CrosswordNewsletters
DAILY BEAST
ALL
  • Cheat Sheet
  • Obsessed
  • Politics
  • Crime
  • Entertainment
  • Media
  • Innovation
  • Opinion
  • World
  • U.S. News
  • Scouted
CHEAT SHEET
    POLITICS
    • Fever Dreams
    • Biden World
    • Elections
    • Opinion
    • National Security
    • Congress
    • Pay Dirt
    • The New Abnormal
    • Trumpland
    MEDIA
    • Confider
    • Daytime Talk
    • Late-Night
    • Fox News
    U.S. NEWS
    • Identities
    • Crime
    • Race
    • LGBT
    • Extremism
    • Coronavirus
    WORLD
    • Russia
    • Europe
    • China
    • Middle East
    INNOVATION
    • Science
    TRAVEL
      ENTERTAINMENT
      • TV
      • Movies
      • Music
      • Comedy
      • Sports
      • Sex
      • TDB's Obsessed
      • Awards Shows
      • The Last Laugh
      CULTURE
      • Power Trip
      • Fashion
      • Books
      • Royalist
      TECH
      • Disinformation
      SCOUTED
      • Clothing
      • Technology
      • Beauty
      • Home
      • Pets
      • Kitchen
      • Fitness
      • I'm Looking For
      BEST PICKS
      • Best VPNs
      • Best Gaming PCs
      • Best Air Fryers
      COUPONS
      • Vistaprint Coupons
      • Ulta Coupons
      • Office Depot Coupons
      • Adidas Promo Codes
      • Walmart Promo Codes
      • H&M Coupons
      • Spanx Promo Codes
      • StubHub Promo Codes
      Products
      NewslettersPodcastsCrosswordsSubscription
      FOLLOW US
      GOT A TIP?

      SEARCH

      HOMEPAGE
      0

      Stripping in Venice

      In his provocative film now playing in the Greek pavilion at the Biennale, Lucas Samaras does a striptease for his art-world friends, including Chuck Close and Jasper Johns. Paul Laster takes a peek.

      Paul Laster

      Updated Apr. 25, 2017 2:47PM ET / Published Jun. 05, 2009 3:39AM ET 

      The centerpiece of his exhibition Paraxena in the Greek Pavilion in Venice, Lucas Samaras' video installation Ecdysiast and Viewers is a curious work of art. Continuing his fascination with narcissism and voyeurism, the 5½-minute presents 24 iMovie films of individuals recorded as they respond to the iMovie film Ecdysiast (a term supposedly coined by H.L. Mencken to describe Gypsy Rose Lee) that shows a distorted view of Samaras stripping.

      Click Below to Watch Video

      Riffing on his 1978-81 series Sittings, in which Samaras posed fully clothed with his naked art-world friends (Jasper Johns, Chuck Close, and others) in his studio, Ecdysiast and Viewers captures Close, Claes Oldenburg, Artforum editor Tim Griffin, his longtime art dealer Arne Glimcher, and a cast of other creative characters in the act of evaluating Samaras' performance and thus his artwork.

      Ecdysiast and Viewers, which was first seen in Samaras’ 2006 solo exhibition iMovies at PaceWildenstein in New York, was acquired for the permanent collection by the Museum of Modern Art in 2007. Reviewing the exhibition for Artnet, critic and art historian Donald Kuspit cleverly commented on Samaras’ striptease by stating “…he doesn’t just strip naked, he changes form—a not unfamiliar tactic in his art—until he finally becomes, if not exactly Kafka’s bug, a sort of bloated roly-poly, or, if one wants, an oversized baby, grotesque but lovable.”

      The viewers of Samaras’ exotic dance express unease, perplexity, and amusement, but perhaps the response that the artist/stripper coveted most was artist Coosje van Bruggen’s absolute delight, which brought her to applause—a reaction many art viewers now share in celebrating Lucas Samaras’ recognition from his Greek homeland by exhibiting his work in its Venice Biennale pavilion.

      Xtra Insight: Read Arne Glimcher's Interview With Lucas Samaras

      Paul Laster is the editor of Artkrush.com, a contributing editor at Flavorpill.com and Art Asia Pacific, and a contributing writer at Time Out New York and Art in America.

      READ THIS LIST

      DAILY BEAST
      • Cheat Sheet
      • Politics
      • Entertainment
      • Media
      • World
      • Innovation
      • U.S. News
      • Scouted
      • Travel
      • Subscription
      • Crossword
      • Newsletters
      • Podcasts
      • About
      • Contact
      • Tips
      • Jobs
      • Advertise
      • Help
      • Privacy
      • Code of Ethics & Standards
      • Diversity
      • Terms & Conditions
      • Copyright & Trademark
      • Sitemap
      • Best Picks
      • Coupons
      • Coupons:
      • Dick's Sporting Goods Coupons
      • HP Coupon Codes
      • Chewy Promo Codes
      • Nordstrom Rack Coupons
      • NordVPN Coupons
      • JCPenny Coupons
      • Nordstrom Coupons
      • Samsung Promo Coupons
      • Home Depot Coupons
      • Hotwire Promo Codes
      • eBay Coupons
      • Ashley Furniture Promo Codes
      © 2023 The Daily Beast Company LLC