games

http://discoverykids.com/games/mummy-maker/

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/games/interactiveadventures/tomb-unknown-mummy/