In a world where ciggies make eyelashes and tears, penises make up smiling mouths and milk squirting baby bottles are breasts, things seem a bit twisted. Aurel Schmidt paints this picture for us in her drawings, the first of which I came across at the Whitney. As admittedly tainted and peculiar as her work is, it also lends a new reality to the world as it is.



Based on the work of hers I saw at the Whitney [see the slideshow for the shot], I assumed Aurel was a man from some foreign country. The work featured a bull figure with this huge human penis standing proudly with a staff of beer cans and a body composed of randomness like more beer cans, pepto bismol and tampons.

Fast forward to just yesterday...I came across the collaboration between Opening Ceremony and that same artist Aurel Schmidt...did a little googling and lo and behold: Aurel's a woman! A Canadian-born 25-year-old with a Woody Allen quirkiness in her style. She's even more amazing now! She's also my best friend. Yup, as of yesterday. But she's also tight with Oliver Zahm...