O GOD OF NEON AND RUIN...

I wish to share a sneak preview of a new work from the artist Reverend Ethan Acres. This prayer to Las Vegas will appear as the epigraph, the inspirational quotation that fronts a new collection of essays. "Defining the Las Vegas Artist" will create a snapshot of the artists, at this time, in this very unique place.

A PRAYER FROM REVEREND ETHAN ACRES
(Whispered through a cracked speaker at the Golden Nugget buffet)

O God of Neon and Ruin...
of flaming dice, pawned wedding rings,
and fur coats draped over the thin arms of a Giacometti by the blind...
bless this city of divine excess.

Las Vegas was my first cathedral.
I preached drunk on hope and glitter,
screamed hallelujahs into slot machine choirs,
died in a motel room and woke up rebranded.

You cannot be sentimental here.
This is a city for those willing to detonate their identity
and walk out of the smoke a stranger.

There is no purity, only spectacle.
There is no resurrection, only reinvention.
Again. And again. And again.

So, bless this desert whore.
Bless its wreckage.
Bless the ghosts.
And bless the next poor fool who steps into the desert
thinking they’ll just pass through.

Amen.

Art Report Today .com

CHILL ME OUT. PICK ME UP.

Even without the Holidays, we are all living with too many channels all screaming at once. Art Report Today wishes to announce another Public Service Announcement, No. 117: Chill Me Out, Pick Me Up, a Short Mix to Ease Your Furrowed Brow.

Click Here and plug into this short 6-1/2 minute mix by Kid Francescoli, the Marseille pop band. "Moon (and it went like)" takes you on an audio journey. Your heart and soul will be skipping through a field of daisies. This evergreen, eight year old mix has been listened to by 131M.
Art Report Today .com

GOOD BOY DANNY BOYLE

Yeah, Zombies. It's a thing, alright. A whole, unending, multiverse IP. Such was my disinterest when Netflix presented "28 Years Later" into my iPad. I am so glad I watched the fascinating film.

Like a slap, it reminded me that Danny Boyle is an exceptional storyteller and filmmaker. One of the greats. I forgot. We don't see enough of him.

Boyle's zombie series has always been a genre-buster. This exceptionalism is the combination of two great artists, Boyle and writer Alex Garland, who is also a very fine director. It is a God-like partnership.

And now comes "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.’" This continuation is directed by Nia DaCosta. Her solid resume recently added an interesting new credit with her film "Hedda," a fresh telling of Ibsen's 'Hedda Gabler' with a lot more sex.

Success! New headline reads, "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple" Screens Early to Glowing Reactions." Click Here to read it. Test-screenings end with applause. Thumbs are up. The franchise is redeemed.

Just in! More good news. "‘28 Years Later III’ Moving Forward At Sony With Cillian Murphy In Talks; Alex Garland Penning" Danny Boyle wants to direct.

The Zombie IP has never been more alive.

Art Report Today .com