From the early days of steamship travel; artists stifled by the culture of their homelands fled to islands; jungles; and deserts in search of new creative and emotional frontiers. Their flight inspired a unique body of work that doesnt fit squarely within the Western canon; yet may be some of the most original statements we have about the range and depth of the artistic imagination.Focusing on six principal subjects; Jamie James locates "a lost national school" of artists who left their homes for the unknown. There is Walter Spies; the devastatingly handsome German painter who remade his life in Bali; Raden Saleh; the Javanese painter who found fame in Europe; Isabelle Eberhardt; a Russian-Swiss writer who roamed the Sahara dressed as an Arab man; the American experimental filmmaker Maya Deren; who went to Haiti and became a committed follower of voodoo. From France; Paul Gauguin left for Tahiti; and Victor Segalen; a naval doctor; poet; and novelist; immersed himself in classical Chinese civilization in imperial Peking.In The Glamour of Strangeness; James evokes these extraordinary lives in portraits that bring the transcultural artist into sharp relief. Drawing on his own career as a travel writer and years of archival research uncovering previously unpublished letters and journals; James creates a penetrating study of the powerful connection between art and the exotic.
2010-02-03 2010-02-03File Name: B01ANXX1O0
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. I Cant Care About these CharactersBy Carol DeChantI have not seen this play; and accept that the right actors might have made it more entertaining than it was to me on the page. But on the page it bored me. I didnt like and couldnt care about any of the characters: the men are hustlers and the women are caricatures of gals who follow such men. Friends whose taste I usually share loved a 2013 Chicago production of Simpatico. But after reading it; Im not motivated to buy tickets. Shepards world is not a place I care to inhabit; this authors famed "American masculine energy" leaves me cold.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. SIMPATICO film is so different from the play--and that is not necessarily a bad thing.By D. J.We read the play; viewed the movie; went to the play and then discussed all. Although our group is used to that process; we had problems remembering what this film offered that was not in the play as written or staged.Interesting mix of opinions...some hated the script; loved the play and hated the film and some loved the film over the script or the play.I liked the script and the film more than the stage production we saw. SIMPATICO; however you experience it; promotes great discussions.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. SimpaticoBy Victor A. Terenzio Jr.Shepard has been a favorite playwright of mine since the 80sSimpatico stands out as being a modern film noirIt is in my top 5 this season for submissions to direct at local theatersSee the film; Nolte; Bridges; Finney; Stone KinnerGREAT
