Snapshots of Kenneth Anger

There aren't that many photographs of Kenneth Anger smiling. They're usually portraits of the great avant-garde filmmaker looking serious, or brooding, or, shall we say?, slightly demonic?

Kenneth Anger, Paul Gallagher, Los Angeles, 2004, filmmaker

Kenneth Anger, Standard Hotel, Los Angeles 2004.

I don’t think there are that many photographs of Kenneth Anger smiling. They’re usually portraits of the great avant-garde filmmaker looking serious, or brooding, or, shall we say?, slightly demonic?, or flashing the LUCIFER RISING tattoo on his chest. Looking serious means you are a serious artist. It’s all part of the image and a good one it is too. But Anger smiles. Anger smiles quite a lot. It would be weird if he didn’t.

My life is contained in boxes stored all over the place. A paper chase of belongings in two different cities. One day they’ll all be liberated and brought back together again. I hope but know I don’t really care.

When I wrote about Anger for Flashbak in February I didn’t have these photographs. Last week, after Lockdown and what-have-you, I obtained the box in which these pictures were stored. They’re really just snaps taken with a disposable camera I bought when I flew from Glasgow to Los Angeles in 2004. I was there as part of team, with director/producer Nicola Black to film an interview with Anger. I snapped 24 pictures. Some pretty. Some personal. But these are the ones I thought might be of interest: the great filmmaker, writer and Luciferian Kenneth Anger smiling.

Kenneth Anger, Paul Gallagher, Los Angeles, 2004, filmmaker

Kenneth Anger, Paul Gallagher, Los Angeles, 2004, filmmaker

Kenneth Anger in Musso & Frank Grill, Los Angeles 2004.

 

Kenneth Anger, Nicola Black, Paul Gallagher, 2004, filming

Director Nicola Black, Kenneth Anger, and Cameraman John Halliday at the Egyptian Theater, Hollywood, 2004.

Kenneth Anger, Nicola Black, Paul Gallagher

Kenneth Anger, Nicola Black, Paul Gallagher, Hollywood Forever Cemetery, 2004

Kenneth Anger, camera John Halliday, director Nicola Black at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, 2004.

 

Kenneth Anger, Nicola Black, Paul Gallagher, Hollywood Forever Cemetery, 2004

Kenneth Anger lays flowers at the grave of Virginia Rappe, director Nicola Black watches on, Hollywood Forever Cemetery 2004.

Kenneth Anger, Paul Gallagher, Hollywood Forever Cemetery, 2004

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