RESTROOM DECOR (WITH APOLOGIES TO MR. ZAPPA)

Half the people around today don't even know who Frank Zappa is. Helluva shot for those who do (come to think of it, helluva shot even if you don't know Frank from Moon Unit or Dweezil).

Kick ass shot

As usual with you, your eye see the bizarre and unususal in human expression and action. Even if one knows or not who F. Zappa was, the juxtaposition is what makes this photo. Reality vs, his photograph in this way , and your crop ( connection) of the two, accentuates again your special way of looking at the world.....;-))

And to think that I thought I was too old for Led Zeppelin. That it was a younger generation. And now you tell me that it is even too old for the younger generation. I feel wrinkles morphing into more wrinkles as I type.

Thanks. Much appreciated.

This is what I like about this stuff. I stop to get a latte, use the bathroom and discover a new reality based juxtaposition. They are everywhere. Great art? Maybe not. But fun? You bet.

Might be the best portrait of Zappa that i have seen... sorry, i just couldn't resist myself.

But are we sure his best side was captured? lol

I'm quite certain of that.

Amusing and creates the perfect mood...Ciauo...Marjorie

"The perfect mood?" When I'm operating in this sphere, I prefer not to have hairy mostly naked men overseeing operations. Don't know about you. lol

what a great motivation. A poster of a naked woman right above the urinal would be much better motivator, though. Then the urinal could be mounted quite higher.

Cheers, Micheal

Is that how you decorated your bathroom? Just curious.

Great composition!....Regards.

When an iconic figure such as Zappa is used in an almost Warhol-like or even Duchamp-like manner as this, knowing something about the figure adds a whole layer to the appreciation of the photograph, IMO. Eccentric, creative, pushing limits, promoting free speech, introducing rock to classical, conducting from a hallucinogenic podium, Zappa symbolizes an anti-authoritarian, rule-breaking pop culture that would approve of this image and allows it to speak that much more loudly. Sure, we might appreciate Warhol's graphic renderings of Marilyn even if we didn't know who she was and we might be drawn to Leibovitz's portrait of The Queen even if we thought she was just another aristocrat, but knowing the personas adds a richness of texture to the content and presentation that would not otherwise be there. Zappa's image here evolves to "symbol" when we know who he is. Without that knowledge, as Pnina notes, this is just an intriguing and strange juxtaposition. But that's not all there is. There's place, time, and sensibility added from the identification of the figure here, from the biography.

 

You've given the actual bathroom an almost graphic quality, clean, crisp, as if it's another poster. You've included just enough of the toilet to let us know it's there and capture a nice reflection and shape at the edge of the frame, a bit of tension in having cropped it so tightly.

 

Nice work.

Your photo works great on its own, well seen and composed. The b&w is great. I once lived in a California house full of hippies, a poster of this photo in the bathroom.

Thanks. Nice to hear from you.

Thank you. As usual, your commentary adds an extra dimension to the image.

Thanks for the thoughts. I think this poster has made quite a few rounds. Right up there with Che.

A brief quote form the inside cover notes of Zappa's 1973 classic " Freak Out "

 

"I find your approach to music to be commensurate with the major motivational forces exemplified in the ' tragic-comic' aspects of the ' theater of the absurd ' " .

 

David Anderle

 

 

That quote seems to suit both the poster and your photo. Nice one !!

 

Admitting that I still have, on vinyl, every single recording Zappa released between 1970 and 1982 gives you some idea of the magnitude of my wrinkles.

I'm pretty sure I've got more wrinkles than you, and if not, more years. Musically I fixated in the sixties when I was very hung up on social causes and the music associated therewith (e.g. folk music) as well as classical. To this day I cannot take much of any music if it is not classical. It just grates. So I'm afraid I've missed out on Mr. Zappa's music as well as much more. I guess I'm even more limited in the field of music than I am in that of art. Or maybe not.

 

Thanks for your appreciation.

Zappa-dappa-doodie. I'm not sure why this phrase came to mind, but it did. Random neurons. Anyhow, as others have astutely noted, this has an off-beat charm. Zappa as an icon seated at the temple of the absurd.

Dave, I would not want to be a spectator if you and I got together for a ' who has the most wrinkles contest' .

 

It was Zappa's music which originally got me interested in classical music as well as jazz and other improv music. One of the tracks on 'Freak Out' begins with the opening line of Stravinsky's ' Rites of Spring'. Zappa was a big fan of Stravinsky , Stockhausen, Bartok, Berg, Varese, etc.and much of that influence came through in his early works. His album '200 Motels' was recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra. As is evidenced by the poster in your photo, Zappa is largely remembered for his toilet humour rather than his talents as a composer and musical experimenter.

 

I like the way the caulking in the wall joints accentuated the lines in the Bathroom and how those lines tie in with the door frame and the edges of the poster. I noted that you have not done any wacky PP work on this one. Maybe you are ready for that trip to the mall already :-) I really like the tonal range in this one. The B&W conversion ties the elements in both bathrooms together. I like your framing and camera angle and how they cut off several objects, the toilet the garbage can, the vacuum cleaner. I think this complicates the story in an interesting way and keeps my eyes moving around the image. The vacuum is another Zappa reference as one of the original 'Mothers of Invention' often dressed up as a vacuum cleaner..... and Frank wondered why people did not take his music seriously?

You are such a font of knowledge. Thanks for sharing and for commenting. I love the info you always seem to have up your sleeve.

nearly missed this one. Dave this might well be one of your best. Although not knowing the local geography I don't think it could have been framed any better. About the Zappa reference I very much agree with Fred and Gordon. You said earlier "They are everywhere. Great art? Maybe not....." By combining all those elements in one single photo the way you did however you took this one to another level and have created something very much of your own. I think this is a very very good photo by any standard. Your b&w is spot-on, it has an almost film kind of look.