
#124 - Art and Irresolvable Contradictions (Live) | Tao Ruspoli (Bombay Beach Biennale)
Life is a Festival
Intro
This chapter delves into the complex interplay between art and existential contradictions through a conversation at the Bombay Beach Biennale. It examines how inhospitable environments, like the Salton Sea, can foster creativity and reflects on the significance of death in shaping the meaning of life.
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Speaker 1
Redfin
Speaker 2
still drilling, still doing new things, trying to figure it out. One of those new things is a business called ee buying. Redfin got into eye buying a few years ago. It's this business where a few big companies will basically buy your house for cash over the internet, then turn around and try and sell it for a profit. Ibin was in the news last fall when zillo said they had lost hundreds of millions of dollars in just a few months in the ibin business, and were getting out of it. Later in the conversation, glen and i talk about what happened with zillo and the risks red finn is facing. But before we got to that, we started out with some eye buying basics. First off, who sells their houses to eye buyers like redfin? There
Speaker 1
are people who want to sell a house without having to clean it up every day so that someone could tor it. They just want the money right away. And some of tha is about convenience. You just want some one to buy at lockstock and barrel on the spot. Another reason that people do this is because they see the home of their dreams, theire bidding against cash investors, which has become increasingly prevalent, and they get the money out of their old place in three hours on a sunday afternoon. These ee buyers provide that liquidity. We are the ones who say, listen, your house is worth about 700 thousand dollars. I think if we fixed it up, we could probably sell it for 737 hundred forty, but we'll give you the 700 right now. And that has been wonderful for some people, but it's a trade off. You get a little less money for a same day sale, or a near same day sale.
On a little known shore inland from Los Angeles lies a post apocalyptic seaside town and one of the art world’s most interesting happenings. Founded in 2015, Bombay Beach Biennale is a renegade celebration of art, music, and philosophy. Pushing through a few hours of sleep, cofounder Tao Ruspoli and I sat down at the Biennale for a conversation.
On the show we discuss the ecological and philosophical paradox of the Salton Sea and the strange fate of Bombay Beach. Tao shares why great art is made from irresolvable contradictions and inhospitable environments. We explore this year’s “Questioning Hierarchy” theme and Tao reveals how Bombay Beach changed him. We invite festival producer Dulcinee DeGuere and Neuroscientist Dr. Patrick House on stage to share the art of facilitation and intrusive déjà vu. Finally Tao shares his vision of life as a festival and how the existence of death is what makes meaning possible.
Tao Ruspoli an Italian-American filmmaker, photographer, musician, and co-founder of The Bombay Beach Biennale. His films include Fix, Being in the World, and the 2017 exploration of polyamory, Monogamish. Dulcinee DeGuere is also a filmmaker, this was her first year producing the Biennale. Tao hosts the Being in the World Podcast with neuroscientist Dr Patrick House.
Bombay Beach Biennale transforms abandoned housing, vacant lots, and decaying shoreline into a unique canvas for creative expression. Artists, philosophers, creators and makers across many mediums donate their time and talents to the volunteer-led happening.
Timestamps
:04 - Martin Heidegger and Being in the World
:10 - The fate of the Salton Sea
:17 - Great art is made from irresolvable contradictions and inhospitable environments
:26 - Honoring the memory of one of Bombay Beach’s great artists Steve “Shig” Shigley
:34 - Questioning Hierarchy
:41 - How Bombay Beach changed Tao
:46 - Festival producer Dulcinee DeGuerre and the art of facilitation and the challenge of self-care
:59 - Neuroscientist Dr. Patrick House and the intrusive deja vu of Bombay Beach
1:16 - How to live your life like a festival
Links:
Tao Ruspoli: https://www.taoruspoli.com/
Bombay Beach Biennale: http://www.bombaybeachbiennale.org/
Being in the World Podcast: http://www.beingintheworld.com/
Dulcinee DeGuere: https://www.dulcinee.fyi/
“Greetings From the Salton Sea: Folly and Intervention in the Southern California Landscape, 1905-2005” by Kim Stringfellow: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Greetings-Salton-Sea-Intervention-California/dp/1935195328