after james ensor...

you really have to click on the top image and see it huge to appreciate the insanity here... a large mounted photograph from 1906 of a costume party picked up at the rose bowl flea a few months ago.

in the lower right corner says "the hugo bal masque" - i'm guessing there is no relation to hugo ball the dada artist, but since it reminded me of him you might want to click here and hear marie osmond reciting one of ball's dada poems... what could be scarier than that masquerade for halloween!

this grande ensemble of mask wearing humans certainly also reminds me of ensor's great 1889 painting christ's entry into brussels, which can be visited at the getty (and is hands down one of the best paintings in any museum in los angeles). if you live in the area and haven't seen it in person, maybe a halloween pilgrimage is in order...