Monthly Archives: June 2007

HER LOVER one day takes O for a walk

Parc Monceau by Monet

Monceau Park (1878) – Claude Monet

 

In search of Borgesian elements in Story of O.

From the opening lines of Story of O:

“HER LOVER one day takes O for a walk in a section of the city where they never go – the Montsouris Park, the Monceau Park.”

Where did her lover take her? To the Monceau Park or the Montsouris Park? Or both?

I’ve written about O here.

Somewhat related linkcandy: sinnliches.ch and and accompanying Google gallery (nsfw).

Merryland (1740) – Thomas Stretzer

Merryland (1740) – Thomas Stretzer
Edition shown: NY: Robin Hood House (1932)

Her valleys are like Eden, her hills like Lebanon, she is a paradise of pleasure and a garden of delight

This poetic praise by the pseudonymous Thomas Stretzer may sound like any other earth-troping colonization of womanhood similar to John Donne’s well-known characterization of his mistress; Oh “my America, my new-found-land!” Those familiar with Merryland (published in 1740) and indeed, with a whole tradition of what Darby Lewes has dubbed somatopias (texts composed of, or designed for the body), will recognize in these words the embarrassingly facile puns of female landscaping metaphors that treat woman as so much ground to till, as so much earth to exploit. Certainly, Stretzer’s Merryland—both composed of and designed for bodies—offers up a fertile pornocopia for male corporeal pleasures based on exposed, accessible female body parts. —http://www.specmind.com/vixen/geography_of_desire.htm [Sept 2005]

Schreber’s Fantastic Beasts

Schreber’s Fantastic Beasts:

“In 1774 Johann Christian Dan Schreber authored a multivolume set of books entitled Die Saugthiere in Abbildungen nach der Natur mit Beschreibungen. Focusing on mammals of the world, these books were lavishly illustrated with 755 hand-colored plates. There was a slight problem though: in most instances the artists had never seen the animals they were rendering onto paper. Explorers would return from their travels and describe the animals in question to the artists. The end result was that some of the drawings, though representing real animals, looked more like they had come from someone’s nightmares.” —http://www.nhm.org/research/libraries/beasts/index.html

Jean-Pierre Bouyxou interviewed

Dailymotion has an interview by Stéphane du Mesnildot with Jean-Pierre Bouyxou –via I’m in a Jess Franco state of mind by Robert Monell.

“Une interview de Jean-Pierre Bouyxou, mémoire vivante de l’underground et de la contre-culture. Il évoque la naissance de sa cinéphilie et l’importance de la revue Midi-Minuit Fantastique. Il nous parle aussi de Jean Boullet, de Kenneth Anger et de “l’adaptation” d’Histoire d’O par ce dernier.”

Summary:

Part 1: Il évoque la naissance de sa cinéphilie et l’importance de la revue Midi-Minuit Fantastique. Il nous parle aussi de Jean Boullet, de Kenneth Anger et de “l’adaptation” d’Histoire d’O par ce dernier.

Part 2: Jean-Pierre nous parle des années 60 et du caractère sulfureux du cinéma fantastique, mais aussi de Guy Debord.

Part 3: Jean-Pierre nous parle de cinéma expérimental, du cinéaste Etienne O’Leary et de la contestation dans les années 60.

Part 4: Jean-Pierre nous parle du peintre et photographe Pierre Molinier et de son film “Satan bouche un coin”. il évoque aussi Noël Godin et les attentats pâtissiers de Georges Le Gloupier.

Part 5: Jean-Pierre nous parle de son amitié avec Jean Rollin, le grand cinéaste de films de vampires français.

Part 7: Jean-Pierre nous parle de ses deux films pornos qu’il a réalisés dans les années 70 : “Entrez vite… vite je mouille” et “Amours collectives”.

Part 8: Jean-Pierre nous parle de la revue Fascination, la bible des amateurs d’érotisme « Belle Epoque ».

I’ve mentioned Bouyxou here.