"bit and run" -- Mario's Ladder from Cory Godbey on Vimeo.
Filed under "Things that make my heart happy" and "Ideas I'm jealous that I didn't come up with"
I know I just linked to his blog in my previous blog, but it can't hurt to do it again: See more Bit and Run comics at http://www.lightnightrains.blogspot.com/
Laura and I finally saw Avatar last night (for free I might add). Some thoughts:
-Going in I had low expectations of character depth and development, of typical blockbuster plot sturdiness, and of thematic subtly. I had medium expectations for the visuals. It exceeded all of these admittedly low expectations.
-I found it interesting that it lumped together science, spirituality, and environmentalism (as the good guys) against the military industrial complex (the bad guys). Even though there were many details I wouldn’t align myself with, I was surprised that I found myself in agreement with this worldview as a broad stroke. It seems like everywhere you look current culture seeks to drive a wedge between science/environmentalism and religion. I liked the thematic connection between seeing: observation in science, being aware of the natural world around you, and the greeting “I see you” as a connection between two beings.
-We found it interesting that everybody came away with the environmental theme plastered to their psyches (which was definitely there) but no one really mentioned the human rights issues the film brought up. Maybe it is because we recently saw District 9 which used aliens as a metaphor for the human rights issues in South Africa. We have been deeming other ethnic groups inferior as a justification to exploit them since the Fall.
-Even if some of the characters were 1 dimensional, the film did a good job at giving all the characters proper motivation. Likewise even if the plot was simplistic, there were no glaring plot holes or outrageous suspensions of disbelief.
-I realized the benefit to having a film focused on visuals is that it took time just to enjoy itself and didn’t feel like it had to rush through scenes for the sake of moving along the plot. It has been compared to Dances with Wolves and Pocahontas, and while in the exact same story vein I personally thought it was a much better film than either of those (though I didn’t like either one to begin with).
-Not the best movie I saw in the last year but not the worst either. Best moment: when they made it to the top of the big tree and Jake looked over the edge to what I would estimate to be a 500’ drop - it made my day.
There is an animated movie that will be released in March (hopefully) that promises to be one of my favorite movies this year. “Secret of Kells” looks to be absolutely beautiful. See for yourself:
Also fun tidbit: in the margins of a 9th century Irish Illuminated manuscript is a remarkable poem about a monk and his cat, Pangur Ban (which is the name of the cat in the film). The poem:
Pangur Ban
I and Pangur Ban my cat,
Tis a like task we are at:
Hunting mice is his delight,
Hunting words I sit all night.
Better far than praise of men
Tis to sit with book and pen;
Pangur bears me no ill will,
He too plies his simple skill.
Tis a merry thing to see
At our tasks how glad are we,
When at home we sit and find
Entertainment to our mind.
Oftentimes a mouse will stray
In the hero Pangur's way;
Oftentimes my keen thought set
Takes a meaning in its net.
'Gainst the wall he sets his eye
Full and fierce and sharp and sly;
'Gainst the wall of knowledge I
All my little wisdom try.
When a mouse darts from its den
O how glad is Pangur then!
O what gladness do I prove
When I solve the doubts I love!
So in peace our tasks we ply,
Pangur Ban, my cat, and I;
In our arts we find our bliss,
I have mine and he has his.
Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night
Turning darkness into light.
(translation copied from here: http://www.fisheaters.com/pangurban.html)
So with today’s transformer I am really showing my roots as a child of the eighties. I also have the perfect name for him: “Great Scott”.
And while I am on the subject of time travel here is a great poster for your time machine created by Ryan North:
And an XKCD:
Note: I probably shouldn’t watch Primer and Lost within a week of one another.
Laura and I met up with Grace on Saturday afternoon to go see the documentary “Herb and Dorothy” which was playing at the Modern Art Museum in Fort Worth.
The film told the story of Herb and Dorothy Vogel, a couple who lived their entire life in Manhattan. He was a postal worker and she was a librarian; they lived in a very small rent controlled one bedroom apartment. What made them utterly fascinating was that they were also one of New York’s foremost art collectors. Since the 1960s they had been buying works from unknown and emerging artists in NY; they lived on Dorothy’s salary and bought art with Herb’s salary. By the time they decided to donate their collection the National Gallery, they had amassed close to 5000 works which was valued in the millions.
A few notes:
-It is rare in our society to have people so entirely dedicated to something with no though about profit or economic value. They never sold a single work, and their entire life was lived simply, modestly.
-They were as interested in the artists –as actual people/friends/ human beings- as they were in the art. They weekly made phones calls to numerous artists to see what they what new art they were up to and were seemingly constantly on the move to galleries and artist’s studios.
-They sought the beauty in the unconventional and the unusual. They were intent on seeing the thought and development of an artist’s work.
It was a well made documentary and will be well worth your time when it comes out on video (I don’t think it will be seeing many theater showings in Texas). Here is the trailer:
A couple of interesting time-lapse videos. The first is a boat crossing the Panama Canal. Having just read a book on its construction, I have an enormous respect for this engineering feat.
The second is made by a random American walking across China. I really like the little touches of combining pictures to form little animated vignettes and the running captions.
The Longest Way 1.0 - one year walk/beard grow time lapse from Christoph Rehage on Vimeo.
Film:
Ponyo
I feel really spoiled having seen both a Pixar flick and a Ghibli flick in the same summer. Laura and I went to see Ponyo on Saturday and had a great time; the theater was filled with kids and we sat next to two old ladies who loved Miyazaki. The story was something of a mix between Hans Christian Anderson’s Little Mermaid and Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen. It had beautiful (if unexpectedly rough) animation, adult characters who were realistic and genuinely caring, child characters who were surprisingly mature but still childlike, complex environmental themes, a great mom who was also a crazy driver, a love of ham, and lots of Devonian fish.
Book:
A Place of My Own
I just finished this book by Michael Pollan, an author who is best known by his writings of food. Because of this I was surprised to find his name as I was browsing our firm’s library; what is a food writer doing in an architecture library? However this book is not about food but his thoughts as he builds a writing shack back in the woods on his property. He offers great insights into the world of architecture and construction from an outsider’s point of view. His usual mix clear thinking and wandering reflections are in full force here, and my only complaint was that the book needed more drawings (but that is my usual complaint no matter what the subject matter).
Art:
Butchers, Dragons, Gods, and Skeletons
The Kimbell’s current exhibition is a bit unusual but utterly fantastic. A good portion of their permanent exhibition is on display. I will pause a moment to say just how amazing their collection is. They have everything from Ancient Greek vases to Bernini’s terra cotta studies to a fun Caravaggio to a great Asian collection to impressionist masters. Interspersed through the collection are five films by Philip Haas, each based off a painting in the collection. These films are very interactive and give you a glimpse into the making of, the larger context, and the details of each painting. Best of all, it is entirely free.
Cool short video I found, explaining architecture:
(he also has a similar video explaining information)
Architecture from MAYAnMAYA on Vimeo.
