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	Tuesday, December 12, 00 - 4:30am EST HOLY WOOD Artwork from the Shadow Of The Valley of Death by Marilyn Manson & P.R. Brown      The very talented graphic artist behind Marilyn Manson's Holy Wood, P.R. Brown informed SLS News yesterday that Knowtribe is pleased to present the west coast premiere of "Holy Wood, Artwork From The Shadow Of The Valley Of Death" a photographic exhibition by rock musician Marilyn Manson and art director/designer P.R. Brown. In their latest collaboration, Manson and Brown have drawn on mysticism, alchemy, religion, the death of J.F.K, and our culture's obsession with celebrity, to create a series of hauntingly beautiful and often shocking photographic images. Taking the form of photographic tarot cards and portraits, these images elicit both the pleasure and pain of the viewing experience, taking their place alongside the seductive shock factor of Joel-Peter Witkin's imagery and the enigmatic resonance of Matt Mahurin's portraits. This exhibition, conceived by Manson and Brown and photographed by Brown, was inspired by the lyrics and images from Holy Wood, In the Shadow of the Valley of Death, Manson's latest album, released on Interscope records on November 14th. P.R. Brown has been working as an art director, designer and photographer for the last ten years. He has designed images for Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, Meatloaf, Foo Fighters and many more. Marilyn Manson and P.R. Brown have worked on four albums together, Antichrist Superstar, Mechanical Animals, The Last Tour on Earth, and most recently, Holy Wood In The Shadow Of The Valley of Death. Visit Bauda Design Lab, his official web site for more information. This exhibition is produced by Knowtribe, an organization based in Los Angeles and New York, dedicated to exhibiting the photographic, cinematic and performing arts of our time. Since 1994, Knowtribe has brought artists and audiences together in non-traditional spaces. For Knowtribe, art is fluid, interactive, and without boundaries. The running dates for the exhibition will be January 18th to February 15th, 2001 at The Gallery 1628 N. Cahuenga Blvd (bet. Hollywood and Selma) Los Angeles, California. The Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday 1 to 5 p.m. Below is an essay about the transformation of the fully bloomed rose on the reverse side of Manson's Holy Wood lyric booklet, the Twenty-Third Psalm reference of Manson's Holy Wood title from the Bible's Old Testament. In addition, Manson and Brown reinterpret ten Tarot cards from the twenty-two in the Major Arcana. A beautiful blooming rose emerges from a small hole in the top of a smooth, bald skull; in another image, a fetal baby nestles within that same head, flesh folded back into an equally lovely bloody, flowering form. Such gorgeous horror infuses of a new series of photographs by Marilyn Manson and P.R. Brown. With their sophisticated layering of color and texture the photographs elicit both the pleasure and pain of the viewing experience, taking their place along side the seductive shock factor of Joel-Peter Witkin's imagery and the enigmatic resonance of Matt Mahurin's portraits. With Brown as the photographer and Manson as the subject, the two have transformed the iconic singer into a series of cultural-religious symbols; transcending his fame, the images explore, instead, Manson's infamy. Moreover, they encompass the strange love/hate cult of celebrity that distorts Western cultural figures from Jesus to John F. Kennedy-from martyrdom to commodification. Based on the lyrics and imagery from Manson's recent CD, Holy Wood: In the Shadow of the Valley of Death, the photographs resonate with the hypocrisy, madness, and greedy self-annihilation of modern society. Yet by their very existence, and through their persistent beauty, the images maintain a grave optimism that there are others who, likewise, see through this force-fed media façade: the act of creating art is, in fact, affirming in its intent to communicate and elicit dialogue, which Manson and Brown seek to do. The titular reference is to the Twenty-Third Psalm from the Bible's Old Testament, a passage of inspiration and guidance that, like the images, provides a spiritual counterpoint: The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. In addition, Manson and Brown reinterpret ten Tarot cards from the twenty-two in the Major Arcana: the male cards Hanged Man (a cropped version is the record's controversial cover image), Death, Magician, Empreror, Devil, Hierophant, Fool and two female cards, Justice and the high Priestess. Individually they are frightening, ominous interpretations, but taken as a whole they possess a passionate, if cautious, optimism; true nihilists don't make art. Unlike a traditional card, the large-scale, nearly life-size presence of the Tarot images in the exhibition is particularly compelling for the viewer standing before them-they punctuate the overall group of images like the Stations of the Cross (or "Holy Wood") in a Catholic church, directing the viewer through the narrative. Nowhere has Manson's vocal and virulent disdain for the powers-that-be been more presciently or eloquently expressed than in these lusciously pained, defiantly beautiful photographs. The anger and outrage are palpable, heightened by the drama of Brown's masterful artistry. [ Return To News ]

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