Bessie Smith, the 6-foot, 200-pound Empress of the Blues, commanded stage and street with a fierce violence and a resonant, endless well of a voice. Born in Chattanooga, Tennesee, in 1894, Smith began her career singing on street corners. Under the mentorship of "Ma" Rainey, one of the most popular p

Ecstatic, Gritty, In-your-face, Violent

While watching a show by Survival Research Laboratories, at what point do we feel nervous? When the gigantic flame-thrower laps its angry tongue in our direction? When a tank-sized steel monster chews menacingly on a piece of scrap metal? All forms of death and destruction are accounted for by SRL, d

Cartoonish, Catastrophe, Implosive, Industrial, Kinetic art, Physical force, Playful, Robotic sculpture, Technology, Violent, Visceral

Akira Kurosawa fits easily in the pantheon of preeminent directors of the century. His films have exerted unforeseen influences on post-WWII film. George Lucas used his 'Hidden Fortress' as a model for 'Star Wars"; Sergio Leone adapted his samurai tales to the spaghetti western; John Sturges transfor

Classical japanese, Epic, Psychological, Self-reflection, Violent

Fade in: a scorpion writhing in the dust. Its jagged red tail repeatedly plunges into its own body in a last-ditch effort at dignity and self-preservation. As the camera pulls back, we see children huddled over the desert insect, poking it with a stick and jeering at its hopeless state. This is j

Pathos, Physical force, Pioneering, Power, Violent, Witty