A few weeks ago the French band Hold Your Horses! came to my attention by way of their compeling video for the track "70 Million". In the video, created by L'Orge, the band recreates 24 classic paintings. On first viewing the video is a charming guessing game of paintings and painters, as the viewer tests their art history knowledge. The humor of the video immediately hits you, as a parade of cross-dressing French men pose and attempt to keep straight faces for the camera. However, on repeated viewings the impressiveness of the video begins to sink in.
The detail the band and creative team put into each image is incredible but even more amazing then that is the lighting, which gives each recreation an incredibly accurate quality. Bottom line - these look exactly like moving paintings. Compare the recration of Botticelli's The Birth of Venus to Caravaggio's Salome with the Head of John the Baptist, two incredibly different piece that are recreated to near perfection.
70 Million by Hold Your Horses ! from L'Ogre on Vimeo.
My favorites are the hilariously awkward portrayl of Frida Kahlo's Self Portrait and the shockingly accurate rendition of Rembrandt's The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp, injected with a bit of clever keyboard humor. I also love the Monty Python influence on the opening. The only slightly shocking portion of the video is the bold make-up choice made in the recreation of Olympia by Manet. I'll let you make your own decision there.
The track itself, which is quite good by the way, is currently only available as a single or for free download on the band's MySpace page. Their debut, self-titled EP is available at all major online digital music retailers including iTunes and Amazon.
Screenshots of each of the 24 recreations are available after the jump. Click the image to see the original painting.
The Last Supper by Da Vinci
The Birth of Venus by Botticelli
The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp by Rembrandt
Portrait of Henry VIII by Holbein / Girl With a Pearl Earring by Vermeer
The Death of Marat by David
The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo
The Son of Man by Magritte
Unspecified Work by Mondrian (possibly Composition with Yellow, Blue, and Red)
Self-Portrait by Kahlo
Dora Maar by Picasso
The Scream by Munch
Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear by Van Gogh
Marilyn by Warhol
Gabrielle d'Estrées et une de ses soeurs by Unknown Artist
La Vierge et l’Enfant en majesté entourés de six anges by Cimabue
Salome with the Head of John the Baptist by Caravaggio
Olympia by Manet
1 comment:
Very cool video, Dave; kinda has a little bit of a Ra Ra Riot vibe going on (probably because of the stringed instruments). The recreations of the paintings definitely fits the artsy sound of the band. I'll have to download the single.
On a slightly different note, you should try embedding the video to your blog instead of linking to the clip. It just makes it easier to view (and looks nicer... people like to look at things). If you don't know how, let me know cuz it's super easy.
Love your posts so far (both of them) and good luck with the blog.
P.S.- You should also enable e-mail notification on comments so your readers don't have to check back to see if you respond; it just sends all future comments on a post to their e-mail. Very convenient and, again, super easy.
Post a Comment