There are many ways to marvel at the identity that Scott Seekins has carved out (I'm preferential to his early registration of the domain madonna.com, which reportedly scored him some serious pre-bubble dot-com cash), but it's difficult to get over one particular preponderance in Sunday's weighty Strib profile: the dude's in his 60s! (Or so it seems.) See also: dress Scott Seekins.
For all you Seekins fans, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts has a pretty great shot of the Artist as a Young Man on their website. The photo, by Tom Arndt, is from 1974. As you will see, his hair was already quite established....
»» Submitted by greyarea at 11:26 PM on December 10
»» Submitted by»»»msparber at 4:41 AM on December 11
Scott has frequent Thursday night open houses in his Downtown Gallery/Studio. He's a great guy and a very interesting artist. Stop in some evening and check it out.
»» Submitted by»»»TBartel at 8:41 AM on December 11
The single greatest impediment to the arts in Minneapolis is not condos or Vikings fans, but the very 1980s nostalgia that people like Seekins insist on perpetuating.
»» Submitted by Ahmad Rashad at 9:54 AM on December 11
According to my brother, Mr. Seekins is also an N-Scale model railroad innovator, and the man who thought to use his own hair to replicate power lines.
The single greatest impediment to the arts in Minneapolis is not condos or Vikings fans, but the very 1980s nostalgia that people like Seekins insist on perpetuating.
Boy, I'd love to hear how that works.
»» Submitted by»»»TBartel at 10:27 AM on December 11
The author of the article doesn't seem to know that Nate's Clothing owns the entire building. They've gotten lots of offers from developers and turned them all down.
»» Submitted by Elizabeth at 10:34 AM on December 11
Agreed, Tom. It's like saying that the local music scene still revolves around The Suburbs and Prince.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 10:38 AM on December 11
Rex, why is it "difficult to get over" Scott Seekins' age?
»» Submitted by»»»eshaffer at 11:00 AM on December 11
Geoff Herbach of the Lit 6 posse, as a new editor of Mental Contagion, interviewed "Scott" last month.
»» Submitted by»»»taylor at 11:00 AM on December 11
I was always curious about this dude. I see him on the train all the time, and always wondered why he looked like an extra from the Raspberry Beret video. Now I know the scoop.
»» Submitted by»»» bedubbau at 11:22 AM on December 11
I want to know more about the black and white thing. Is it more a ritual, or a discipline? I wonder if the type of art he makes and the signs he holds depending on whether he's in his black or white season? I wonder if he secretly wears red when he's alone?
»» Submitted by Tib at 12:44 PM on December 11
I mean if they're DIFFERENT depending on the season.
»» Submitted by Tib at 1:04 PM on December 11
Ellen: Because I would've guessed that he's in his late-30s/early-40s.
Speaking of the 80's, does anyone else think this photograph taken at Lake Calhoun is kick-ass?
»» Submitted by Tate at 1:47 PM on December 11
If its the 80s, then that photos is totally bitchin. Or, in my neighborhood -- fucking cherry.
»» Submitted by»»»msparber at 1:50 PM on December 11
This article was the first I'd ever heard of this guy and I came away thinking, "Wow. Here is the most self-absored person in the history of mankind." That this man warranted a news article is a stinging indictment of so many things.
»» Submitted by»»» kwatt at 2:53 PM on December 11
kwatt, I think Seekins is an interesting artist and a thought-provoking example of what a life lived as art looks like. Here's the part of that article that *I* read as a stinging indictment:
"Sports bars line the blocks around Seekins' studio. Guys in bright-purple football jerseys mock Seekins on their way to the game. The people who stare at him now seem more suspicious than bemused."
The world is way more interesting when it's not homogenized.
»» Submitted by»»» mcgeary at 3:13 PM on December 11
Yeah, but contrast that to this, the best line in the piece: "In October he made his seasonal switch from all-white summer suit to all-black winter attire for the 40th year in a row, a biannual change that he makes 'whenever it feels right.' That day he made a phone call to an editor at the newspaper to let her know."
Wasn't he told to get out of town in City Pages annual get out of town issue all the way back in, like, '88?
»» Submitted by»»»msparber at 3:31 PM on December 11
His self-absorption IS the message which makes it somewhat timeless in a society that is becoming increasingly loyal to fewer brands (iPod, Abercrombie, American Apparel, etc.). At some point, he said, "Fuck it! I'M the brand." And that's an interesting study if you want to spend some time thinking about it. As consumers all of us adorn ourselves with other people's brands, in fact so much so that if you walk into the mall, you can't distinguish one person from another.
Seekins ain't that...and very few people in the U.S. and A. can say the same. Don't knock him for being self-absorbed. He's truly free.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 3:31 PM on December 11
That day he made a phone call to an editor at the newspaper to let her know."
Somebody has to tell the Strib what news is.
»» Submitted by»»»TBartel at 3:52 PM on December 11
aeklund is onto something. I was struck by the same moment of clarity, but perhaps in a slightly darker hue on Friday night. I was at a cocktail hour on Friday for lots of folks in the local advertising world. Beautiful, slick, happenin' people. But I noticed one guy in particular who clearly had branded himself, at least for that night. His jeans were offseet by his jacket which complemented his t-shirt. It was all capped off by his bottled beer inside a martini culture. He was his own brand and I tipped my hat to him.
We're all the cultural average of some culture...
»» Submitted by»»» nateek at 3:58 PM on December 11
I knows the yogurt culture I had this morning was quite average. Step it up, Yoplait!
»» Submitted by Sailor Martin at 4:05 PM on December 11
The world is way more interesting when it's not homogenized.
So if I want people to *think* I'm interesting, I should dress weird. OK, got it.
»» Submitted by Davey at 4:05 PM on December 11
No, Davey. But whether you like it or not, you're conscious of what you wear every day because it's the first gut level impression you give. Whether you're in an Armani suit or a pair of Converse All-Stars, pair of beat up Levis, and a Ramones t-shirt, you're conscious of it.
That said, today I must be a complete slacker idiot base upon my apparel.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 5:34 PM on December 11
Oh, and if you dress weird, you'd better be interesting...:) Because if you're dressing weird, there's probably a reason other than you have good/bad taste. And yes, perhaps it's just that you like your clothes and fasion-style, but I also expect that there's something deeper to that than pure vanity.
I mean, look at Max. He's got his own thing going on, man.
Awe, SNAP, brother!!!
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 5:40 PM on December 11
"Agreed, Tom. It's like saying that the local music scene still revolves around The Suburbs and Prince."
- - -
It . . . . doesn't?
Is this a new development?
Damn.
.
»» Submitted by»»» bobby_b at 5:55 PM on December 11
You realize I have no idea what you're talking about, aeklund. Unlike Seekens, I dress how I dress because I like it and it's comfortable, not to attract attention, and I get surprised when people point out what I'm wearing. I mean, it's just pants, a shirt, a sweater, and a hat.
And, of course, my beautiful mustache.
»» Submitted by»»»msparber at 5:58 PM on December 11
So that's the story behind the guy I've seen all over downtown.....I can't say that I came away from reading the article impressed or intrigued by him, but to each his own!
»» Submitted by»»» scoste at 7:27 PM on December 11
Max, baby, you wear what you wear BECUASE of your mustache. And that, my friend, is why you should wear that hat.
Tomorrow, at 6:30, we're holding our "company" holiday keg stand at the Bulldog in the back bar. I'm wearing a Benetton shirt circa 1985 because that's what I should be wearing.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 7:37 PM on December 11
Never mind my misspellings. I do that for effect...like a scarf or an Ascot.
Damn, I want to wear an Ascot. That would be dope. Watch me.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 7:45 PM on December 11
I hope and pray that Westerberg and the Suburbs are still influential, but I also hope that this music scene never gets pidgeoned holed into a sound. Prince is awesome. In my mind, Prince may be the greatest artist this metro has ever produced, but I'm really happy that he may be an enigma. I love the fact that there may never be another Prince, and I would hope that MPLS doesn't attempt to make a new one. I would hope that mpls continues to be a community that encourages artists to make something new, make something original, and not sound like anything that's ever happened before.
What reinvent it? Make it.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 7:47 PM on December 11
And now I'm done posting...
Jes, what a blowhard I am.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 7:58 PM on December 11
It's hard being me.
»» Submitted by»»»msparber at 8:13 PM on December 11
You're damn right...that's the hardest part of being hirsute. I feel your pain.
»» Submitted by»»»aeklund at 8:28 PM on December 11
I had a hair suit once, back in the 70s, when it was popular. I got the cheap kind, made out of yak fur, and man, it itched.
Wait, what are we talking about?
»» Submitted by Sailor Martin at 8:49 PM on December 11
This is pretty late in the discussion, but I have to chime in. Before I go any further with this, I do want to mention that I'm sporting a rather swank looking moo-stash myself right now, so no hating on the lip fur.
But here's my thing: I just cannot accept that people wear any old pair of pants with any old shirt, with no recognition of what people think. If that were the case, you might as well "accidently" wear a Hooters t-shirt, with some buttless pants, and a Confederate flag baseball hat. But you don't do you? At some point your politics, taste, and rearing came to a head.
Think about the 80s. Were punks rebelling against the Molly Ringwalds? Were "preppies" the enemy? If so, it took a lot more effort to paint your jacket with some anarchy signs and get your hair to stand up than it did to feather your hair and put on a v-neck sweater.
Everyone belongs to something. If you think you don't then you belong to the other people who say they don't belong to something. As for me? I belong to all my kickass bros sporting the fur trap!
»» Submitted by»»» nateek at 9:49 PM on December 11
Oops. Sorry ladies, let me re-phrase that. I belong to all my kickass bros AND sisters sporting the mustache!
(I'd re-type "fur trap" but that could get pretty confusing.)
»» Submitted by»»» nateek at 9:56 PM on December 11
mommy, what's a fur trap?
»» Submitted by»»» spaceman at 2:21 PM on December 12
Ask the muff diver.
»» Submitted by bud jr at 2:45 PM on December 12
Everyone belongs to something. If you think you don't then you belong to the other people who say they don't belong to something.
the cc club is a perfect example of this. everybody there treasures their "uniqueness", yet somehow they all manage to dress the same. and then they sneer at anyone who doesn't look just like them.
»» Submitted by blake at 2:48 PM on December 12
This is all I have to say........lol.
Notice my grin....it's like catching a glimpse of Bigfoot in the Cascade Mountains on a mushroom hunting trip....
No martini here folks...pure class...with a capital K.
»» Submitted by»»» Sufrida at 10:09 PM on January 11
