Art
Through April 2 - From Generation to Generation: Inherited Memory and Contemporary Art at the CJM. Co-curated by Pierre-François Galpin and Lily Siegel, this extraordinary group show does not try to be comprehensive by covering every historical trauma ever, mercifully. There are still many heartbreaking moments to be sure (as in Chikako Yamashiro's video about the Battle of Okinawa, pictured above) as the artists respond to "postmemories," events that they did not personally experience that still have resonance for them. But there is a lot of humor and beauty here too.
Theater
Through April 2 - peerless at Marin Theatre Company. In Jiehae Park's jet-black comedy, twins M and L have their hearts set on The College, and they will let no thing and no person stand in their way. This is Macbeth reimagined amongst overachieving high school seniors with a dash of Heathers and Beautiful Creatures thrown in for good measure, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.
Film
Paul Thomas Anderson's Punch-Drunk Love was an instant favorite of mine when it came out in 2002, and I see something new in it every single time I watch it again. Adam Sandler in one of the only roles I can tolerate him in, Emily Watson as luminous as could be, Jon Brion's insane score, those interstitials by Jeremy Blake, and of course the sheer perfection of Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Book
For those like me who never wanted Eve's Hollywood to end, NYRB is back with its latest glorious Eve Babitz reissue. Slow Days, Fast Company is another delectable series of Babitz's autobiographical Los Angeles vignettes, but do not be fooled by her breezy party girl exterior. Babitz slices directly to the heart of what it is to live and love in L.A., and of the complexities of being a modern woman.
Music
Artist Gwenaël Rattke gave an inspiring talk at the SF Public Library this weekend to celebrate the publication of his new book/folio San Francisco Reverberation, and while at the event I was thrilled to learn it was he who'd done the cover art for Muscle Up by Patrick Cowley, a favorite recent release of mine on SF's own Dark Entries label. Which then led me to reread this great article on Cowley by Sam Lefebvre and want to share it with you.