but i like it sticky and messy

I can’t believe it’s already March. Time is just flying by. Eric’s dad went home today. We had a good time. Over the weekend we went to the Austin Museum of Art to see the new exhibit. We saw the capitol building, which I hadn’t seen in the almost six years I’ve lived here.

We celebrated a birthday, and I had four shows and two rehearsals. The next thing I knew it was this morning.

I’m looking forward to the trip this week. It really is a long drive, but I’ve never done that before. Just drive non-stop until I got somewhere on the other side of the country.

The exhibit we saw on Saturday was called “It’s Only Rock and Roll.” It was art inspired by rock through the ages. We noticed that every piece had an explanation next to it of what the art was about. Usually at exhibits you see on that little plaque next to the piece a list of the mediums used, the title, the artist, the year and maybe who donated.

But this one was so specific. It would say, “Here the artist is expressing…blah, blah, blah.” It told you what to feel and think about the work. And I suppose, yes, if you are trying to reach a large audience I guess I can understand the need to put down what each piece means in case someone is like, “What the hell? I want my three dollars back.” But for me it took away some of the fun in viewing art.

There were pieces that were just sections of the whole piece, where I can understand why they needed to explain, such as the piece that had pillars of different sizes covered with fabric and each pillar had a different celebrity’s name. The size of the pillar represented how much information the artist’s library had on that particular person, thus representing physically the person’s worth to the community. There were many more pillars in the series, but these particular three were musicians. But there was a piece where a large tree trunk with an afro on it was surrounded by stones tied to the trunk. It was called “Drix.” The small sign next to the piece went on to explain how the artist was inspired by Jimi and what each piece of string or stone meant.

I saw one piece where the small sign said, “The guitar here is obviously a phallic symbol.” It was Chuck Berry with his legs spread and his guitar sitting erect in his lap. Do you think that anyone needed this sign?

Why do we do this? We dumb down our films, we dumb down our books, and now we dumb down our art to reach a section of the public that only has their money to offer. Is that why? Because there’s more money in art if everything is explained? Or is it because of the grants offered? Do we have to explain everything so someone doesn’t feel that a particular piece is offensive, and want to ban it or cut off the exhibit’s funding? Does the art world now have to live in fear of censorship? I assume it has always lived in that fear. But with an exhibit that could potentially draw in your “average man,” I assume they want to make sure that all their asses are covered. It was all very “safe” art the closest thing I saw to being controversial was a painting of Kurt Cobain after he shot himself in the head. It had blood and teeth and skull matterand an explanation that this painting was actually a reference to another, older painting from “the Renaissance Era,” to soothe any fears that this painting may have come from an artist’s inspiration. Of the trinity of sex, drugs and rock and roll, sex was very obviously missing. In fact, Elvis (who had that pelvis that changed little girls into women) was honored in a piece called “Grace,” which was pictures of Elvis’ face throughout the years shaped into a cross. Instead of sex we had religion. All of the pieces that could be considered controversial were all put in the museum across town. There you had the shrine to Morrissey, where the small sign said it was an expression of the artist’s “expression as a homosexual.”

The image of John Lennon wrapped around Yoko was displayed around a corner on a wall not visible until you went into the room. That room was off to the side for a reason…inside were the Mapplethorpe’s, the images of lyrics written over images of dead animals, and photographs of women semi-nude. This was clearly a room that said, “This is the dirty room.”

I purchased my Marilyn Manson album last week from a store that does not sell censored music. But the cover of the album had a large sticker over Marilyn’s body. The music inside is sold to anyone who wants the album- but you cannot see the picture of an androgynous Marilyn until you take it home. It’s the image that is potentially dangerous, you see. In fact, on the Eminem album that I picked up with it the back says, “I Don’t Give a Fuck” and “I Still Don’t Give a Fuck.” There were no stickers over the language.

Jane’s Addiction had to run an alternate cover of the Ritual De Lo Habitual album because of the cover art of three people in bed. They released an alternate cover that was white with the first amendment printed across the front. The music inside is okay, it is the images on the front that are somehow wrong.

In that museum it felt like I was on a tour. I didn’t want to go on a tour. In a museum I like to browse around and find things that I like to look at for a long time and just find out what the piece says to me. Here I had some guy following me around spoiling the ending. The art was sectioned off into easy to take chunks. It was very clean and very organized and so unlike rock and roll.

[scripty]

Saturday night, Chuy’s house.

ERIC
Do you guys realize that it is about to be the most exciting time of the year? I mean, how amazing is this?

CHUY
March Madness.

ERIC
March Madness, the finals, the NHL finals–

PAMIE
Our anniversary, my birthday–

ERIC
Right. Those too.

PAMIE
I thought that’s what he meant by “most exciting time of the year.”

ERIC
Of course I did. How much do I love you? I love me some pamie. I really do.

CHUY
Good save, man. You just said that basketball was more exciting than your anniversary.

ERIC
I was only talking about March. Our anniversary is in April–

Oh, man. Is that the same day as the finals?

PAMIE
I wouldn’t know.

CHUY
Is it on a Saturday or a Monday, dude?

ERIC
It’s on a Sunday.

CHUY
Oh, man.

PAMIE
It’s on Easter this year. I’m sure no one is going to be playing anything.

CHUY
I remember when I got married I was all pissed off because it was the same day as a Cowboy’s game.

CATHY
We had to make sure the wedding was an evening ceremony. He actually thought he was going to watch the game while he got ready.

CHUY
In the church, watching the game.

PAMIE
He didn’t.

CHUY
No.

ERIC
But you think there’s no game that night, right?

PAMIE
No, but you have BS4.

ERIC
I’ll quit my troupe.

CHUY
Yeah, I don’t care.

PAMIE
Dedication to your art.

CHUY
True sports fans.

(they high-five)

ERIC
So, gentlemen, the beautiful pamie will be out of town this weekend… and I do believe there are some championship games going on.

PAMIE
Cover is a cooler of beer .

ERIC
It’s BYOC

CATHY
Bring your own chick?

PAMIE
Cooler.

CATHY
Oh. I thought with you going out of town..

CHUY
I was going to buy a whole new stereo system just to watch the championship games.

ERIC
Yes, but at my place no one is there.

CHUY
Cathy can go hang out at your place and then we’ll have this place to ourselves.

CATHY
Great.

ERIC
But…

PAMIE
He wants to sit around in his boxers with his hand in his pants.

ERIC
I won’t feel right doing that here.

WELDON
Just tell me where to show up. I’ve already got a cooler.

(Sunday morning, in bed)

ERIC
You and my dad seem to be getting along okay.

PAMIE
Yes, he seems to have stopped calling me Katy

(Eric’s old girlfriend of three years ago)

ERIC
I’m sorry about that. You don’t even remind me of Katy. I don’t know why he keeps doing that.

PAMIE
It feels nice here in bed.

ERIC
You want to go look at cars with me and my dad?

PAMIE
No.

ERIC
It will be fun– did you say no?

PAMIE
No. Wow. I said it! “No.” I can’t think of anything less fun than watching you two test drive cars.

ERIC
Okay, then.

PAMIE
I’ll stay here and have some pamie time.

ERIC
You’re gonna sleep.

PAMIE
All morning. And then I may Tae Bo in peace.

ERIC
I’m jealous.

PAMIE
So when does your mom get here? Tuesday?

ERIC
No, not for, like, two or three weeks.

PAMIE
I know. It was a joke.

ERIC
Oh.

PAMIE
I’m just trying to figure out the next night we have alone. After your dad leaves, I go to Aspen and then I think your mom shows up…

ERIC
We’re coming up on two years, huh?

PAMIE
Yeah. Two years together. Isn’t that amazing? It doesn’t feel that long.

ERIC
No, I guess it doesn’t. But a lot has changed, huh?

PAMIE
You think so?

ERIC
Oh, yeah. Think about just a year ago. That was before we lived in this apartment. My hair was shorter. My dad didn’t live with us. We weren’t celibate.

PAMIE
Yeah, I guess a lot has changed.

ERIC
I’ll miss you when you’re in Aspen.

PAMIE
I know. I’ll miss you too.

ERIC
But I’ll find solace in some basketball.

PAMIE
I know, dear. You’re going to be late test driving that car.
[/scripty]