(Visual) Notes on Culture

GALAXY, APRIL 1955

2009-06-02T17:18:00.001-04:00

Bloody ray-gun!

Beckmann's Gotterdammerung

2009-05-26T19:42:00.002-04:00

Max Beckmann, Paris Society, 1931.

POWER PLAYER

2009-04-27T16:49:00.000-04:00

Promo ad from Kemco Seika.

Big Ben via the London Eye

2009-04-23T18:03:00.002-04:00

Big Ben, as seen through the London Eye. For a cultural assessment, see Jonathan Glancey's London: Bread and Circuses (Verso, 2001).

GALAXY, 08/1968

2009-04-13T01:20:00.001-04:00

Dig the 1960s utopianism.

Gallic Costumes, Late 17th Century til World War I

2009-03-29T23:50:00.002-04:00

French Styles of Dress, from the late 17th century until the early 1900s. From the Larousse Universel. (Click for detail).

Gallic Costumes, from Charlemagne to Louis XIII

2009-03-16T20:24:00.003-04:00

French Styles of Dress, from the Middle Ages to Louis XIII. From the Larousse Universel. (Click for detail). Stay tuned for Part II!

THE ORDER OF MYTHS

2009-02-26T18:32:00.000-05:00

HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE - Unused Covers

2009-02-18T21:40:00.006-05:00

So back in the early days of this blog, I drew attention to a book that concluded what would havebeen a 25 volume history of architecture. It appeared that publisher Ellipsis books, one of the most interesting presses for titles on architecture, was bought up by Batsford (later part of the Anova group, if memory serves). The series ceased publication. Tadgell eventually resumed his history of

MOH - John Carpenter

2009-02-13T22:30:00.001-05:00

The mighty John Carpenter. His film Cigarette Burns is arguably the best of the Masters of Horror series.

Galaxy, 02/1970

2009-02-06T18:28:00.001-05:00

Galaxy Magazine, Feb. 1970

Cal Tjader - EXTREMES

2009-02-01T16:09:00.002-05:00

Comp. CD of some of vibraphonist Tjader's earliest music and latest music. So good, it wins the coveted distinction of ALL KILLER, NO FILLER.

David Hockney - Mr. and Mrs. Clark and Percy

2009-01-30T23:12:00.005-05:00

David Hockney - Mr. and Mrs. Clark and Percy, 1971

RENEGADE

2009-01-28T21:22:00.002-05:00

"2 AM is no time to be alone in the subway/And you're about to find out why."

DRURY LANE

2009-01-25T11:25:00.001-05:00

Drury Lane in the 19th century.

MOH: Mick Garris

2009-01-23T18:54:00.007-05:00

A trading card of film director Mick Garris, from the Anchor Bay/Starz line of Masters of Horror DVDS.

SABU MARTINEZ

2009-01-21T17:22:00.006-05:00

From Sweden, with love. Previously unknown recordings from the great Sabu Martinez, who, like so many great American musicians, was only fully appreciated in Europe. Next item of interest: AFRO TEMPLE.

#44

2009-01-20T01:13:00.003-05:00

Via Ropeadope, your source for soulful, funky music. It is cold and wintry in North Carolina right now, but hearts are warm knowing that G.W.B. is doing the walk of shame. Cheers, President!!

TRAFIC

2009-01-19T12:26:00.003-05:00

French poster of Jacques Tati's 1971 film Trafic, his modest follow-up to the financially ruinous but majestic Playtime (1967). Incidentally, this poster is timely for anyone trying to attend President Obama's inauguration.

San Carlo Alle Quattro Fontane, for tourists

2009-01-18T17:47:00.003-05:00

A travel brochure, probably 40+ years old. Bilingual (English and Italian) descriptions of Francesco Borromini's San Carlo Alle Quattro Fontane (commissioned mid 1630s), the poster-child of "Mannerist" (that is, "mannered," i.e., slightly bizarre) architecture.

Format Change and More

2009-01-18T17:04:00.003-05:00

Since my recent blogging habits have been directed to Virtual Fools and the group blog at The Modest Proposal, this blog has seemed like a bit of dead weight.However, inspired by the wonder service of "If Charlie Parker Was a Gunslinger, There'd be a Whole Lot of Dead Copycats," I've decided to turn my notes on culture into notes on "visual" culture, namely impressive images that I come across.

Recently Around the Net

2008-08-29T18:38:00.003-04:00

This blog has slowed down a lot as I have shifted my attentions elsewhere. I will continue to post things that I would otherwise consider "uncategorizable" with my current endeavors, but have found outlets for most of my interests.I had two academic book reviews published over the last several months. The first was over at the Irish Journal of Gothic and Horror Studies, a newish journal out of

NOTES ON ONE SONG: Donald Byrd's "Fancy Free"

2008-07-27T11:14:00.007-04:00

This blog has slowed considerably in lieu of catching up on other projects. I hope to keep it a bit more heavily stocked in the weeks and months to come. In the mean time, give it a "happy two years" nod and check out my latest efforts over at The Modest Proposal.Donald Byrd is one of the most famous trumpeters of the post-bop era. Along with Woody Shaw and Miles Davis, he helped to define the

The Strangleholds of the American Film Industry

2008-06-18T23:48:00.002-04:00

Weird moments of clarity and perspective seem to come in pairs. This week, I had two revelations about the American film industry, both prompted by failed attempts at either supporting it or condemning it. These two interventions can loosely be categorized into angry/progressive and affirmative/conservative. On the "Stuff White People Like" end of the spectrum (I use this in a very precise way

The Value of Life

2008-05-26T18:34:00.002-04:00

As I continue to fret over personal finances in a bid to a have quiet, stable, and hopefully somewhat relaxing summer, I stumble across two news items that put the value of life in conceptual dollars. Marx would be appalled at how far along capitalism has come. While he criticized the commodification of time (labor value and duration are directly exchanged for specific dollar amounts in a

DVD Boxed Set Summer

2008-05-18T15:28:00.003-04:00

The school year is over and the summer is poised to start. As a personal note, I will be living and working in Raleigh. This time of year no longer has the eminently positive connotations that it used to have. Even under the seasonal-academic lifestyle, there is always work to be done. I am currently re-shaping an old essay on Alex Cox's Three Businessmen for an edited collection and continue

Piece in FEEL THE WORD 'zine

2008-04-10T23:31:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to drop a note and say that I have an essay on "after school specials" (and four Martin Tahse films in particular) in the April edition of Feel The Word.

Eulogies

2008-04-07T18:38:00.004-04:00

I don't want to bring too much gravitas and sorrow to the internet (enough of that already), but it is worth pointing people toward a few recent death notices. The popular urban myth is that celebrities die in "3s," but this recent wave, approximately over the last month, feels like a lot worse.Goodbye to Anthony Minghella, Arthur C. Clarke, Jules Dassin (and an associated actor, Richard Widmark

THE HOUSE BETWEEN 2.7 - CAGED

2008-03-24T18:48:00.002-04:00

In the grand tradition of life-changing stories that take place all in one night (The Warriors, Tobe Hooper's The Funhouse, even something like Escape from New York) comes Joseph Maddrey's "Caged." A dark episode from a dark season of a dark series, "Caged" plays with the usual condensations to time and space at the almost a-temporal "house at the end of the universe" in fascinating ways. See

THE HOUSE BETWEEN 2.6 - DISTRESSED

2008-03-24T18:38:00.002-04:00

This episode of THB, a kind of late-game addition, is in the tradition of mid-season bonus episodes that are more interested in character development and alternative situations than with the story ark as a whole. You can read the sordid details of the production and why the thing came to be where it is here. Spirits and a different approach to the beyond pepper this episode, shot under extreme

THE HOUSE BETWEEN 2.5 - POPULATED

2008-03-10T21:01:00.002-04:00

Normal blogging duties will resume once I finish posting this season of The House Between. This episode was conceived by Bobby Schweizer and features the closing thing that I can hope to have to a star turn (that is, a few lines). Enjoy this episode, fashioned lovingly in the memory of the eco-sci-fi films of the 1970s, re-vamped for today.

THE HOUSE BETWEEN 2.4 - ESTRANGED

2008-02-22T16:39:00.002-05:00

Episode four of season two directly continues a story arc from the previous episode. The fragile ecosystem of the house is damaged by the obsessive vision quests of contemporary science and the military-industrial complex. More monsters! More fighting!

THE HOUSE BETWEEN 2.3 - REUNITED

2008-02-22T16:32:00.002-05:00

Sorry to have to play "catch up." This is the third episode of season two of The House Between. Includes a new character, a thickened plot, and my debut in the series as an actor. See if you can spot me!

THE HOUSE BETWEEN 2.2 - SEPARATED

2008-02-02T11:13:00.000-05:00

"Separated" abounds in existential crises and alternate realities in the grand tradition of dramatic sci-fi. See tempers flair, true colors come through, and lives forever changed in this installment of the internet's best microdrama. A good counterpoint to the highly commercial scene of Super Bowl weekend!

THE HOUSE BETWEEN 2.1 - "RETURNED"

2008-01-26T20:17:00.000-05:00

This is the first episode of Season 2 of "The House Between." I poured a good deal of my blood, sweat, and tears into the production of this series. Over something like 80 hours, I worked as a production assistant, lighting designer, script consultant, and even moonlighted as an actor (in later episodes) and camera operator.Visit the official site at http://www.thehousebetween.com!

Robin Wood on DIARY OF THE DEAD

2008-01-10T17:37:00.000-05:00

Unlike many horror film fans and scholars, I have not been interested in the genre since childhood. Many writers on the subject fondly (or disturbingly, given hindsight) recall their childhoods spent in front of the television watching FRANKENSTEIN films late on Saturday nights, reading FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND and wishing that Halloween were everyday of the year. While the candy was

End of the Year Round-Up

2008-01-02T16:43:00.000-05:00

Despite the occasional slowdowns and stoppages, 2007 was a good, productive year. As it draws to a close, check out the VF end-of-the-year round-up (not nearly enough hyphens!). Point your browser to this link.2008 promises to be an even bigger year than 2007. Season two of The House Between goes live next month. A new issue of The Modest Proposal will launch by Feb. GameCulture Journal

LITERATURE AND FILM ASSOCIATION 2007 - CONFERENCE REPORT

2007-12-11T01:07:00.000-05:00

Back in October, I participated in the annual Literature and Film Association conference (the organization linked-to-but-separate-from Literature/Film Quarterly) in Lawrence, KS. Interested parties can take a look at the proceedings here, courtesy of Jim Welsh.

Review of "LANDSCAPES FROM THE AGE OF IMPRESSIONISM" at NCMA

2007-12-09T16:25:00.000-05:00

The North Carolina Museum of Art is currently exhibiting "Landscapes from the Age of Impressionism," a collection of 40 some-odd French and American proto-Impressionist and Impressionist works from the Brooklyn Museum. This is as close to a "blockbuster" exhibition as the NCMA is likely to get (the paintings have already been at the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, FL) and it lasts until January 13,

LITERACY

2007-11-21T12:22:00.000-05:00

A recent National Endowment for the Humanities report confirms what I have suspected for a long time - pleasure reading is down, book ownership is down, and childhood access to books is down. Even parents with "proper" education do not own books or provide them for their children. This New York Times article links these precipitous declines with poorer performance on reading tests by students

On CASTLEVANIA

2007-11-11T23:35:00.000-05:00

Virtual Fools is pretty much reconstituted after several months of limbo (lost files + server woes = frustration). Bobby has been beefing up the site for a while but I just had the chance to start writing for it, which will become a more general pursuit, time permitting. Anyway, I wrote this article on the Castlevania game series.

THE MODEST PROPOSAL

2007-11-05T22:53:00.000-05:00

I would like to announce the coming-to-fruition of what has long lingered as an unrealized "pet project" - The Modest Proposal.Born out of collective will and a devotion to multi-disciplinary reading, TMP hopes to intellectually engage the general reader in areas of contemporary interest.Enjoy our send-up to the lively art of the book review, read our opinion essay, and keep checking the blog (it

Outsider Art you can Wear

2007-11-03T00:41:00.000-04:00

There is a wild and woolly world of specialist t-shirt presses on the internet. Any/all tastes are catered to...for example, Threadless manages the DIY vogue, the more commercialized 80s Tees is a brash nostalgia merchant, and Rotten Cotton hits the Goth crowd with blood, guts, gore, and skimpy models. However, the real champion right now (as far as I am concerned) is Strange Vice, a

Onward to Halloween

2007-10-21T17:30:00.000-04:00

Most years I find myself in the Halloween spirit toward the end of September. Recently acquired DVDs, pervasive candy, and idle chatter about costumes make it all but inevitable. Owing to an especially busy month, though, this year is a little bit different. I have not had my usual dose of horror, will be in class during All Hallow's proper, and don't have any real excuses to do anything but

SOME NEW PENGUINS

2007-09-29T16:53:00.001-04:00

For whatever reason, I've had decent luck in finding some nice Penguin books from what I consider to be their design heyday. It does not hurt that the books themselves interest me and might be useful on upcoming projects! Note especially the awesome cover to the MERITOCRACY book.On the Greeks:The best part - for collectors in my area, at least - is that booksellers seem to be swimming in these

The Weirdest of Lon Chaney

2007-09-27T20:16:00.001-04:00

I had the pleasure of recently watching a Lon Chaney film that had always escaped ready grasp...THE UNKNOWN (1927). A short feature from the sound era, the film concerns Alonzo (Chaney), an apparently armless man who performs circus tricks. He loves Nanon (a young Joan Crawford), a young gypsy waif who has a totally "normal" save for her otherworldly fear of men's arms and hands. That is right

Whither the publisher?

2007-09-01T10:17:00.000-04:00

I occasionally browse for stories related to the current state of the publishing industry. As someone who is interested in books as "things" (see my last post) and as somebody who writes on fairly niche topics, I find it important to keep abreast with what one's favorite publishers do. But as this blogger keenly points out, most people simply don't care or even notice. For many consumers, the

THE PENGUIN COLLECTORS

2007-08-13T12:22:00.000-04:00

Books, not birds.Penguin books is still a publishing company today, but their historical importance is often taken for granted. Founded by Allen Lane in 1935, Penguin (and later its imprints like Pelican, Puffin, and Peacock...notice a trend?) sought to bring interesting writing to a mass readership. Originally priced the same as a pack of cigarettes, the company made it possible for nearly

THE LAST OF THE HIGH MODERNISTS

2007-08-01T19:54:00.000-04:00

[Cover images are from monographs written by Robin Wood]"High modernist" film making does not directly or chronologically correspond to "high modernist" production in other arts. European modernism - Cubism, Futurism, Vorticism, the list goes on - is generally said to have pinnacled in the 1920s, plunging into even more scattered pluralisms after World War II. In visual art, George Grosz, Pablo

A COMMUNICATIONS PRIMER

2007-07-29T17:11:00.000-04:00

This Charles and Ray Eames film pertains primarily to commercial graphic arts design, but is really pertinent to any type of visual communication. The film itself is pretty amazing in its oscillation between straight-ahead documentary and cool experimental montage. Check it out![The above link connects to a streaming mpeg4. Other options are here. The embedded video, below, may work depending

Discovering Lloyd McNeill

2007-07-24T17:12:00.000-04:00

The internet is most noteworthy as a place for amateur archeology. Part of my leisure time is always consumed by discovering something (book, artist, architect, musician, game designer, the list is endless) and then scouring the public domain for information about said person or topic. While much of the search inevitably leads back to the market place - after all, advertising revenue runs the

Where Design and Theory Meet

2007-07-18T12:16:00.001-04:00

Archinect (http://www.archinect.com - "Making Architecture More Connected Since 1997) is a unique site. A very unique site, in fact. It is a community hub for architects and designers (and architecture students and design students). It has one foot planted firmly in the job market, one foot in academia, and a third foot (!) planted in some obscure space for interested parties who are

FILM REVIEW: FEAR OF FEAR (1975)

2007-07-08T00:15:00.000-04:00

Fear of Fear, 1975Rainer Werner FassbinderR1 DVD from WellspringFear of Fear is an underspoken moodpiece very much unlike anything produced today. Neither hyper "stylish" nor slavishly naturalistic, it is indicative of the serious, ambiguous concerns of the New German Cinema.Margot (Margit Christensen) is a young, slender, pretty, pregnant and bored housewife. Husband Kurt (Ulrich Faulhaber) is

The Value of Artwork

2007-06-22T12:10:00.000-04:00

Professional artists have to inflate their prices in order to make a living. While materials are/can be expensive - in anything from painting to large public sculpture - time is the real premium. Most artists have a two-faced relationship with our age of plurality. On the one had, they benefit from the themes, energy, and new territory that pluralism bring. Multicultural thought,

Works on Paper at the National Gallery, D.C.

2007-06-05T13:01:00.000-04:00

Any public arts institution like the National Gallery in Washington, D.C. will constantly shift its exhibitions, a practice which pleases the patrons, curators, and donors. Armed with cultural cachet and deep pockets, this particular art-space is able to show nearly anything it wants. Realizing that I've not paid visit in a few months, I'd like to draw attention to a series of showcases that

Book Review: HORROR FILMS OF THE 1980S

2007-05-22T14:38:00.000-04:00

Horror Films of the 1980sJohn Kenneth MuirMcFarland Publishers, 2007$59.95http://www.mcfarlandpub.comAlso, order at: 800-253-2187Horror film genre publication has historically been dominated by nostalgic, appreciative writings about the so-called "Golden Age," a malleable distinction that has grown and shrunk over the years. Likewise, academic writing about horror films has centered

Optimism for American Arts Funding

2007-05-17T15:19:00.000-04:00

The "arts" (here used primarily for works of performance, film, and installation, though also applicable to the more traditional plastic arts) in America are funded by a combination of public and private money. Most of this money is privately controlled. Rich individuals, personal endowments, individual legacy grants (the Kenan Fund, for example), and corporations in search of a beneficial

Writing about Buildings: Nikolaus Pevsner, Part II

2007-05-07T15:23:00.000-04:00

Nikolaus Pevsner remains known to us because of his life in publishing. Many architects publish works of theory and history as a compliment to their building careers. Famously, Robert Venturi and his retinue were able to muster support for their brand of what was to become known as postmodernism by way of their lauded study Learning From Las Vegas (1972, subsequently revised). Pevsner was not a

GAMECULTURE JOURNAL - Vol. 1, No. 3

2007-04-27T03:41:00.000-04:00

GameCulture Journal Vol. 1, No. 3 - Now available for download at http://www.gameculturejournal.com.Enjoy!

Remembering a Giant of Architecture: Nikolaus Pevsner, Part 1

2007-04-22T16:40:00.000-04:00

The study of architecture is a rare bird, requiring a bizarre, hybrid knowledge of painting, vernacular design, engineering, history, historiography, and more. If art history is itself a relatively young discipline, than architectural studies is itself a spring chick. Men and women have been building, designing, and destroying buildings for millennia, yet they have not been systematically

BOOK REVIEW: ANDY WARHOL

2007-04-18T17:17:00.000-04:00

Andy Warhol - Penguin LivesWayne KoestenbaumPenguin Lives, Lipper/Viking ~ 2001$21.95Warhol is one of the most written-about artists of the 20th century. Though viewed more a curiosity during his life than a figure of reverence, he has attained supra-mythical status over the last 20 years. His "pop" attitudes permeate all of Western culture, while the vapid reproducibility and clinical

Some Thoughts

2007-04-11T13:42:00.000-04:00

Just a few thoughts - each, I think, are symptomatic of bigger problems facing our world, or are concerns somewhat specific to this blog.1) Patrons "not understanding" that GRINDHOUSE is the name of a "double-feature" film program comprising Planet Terror and Death-Proof. What is there not to understand? Did any of them look at the poster? Is the concept of the "double-feature" now so

Back-Catalog Raiding on eMusic

2007-04-01T13:04:00.000-04:00

As far as online music services go, eMusic.com is a venerable granddaddy. It has been around for a number of years and has acted as a showcase for "independent" musicians of various pedigrees, across many genres. Patrons to eMusic pay a monthly sum for a set number of downloads, which yields them DRM-free tracks that are permanently owned and are playable on nearly any mp3 or media player. The

Publisher Spotlight: Intellect Books

2007-03-19T13:13:00.000-04:00

Intellect BooksBristol, United Kingdom"Publishers of Original Thinking."Though now more than 20 years old, Intellect Books has made recent inroads to redefining how academic books are made and sold. Intellect publishers works in a broad range, all with scholarly verve to spare...the more uncategorizable the better. One of their proud claims is that they take chances on publishing bold, original

Begging Y'er Pardon

2007-03-19T00:38:00.000-04:00

I must account for my recent absence...first on the academic front. Just over a week ago, I attended the Society for Cinema and Media Studies conference in Chicago, IL. My work "Alex Cox's Three Businessmen: Transnational Anxieties in the Postmodern City," was well-received and marginally well-attended. Though the audience was unfamiliar with the film, I'm confident that at least a few more

THE HOUSE BETWEEN - "SETTLED"

2007-03-06T12:05:00.000-05:00

Episode 2 of THE HOUSE BETWEEN is now available at the show's site. "Settled" is probably the longest episode...it covers the most "material" and really tells the viewer a lot about the characters.Enjoy!

Art Film at the Academy Awards

2007-02-25T23:04:00.000-05:00

Is it just me or are "art films" getting a good deal of airplay at this year's Academy Awards? Usually "Oscar winner" translates to "blandly palatable" - most of the awards go to well-crafted, often brazenly benign, bourgeois movies, and seldom ever to daring, transgressive (or even innovative) works. This ceremony has placed a good deal of acknowledgment onto the art films of the past. The

THE HOUSE BETWEEN - ARRIVED

2007-02-16T13:20:00.000-05:00

The first episode of THE HOUSE BETWEEN, John Kenneth Muir's original sci-fi series, is now available online. Visit the official website to watch!

The Aesthetic Ramifications of YouTube

2007-02-14T14:24:00.000-05:00

Moving images have undergone multiple "revolutions" that redefine the experience of watching. Media changes (magic lanterns to film to video to digital) simultaneous with peripheral concerns (to watch a film means to hear its projection, splice reels, and feel the heat of the projector's lamp). On top of this, stylistic concerns often change with innovations or alterations in media. The

The Overwhelming Library

2007-02-06T13:26:00.000-05:00

Forgive the vague title of this post. I am in a bit of a bind. As I've mentioned before, I have a lot of books. They are a great source of pride and amusement to me, and I dare attribute my successes in scholarship to them. The largest sections in my personal library are devoted to film and art, but that is not to say that I don't have many volumes of literature, science fiction, or drama.

Book Review: THE GATEKEEPER by Terry Eagleton

2007-01-22T12:21:00.000-05:00

The Gatekeeper: A MemoirTerry EagletonSt. Martin's/Griffen$12.95 Trade PaperbackI have been reading a good deal of Terry Eagleton's work lately. My first exposure to him (as with thousands of others) was through Literary Theory: An Introduction, which remains the standard text for making sense of the confusing world of literary study. Many of the key elements of subsequent Eagleton books are

Can Artists and Critics be Friends?

2007-01-17T00:28:00.000-05:00

This can of worms has been opened before, but I finally feel capable of talking about it. Recent storm surges in the contemporary art market have yielded a flurry of "too good to be true" writings about the arts world today. Renowned critics from The Guardian have started blogging, and their increased output has had a visible effect on the amount of arts writing that circulates. Since London

THE HOUSE BETWEEN - TEASER/TRAILER

2007-01-12T16:03:00.000-05:00

This summer, I worked as a production assistant and lighting co-director for an independent television show called The House Between. Director John Kenneth Muir has released an internet-exclusive teaser/trailer for the series.See his January 12th, 2007 post for more information!

Zine Scene: A Quick, New Round-Up

2007-01-08T14:29:00.000-05:00

Here is a quick selection of three different zines I've encountered in the last few weeks. One is brand new and the others go back a bit, but they each deserve mention.Amish Otaku # 1Edited by Dan AllenAmish Otaku, as the name implies, is a review zine out of Central Pennsylvania. Laid out as a news periodical, it is packed wall-to-wall with columns, reviews, and op-eds on more recent video

The New Public Library: Great Works or Popular Preference?

2007-01-02T10:35:00.000-05:00

Wisdom is the principal thing:therefore get wisdom:and with all thy gettingget understanding.- Proverbs IX 7.The above axiom appears somewhat ironically in Lindsay Anderson's films The White Bus (1967) and if.... (1968), as with here. I would like to first go on record by saying that I wholeheartedly support public libraries, but generally hold them to a high standard. As a playground for young

Christmas and Visual Culture

2006-12-24T15:46:00.000-05:00

I am sure that we are all quite tired of the normal Christmas iconography by this point (Santa, elves, dollar signs, etc). Here is a less recognizable image by Phiz that appeared as an illustration to Charles Dickens' Pickwick Papers. Merry Christmas!

Zine Scene: Flicker Super 8 Guide, Volume 1

2006-12-13T15:21:00.000-05:00

Flicker Super 8 GuideVolume 1, 2003Distributed by Desert Moon PeriodicalsI've known about the "Flicker" phenomenon for a couple of years. Super 8 film equipment is still relatively available, despite its age, and still more affordable of a medium than 16 mm. Though Kodak still manufactures different types of stock (five different types, as of the zine's printing in 2003), there are no sound

What can be done with Contemporary Art?

2006-12-08T10:31:00.000-05:00

There has been a good deal of press in the last week about the new Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. Initially thought to be dead in the water, an anomaly in an “artistically conservative” town, the building is being hailed as a significant architectural achievement and the promise of the collection poised for success.What makes a city “artistically conservative?” Washington D.C. makes for

Book Review: THE TWILIGHT YEARS: PARIS IN THE 1930S

2006-12-03T15:22:00.000-05:00

The Twilight Years: Paris in the 1930sWilliam WiserCarroll & Graf Publishers, 2001(Trade Paperback Reprint Edition)William Wiser is blessed with the gift of gab. His prose bleeds style, force, and more than a little confusion. Though primarily known as a novelist (K and Disappearances among them), he has a unique way with history. This uniqueness is not entirely good - Wiser seems more

Office Space

2006-11-25T12:21:00.000-05:00

What are your work habits like? My "real" work takes up about 50 hours per week, in a cubicle that resides in a space that was not meant for offices. The constant cold air, loud noises, and stream of passers-by makes it a tough place to get much done. However, I always look forward to getting home and doing the sort of work that interests me.While much of my casual routine gets done on a

Announcing: GAMECULTURE JOURNAL

2006-11-19T21:58:00.000-05:00

GameCulture JournalVolume 1, Number 1.GameCulture Journal is a free PDF format video game periodical, to be published quarterly. Seeking to bridge the gap between game academics and fan discourses, GameCulture Journal marries the approaches of the two in an attempt to bring intelligent criticism, comment, and assessment to video games.Volume 1, Number 1 contains articles on the ideology of the

Cataloging and Access in Britain

2006-11-14T16:23:00.000-05:00

An alarming, baffling, and very interesting November 9th article from The Art Newspaper informs that a large number of publicly owned paintings in Britain are in danger of slipping through the cracks. Most organizations with pictures (libraries, town halls, etc) had dodgy, sometimes totally incomplete records of their works. Most did not have an adequate visual record (let alone an updated,

Concert Review: Sangam 11/08/06

2006-11-09T17:20:00.000-05:00

Sangam11/08/06Coolidge Theater, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.Charles Lloyd – flute, sax, piano, percussionZakir Hussain – tabla, vocals, percussionErik Harland – drums, vocals, pianoSeeing as concert in the Coolidge Theater is a bit of a bizarre experience. The room is obviously multipurpose, seemingly more geared toward lecture tours and archival film screenings than live music. The

QOTW: Writing and Urgency

2006-11-01T22:50:00.000-05:00

"The reader of these pages should not look for detailed documentation of every word. In treating the general problems of culture one is constantly obliged to undertake predatory incursions into provinces not sufficently explored by the raider himself. To fill in all the gaps in my knowledge beforehand was out of the question for me. I had to write now, or not at all. And I wanted to write."

Book Review - LONDON: PORTRAIT OF A CITY

2006-10-30T21:59:00.000-05:00

London: Portrait of a CityPhaidon, 1999 (New Edition)$9.99Photos by Matthew WeinrebCommentary by Ben Weinreb(This review refers to the softcover, smaller, newer version of Weinreb's London Architecture: Features and Facades)London is a city of famous architecture. Each year, the city's tourist industries produce "new" calenders, posters, and postcards that endlessly re-use the same images of the

Copyright Liberation

2006-10-23T22:00:00.000-04:00

I do not normally frequent Slashdot, but this managed to capture my imagination. Given the chance, clearance, and choice, which items currently under copyright could be liberated for the benefit of all? The possibilities are vast - just look at the number of comments that follow the post - but some programs seem better than others.One sad fact is that some of the most important pieces of

'Tis the Season...

2006-10-11T19:24:00.000-04:00

...for horror movie marathons! Cinema 16 founder Amos Vogel often spoke of the dialectical (or dialogical) power of film programming. Just as film components (shots, scenes) could be rhytmically alternated to create aesthetic effects, so too could whole films. For example, programming Vertov's Man with the Movie Camera just before Antonioni's Blowup does something to each film...the former

Zine Scene: Bread and Salt: A Zine of Food History

2006-09-30T14:42:00.000-04:00

Bread and Salt: A Zine of Food HistoryNumber 3 - Summer 2006The brainchild of Tim Miller, Bread and Salt is one of the most readable, thoughtful zines I've ever stumbled across. Unassumingly bound inside a sheet of blue paper, it combines thoughtful criticism and history with fascinating illustrative material of food and food preparation throughout time. Putting substance above style (many

The MacArthur Fellows Program

2006-09-23T14:50:00.000-04:00

It is often hard to secure enough time and money for intellectual and aesthetic labor (case in point: the slowed consistency of this blog). One reason why academia is structured as such is that original research takes more energy than a simultaneous 9 -5 job will allow. The MacArthur Foundation recognizes this cruel reality but does something about it. One cannot simply apply to be a

QOTW: Introductions, the Way the Were Meant to Be

2006-09-17T18:26:00.000-04:00

Whereunto (in your opinion) doth this little flourish of a preamble tend? For so much as you, my good disciples, and some other jolly fools of ease and leisure, reading the pleasant titles of some books of our invention, as Gargantua, Pantagruel, Whippot (Fessepinte.), the Dignity of Codpieces, of Pease and Bacon with a Commentary, &c., are too ready to judge that there is nothing in them

Book Review: EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE: THE IDEAL OF ROME AND FEUDALISM

2006-09-10T11:51:00.000-04:00

A History of Architecture, Volume 10Christopher TadgellEarly Medieval Europe: The Ideal of Rome and FeudalismEllipsis Books, 2001$15.00Christopher Tadgell's fascinating "A History of Architecture" series never quite made it (from what I can tell). Originally projected as a 25 book set that traced the history of buildings from the earliest civilizations to the most post of postmodernism, it

QOTW: The Past

2006-09-07T20:05:00.000-04:00

In an environment governed by the market appeal of youth and novelty, the past has to be ignored, or misappropriated, generally misrepresented, to shore up the mainly excessive claims made on behalf of the present. But the present is also devalued in this process as it is lived as a present that is soon doomed to be past.- Victor Burgin

Zine Scene: UBCinephile

2006-09-01T16:05:00.000-04:00

UBCinephile: The Film Studies Journal of the University of British ColumbiaVolume 2: Theology & the Political (March 2006)This is not strictly a zine, per se: UBCinephile is styled as an academic, peer-reviewed film journal. From what I can tell, it is produced once a year and resembles the DIY aesthetic of most zines, albeit with strictly scholarly content. Before

Film Review: HENRI ROUSSEAU: JUNGLES IN PARIS

2006-08-31T15:39:00.000-04:00

(Right: Henri Rousseau, Self Portrait, 1895. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.)Herni Rousseau: Jungles in Paris, 2006. Directed, written and produced by Carroll Moore. Narrated by Kevin Kline.Made to accompany of traveling retrospective of Rousseau's career (especially his scenes of jungle fantasy), Moore's film does an admirable job at presenting the man's life and work in a scant 30

QOTW: Life

2006-08-30T10:32:00.000-04:00

I believe that the man choosing progress can find a new unity through the development of all his human forces, which are produced in three orientations. These can be presented separately or together: biophilia, love for humanity and nature, and independence and freedom.- Erich Fromm, 1965.

Video Game Curatorship

2006-08-22T20:30:00.000-04:00

Art exhibitions have been curated on video games (as relics for a museum, historical curiosities, or as memorabilia), and gallery space has been allocated to art inspired by the legacy of video games. But games themselves as portable exhibitions? The future has already arrived.I recently purchased Taito Legends (2005) on a whim because of its discounted price. I was not disappointed.

Zine Scene: THE LOWBROW READER

2006-08-19T17:00:00.000-04:00

This is a first attempt at an on-going look at zine culture. Wikipedia provides a nice overview of the history of the zine, available here. The Lowbrow Reader is an incredibly funny slice of oppositional thinking. While unquestionably a part of zine culture, it stands out by virtue of its high production values. Most of its contributors seem to have experience as professional writers, but the

QOTW: Day of the Dead

2006-08-17T19:37:00.000-04:00

I suspect that the almost total incomprehension (more precisely, refusal of comprehension) with which Day of the Dead has been received is simply the result of its late date: by 1985 we had already entered the era of hysterical masculinity that countered the radical feminism of the '70s, Stallone and Schwarzenegger were already major presences, and the reactionary horror movie had already fully

Thoughts on Contemporary Horror

2006-08-12T17:10:00.000-04:00

A diagnosis of contemporary horror. Just follow this link.

A Salute to Taschen

2006-08-11T19:52:00.000-04:00

Art books are an expensive passion. The fine paperstocks, copious illustrations, and large formats usually mean shelling out the big bucks. Astute readers may know that this is not always the case.I'm not talking about stealing, nor buying books used. Rather, Taschen Books, one of the world's largest publishers of books on the arts, film, design, and popular culture. The story of the company