Sacred Musings: February 2025
Recapping a YEAR of Sacred Monster!
Bonjour à tous et à toutes,
It was just about one year ago that I announced the launch of this platform, and what a year it’s been!
I am beyond grateful to each and every one of you who has subscribed, to everyone who has purchased a ticket to one of my speaking engagements, who has engaged with and shared my writing. It has been a joy to create and nurture this growing community of Cocteau enthusiasts!
It has occurred to me that each person interacts with this platform in their own way, and of course, not everybody joined right at the beginning. So, with that said, here is a recap of the writing you may have missed, or perhaps would like to revisit, in the past year…
I launched this platform with two gratis pieces of writing, “Welcome to Sacred Monster”, which was my personal introduction, and “The Time Lord”, which was my way of introducing my grandfather, Severin Wunderman.
“Sexy, Sparkling, and Grotesque” and “In the Zone” explored major themes in Cocteau’s cinematic masterpieces La Belle et La Bête (1946) and Orphée (1950).
“The Juggler’s Revenge” and “The Pen of Light” went behind the scenes into Cocteau’s history in Venice, his clashes with the Surrealists, the story behind his first film Le sang d’un poète, and the exhibition that opened at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection last year.
“Wild, Child” and “Jean & Coco” were about Cocteau’s role in the fashion world. I got into fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent’s love of Cocteau’s novel Les Enfants Terribles, the time Pierre Bergé picked a personal fight with me when I was a teenager, and Cocteau’s deep friendship with Coco Chanel.
“The Reality Above Reality” looked at the relationship between season 11 of Vanderpump Rules, the #Scandoval, and the Surrealist movement. “Showgirls Is A Dada Masterpiece” kept the same highbrow-lowbrow energy by examining the maligned stripper tale in an art history context.
“Jean-Jean & Jean” was a tribute to one of the great loves — and tragedies — of Cocteau’s life, the Resistance hero and erotic poet Jean Desbordes; “Jeannot & Jean” was a history of Cocteau’s relationship with the great love of his life, Jean Marais.
“The Golden Ring” explored one of the great myths of my grandfather’s life, a story he used to tell about his encounter with Andy Warhol. It is also the most popular piece published on Sacred Monster.
“Le Roi Soleil” arrived just in time for #EuroSummer, and looked at Cocteau’s long and profound history of making out-of-studio art on the Côte d’Azur.
“Soft Power in Your Area” was my deep dive into the relationship between Blackpink, the K-Pop machine, and how it follows in diplomatic traditions pioneered by Louis XIV.
“Monster, Legend, Divine” introduced readers to the woman for whom Cocteau invented the term Sacred Monster: Sarah Bernhardt, while “The Beautiful and the Damned” put a modern Sacred Monster under the microscope: the disgraced, brilliant, and redeemed John Galliano. “Requiem for a Monster” continued the through-line of modern Sacred Monstrosity via the artist formerly known as Kanye West.
“The Lost Queen of Montparnasse” and “On All Fours” looked at the roles of women and sex workers in the history of art, with a specific focus on Man Ray’s great muse and a popular Renaissance-era folk tale involving a dominatrix.
“This Charming Man” and “Human After All” explored Jean Cocteau’s influence on New Wave music, and how Daft Punk’s dance floor fillers reflect the greatest aspects of French culture back to their audience.
“Paris/Hollywood” was my personal tribute to the two cities that I call home.
And finally, “The Message” excavated the final, moving address that Jean Cocteau made to the future.
All of this, and it’s only been the first year. Just imagine what I have up my sleeve!
If you’ve made it to the end of this, and you are a subscriber at the free level, let me know one of these essays you most wish to read and I will send it to you without the paywall. I hope it will encourage you to upgrade to paid, and get the full Sacred Monster experience!
à très bientôt,
Chloë Helen America Cassens
Loving the sticker collection 💋