Philip and I saw Wong Kar-Wai’s 2046 tonight, the baroque follow-up to his minimalist (by comparison) In the Mood For Love. 2046 was much more complex visually and thematically, with a lot more dialogue and practically every beautiful Chinese starlet. The characters stumbled through passionate and painful love affairs, each unable to shake his or her past or to connect fully in the present. The future, represented by a short story told within the film, seemed to hold the promise of something out of the reach of our frustrated lovers. At one point the narrator says something about how love is no good if not experienced in the right place or time, and the attachment that each character has to something lost or not possible illuminates this idea extensively thoughout the film. I preferred In the Mood For Love, for its gestural lushness and simplicity, but am left with much to think about after 2046. A perfectly balanced pas de deux, these two films.
Philip and I moseyed on over to North Beach for gnocchi and panelle afterwards, a nice stroll through Italian Disneyland and throngs of tourists. I like hanging out with Philip because he’s always so calm and pleasant. I bet my blood pressure goes down, too.
Not much else has been happening except seeing lots of movies. I did meet with the new dealer Tuesday, and it looks like I will be having a show in San Francisco next year, but I have to pop into the gallery when I get back from Alabama to measure the space and talk about scheduling. Rather than showing a particular series, I’m drawing from 4 series of works that I haven’t shown yet, going back to 2000 or so, eager to juxtapose all of these disparate ideas and styles.
Tomorrow I’ll sadly put away my white shoes and white belt for the season. Y’all don’t forget to do the same!