Darkness

I stayed up too late and didn't sleep well last night. However, one interesting thing around here is that all the town's lights go out at 1. I had forgotten this and left the school around 2. I don't have far to travel, but without light I wasn't able to see anything. It was fascinating. I could hear the river and feel the cold, but otherwise, there was nothing to respond to. Since I didn't have a flashlight, I used my cellphone to see if anything would reflect and give me a sense of distance. It worked, but the small amount of light produced created an effect of looking through a very dark lens.

An interesting response to this phenomenon has come out of discussions with some of the other students, one of which is a circus performer/fire dancer. We have discussed creating a circus of light for the town. The head of the department seems to also be interested in this idea, so I will share more as it develops.

Otherwise, here it is raining and I've just woken up from a nap. I've been working on an image/illustration in Photoshop. It is just a sketch, but it just dawned on me that this could be easily adapted into a book format. This is something I can continue to develop and may not go anywhere, but any type of productivity now is good to help create other directions.

I was looking forward to the French thrift store, but was told that is not happening this Saturday, but next weekend. At least I will have some history and art to digest in the mean-time.

Location, community and a lack of heat

I'm slowly reseting my internal clock. Today I was able to wake at a decent hour without my body deciding it necessary to be awake from 3 to 5am. I'm enjoying the town, but am beginning to miss regular indoor heating and insulation. I find that I am frequently cold, though I'm wearing many layers. I guess it must be the lack of heat breaks I'm used to in the States.

Today we took a trip to the art store in Quimper. I purchased some an overpriced sketchbook and pencils. I may do some figure drawing to see if I can get some creativity flowing. I've begun some rough digital outlines and writing, but nothing that seems too interesting at the moment. So far I'm just enjoying the friends I'm making here. We'll see how the art-making goes. I'm looking forward to the Quimper trip this Saturday. The Breton museum will be interesting as well as the Musée des beaux arts, but I am mostly excited about going to the thrift store. I want to see what clothes, materials, and bric-a-brac that lives there. Maybe some good fodder for my upcoming projects? I'm hoping so.

Dîner et conversation

Tonight I had pleasant conversations with a professor and fellow students over dinner, with topics ranging from Baudrillard, Post-modernism and buddhism, to communism and current U.S. political races.

Studio

I just got set up with my studio and I have made good friends with the coffee vending machine. It looks like the program will be interesting. There are students here from many different countries (though the majority are Americans) working in a variety of media. The bandwidth here seems to be the only difficult spot at the moment. The wireless internet isn't quite as reliable as I had hoped, but maybe it has jetlag as well. I think I will begin working this evening on some ideas for the mythology of Barchael.

En France

I'm in Pont-Aven for my first full day. Later, when I have a bit of time, I'll try and upload images to my flickr acount.

Soldier Bear

I just read this news story about a bear who was a soldier in WWII. This is an interesting approach to anthropomorphism.

Juice bag

How can you go wrong with food delivery systems that resemble an iv or catheter bag?

Alien Life

I really enjoy when people start hallucinating mythological creatures into photos. Whether on toast or any shadow on the martian surface, people love imaginary monsters.

Here is a news story about Bigfoot on Mars

and another about Grilled Cheese.

Conversation, Food, and the Internet

Last night I was able to spend the evening with the Semrads, some of my favorite human beings (along with their associated canine and feline friends). Great food, wine, and discussion ranging from arts organizations to bass guitar necks. While we passed around laptops last night, I was reminded of this fine bit of animation that Chris Lavery recently introduced me to. I thought I should share:







I'm looking forward to plans with Sarah Jane this Friday at the DMA. I'm really curious about any exhibition based around karaoke and the Smiths.

Barchael

The Barchael blog has been updated.

A long journey

I just arrived in Dallas after a long drive through unusual weather. I've had a lot of time to listen to music and french language CDs, as well as think about projects. I've been largely considering how to develop a personal history. History is like an accordion. It can adapt to the smallest or largest segment of time. It the fluid in which we all swim and the basis for perception. I'm beginning to consider how to construct a new version of it. After speaking with a friend who is a ballerina and another who is a poet, I have come to the conclusion that my dabbling in history and fiction may need to be expanded exponentially. I enjoy pushing myself into new territory, but I want to make sure I'm not thinking in too linear a fashion. I'm most interested in time that is non-linear. Now, how can that become a place for exploration and possibility? How does time work when its order is confused? How does a story function when there is no anchor or time line? What happens to an audience when all points of reference are removed or confused?

Also, here is an interesting link sent to me by Don Fodness
(thanks Don):
http://content.otis.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/artbook&CISOPTR=60&CISOSHOW=

Technology

I had to replace my computer today. The bright side of this whole ordeal is that I got an upgrade to my operating system in the process. I hope this one holds up while I'm out of the country.

Work = play = ?

These two Roman Signer videos are probably closest to the way I like to work. I was watching videos online with Mike this evening while we discussed our upcoming distance collaboration. While watching these, I remembered the importance of enjoying the work you make. In these clips the element of playful curiosity and simplicity are what I think is most effective. I don't know if they say much beyond to question your surroundings, but I don't know if they need to do any more than that. Why make a grand statement when you can keep people asking "what the hell?"

Coffee and Roman Signer

I'm enjoying starting my day slowly by drinking coffee and watching Roman Signer videos on youtube. I just discovered his work and like his sense of playfulness and absurdity. So far I really enjoy the "Sleeping" piece from "Signers Suitcase."



I also really like the flying tables in the "Kurhaus Weissbad" section of the same movie.

New Video

I just posted a new video titled "Survival of the Species." See how I distract myself when I really have better things to do.

Pre-foam Puzzle collaboration

Puzzles and foam

I spent a few hours yesterday with Don working on our puzzle project. After a while of working with the puzzles, we decided it was time to experiment and see what would happen if we took what we had and set it in foam. 3 cans of sealing foam and a lot of gesso later, the experimental piece had elements that looked like a casserole, clouds, a landscape, or a quilt. There is still plenty to be done with it, so we will see how it develops. I have a few photos of the pre-foam piece and will post them once I get my computer back from repair. Oh, the joys of computer repair….

Process....

I'm in the process of packing. It is slow going at the moment, but I can see some progress. This afternoon I'm working on a collaborative puzzle piece with Don Fodness. It is a start to something we may have to pick back up when I return in the summer. We spent some time on it yesterday and it is coming along nicely.

Here is a link to Don's work:
http://donaldfodness.tripod.com/

Tomorrow Barchael is collaborating with Tim Foss on a performance/video/exploration piece. We have mapped out a few ideas of what it is, but it will be unscripted, so there is plenty of room for exploration. All I know is that it will involve shopping carts, video cameras, and possibly some sort of costume. I need to work in some research time for this today.

Here is a link to one of Tim's most recent projects:
http://sorefeet.wordpress.com/

Once I get my computer back from repair (again) I will add their pages to my links.

Reading

I'm currently reading a collection of short storied by Donald Barthelme. His name was suggested to me by one of my professors since I've recently been interested in non-linear narrative structure.

A busy season

Ok, I know I haven't written much in a while. There is good reason for this. I've spent quite a lot of last semester writing about humor and working on a Barchael video about unicorns. Here is a rough draft of the poster for it:



The video has gotten quite a bit of positive feedback, but I still need to make a few adjustments, so it won't be posted for a bit. I will also post a final version of the poster (eventually).

Since then, I've been working on my upcoming semester in Brittany at the Pont-Aven School for Contemporary Art. I've been enjoying my time with forms, photocopies, FedEx, priority mail, changing addresses, storage, etc…. As you can imagine, this does not leave much room for creativity. I have been photographing as an exercise. These images are on my Flickr account which I need to add to my links page.

Once I return from France, I will be in Mexico for 5 weeks at the beginning of the summer on a Fullbright funded group trip. It starts in the Yucatan and goes all the way up to Monterrey. As in the previous trip, my focus will continue to be on humor, food, and mythologies.

Beyond that, I'm still searching for some valuable theoretical writings to take with me. Any suggestions are appreciated. As if I don't have enough to read right now, I seem to want more. I think a good indication of this would be the grocery bag filled with books I returned to the library yesterday. Luckily I ran into another grad who helped me carry the ones that wouldn't fit in the bag. My brain runneth over.

In conclusion, I would like to offer a photo of me with a cat on my head (taken by my fabulous friend Janice):