Black Friday

While still an unconfirmed diagnosis, all signs point towards H1N1 as the reason for my being bed-ridden these past five days. It was the most peculiar flu I've ever had, bypassing the stomach almost entirely to attack my lungs. After days of near-delirium, abysmal body aches, and a roller coaster of sweats and chills, I felt I had just enough energy today to do something a little bit more challenging than drinking tepid water and walking to the bathroom.

So naturally I decided to go shopping.

If I didn't go shopping then I would be part of the very reason that my Roth IRA resembles the collection of change wedged between my couch cushions.

Now, don't be fooled, I didn't arise at 2am to get in line at a suburban box-store. In fact, Ariana and I didn't even bother to leave for the store until 6pm tonight so as to avoid any possibility of being trampled by raving-mad electronics bargain hunters. And the store we chose to patronize with our hard-earned cash: Goodwill.

While Goodwill might not be offering the same screaming deals as other places I'm pretty sure that giving them money also helps the economy: albeit in some leftist, bleeding-heart, capitalist-light sort of way. And at Goodwill we can be done with our Christmas shopping in one hour because it is truly one-stop shopping.

It was while at Goodwill that we fell prey to that most pitiful of Black Friday practices: buying things for ourselves. But, as happens from time to time, the donated CD selection was just too good to pass up. Check out these finds for $4.00 a pop:

Ralph Myerz and the Jack Herran Band— A Special EP

The Cinematic Orchestra— Ma Fleur

Caleb Klauder— sings out

Depeche Mode— Black Celebration

The Decemberists— The Crane Wife

Cat Stevens— Catch Bull at Four

Rip, Mix, Burn

Earlier this year, after completing my reading of Lawrence Lessig's Remix, I began to look more closely at the Creative Commons licenses, as well as some of the online creative collectives he used as case studies in Remix. In doing so, I stumbled upon a feature in Wired magazine from 2004 that investigated the idea of contemporary musical culture being absolutely complicit in the remix/file-sharing/sampling inclinations that the corporate music industry was fighting so vehemently to bury.

Like most Wired articles it was cautiously optimistic (seasoned pessimism does not tend to promote ad revenue) and more than a touch self-congratulatory. Along with the issue a CD featuring tracks from a number of formidable talents who were offering up a bit of their oeuvre was included. What made these tracks unique was that they were released under one of two Creative Commons licenses, thereby making them fair game for legal file sharing, mash-ups, and sampling into whatever prosaic Garage Band techno track you could muster in your off hours. There are some big names on this CD, and the tracks they've given over to the masses aren't just the pan drippings from a decade of better musical offerings— they are legitimate efforts.

Having said that, they aren't all good either. Below is the list of tracks that make my cut. If your cloth is cut with a similar cut as mine, then you might want to download these freebies and allow your iPod to give them a whirl:

Track 01— Beastie Boys/ Now Get Busy

Much more Hello Nasty than Paul's Boutique, but the sampled directive lends a refreshing pause to a pretty predictable back beat. Straight up middle-aged Beasties which means more fun than FRESSSHHHH.

Track 02— David Byrne/ My Fair Lady

No plains or rains or Spain, but a seriously cinematic sound to build up a modern reflection of the classic Pygmalion tale. I think that this is easily the best offering of the bunch and makes U2's similarly-themed Babyface (from Zooropa) sound simply insipid.

Track 03— Zap Mama/ Wadidyusay?

Hand claps. French. A cappella-esque world music syrup with a drum machine.

Track 04— My Morning Jacket/ One Big Holiday

Yeah indie rock! I don't own one of their albums so I can't be classified as anything like a fan, but there is something pure American rock about this in both sound (straight up drums and electric guitars) and sentiment (references to escaping dead end towns, California, and records). Serve with pick-up trucks and whatever indie brew is currently considered both hip and cheap.

Track 05— Spoon/Revenge!

This is a track by Spoon. It is catchy. It is smart. It is made in the USA but sounds like its imported from England. Extra points are awarded for painting analogies.

Track 09— Le Tigre/Fake French

"I've got. . . site specificity." I mean, come on, what is not to like about a band that has extensive bibliographies, flow disruption, and wildlife metaphors? Furthermore, their Fake French is way hotter than any real French I've heard lately.

* * * * *

And then there are the two tracks that I'm a bit torn over. Not jaw-dropping and not mediocre, but somewhere just this side of catchy, which is often all I require. And easy to rip (pun intended).

Track 10— Paul Westerberg/ Looking Up in Heaven

Feeble drug references and buoyant melancholy— two of my least favorite popular music conventions. And yet, this is one of those tracks that I would never seek out but also would never skip through if it were to pop up in the Shuffle. There's something so unapologetic about Westerberg's delivery that a touch of gravitas manages to sneak in. As far as I can tell from this one data point, if Bob Dylan were margarine he'd be Paul Westerberg.

Track 12— The Rapture/ Sister Saviour (Blackstrobe Remix)

Hhmmmm. . . I think I'll put some KMFDM, Kraftwerk, and Depeche Mode in a blender with cheap red wine and squid-ink pasta. Whoa! How did I manage this smoothie of blips, bleeps, and laughably echoey lyrics about hobo dreams?

Decide for yourself. . .

Week, Tweet Week

4T Hiking Trail Map, Portland, OR*

I want to understand the culture I live in. Really, I do. But it seems to grow faster and simpler just as my life grows slower and more complex— which puts us, if not at odds, certainly on opposite ends of a continuum.

I was mentally reviewing my week today as I hiked along Portland's new 4T trail; so named because it is an urban excursion that requires a tram, train, trolley, and trail to complete the loop. In doing so I realized that truncated Twitter-like statements about events do lend them a profundity (or at least mystery) they might otherwise lack if I employed a bunch of useless context. So, in a little deviation from the norm here, I decided to share the highlights of my week as they might have been depicted had they been tweeted. . .

• Running through a deluge of hail, blue tarp blowing out behind me, in a brave attempt to save the carcass of a dragon killed earlier that day.

• Whipping up a sandwich with goat cheese brie, biodynamic tomatoes, crushed avocado, salt, and pepper on rye bread. Delish! But don't worry, blogging about food won't become an ongoing thing— I'm not one of those wordy food nutters armed with a URL.

• The Weasley's busting Harry out of solitary using a flying car they "borrowed" from their father. Don't scoff because I'm only getting to the second book now— I teach children for a living, and don't have much time for reading the pop culture sensations that shaped their lives.

• Party banners from discarded upholstery fabric. . . Martha would be so proud.

• A business man on the MAX reading "The Portable Thoreau" while rocking out on his portable music device.

• Deciding that towns which insist upon one-way grids in their three block downtown area are deluding themselves in some pretty profound ways. That's right, I'm talking about you Hillsboro.

• Sliding along at 22mph 500 feet above Portland in a silver pea pod on wires. The Jetsons' theme song rattles against my skull as I stare at rooftop gardens and the glistening line of the Willamette River.

• Being told that I should be selling $60,000 worth of artwork out of every show if I want them to be successful. So that's what I'm doing wrong. . .

• Along with that whole lack of capitalistic vision comes the pleasure I had at giving two lovely works to Brandon as thanks for sacrificing weeks of summer to ensure I had two shows that came nowhere near $60,000 sales.

• Scolded! As an adult! By another adult! Insanity.

*Note that this is a different map than that provided by Portland Metro. It also depicts the slightly longer scenic route through Marquam Nature Park. This route has less time on roadways, but also leaves you wondering where to go when you find yourself below OHSU at the Marquam Shelter. Perhaps I just missed a sign, which is great, as it forces me to do the whole thing over again soon.

The Disappearing Act

Taken at Discovery Park, Seattle, WA - Spring 2009

I have to go away for a few days. While I'm away there are a number of things I could use some help with. Feel free to jump in wherever you can. . .

• finish applying gesso to panels
  
• repair copper leaf on medium sized panel
  
• re-leaf two smaller gold panels to cover up bad transfers
  
• gold leaf large board for antique gilt frame
  
• update my artist statement
  
• photograph recent works 
  
• vacuum silver leaf bits and paper pulp off studio floor
  
• repair drafting table light
  
• transfer recent found photos to medium sized panels 
  
• build custom frames for paneled work
  
• deliver larger paper works to frame shop
  
• paint antique frames (and putty where needed)
  
• find appropriate image for oval mat
  
• storyboard the next movie
  
• contact cast about table read
  
• generate new web site
  

My great thanks in advance for all your assistance. When I return I'll treat you to a few new images from around Oregon!

CNET R.I.P.

March 9, 2005

The lights are going out over at CNET music; my source for free legal music downloads for well over two years now. In the past I've tried to offer some thoughts about the tracks I suggested you download, but today I operate under a heightened sense of urgency, and present you just a linked list. For when CNET goes dark on Wednesday, March 11th they will send all of their site traffic to last.fm. From what little investigation I've been able to do, last.fm has little desire to provide free downloads— they are interested in running a social networking site centered around music. Yet another social networking site, just what the world needs. 

So get cracking people. You should know that any other tracks available by the musicians below are worth having as well; so don't just stop with my favorite, download them all.

The Best of CNET (R.I.P.)*

• Handsome Furs, What We Had
  
• Santogold, L.E.S. Artistes (XXXChange remix)
  
• The Helio Sequence, Keep Your Eyes Ahead
  
• Neko Case, Star Witness
  
• Billy Cote and Uniit Carruyo, I Don't Want To Fight Tonight
  
• Fleet Foxes, Winter Hymnal
  
• Calexico, Black Heart
  
• Robyn, Sensual Seduction (Snoop Remix)
  
• Grand Ole Party, Look Out Young Son
  
• Lykke Li, Dance, Dance, Dance
  
• The Decemberists, The Soldiering Life
  
• Peter Bjorn and John, Let's Call It Off
  
• The Hong Kong, Tongue Tied
• Jolie Ruelle, Forget
• Devendra Banhart, Be Kind
  
• Angels of Light, Song For My Father
  
• Brother Ali, Original King
  
• Antony and the Johnsons, Cripple and the Starfish
  
• Iron and Wine, Lions Mane
  
• CSS, Alala
  
• The Whitest Boy Alive, Burning
• Ferraby Lionheart, Tickets to Crickets
  
• Santogold & Diplo, Starstruck (Diplo Remix)
  
• TV On The Radio, Dry Drunk Emperor
  
• Voltaire, When You're Evil
  
• The Submarines, You Me and The Bourgeoisie
  
• Emiliana Torrini, Me And Armini (edit)
• Tilly and the Wall, The Freest Man (CSS Remix)
  
• Wolf Parade, Shine A Light

*You may discover at some point that CNET often suffers from glitches when certain pages load. Patience and persistence are the keys with this particular problem— hit the back button and try reloading the page a few times. Occasionally, it helps to load the page by clicking on the image or the "See all free tracks" button rather than by clicking on the musician/group name.

The Recession Mix

February 25, 2005

You see signs of the recession everywhere. Stores that have been part of the landscape for years are now closed. Friends and family are moving away as jobs disappear. Credit card interest rates go up just as everyone's ability to pay more goes down. The used CD selection at the local music shop offers more quality and selection than I've ever witnessed before, and for me, that might be the most dramatic evidence that we are all in for a very rough ride.

Recently, I picked up the following albums in one visit to the CD store:

Neutral Milk Hotel, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea

An indie album that's perhaps not quite as deserving of  the rapturous adjectives commonly employed to describe it. Like The Decemberists, but with slightly less lisping. Horns, check. Allusions to blind Christian adoration, check. Old-timey album art, check. 

The National, Boxer

I love this album and would happily employ all sorts of glowing adjectives to try and sell you on it. The strength of Boxer is in the words, or, more specifically, in the smokey and broken delivery of those words. Exceedingly careful production also deserves kudos for restraint when restraint is called for, such as the heart wrenching Racing Like a Pro or wistful Fake Empire.

Peter Bjorn and John, Peter Bjorn and John

The self-titled debut even beats out their fantastic Writer's Block album (which is a tough act to beat, as it contains the perennial ear-worm Young Folks).

Clinic, Walking With Thee

According to Amazon.com this album has been discontinued— so if the strength of my recommendation isn't enough, download a few free tracks from their most recent album Do It and decide for yourself.

M83, Saturdays=Youth

I won't rehash my thoughts about M83's development (you can read that here, if you missed it) but I will say that if you haven't downloaded the remixes from CNET yet you're missing out on the best bouncing-ping-pong-ball loop ever.

Yael Naim & David Donatien, Yael Naim & David Donatien

The only cd I've ever purchased on the recommendation of one of my students. With vocals in Hebrew, English, and French it also boasts the song New Soul, which was apparently featured on an Apple computer commercial. As I don't own a TV I can't attest to that fact, but I feel the song is catchy enough to fool you into spending a thousand dollars.

Esthero, Breath From Another

I haven't listened to this one yet but I suspect it's far more drum and bass then flapper swagger.

In years past the chances of my finding even two albums I fancied would have been astronomical. To walk in and find seven was equal parts exhilarating and sobering. Certainly some of the people who sold these albums must have felt as I do now; that the music collection would be the last thing to go, and then only under fear of utter destitution. Yet here is all this music, and my enjoyment of each album is somewhat colored by the fear that we may all soon face some exceedingly painful choices— choices that make my juvenile preoccupation with music seem as trivial as it happens to be.

Natural Children's Theater Design

February 20, 2005

For the past week I've spent many hours working with volunteers to fabricate a forest— having designed a few sets for children's theater in the past I can safely state that nature is the most difficult environment to construct. Castles, planets, Grecian ruins; these things are far easier to form because they can easily be shaped from flat sheets of plywood and cardboard. In fact, most set designs that I've encountered resort to painted flat sheet goods, even for their depictions of trees or bushes, because they are just that much simpler to construct. I've certainly gone this route myself, such as in the second incarnation of my adaptation of Aesop's Fables:

Aesop's Fables stage set, 2006

cardboard, lumber, primer, black latex paint, rope, paper, fabric, hardware

Now by the time I designed this simple set I'd already staged Aesop's Fables once and had spent hours upon hours constructing a 3D tree out of cardboard tubes (mailing and paper towel), newspaper, and papier mache. Not only was the tree in that first production structurally unstable, but its spindly brown limbs and sparse canopy cast a funerary tone on the entire production (which is not exactly the spirit you're hoping to engender in a children's theater production). This incarnation was much more successful as it not only felt more playful, but also emphasized the vivid colors of the costumes that the students wore. My golden rule for stage design is that it should compliment, not overwhelm, the performers.

* * * * *

Building nature in three dimensions for the stage requires a few key elements: soft materials, soft edges, a tonal palette with tremendous variation but only a few colors, variable verticality, asymmetry, and a daunting amount of simple repetition. 

While Mother Nature can be horribly inhospitable at times, our subconscious tendency is to equate the outdoors with the softer elements of Spring and Summer. Because we think of leaves, grass, moss, and flowers before we consider icy climes or volcanic cliffs, it makes sense to design with an eye towards the more pliable and comforting elements of the natural world. Cotton dyed green can become a leafy canopy and the scratchy weave of burlap can simulate dirt. Cardboard can be softened to form the gnarled trunks, roots, and branches of old growth forest. In order to lend an air of believability to all of these elements you must remain conscious of the repetition inherent in the natural world and commit to the idea of creating the same element in vast multiples. This tends to be the stumbling block for most students, as it can be difficult for them to visualize just how all of this repetitive labor is going to net a rock wall or oak tree.

There seems to be a paucity of useful information on the internet about cheap and effective ways to construct stage sets and props with students. If all goes well in the next month, I should have at least a couple decent tutorials to post this summer on the creation of fake rocks, starry backdrops, and flowering bushes. At this point I can state that no matter how ambitious your natural stage setting may be, you're going to need a significant stash of the following items: toilet paper, cardboard, masking tape, muslin, duct tape, assorted lengths of 2"x2" lumber, a cordless drill, zip ties/twist ties, and a group of dedicated parents itching to use their vast collection of tools. When Boy Scouts go into nature they take their Ten Essentials, but when you want to create nature for the stage, I'd encourage you to heed the ten essentials listed above.

Chicken!

February 4, 2005

Exceptional Chicken Related Things:

• "know your chicken" by Cibo Matto on VIVA! La Woman
  
• chicken fingers (Oh delicious contradiction!)
  
• Milla Jovovich's chicken-adoration scene in The Fifth Element
• home made chicken noodle soup
  
• "C-h-i-c-k-e-n Spells Chicken" by the McGee Bros (featured on the Ghost World Soundtrack)
  
• Eggs ("Come into my tummy, oh so very yummy")
  
• Taxidermy chicken on the dining room table (see below)

Horrible Chicken By-products:

• Nuggets
  
• Playing chicken
  
• Anemic yolks
  
• Debeaking
  
• Pacific Northwest hipster artist appropriation of chicken imagery
  
• Salmonella
  
• "The Chicken Dance"

Recap

You'd think that two weeks of inclement weather would have compelled me to blog more; after all, my car was under 26" of snow and my winter vacation was extended by four days, but alas I found myself with far too many seasonal commitments to take time to type. Furthermore, as the days progressed my back log of topics to blog about ballooned into a frustratingly insurmountable number. Paralysis set in. As did the mulled wine, and two weeks drifted past.

As I value you very much, dear reader, I will summarize some of the major tidbits of recent experience:

1. With thirty pounds of clipped cedar branches and four unexpected days off I refined my seasonal garland creation skills. Every lintel in the public area of the house was treated to fresh cut evergreen boughs, prickly holly, and many strands of white lights. They cast amazing shadows on the ceiling at night when the white lights were left on to cheer the hearts of pedestrians who might be peeping through our windows on their cold journey through the snow.

2. During numerous bouts of insomnia I uncovered a slew of websites devoted to free Photoshop tutorials, free PS brushes, and free vector art. These searches were driven by a recent need to create very specific vector art for a holiday gift project. More on vector art and its inherent awesomeness in some later post.

3. The aforementioned insomnia might have been slightly aided by a blossoming interest in hot spiced wine which, mysteriously, disappears at a far faster rate than the same wine served straight from the bottle. Now that I have a basic Gluhwein recipe under my belt I may devote next year to devising a mathematical equation that explains the rate of wine disappearance in relation to the temperature at which it is served.

4. This Christmas brought an abundance of photography related swag to your truly, perhaps indicating that I have been a better behaved person this year than in others. My excitement knows no bounds, and as soon as I've geeked out on camera-specs I will be heading out for a day or two of experimental shooting in the PDX area. 

5. I can't seem to shake Blonde Redhead from my, um. . . head. If you aren't familiar with this band then today is your lucky day because you can both discover their music, and do so for free, by downloading a number of jaw-droppingly good tracks off CNET.

I hope the holiday has been a happy one for you and yours. Let's all turn our thoughts now to the year ahead and how, at this moment, it holds nothing but promise and glory. 

Sloth

Here is a bit of 5th grade free-association during a discussion of Dicken's A Christmas Carol. Sloth being one of the seven deadly sins. Bob (not Cratchit), Jimmy, and Goerge [sic] being quasi-mythical nonsense characters of tremendous importance to the younger contingent of my class. Peperika being, I can only assume, a spice on par with those carted over desert lands by the wise men during the rule of Herod.

What is it about the unchecked lettering of children that is so mesmerizing? All of my artistic training and typographic inclinations couldn't yield letter forms with one tenth the personality of these. How is it that this composition looks like the inchoate foundation for a lost Cy Twombly painiting and yet stems from nothing more than a child pushing time forward with  a few flicks of the fountain pen.*

*Yes, at my school, students still use fountain pens. It is part of our old-world approach to nurturing a more conscientious craftsmanship. 

On the Burner

Here's an overview of the weekend. I've opted to include only the most important things.

• Consider the sequence and structure for teaching about circumpolar constellations, longitude, latitude, the Sun's effect on Earthly seasons, planetary retrograde motion, and the astrolabe.
  
• Reread short film script and sketch potential shots.
  
• Scan a crown of thorns, penguin, and small leaf.
  
• Drive half-way to the Oregon coast (and back).
• Upload fine art portfolio to CaFE exhibition web site.
  
• Research the lives of Copernicus, Tycho Brahe, Kepler, and Galileo.
  
• Edit fourteen short stories.
  
• Create an hour-long presentation complete with visual aides.
  
• Soothe a few bruised egos.
  
• Move patio furniture up and down a stairway to accommodate the fickle painting crew.
  
• Clean the kitchen.
  
• Pay the devil credit cards their monthly tribute.
  
• Wash a load of lighter colored clothes.
  
• Deposit other people's money in the bank.
  
• Design a business card.
  
• Consider the ethical disposal of five packs of cream cheese.
  
• Open up about my upbringing without sounding overly melodramatic.
  
• Finish revealing a golden landscape

Speaking of Lists

I find the strangest things sometimes. I’m no Davy Rothbart mind you, just someone with a tendency to stare at the ground.

More often than not I find lists. One of my more recent finds was this scrap of paper next to the library catalog. It instantly made my typed inquiry of “Volvo repair, brake light” seem a bit prosaic. I tried to conjure a picture of the woman who wrote this: respectably edgy, tattooed, pixie-like PDX mama (recent mama) concerned with jump starting Junior’s cerebellum while traveling the globe in dodgy hostels full of “real” people. As the portrait became more and more vivid I realized that this fictitious hipster parent that I was creating said more about my perceptions of Portland than it did about the actual person who might have penned the list. Almost immediately I began to feel a tad arrogant. Portland isn’t just a hotbed of young, Leftist, caucasian urbanites, and only a blatant elitist would state such a thing.*

I turned back to my search for car repair manuals. Naturally, all the Volvo items were checked out.

* A blatant elitist or Dave Hickey, who proclaimed Portland the land where, “the White People won” at a speech he gave here a number of years ago. Every person in the audience was mildly outraged in a socially appropriate manner.

The Art of Efficiency

Everyone I know grapples with efficiency in some way or other. Efficiency is a slippery construct that promises more reward in just about every aspect of life if only we knew how to be more masterful with our time. Now, as many a sage person has pointed out, it is really our perception of time that is the problem, not how we micromanage it. As I cannot profess to being a particularly wise person I’ll just overlook that line of thinking and continue with analyzing efficiency.

It has been my experience that one only considers their efficiency when they are already overwhelmed. This would be an example of inefficiency. Caught up in the panic of potential failure lists are made, priorities set, and sleep minimized in order to realize the unreasonable. But the truly organized person rarely finds themselves in this state; they’ve already made the lists, set the priorities, and consequently enjoy a high level of operation with grace and time for sleep.

I’ve met a good number of people and most of them fall somewhere between hyper-efficient and criminally incapable. While the criminally-incapable are better fodder for scriptwriters in Hollywood I’ve always focused my attention on those rare ubermensch that I encounter. What is it that makes them so productive?

Thus far I’ve only come up with a few observations. The most efficient people tend to display these common behaviors:

1. THEY LISTEN TO BEN

“Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” quoth Mr. Franklin who was, by all accounts, a powerhouse of productivity. Everyone I’ve ever known with remotely comparable intellectual prowess to Mr. Franklin has risen early and gotten straight to the day’s work. The flip side to that obviously being by 9pm they’re ready to pack it in, making them miserable bar hoppers and lightweights of late night conversation— but I hardly need to state the inherent disconnect between beer-steeped evenings and productive days, right?

2. THEY DO THE HARD STUFF FIRST

Nobody wants to hear this but it’s true— the most productive people tackle the difficult tasks early on in the day when they’re most rested, alert, and capable. Every corpuscle of your being may pull you towards checking your My Space page upon first waking to see who has been at Your Wall, but really, shouldn’t you finish that business plan first and then reward yourself with some mind-numbing internet drivel?

3. THEY SEE THE WHOLE PICTURE

Some people make lists and other write plans. A select few (whom I’ve never encountered) are rumored to keep every aspect of their lives neatly inventoried and prioritized in their head. Chances are you aren’t one of those people. Like other mere mortals you should write what needs to be done down. The simple act of committing your commitment to some tangible form, be it paper or pixels, grants it importance and helps establish what should follow what. Every highly efficient person I’ve met follows this rule in some form or other.

Now some people turn making lists and establishing priorities into yet another monumental chore that has to be done. I’m sorry for them but, if they have to be chores, then do these chores first (see THEY DO THE HARD STUFF FIRST above).

4. THEY HAVE A UNIFORM

This one will be an affront to all cool, hip, and creative people out there but I’ll type it anyway: the most productive people seem to wear a sort of uniform. They find one outfit that they like wearing, or they find an outfit that will work for nearly any social occasion, and they stick to it. They buy many copies of this get-up and keep them together in one place. Like a chef or hazmat worker, they are all business. No time waisted shopping, browsing Cosmo, puzzling over what to wear, or sorting clothing for the laundry. It’s worked for personalities as disparate as Einstein and Pollack so it may work for you. Head on over to the craft store and purchase fifteen white tees for twenty five dollars to complement your fourteen pairs of pleated khakis—

It’s time to get productive.

Absence

After feebly attempting to coerce comments out of you and coming up with so little response you may have believed you’d been party to my leaving the blogosphere for good. No such luck! I have been absent, to be sure, but for many a good reason which I will present in brief:

1. I had to produce nine painted paper-mache Commedia dell’Arte masks.*

2. I was uncovering the mysteries of “layer styles” in Photoshop in order to finish my assignments for the dubiously named Photoshop Expert class I was taking. To date, I would characterize myself as more of a Photoshop user than expert.

3. I was planning a graduation ceremony.

4. For nine days I was part of a class road trip in which I guided eight adolescents down the state of Oregon and into the Bay Area.

5. I only just returned from a three-day teacher retreat on the Salmon River.

6. I was finishing a web site for a client that had to go live before any other computer-related activities could take place (such as writing this for you to read).

My hope is that these will all serve as adequate excuses for my absence. I wouldn’t want to set a bad example and have you decide to disappear for the next few months. After all, this summer has big things in store for me and mine— it would be a shame for you to miss out.

* With the help of family and friends who were guilted into service by a desperate and sniveling moi.

Five More From CNET

Some time has passed since I decided to foist my musical sensibilities on you. Even Portishead came out of hiding since I last wrote about CNET’s repository of free music. The next five songs also drop from CNET’s completely legal server-trove of MP3 tracks. Apart from my subjective taste there’s not much that unifies them. The first two are more on the electronic spectrum whereas the last three eschew technology for good ol’ fashioned instruments. I don’t know if any of these songs make good on my promise last time to reveal “how I’m five years behind the times.” But don’t worry, I remain resoundingly behind the times.

1. Black Cat by Ladytron

There’s an early-90’s industrial earnestness to this track that I really dig. The synths and bells offset the faux-severity of the German— if you could pick the music for a club scene in an overly sincere indie vampire movie from fifteen years ago you’d be hard pressed to choose between this and those nice KMFDM fellows.

2. We Own the Sky (Maps Remix) by M83

When M83’s DeadCities, RedSeas, & LostGhosts was released in 2003 it showed plenty of promise but little restraint. Every track was a wall of sound extravaganza that even My Bloody Valentine would have found overwrought. While it did have moments of profound beauty there was no rhythm to the overall set; no resting points to break up the wash of sound.

Time seems to have remedied this tripping point. While I haven’t rushed out to purchase M83’s new Saturdays = Youth I’ve been encouraged to do so by the three fabulous tracks offered up on CNET. Here the aural bombardment is tempered with more employment of the human voice and well-considered movements within tracks. This remix hints at what Moby might have become if he’d pushed himself to continue exploring the stylings evident on Everything Is Wrong.

3. Fake Empire by The National

The voice. The melancholy. The adolescent triumph over the night. All your best summer evenings have been distilled into The National syrup.

4. Albert Hash by Hezekiah Jones

Sometimes I just want to listen to a simple duet with guitar. It should have a sweet hook and little pretense. I’ll allow a bit of navel-gazing but I don’t want ponderous sound scapes or drug-induced jam sessions. Albert Hash is just such a song. It tells a brief tale and demonstrates that a song can be layered without being “produced.” Its traditional sound is matched by a very traditional play time. I guess there was a day when it was possible to create an entire world in a little over two minutes.

5. Is a Woman by Lambchop

One of the hottest debates in high school was whether or not there were more strong female vocalists or male vocalists in modern music (for those of you interested in entertaining such an inane question we defined modern as the 1960’s to the year of said debate, around 1993). At that time I was firmly in the female camp but as my musical tastes change I find that the deeper notes of the male voice resonate better with my adult moods. Kurt Wagner’s voice is so adept (download the alternate version of The Distance From Her to There to get a sense of his range), so magical, that I believe he could craft an appealing song for nearly anyone’s ear.

And while I tend to think of music videos as a scourge to the music industry I must confess that the video for Is a Woman stands on its own as a wonderful work of animation. 



So ends the new five. I shall stop before I become the sorry embodiment of a Nick Hornby character.

Thanks

I want to give thanks for those things that are so vital to my art practice— those tools, entities, and ideas that assist me in realizing my myriad creative efforts.* Family, friends, and pets should not feel slighted about being absent from this tally as you are all well loved and much appreciated. This is a list for everyone and everything else. With the exception of the top three, they are presented in no particular order.

1. X-acto knife— The single most useful item of any creative artist (even after the advent of the personal computer). Sleek, dangerous, high-maintenance, and impossible to live without.

2. Metal ruler— The x-acto knife’s less glamorous sidekick who keeps it all straight.

3. Glue stick— Now that everything is cut out what are you going to use to put it all down? It dries quick but is fairly forgivable. It also dries clear. But beware that purple kind and make sure there’s plenty of scrap paper about to use as a blotter in order to avoid messy glue migration.

4. The studio— A designated space away from home that gives you room to work and a place to focus your creative energy. I had no idea how important this was until I was lucky enough to obtain one. 2007 has allowed me to move out of the dining room corner and into artistic legitimacy. Bonus feature: the cat can’t sleep on my charcoal drawings any longer.

5. Kneadable eraser— Beloved by everyone who encounters it, the kneadable eraser can be shaped for precision erasing and used as a tension taming sculpture medium when there’s nothing else around.

6. Clickable eraser— Handles like a pencil but with far more erasing power.

7. Gesso— The single most important paint medium. Don’t ask me to justify that statement because believe me, I can. My photographic transfers would have to rely on fairly toxic means without gesso. Gesso is around when I need a quick white paint. You can sand it smooth or build it up around a form to take on impressive dimension. Did I mention it was a primer? Now that I’m thinking about it, gesso should really be in the number two or three position on this list. I’d cut-and-paste it up there except for the implicit irony that would engender.

8. Large format photocopy machine— Meant for architects and contractors to reproduce plans this machine turns tiny pinhole photographs into massive black and white vistas.

9. Rives BFK— King of papers. Run it through the letterpress or use it in lieu of canvas. BFK can be purchased in a roll that will last even the most ambitious painter a few months.

10. India ink— Black. Permanent. Enough said.

11. Pushpins— How else can you put something on the wall and gain some perspective? The clear-headed push pin is an ubiquitous feature in art school classrooms around the world. Pushpins are used daily and, I’ve recently discovered, available in a very fashionable matte black that elevates the pin to an acceptable means of display on the gallery wall.

12. Nikon FE SLR camera— Not delicate and fussy like those new-fangled digital cameras, the manual FE can be dropped, exposed to horrible weather, and neglected for years without forgetting its primary function: to take pictures when I want it to. The built in light meter keeps me close to the mark but the fully manual operation gives me the freedom to take whatever out-of-focus blurry image I want. Perfect. Why did the photographic world ever feel the need to evolve?

13. Lensbaby— While on the topic of photography lets here it for Portland innovation! The Lensbaby makes me think I’m Keith Carter every time I release the shutter. Of course, upon receiving the prints, it’s clear that Mr. Carter and I are at different stages of our photographic development (no pun intended), but the Lensbaby always helps me live the dream for a little while.

14. 2” Paintbrush— Skip the over-priced art store and head straight for your hardware supplier. One high-quality house painting brush has helped me complete 80% of the painting I’ve done in the past decade. Treat it well and you’ll save a bundle on bristles.

15. Powdered graphite— Very useful for getting a quick overall tone. It prevents me from having to shave the tips of pencils and a little goes a very long way.

16. Benefactors/Patrons— I’ve been luck enough to have a few over the years. Without their support art-making probably would have proven to difficult and too demoralizing. The enthusiasm and generosity of others prevents you from believing too firmly in all those ridiculous Romantic ideas about mad, suffering, artists.

17. Adobe Creative Suite— The sky is the limit. Design anything you can imagine and see it take 2D form. While it seems contrary to the handwork of my art practice, I’ve found Adobe’s programs to be life-savers in helping manipulate images and ideas over the years.

18. Cordless drill— Install hardware, hang pictures, and build whatever inane maquette you like. Free of the restrictions that a plug brings you can quickly move as quickly between tasks as you do ideas.

19. Chop saw— How can you make picture frames without a chop saw?

20. Sticky tack—Earthquake insurance that also keeps your frames level. . . and it’s reusable. A great product that should make tape feel ashamed.

* I’m not being paid to endorse any of the items on this list. Trademarked names are used because, in many cases, that is how all the artists I know continue to refer to them. Those companies should feel happy to know that their branding efforts are paying off. Any person or company listed above who’d like to pay me for this endorsement is welcome to contact me.

2000 Music

Albums purchased in 2000:

• Priesner— Requiem for a Dream
• DJ Cam— The Beat Assassinated*
• Baby Fox— A Normal Family**
• Graeme Revell— Phoenix Soundtrack, Interview with a Vampire Soundtrack
• Everything But the Girl— Temperamental
• Queensryche— Empire
• Enigma— The Screen Behind the Mirror*
• Moby— Play
• Lisa Germano— Excerpts From the Love Circus
• Air— The Virgin Suicides Soundtrack
• Lycia— Cold
• Brendan Perry— Eye of the Hunter
• Dead Can Dance— The Serpent and the Egg
• The Innocence Mission— Birds of My Neighborhood
• Bowery Electric— Lushlife
• Nick Drake— Time of No Reply
• DJ Krush— Code 4109, Kakusei
• Moloko— Do You Like My Tight Sweater?**
• This Mortal Coil— It'll End in Tears
• Loveliescrushing— Xuvetyn
• Enigma— Sadness/Mea Culpa (single)
• Red House Painters— Down Colorful Hill
• Radiohead— Kid A
• Bjork— Selmasongs
• William Orbit— Pieces in a Modern Style
• Kruder & Dorfmeister— The K&D Sessions
• Sarah Brightman— La Luna**
• Songs of the Siren

*Regrettable decision. . .

**Woefully regrettable decision. . .