Thursday, September 27, 2007


Savage, Sullivan: Unaware of Bunuel's Last Supper in "Viridiana"?
Two of the gay community's self-appointed scolds, my colleagues and pals Dan Savage and Andrew Sullivan, have weighed in from different perspectives on the Folsom Street Fair's now-controversial poster parodying the Last Supper painting, created by an artist, da Vinci, of the homosexual persuasion.
Maybe the fact Dan lives on the Left Coast and Andrew resides on the Eastern Seaboard, can explain some of their thinking on the image for our city's fair this weekend.
Andrew's wagging his gay English nanny finger of disapproval at the San Francisco crew that created the satirical poster for this year's fetish fest in the streets of America's gay mecca.
Utterly unnecessary, I'd say, and counter-productive to ensuring that events like Folsom can continue to thrive. And not even ballsy. Next year, guys: do a similar parody on a sacred Muslim scene, if you have the balls. Easy, cheap blasphemy impresses no one.
Um, Andrew, I can't agree with you about the poster being a problem for the fair to keep on trucking and flourish, not when all the balls and cocks and tits and asses at the annual event do a much better job of being "counter-productive."
And I assure you, as a 15-year resident of San Francisco easy and cheap blasphemy can get you laid and stoned in this town, many times over, Andrew, and there's nothing wrong with either of those activities.
On the other end of the queer political spectrum, Dan's created a wonderfully funny collection of similar painted or cinematic satires throughout the ages at the Slog, and from all manner of media. Check it out.
And speaking of the cinema, die-hard foreign film buffs are fondly well-aware of Luis Bunuel's controversial dinner scene mocking the Last Supper and Catholic values in "Viridiana." I wonder if either Dan or Andrew is familiar with this movie masterpiece.
The 1961 film angered Franco and his government banned it from Spanish screens well into the Seventies.
This is the YouTube video of the classic scene, without subtitles, but even if you haven't seen the film and don't understand Spanish, you'll easily catch Bunuel's message.



Funnyman Mel Brooks poked fun at the Last Supper, both the artwork and the actual meal long ago, in his inimitable way in "History of the World, Part 1."


1 comment:

Sweating Through fog said...

Ridicule and parody can be used by anyone.

Take a look at the silly folsom Street Fair press release here:
http://www.folsomstreetfair.com/fair-press.php?relNum=77

And compare it with my parody:

September 25, 2008

FOLSOM STREET EVENTS™ LAUNCHES POSTER DESIGN FOR 25th ANNUAL FOLSOM STREET FAIR™
Poster image draws inspiration from the annual Islamic Hajj, in a poster entitled: Masjid al-Harem.

Folsom Street Events has released its latest poster design for the 25TH Annual Folsom Street Fair. This year, the official poster, drawn by renowned artist Theo van Gogh, uses well-known community members as players in a strikingly original interpretation of the annual, worldwide pilgrimage to Mecca. The poster is the second in a series that draws from well-known paintings, album covers, movie posters, or other iconic images. Community members celebrate exuberant sexuality by donning their S/M regalia, and dancing around not the Kaaba, but a 10 story phallus.

According to Andy Copper, Board President, “We are extremely pleased with the outcome of this poster, and we are looking forward to a particularly inspirational event season. There is no intention to be particularly pro-religion or anti-religion with this poster; the image is intended only to celebrate the sacred roots of raw sexuality. It is a distinctive representation of diversity with women and men, people of all colors and sexual orientations. Just as Mecca draws people of all races throughout the world, we hope people from all continents will come come celebrate with us!”

Folsom Street Events acknowledges that many of the people in the leather and fetish communities are spiritual and that this poster image is a way of expressing that side of the community’s interests and beliefs. This year, Folsom Street Fair is dedicated to “San Francisco Values,” previously used against the San Francisco community for its support of sexual diversity and now used by Folsom Street Events as a way to reclaim power by the fetish community.

Andy Copper, adds “We hope that people will enjoy the artistry for what it is – nothing more or less. Many people choose to speculate on deeper meanings. This is one artist’s imagining of a pilgrimage that is at one both sexual and sacred - all we did was adopt the iconography of Mecca and make it our own. The irony is that homosexuality has a long and wonderful history in Islam. In truth, we are going to produce a series of inspired poster images over the next few years. Next year’s poster ad may take inspiration from American Gothic by Grant Wood, the flag raising at Iwo Jima, or even Raphael's 'The School of Athens' - community members are already preparing for roles in that one!"

When asked about the murder of the poster artist, Theo van Gogh, and the worldwide rioting that has claimed dozens of lives, Copper said: "I guess it wouldn’t be Folsom Street Fair without offending some extreme members of the global community, though.”