Gerard Malanga | |
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.jpg) Malanga in 2005 | |
| Born | Gerard Joseph Malanga (1943-03-20)March 20, 1943 (age 82) New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Education | University of Cincinnati Wagner College |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1962–present |
Gerard Joseph Malanga (born March 20, 1943) is an American poet, photographer, filmmaker, actor,curator, andarchivist.
Malanga worked for pop artistAndy Warhol from 1963 to 1970.[1]The New York Times referred to him as "Andy Warhol's most important associate."[2][3] He began as Warhol'sstudio assistant, helping him with thesilkscreening of his paintings. Later, he was appointed as a founding editor of Warhol'sInterview magazine. As aWarhol superstar, he also appeared in a number ofunderground films.
His photography spans over four decades and includes portraits, nudes, and the urban documentation of "New York's Changing Scene." Malanga, who is primarily a poet, considered his portraits to be "poetry on film." He has directed several films and written books.
In 2024, Malanga was elected as aChevalier of theOrdre des Arts et des Lettres by theFrench Ministry of Culture.[4]
Malanga was born on March 20, 1943, inthe Bronx, aborough of New York City, and raised onFordham Road.[5] He was the only child of Italian immigrant parents. His father, Gerardo Malanga, was a dry goods salesman.[5] His early drawing ability was supported by his parents, who signed him up for an after-school art program.[5]
In 1959, Malanga became a regular onAlan Freed'sThe Big Beat, televised on Channel 5 (WNEW) in New York City.[6]
By his senior year, Malanga was interested in becoming a poet, but he was also studying graphic design and advertising at theSchool of Industrial Art in Manhattan.[7] In 1960, he graduated from high school with a major inAdvertisingDesign. After graduation, Malanga enrolled at theUniversity of Cincinnati's College of Art & Design, but he dropped out within a year.[7]
In 1961, Malanga was admitted toWagner College inStaten Island on afellowship.[5] At Wagner, Malanga became part of a writing community. He befriended one of his English professors,Willard Maas, and his wifeMarie Menken, who became his mentors.[8] He also made friends withSaul Bellow andRobert Lowell.[5] He attended a symposium withKay Boyle,Frank O'Hara,LeRoi Jones, andKenneth Koch.[5] Malanga won the firstGotham Book Mart Avant-Garde Poetry Prize.[5] He was an editor for the journalWagner Literary Magazine.[9]
In 1963, Malanga was looking for a summer job when poetCharles Henri Ford introduced him pop artistAndy Warhol.[10] Malanga had previouslysilkscreened fabrics for a necktie designer, and Warhol needed assistance with a silkscreening.[5] He was immediately hired by Warhol at $1.25 per hour.[5] "The first was the Elizabeth Taylor portrait.Ethel Scull 36 Times, Elvis Presley, Death and Disasters—we put out a lot of stuff, just the two of us," Malanga recalled.[5] In September, Malanga drove to California with Warhol,Wynn Chamberlain, andTaylor Mead for Warhol's solo exhibition at theFerus Gallery in Los Angeles. He never returned to Wagner College. "That summer job lasted seven years," he said.[5]
Malanga was also involved in Warhol's filmmaking atthe Factory. He appeared in films such asKiss (1964),Harlot (1964),Soap Opera (1964),Couch (1964),Vinyl (1965), andCamp (1965). He played a combination ofLee Harvey Oswald andJack Ruby in Warhol's filmSince (1966).
Malanga dated model and debutanteSusan Bottomly in 1966.[11] After introducing her to Warhol, she was given the new moniker International Velvet. Malanga and Bottomly costarred in the filmChelsea Girls (1966).[12]
In 1966, Malanga choreographed a dance for Warhol's multimedia presentation,The Exploding Plastic Inevitable, featuring musical performances bythe Velvet Underground andNico.[13]
Malanga and Warhol collaborated on the nearly 500 individual 3-minuteScreen Tests, which resulted in a selection for a book of the same name, published by Kulchur Press, in 1967.[14][15] He co-producedBufferin (1967), in which he reads his poetry and diaries.[16] It is deemed to be the longest spoken-word movie on record at 33-minutes nonstop.[citation needed]
In 1967, Malanga went to Italy to show his filmIn Search Of The Miraculous at the Bergamo Film Festival.[17] While visiting friends in Rome, he ran out of money and reached out to Warhol for financial assistance.[17] When Warhol did not respond, he decided to make a movie instead. To fund this project, Malanga planned to sell paintings based on images ofChe Guevara's corpse, the recently deceased hero of theCuban Revolution.[17] He intended to create Warhol-style silkscreen paintings and sell them as original Warhol works.[17] He wrote to Warhol explaining his plans and requesting his cooperation.[17] After receiving no reply, he proceeded with the scheme and arranged to exhibit the works at Galleria La Tartaruga in February 1968.[17] The gallerist, Plinio De Martiis, wanted to confirm that he was permitted to sell the works, so he contacted Warhol's New York dealer,Leo Castelli, who notified Warhol.[17] Warhol claimed the works were authentic to save Malanga from imprisonment, but informed Martiis that Malanga was not authorized to sell them.[17][18] Upon his return to New York, Malanga apologized to Warhol for the forgeries and continued working at the Factory after Warhol survived anassassination attempt in June 1968.[17][19]
In 1969, Malanga managed the "Andy Warhol Theater: Boys to Adore Galore" under his company, Poetry on Film.[19] The theater showed malepornographic films for six weeks.[19] He hiredJim Carroll to work in the box office and fellow Warhol superstarJoe Dallesandro as the projectionist.[20] Later that year, Malanga became a founding editor of Warhol'sInterview magazine.[20] In 1970, he left Warhol's studio to pursue his work in photography.
In the 1970s, more fake Warhol screen prints appeared in Europe, and Warhol suspected they were made by Malanga.[21] Malanga denied that he had done them, but this created a strain in their relationship.[22] In a December 1976 diary entry, Warhol said: "Ran into Gerard Malanga. Gerard wrote toFred asking why he wouldn't let him do photography forInterview, I guess he just wants a press pass. Fred won't have anything to do with Gerard because we're still getting repercussions from all the fakeElectric Chairs we think he did, they're being resold and resold and each time the money involved gets bigger, so Fred isn't about to give Gerard anything."[23]
His portraits were considered by Malanga to be "poetry on film."[24] Nearly all of the major poetry magazines published his poems.[24]
Malanga has photographed several poets and artists over the years including,Charles Olson,Iggy Pop,William Burroughs, andHerbert Gericke.[8]
In 1973, the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Library hosted a touring exhibition featuring 110 of Malanga's portraits.[24]
In 1975, Malanga performed a reading of his poems and showed his filmApril Diary at the Sears Harkness Theater inBinghamton, New York.[25]
In 1985,Henry J. Stern, Commissioner of theNew York City Department of Parks & Recreation, appointed Malanga as the first photo archivist for the department.[26] He was responsible for cataloguing and conserving the historic negative collection ofRobert Moses.[26]
In his introduction to Malanga's first monograph,Resistance to Memory (Arena Editions, 1998),Ben Maddow, a photo historian and poet, said, "Malanga has that great essential virtue of the photographer: humility before the complex splendor of the real thing...Malanga is the photo-historian of this culture."[citation needed]
In reviewing Malanga's bookScreen Tests Portraits Nudes 1964-1996 (Steidl, 2000), photographerFred W. McDarrah remarked that "Malanga is among the elite editors and photographers who have long dazzled and propelled the New York avant garde."[citation needed]
In 2024, Gerard was named aChevalier of theOrdre des Arts et des Lettres by theFrench Ministry of Culture.[4]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)| International | |
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