Padma Lakshmi, An Art Form

With Padma Lakshmi bearing the names of three gods, it's not surprising to see a headline Brand-Name Goddess Basks in the Moment. And it's easy to imagine Salman Rushdie, upon first reading of Padma Lakshmi in a magazine, thinking, That'll do nicely.

Reportedly to see Padma Lakshmi is to be in pain, according to Richard Dreyfuss. Abstract Expressionism I hear you say, but wait. Let's look at Ms. Lakshmi herself; what do the headlines tell us she is? Padma, Padma, your dinner's ready:

• Model: "Model PADMA LAKSHMI Arriving at the El Rey Theatre"
• Talented: "Lakeshmi Dresses Herself"
• Actress: "Boom is Awful and Can be Given a Miss"
• Indian: "Padma Lakshmi is South Indian, and from Chennai"
• Producer: "Padma Lakshmi to Produce Film"
• Writer: "Padma Lakshmi - Easy Exotic : A Model's Low-Fat Recipes from Around the World"
• Cook: "Model Lakshmi Discovers She Can Make More Than A Decent Bowl of Rice"
• Eater: "A model Who Eats? She Wrote the Book"
• Drinker: "Padma Lakshmi to Endorse Beer!"
• Presenter: "Padma Lakshmi Takes Low-Fat Cuisine to TV Network"
• Visually-Impaired: "It was Love at First Sight: Padma Lakshmi"
• Intelligent: "Clever Crumpet and the Joy of Erudition"
• Stupid: "Salman Rushdie Splits with Girlfriend Padma Lakshmi; Pretty Much Calls her Dumb"
• Organized: "What Do Padma Lakshmi and Kyra Sedgwick Have in Common? Their Wedding Planner"
• Married: "Rushdie Weds Padma Lakshmi"
• Famous: "Author Rushdie Weds Indian Star"
• Odd: "Odd Couple Weds"
• Doer: "Mrs Rushdie Does New York"
• Passionate: "Padma Lakshmi: A Woman of Varied Passions"
• Inspirational: "Smitten Salman Writing Film for Padma"
• Provocative: "Padma Lakshmi's Bikini Provokes 'Sexism' complaints"
• Sweet: "Honey Of The Week - Padma Lakshmi"
• Saucy: "Saucy Padma Pic Lands in a Soup"
• Traveler: "Padma Lakshmi to Visit India as UN Envoy"
• Punctual: "Padma Lakshmi Arrives for a Premiere of "The Missing" in New York City"
• Envied: "Lakshmi - The Envied"

Abstract Expressionism?

Does that invoke the Abstract Expressionist in you? Well, it shouldn't. Yes her career is one big Action Painting but look at her face. In all those naked shots, presumably before she dressed herself, what do you see when you look at her face?

Not AbEx

Pierre Soulages.

Staring in the Face

Big dirty solid straight black gestural brush strokes across and down the face of a goddess. Absent-mind yourself from the saucy, punctual traveler; the odd, passionate doer; the provocative visually-impaired drinker; the talented, married eater, the dumb, famous writer, the Indian, organized actress, the inspirational, envied model; the intelligent, saucy producer, and you are staring in the face, Lyrical Abstraction.

Paul Dorrell advises:

that you don't get sucked into the vortex of global information. It's all too vast to keep up with, and often the way it's presented is too absurd to bother over.