"I Love Art" - Kathy "Betty" Griffin

As you do know I am ahuge fan of our favorite D-List queen Kathy Griffin. And back in the days she has done an amazing photoshoot with Mike Ruiz for his transformation series.

And as she has celebrated her birthday a few days ago, I think it is time to give Kathy another run in the spotlight. Besides that, my latest article for Vada Magazine has been treating Kathy Griffin as part of the "Holy Trinity of Gay Comedy". And if you have not yet read about it then go and do so! Right here! So now take a good hard look at this drawing and tell me that Kathy was right by saying: "Now I am staning here like this and even the gays are getting hard ones. Well, to the best of their abilities!" (Cause I definitly agree!)

Bettie Paige has nothing on our Kathy! She is a cougar! (And a very sexy one!)

"I Love Art!" - Enchanting Eyes

I haven't posted one of my drawings for a while, and I am sorry for that but actually I try to draw as much as possible but..

(1) there are so many other good things to blog about, as you can see, and (2) I am right now in the middle of the preparation for an important exam, so my time for drawing is a bit limited. But you will for sure be able to enjoy this one of her, the one and only Marilyn Monroe,  well at least I hope so!

Marilyn Monroe - Enchanting Eyes

I hope you can enjoy this one. When I drew it I was inspired by the iconic but pretty unknown pose Marilyn had while she was reading a book on a sofa She just  layed there and read a book. For me this is a perfect pose because it combines her overly sexual side as well as her sensible and intellectual side, which very often is put aside. And reducing Marilyn to a sex symbol is wrong, since she was so much more!

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore #9 The Sip

#9 The Sip

Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

This sip will be fatal for Norma and will make Monroe a legend and a myth. Sadly this last sip of champagne flushes down the cocktail of pills she took before going to bed. She will sleep. I decided to make this picture not blurred since we don't take on the action from Monroe's perspective, but much more from the perspective of an outsider, or the press. 

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore #8 False Salvation

#8 False Salvation

Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

This drawing is the moment when Monroe enters her bedroom and finds a tablet with a glass of champagne and some sleeping pills on her bed. She had left them there this morning, since she knew that she could not sleep this night. She takes the pills in the desire to take a night of sleep and flee from her problems.

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore #7 The Hallway

#7 - The Hallway

Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

Obviously in this drawing Monroe is already drunk or intoxicated. By whatever: we can see that her perception of her surroundings is already extremely blurred. She stumbles into the hallway of her house on the way into her bedroom. She seeks protection in the room she feels the most secure and comfortable. 

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore #5

#5 The Photo-Session

Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

During sketching this drawing i was thinking about this last photo session Monroe did for Vogue magazine, where he was semi nude. I think this shoot was with famous photographer Brad Stern. These pictures were really beautiful, but also had this sleepy and half dead vibe to them I decided that in order to fit the drawing into the series id go with the exposing part of the shoot, and show that Monroe really felt like an empty vessel during these days. 

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore #4

#4 The Sex

Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

What to say about this drawing. I mean its obvious that some hand is touching the body of Monroe . And what I have read about her in many books is that Monroe in the last months of her life had a feeling like she was just keeping the mask of Monroe up and shrinks behind this mask till she does not even exist anymore. So for her sex is not an act of love, or connection between to people. Its just something to do. And therefore she gets into the danger of just having sex with people who could just use her or harm her.

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore #3

#3 The Face

Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

When I drew this picture I thought about these beauty or glam shots they very often do of actors. And here in particular I was thinking about how Monroe was really duplicated by having her photograph taken I thought about it being a rip of of her skin, and by that Monroe got less and less, thematically speaking. And by, you know being photographed, she herself got less and less worth as a person because she was replicated via movie and photo . So that in the end all that was left was the sexual part of her. And by her i mean the creature Monroe and not Norma Jean. But Norma Jean was reduced to Monroe, and therefore the sex creature. And here I made the drawing very glammy and she looks kinda like she is on drugs. So this could also be seen as a reenactment of her last photo session.

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore #2

#2 The Travel

 

Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

 

 

 

Like we all probably know Marilyn has travelled a lot during her life. She was torn between L.A. where she had to work and where she live  and New York where she felt hoe. She was not really that much of a Hollywood type of girl. So Maonroe was always on the travel. I choose her sitting because it reminds me of the view you get when ou look inside a cab. For my story, Monroe sits in the cab, and drives home to meet with someone.

I Love Art - Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore

A sex symbol is a thing, and i hate it to be a thing. - Marilyn Monroe

Monroe #1 Fear

She has inspired generations, has overcome obstacles, had give stardom a new peak and will mesmerize the world forever. Her beautiful, artificial, tragic and controversial life was a mirror of all the beauty of Hollywood and all its ugly symptoms. Of course we are talking about Marilyn Monroe. Her death is, up until today, a mystery and has inspired musicians, singers, artists and models. She has become a true legend and an iconic figure of pop culture. Monroe has really made her way into fashion and academia and into many other ventures. I myself am very inspired by Monroe and her story, i have read many books on her and i have painted Monroe several times. 

From the first of may i will start to post an 11 picture long series entitled: Marilyn: The Last Hours, a reenactment drawn by the model of Amanda Lepore. Each day I will post a picture, and add a little information about the story I have created behind the series. On May 12th I will explain the inspiration between the project and maybe some "outtakes". So I hope you are excited for the turnout!