I'm an international journalist, reporter, website editor and content creator. I actively work for JAZZIZ Magazine and FRED Film Radio, collaborate with other websites and curate my own projects, including IN ARTE MATT and CineCola. I have also curated and produced my series of films in Galway, Ireland, and photo exhibition and arts events in various European countries. I have a working class background and have and have a postgrad degree in Film Theory + a BA in Film & TV.
Here are five clips from the latest episode of my radio show, THE ART MOVEMENT, the weekly radio show hosted/produced by arts presenter Matt Micucci. The show revolves around art and culture, and where all art forms and free thoughts are allowed.
(To listen to/download the full radio show, scroll to the bottom of the page.)
Announcement: My book on film, Eye of the Beholder is due out September 1.
Find your mentors in books, movies and music
What motivates Henry Rollins?
Should France return the Mona Lisa to Italy?
Whem Marcel Duchamp drew moustaches on the Mona Lisa
Lots more where that came from! You can listen to the full epsiode of THE ART MOVEMENT (including the music) via the player below.
A partial transcript of episode 23 of THE ART MOVEMENT, my weekly arts and culture radio show.
The influence of the Mona Lisa, of course, extends far beyond its status as a symbol of populist hostilities between two countries. It is a timeless work of art.
One of the most notable examples of how its legacy came as a result of its fame, when in 1919, noted artist and provocateur Marcel Duchamp drew a pair of moustaches on a picture or a postcard of the Mona Lisa.
This was not the first time the Mona Lisa had been parodied but it is the most famous example. Duchamp’s satirical take on Leonardo’s painting presented a less than reverent way of relating to past artistic tradition and was part of his “found object” works.
Duchamp titled his take on the Mona Lisa LHOOQ, which when read in French roughly translates to “Her ass is on fire,” and is a rude way of saying that she is insatiably horny. Clearly, the provocation was aimed at the art establishment and offered a new way of looking at art, shaking the shackles of academia off it.
Elle a Chaud au Cul has been referred to as a landmark work in the history of postmodernism. Some have claimed that it is, in fact, the beginning of postmodernism.
For certain, we see its influence replicated in the meme culture of today, which I am uncertain as to whether it should be referred to as an art movement or an art form but I am certainly not quick to dismiss, as far as its role in modern art is concerned.
This episode of MATT’S ART CHAT features a conversation with painter Ania Hobson, a rising star of the British and international art scene. Hobson will be launching her debut solo exhibition at London’s Catto Gallery, featuring a new collection of her artworks, which will run from September 5-23.
Hobson’s work is defined by a strong, personal figurative style, blending tradition and modernity. Her works have been praised, among other things, for their fresh representation of and celebration of the “modern woman.” To find out more about her, visit her website, https://www.aniahobson.com/.
MATT’S ART CHAT is a series of podcast conversations about the arts with creators, curators and art lovers from all over the world. The series is hosted by arts presenter Matt Micucci.
A partial transcript of episode 23 of THE ART MOVEMENT, my weekly arts and culture radio show.
If I was to say the word “painting,” which of the most famous paintings would be the first to pop into your head? I bet I can predict that many people would instantly think of the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci.
This half-length portrait, which took Leonardo five years to complete was completed in 1507 and has charmed people all over the world for centuries. It has been defined as the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about and the most parodied work of art in the world.
In Italy, where I was born and where I am currently based, the Mona Lisa has a darker connotation. In fact, it’s been used by populists as a symbol for the traditional hostilities between Italy and France.
The general thought behind it is that the Mona Lisa is an important part of Italian cultural heritage and it was stolen by France (some even claim it was Napoleon who stole it). These people also say that it should be returned to Italy, where it belongs.
Actually, these claims are simply not true and yet another example of how art can be used to nurture unfounded hostilities, and that we should be careful about that.
Yes, Leonardo da Vinci was Italian. Yes, the man who commissioned the Mona Lisa was Italian. His name was Francesco del Giocondo and the sitter was his wife. It took Leonardo five years to complete the painting and he finished it in 1507.
But he never sold it to Francesco del Giocondo, partly because he saw it as a work of conceptual art rather than a mere portrait. It’s hard to disagree and many have written works where they support such a thesis.
Just recently, a research concluded that the much-talked about smile of the Mona Lisa is fascinating because it’s not a fully formed smile but a smile in the process of becoming one.
Because Leonardo realized its worth, he kept it with him and traveled with it in 1511 when he went to France, after being called by the King himself. Leonardo spent his final years in France and when he died there, his assistant Salai, who is also known as being his lover, inherited the painting. It was Salai who rightfully sold it to King Francis the first, the King of France, for 4,000 gold coins and thus, the Mona Lisa has rightfully been kept by the French government since then.
The only exception occurred in 1911, when a worker of the Louvre named Vincenzo Peruggia, stole it and took it back to Italy. This is the only actual known case of the painting being stolen and it was an Italian who stole it from the French. The Mona Lisa was presumed lost for some years until in 1913, Peruggia was discovered and arrested after attempting to sell it to a gallery in Florence for the equivalent of $100,000.
When the arrest was made, the Italian state returned the painting to France, and it has been housed by the Louvre ever since. However, Italy did try and occasionally does try to have its masterpiece returned.
Notable figures joined in the battle cry, in support for this cause, including George Clooney, who resides by Lake Como. Indeed, France may have considered returning the Mona Lisa to Italy, had it not been for the fact that the painting is far too fragile to be moved. Well, at least that’s what they say.
But I don’t see why they should return it. France rightfully bought the painting so it doesn’t need to return anything. In any case, I don’t particularly think that those who call for the Mona Lisa to be returned actually have the interest of the artwork itself in mind.
Actually, there have been cases of artworks from countries taken by other countries, particularly during several of the European wars. But I don’t hear as much said about the vast majority of them.
I mean, Europe was plagued by wars for centuries and the one thing that put a significant stop to that was the establishment of the European Union, which is maligned by the vast majority of the people who ignorantly claim that the Mona Lisa should be returned to Italy but who have no idea of how the Mona Lisa ended up in France in the first place.
In any event, I actually see the presence of artworks of different origins scattered all over Europe or the world, for that matter, as important cultural bridges that should unite people rather than inspire hostilities.
Here’s the list of songs played on the last episode of THE ART MOVEMENT – the weekly radio show about arts and culture, where all art forms and free thoughts are allowed, hosted by Matt Micucci. (To listen to the full show, scroll to the bottom of the page.)
IGGY POP, I’m Bored
THE BEACH BOYS, Wouldn’t It Be Nice
TENDERLONIOUS, G Flex
SUDAN ARCHIVES, Come Meh Way
DESIRED, Wake Up
BARRY MANILOW, Copacabana (At the Copa)
BLACK FLAG, Rise Above
DICK DALE, Misirlou
PET SHOP BOYS, Being Boring
ELLA FITZGERALD, Mack the Knife
MORRISSEY, The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get
A partial transcript from Episode 23 of THE ART MOVEMENT. Scroll down to listen to the full radio show.
Earlier, I announced that I will be releasing my book, Eye of the Beholder, on the 1st of September. And I should say, as if there was any need to, that it is a self-published book. I just don’t have the time to send out manuscripts left and right, do email back and forths and just go through all that bullshit process. I also don’t need that type of validation.
So, part of my drive to self-publish this particular book was that I wanted to teach myself all the parts that are involved in self-publishing, from designing a book and cover to actually using the software to transform manuscripts into an ebook and so on.
It is hard to figure it all out and I’m still learning. I mean, I have had to obviously do it in my free time, so I haven’t been sleeping much.
In any case, I realize that sometimes, when you have an idea and it’s a creative idea that you know will take a long time to put together but you want to do for as long as you have the drive to do it, getting other people involved will just slow you down.
The Beat Writers of the ’60s used to live by the concept of “first thought, best thought” and I think there’s something to that. I really do.
A partial transcript from Episode 23 of THE ART MOVEMENT. Scroll down to listen to the full radio show.
The Venice International Film Festival is scheduled to take place from the 2nd to the 12th of September and on the eve of its opening night, in other words, on the 1st of September, I will be releasing my first book.
It’s a collection of my film writings on film from the final two years of my CineCola website that focused on cinema, so, from 2017 and 2018.
The book is titled Eye of the Beholder, after my fundamental stance on film and art criticism, which is my believe that the cinematic truth lies in the eye of the beholder and that any work of art has the potential to help us understand ourselves and the world around us based more on a personal connection that we share with the artwork itself rather than any academic stances.
The pieces collected in the book are quite varied in both form and content. We go from a rather traditionalist piece on the history of the making of Milos Forman’s The Firemen’s Ball, one of the masterpieces of the Czechoslovak New Wave, to a lengthy account of what I hope the cinema venue of the future will look like, to a stream-of-consciousness piece written in response to the death of Bernardo Bertolucci.
In fact, in putting Eye of the Beholder together, I did favour eclecticism over cohesiveness and grand statements. But in any case, I will be releasing that on the day before the beginning of the Venice International Film Festival in eBook form and you can also order a paperback copy if you’re that way inclined. Which I understand because I, myself, am a paperback kind of guy. I may also release it in audio-book form.
Welcome to THE ART MOVEMENT, a radio show about arts and culture, where all art forms and free thoughts are allowed. The show is hosted and produced by globe-trotting arts presenter Matt Micucci, and features plenty of music, interview clips and thoughts on current events.
Listen to Episode 23 via one of the players below.
Download the full show here.
In this episode:
The 1911 theft of the Mona Lisa;
Marcel Duchamp and the beginning of post-modernism;
Here are five clips from the latest episode of my radio show, THE ART MOVEMENT, the weekly radio show hosted/produced by arts presenter Matt Micucci. The show revolves around art and culture, and where all art forms and free thoughts are allowed.
(To listen to/download the full radio show, scroll to the bottom of the page.)
The Cinemateca Brasileira and over 100 years of Brazilian film heritage are in danger.
The Cinema Novo film movement of Brazil.
How art inspired outrage, empathy and revolution.
Why would Bolsonaro be interested in damaging cultural heritage?
Modern types of Tango music.
Lots more where that came from! You can listen to the full epsiode of THE ART MOVEMENT (including the music) via the player below.
A partial transcript of Episode 22 of my arts and culture radio show, THE ART MOVEMENT. Scroll down to listen to the full show.
culture and education can lead to a revolution, which is a forceful way for people to take charge of time, which is history in motion. Whether those people fall on the wrong side of history or the right side of history is the real challenge.
But the way I see it, the two energies that are the foundation of a revolution are outrage and empathy. So, at certain points in history, especially when a shocking event occurs like the explosion of Beirut, the death of George Floyd or 9/11 and so on…
The reactions they solicit are outrage and empathy. The way I see it, the former is a more impulsive one, it is more easily understood and that is why it instantly attracts more people.
That’s also why social media and, arguably, the internet at large are the best vehicles for outrage. Because they too are fast-paced and offer the promise of instant gratification. But because outrage is such an impulsive reaction and so strong, it tends to manifest itself as violence or through violent acts. Now, I would be naive to think that violence has no place in revolution and that’s true.
Also, violence itself manifests itself in various ways, not only via physical violence but through the destruction of cultural heritage, spiteful words and in ways that are a bit more concealed and don’t stand out as easily.
The other force, empathy, is a little harder to generate can easily be overcome by outrage, but in the end, empathy is the more long lasting of the two forces. But two of the conditions that empathy requires are time and distance. Which is why art is the perfect vehicle for empathy.
Art is not as immediate and can take time to both find and evaluate. But it also has that capacity to linger in your mind for far longer than the fast-paced world of social media. But also because to be sure, art like Nina Simone famously said should reflect the times. But also because art has that capacity to reveal truths that are timeless and universal.
Some of these truths are so plain to see but at the same time, to be aware of them is incredibly difficult. Although these are truths that are also a part of us, to become aware of them requires a certain distance or even detachment. It also requires us to be passive, as we are confronted by such truths.
Art provides just that distance and that type of confrontation. However, in a strange twist, it is impossible to know just what artwork will lead to such a powerful awakening.
The best way to achieve this awakening is by experiencing as much art as we can of as many kinds as we can all of the time. And you don’t need to be intellectually aware of the different art movements, just that art is varied and different and all of these varied and different styles, movements and forms represent different viewpoints. But no matter how different they are, there is always a timeless and universal truth within them that is also within us.
In a nutshell, that’s why I think that art is so important. That’s also why I think that I don’t have to agree with an artwork that I ideologically oppose in order to deem it good because that artwork too has a concealed, universal and timeless truth that will help me understand myself and the world around me.
Understanding that timeless and universal truth… that’s what empathy is all about. And it’s hard. But I really believe in my heart that that’s the revolution I want to be a part of. Are you with me?
In Arte Matt 