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Please Deceive Me
We love trickery. Or rather, we love the quest for innovation, the unexpected, and the impossible. When the impossible turns out to be, well, impossible, then we settle for illusion. What better way to explain the success of Harry Houdini, David Blaine, David Copperfield, and illusion within photography (check out the Huffington Post for some really trippy images)? Of course, Photoshop is the bee’s knees, or so they say, when it comes to manipulating an image to give you a photo which deceives the eye and makes you say Wow! Or is it?
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De Charlize Theron à Nam June Paik
Il est difficile de mesurer l’impact que l’image a sur nous. Certains vont avec plaisir se laisser séduire par une affiche pour peu qu’elle attire l’œil. Je me flatte à penser que la publicité n’a aucun impact parce que je ne regarde pas la télévision, ne passe pas mon temps libre à arpenter les magasins ou éplucher les magazines de mode. Cependant, il me faut toute la volonté du monde pour ne pas céder à l’appel d’un sublime sac à main ou autre élément comestible vu sur un panneau d’affichage alors que je n’ai pas faim et deux douzaines de sacs. Mais malgré tout cela, je sais. Je sais que…
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Why the Soul of Surrealism is in India
If all the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players, then where do the Surrealists sit? According to my imagined global map of where art movements should be located, the Impressionists are based in the South of France, the Blaue Reiter in Germany, the Nabis in Stockholm, Cubism in Iceland, the Old Masters (da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, etc.) in Italy, Aestheticism in Decorative Arts in Shanghai, Digital Art in Oslo, and Lyrical Abstraction in Tokyo. Of course, this is entirely subjective, but I think that certain countries, or cities, really do go hand in hand with the style or ideals that various art movements represent.
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A Byzantine Secret worth Billions
There is no doubt that the Byzantines have bequeathed us a culturally rich, and, at times, mysterious, legacy. Emperors came and went, but tradition and culture were passed down, leaving aspects of Byzantine history which yet linger, in legend or Eastern Orthodoxy, even to this day. Legend, you may ask? Certainly! Greek fire: a Byzantine invention (despite the misnomer). What proved to be a fearful weapon against their enemies also served as hazardous for Byzantium’s own forces, so it was eventually disregarded, and the secrets of its alchemy have been lost to us.
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Mastering Monochrome
The saying goes that “it” (the world/life/politics/beliefs/love and so on and so forth) is not black and white. But what if it was? Surely life would be a lot easier. Rules and expectations would be clear-cut and to the point. If the choice of colour was not an option, all decisions would be a lot easier, right? If we look at old films, photographs, TV, and documentaries which were shot in black and white, we hark back to what appears to be a graceful and elegant world. Simple, classy, well-organised and put together: even the music that accompanies the films/TV shows/documentaries evokes a simpler and more innocent time. I know…
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A Letter A Day Keeps The Divorce Lawyer At Bay?
Let’s forget about art for a second, and let’s talk about letters. Perhaps you might think it’s an odd subject choice, but bear with me here. Back in the days of yesteryear (yep, your grandparents’, great-grandparents’…perhaps even as recently as your parents’), how did people communicate when they weren’t directly next-door neighbours? Sure phones were around, and eventually even email. However, the letter was the method of communication which could truly enchant. There is a reason why it’s called a ‘love letter’ after all. As I write this in the lead-up to Valentine’s Day, the cynic inside me cannot help but think of the number of failed relationships that haunt…
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