Music

So yeah - the one hour recording session was interesting.  Although I didn't get the album finished in one sitting as I'd planned, I did manage to record a few songs.  I need to dig in and learn a bit more about the software, then try again in a week or two.  In any event, I will make a new album soon.
Yesterday I played a bit with overdubbing and multi-tracking, and realized that it has become a lot easier over the past few years.  Garageband was always a good program, but its been streamlined and designed to be much more intuitive.
I'm trying to un-clutter my music desktop.  I'm putting aside the multiple microphones and mixer, and have gotten rid of my guitar and voice pedals.  I'm working strictly with software now, the only physical input being a Blue Snowball microphone.  The fidelity is good, and with a little tweaking in GB it produces ample sound for acoustic recording.
My idea is that recording an album should be as simple as playing the instrument.  As much as possible, I want to record live in the studio.  You hear what I hear when I'm playing.  Enhancement should be kept to a minimum.  Its fun adding the occasional harmony, and working with plug-ins, but I think one of the reasons my voice has been so problematic is that when I performed I was relying on tools too heavily.  Not hearing my own voice, I started singing unnaturally to try and recreate my natural sound through electronics.  When I sing in a bare room, no amplification applied, the voice seems to even out and regain a lot of its potential.  Its only when I have to start thinking about pitching to the mic that I start to have problems.
Of course, this is just woolgathering.
I want to do a lot more.  

Try New Things

 

Today I am going to try some new things.  First, I’m going to try to sing a few songs, which I haven’t been able to do since I left Boston several years ago.  My voice is feeling pretty good today.  I’m hoping that will last into the evening tonight, because my goal in singing the songs is to quickly record a new album in one short sitting, live in my computer room.  I’m aiming for a one-hour recording, with between twelve and fifteen songs.  I’ve asked for requests from people for numbers they know I have sung in the past, and I’m compiling my song list while I work on this blog entry. So far, I’ve decided on the following:  Lady Franklin’s Lament, The Streets of London, And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda.  I’m considering Mercy Street, but I don’t know if I’ll be warm enough to sing it.  If it goes well, I may do some more adventurous singing, but right now I’m planning to do mostly quieter folk numbers in my lower voice register because they are a bit easier.  Regardless of whether the session goes well, or ill, I’m going to post it online as a free download.  There will probably be both audio only, and HD video versions, though the video will take a few days to edit. 

If this works, I’ll plan on recording several more one hour albums over the next few months.  It will help me warm back into performing again, give me a good online demo reel, and allow me to talk to friends to get their feedback and assistance. 

I’m going to put up the new website within the next few weeks, and the musical component will be called “The Online Streetsinger”, and voice permitting, I’m going to start trying to put up a few tunes a week in addition to the albums. And I will leave a prominent link for donations! If I can find a way to do it, and if there is an audience for it, I may also start to stream performances. 

The recording setup will be pretty basic – I’m going to use a single desktop mike (the Blue Snowball) and do some minor post production in Garageband, mostly a bit of compression, and perhaps a slight eeque revision.  The recordings are going to be pretty raw, but I hope still enjoyable. 

I’ve already devised a few cover designs in Photoshop – had a bit of fun with them.  Perhaps tomorrow, before I upload the audio, I’ll post a few on facebook and let people vote for the best design.

So – today its fun time. ]

Wish me luck.

Below, you will find the text of a reply I made to our 

beloved President Barack Obama.

His campaign sent me a request for a ten dollar pledge, in exchange for his

deepest thanks, and the possibility (offered of course to all the other millions who will 

reply with ten bucks) that he will invite me to dinner in the White House.

In the note, I asked him for a job, directly and without hesitation. 

If anyone out there sees something in my letter which makes you think I might

be good for your organization, makes you laugh, or reminds you of someplace that might 

be looking for a wild and mercurial mind to play with, send me an email, or forward this one please!

I'm sick of being unemployed and not a player in the big game.

Dear Mr. Obama,

I'd love to participate, but the fact is I've been unemployed since just before Mr. Obama was elected. At the moment I am overdrawn on my checking account, and literally have only fifty cents in my pocket. Jobs are scarce here in Sierra Vista, and I haven't the wherewithal to relocate. 

I'm a fifty year old man, intelligent, talented, experienced as well as educated. I am and have always been an ambitious and a hard worker. Until I lost my job as a graphic designer for a local newspaper, I volunteered my time to the local Democratic headquarters, in addition to donating money to Barack's campaign and talking it up whenever I could. When I voted for Barack I felt for the first time in my voting life that I was voting for a good man, the right one for the job as opposed to the lesser of two evils. 

And although I still respect Mr. Obama for his ideals, I'm finding that my reality while living under his presidency has not been easy. 

In his speeches Barack always speaks to the plight of the unemployed - but so far I have seen no assistance in  creating jobs or paying bills (my unemployment benefits ran out over a year ago. No help for 99'ers!) I go through the motions of looking for work. I've knocked a on a lot of doors, paid money I could I'll afford to headhunters, applied to be a chet, a floor washer, a salesman, a construction worker.  I've held a few short term positions, some in my field some not. 

Throughout I've also been taking classes, teaching myself new skills, working hard on personal projects which, at the moment are funded solely by the generosity of my family.  I'm fifty years old, healthy, strong, smart, and after many years in the working world, have now moved back in with my family, and learned what it feels like to be an overgrown child.  

Among the various denials I've been offered as reasons for not being hired :  You are overqualified for this.  You have to much training - we don't think you'd fit in.  Are you still a democrat? We are only accepting applications right now, not actively hiring.  We'll keep you on record.  You say you are willing to work for the offered wage, but we know that you would ask for a raise.  We are looking for someone younger.  

The most recent thing I've been hearing is "We don't hire unemployed."  

At present in the United States of America, where I have been a citizen since birth 54 years ago, there are no opportunities for me, save the ones I make for myself.  

Here are the things I've done since becoming unemployed:

I have written two novels, which I intend to publish - someday. 

I have written over 1000 poems.  I've completed half of a large contemporary illuminated manuscript which I also intend to publish.  I have become expert at using computers for nearly any task, from recording original songs and musical compositions, to making sophisticated paintings, drawings,  graphic artwork, spreadsheets presentations and databases.  

I have mastered several different styles of writing, have been writing product reviews online for Amazon, have also written in excess of 500 prose pages on topics ranging from science to politics, from religion to psychology.  I've deepened my understanding of the world, learned a new appreciation for Medieval and Renaissance art, read a lot of history, studied political science.  On my own, without the support of the state, or the remuneration of an employer, I have produced a significant body of work as an artist and writer, which I have not shown to anyone but my closest friends and relatives. 

Despite this, I am unemployed.  Or is it because of this I am unemployed?

Despite this, I am writing a letter to you sir, the President of the United States, a man I voted for and still admire,  through the proxy of your campaign headquarters, in order to send my regrets that I cannot offer you ten dollars for his campaign.  So consider this a letter from one beggar to another.

Mr. President, here is my begging proposal:  bring me to the White House, or come visit me in Arizona.  I'd be happy to talk to you on any topic - you'd find me knowledgeable, at least peripherally, about nearly any topic.  You'd find I also have deep insights and perhaps unique understandings of many, many subjects.  I'll show you some of my work and offer to work for you.  

The only pay I would expect is a roof, food and the tools to do my work.  In my capacity in your White House, I would function as a photographer, documenter, portraitist, itinerant musician and poet - in essence, I would be your Court Jester.  If you recall your Shakespeare, the Jester was the one person in any kingdom who could be utterly truthful to the King. I'll be your Jaques.

Sound crazy?  Of course it does, but desperate men come up with desperate ideas.  

I'm full of ideas.  Some of them are brilliant, and some of them are full of shit, but some of them in the profusion  have  value.  

Mr. Obama, I was educated to be an ivory tower intellectual, in a world that no longer understands that it has a need for us. 

I don't expect a reply to this email.  Its rather silly really, since you live in a very different America than I do.  

Although I can't offer you my monetary support, I can offer you my idealogical support.  Your vision for this country is a good one. My hope is

that people in your America and people in my America can finally bridge the gap, bring it all together, and finally embody the ideal that our founding 

fathers dreamed of all those years ago.  The reality may be foundering, but the dream is still alive and well.  

We are here.  We are hopeful.  We are waiting.  

Prove us right.

Eric K. Talerico, 

Musician, Artist, Philosopher, Jester, Heirophant, Busker, Beggar, Woolgatherer, Mountebank. 

Into the morning

Into the Morning

Tombstone Macrame?

Into the morning.  

Blessings spun on wet wing birds.  

Alive with baffling thrones, 

butterflies on the stick counting thirds.  

Above a small moon 

made white by sunshine

glittering winds.  

Cool drink from rushing stream. 

  No way out of or into the dream.  

Someone speaking, 

talking on the wire as if they know.  

No answers anywhere. 

The glow of life and the sharp knife.  

Out of the ground there comes a noise. 

woman dancing with supple poise.  

Each place you see a shape 

divided earth cannot escape.  

Down wind crow calls 

the eagle dancing on winter's wing. 

Passing a house there, where 

she is singing to everything.  

The cattle out upon the field say

why they give the milk so sweet. 

The army massed there once,

A flute song called them to their feet.  

And in the mine, the mine 

that held the hope of gold and life.  

Deep in the mine.  

Oh Augustine, 

take my hand and 

guide me to the ground, up from the mine.  

And its now I think of leaving hope, 

to take on feelings, somehow deeper.  

And in the mine - deep in the mine. 

Oh Augustine, take 

my hand and guide me to the ground, 

out of the mine.  

For we each have our prayers.  

And we all eat our bread. 

  In our minds hear the sound. 

In our mouths speak the words.  

Words of power, 

words of mind,

words of faith, 

words of fun, 

words of prayer i

n the mine, words of fear, 

in the mine,  

Take me out of the mine. 

This is just another ten minute poem.  Today, I listened to Peter Gabriel's recording of San Jacinto.  Without premeditation, I simple sang the song in my head, and tried to create new lines on a new subject, with the same basic rhythm.  Not exact, mind you, just approximate.  

Smart Ass Stuff

Smart Ass Stuff.

I am just woolgathering today.  Don't take any of this too seriously.  I'm just poking around in my mind to see what I know, or think I know, about economics. 
People talk about capitalism as a cure for our problems. That wouldn't be a bad thing if our capitalism was coupled with strong ethical values.  
Unfortunately, the ethics of value have been looked at as merely suggestions, rather than prescriptions for behavior.  
Most people in the US today seem have one very simple "ethic" that they seem to apply consistently.  That is, "If I can get away with it, then I should do it."  This ethic is what has caused most of our deep-seated economic problems.  
Companies exist, not to produce products and service, but to produce money.  When the money becomes the object, when the product becomes secondary, the idea of Capitalism starts to fall apart.  If you read the tabloids about our politicians and celebrities, you can see that this ethic is taught from the very top.  When we see politicians, actors, clergyman, police, lawyers acting on the "what I can get away with" principle, everyone else gets the message that its okay.  So long as you can get away with it.
Any system, legal, economic, or otherwise is an artificial construct.  By that I mean they are a product of thought - not of nature.  Because of this, there is nothing in nature that will force these constructs to cohere.  The form is created by observing certain rules.  If you stop obeying the rules, then the form starts to crumble.
Consider that a strong business ethic is the glue that holds a system together.  When the necessary rules are not applied, the system will collapse.  It gets eroded from the inside, as by a swarm of termites.  It may look well on the outside, or be improved on the surface by a coat of paint, but the internal damage is comprehensive and continuing.  
In a truly capitalist system, money would be used, not as a staple part of our consumption, but as a backup measure for emergencies. 
You build your home, and your business.  If it flourishes, you enjoy more wealth.  If it does not, you still have property and structure from which to create a living.  Notice that I did not say "earn" a living.  I said CREATE, and that is an important distinction.  By CREATE I mean that you use your home, and whatever property you have to create wealth in the form of food, goods, shelter, and the other things that you need to subsist.
If you have neighbors, and they have goods that you want or need, the only thing that should compel them to share with you is their own pleasure in the act of sharing.  They may set a monetary or other trade value on their goods as well, if the pleasure motive is not enough.  I say may, because no one human should ever expect, or demand that another human simply give them something based on a perceived need.  "Because I need it" is not a reason to take something from someone else against their will.    
In a truly capitalist system, you would be entitled unquestionably to keep everything you produce, or to trade it for things that other people produce.  If you have a crop or other product that is seasonal, you might use money as a means to accept payment from someone for goods which they cannot trade other goods for. The money is only a fair trade when its value is a constant, a quantifiable reliable currency. If the value fluctuates, then it is not a fair vehicle or trade. 
When a cash system becomes unreliable in this way, the ethical thing is to stop accepting it, and move to some other barter value. 
Money as we use it now is an enemy of true capitalism.  When the value of a dollar changes from minute to minute, when today the dollar you give me will buy a loaf of bread, and tomorrow it will only buy me one slice of bread, then the dollar has failed as a useful tool of commerce.  When paper currency was first instituted, the bills were not intended to stand alone.  On request, you could purchase an equivalent amount of gold.  You could redeem your gold and silver certificates.  Who recently has tried to do this with the US government?  There are private gold traders, but even gold is not a reliable standard anymore.  Its value fluctuates too, so though it may be more reliable than a dollar as currency, it is still imperfect.  Our current government has no goods whatsoever, in fact, to back up its currency.   They may give you dollars in exchange for your labor, goods, crops, but that cash has no guarantee of value behind it.  You give something real and solid.  In return you get a mere promise, an abstraction.  If that promise was as good as the paper it is written on, then it would be a fair trade.  But if you work for a solid year producing a crop, and you sell that crop for what is taken to be enough money to prepare your fields and to live on in comfort for the next year, until the new crop comes in, but two months later the value of the currency has fallen so far that you cannot accomplish that goal, then your trade was an unfair one.  
Most of us right now just shrug, and move on, not questioning the unfairness of this, Nor do most of us raise any eyebrows when taxation on those dollars continues to rise.  
I would submit that paper currency and coinage as a system of economics is broken.  The breaking factor is what I've mentioned already.  We need to have a currency to which we can truly apply the term "cold, hard cash."  A dollar should always be a dollar.  A currencies value should be an absolute quantity. 
How do we get back to this?  One way might be to commit ourselves to becoming more self sufficient, and to barter more for goods, rather than using money.  
One of the reasons that we worry so much our economy is because in the process of making itself the standard of trade, our money culture has also made us reliant on a central infrastructure which most of us, at present, are helpless without.  If the trucks stop rolling to Arizona, then we starve, or die of thirst. If you walk around any of the neighborhoods in Sierra Vista, you will see that only a few people have vegetable gardens.  Many less have any kind of livestock on their land.  All our water comes from a central source, very few townsfolk have wells or water-collection facilities on their properties.  Many people live in apartments, which further isolate them from the possibility of self sufficiency.  Most of us here are also heavily reliant upon electricity, though we also for the most part get that from a central facility, even though Solar energy is one of Arizona's greatest untapped resources.  We drive cars everywhere.  None of the neighborhoods in Sierra Vista is close to a shopping, or other service facility.  And since most people here refuse to walk, unless it is for pleasure on one of the hiking trails, cars are omnipresent, an only a few of them utilize the aforementioned solar power to drive their vehicles.  There may be a few fully electric vehicles in Sierra Vista, but so far to date, I have not seen one.  So not only do we rely on stores for our food, the grid for electricity, and water, we also rely on the gas stations for fuel.  
Additionally, there does not appear to be any true industry here - and by that I mean factories or businesses who produce real, physical goods for trade, not just providing services.  All service jobs are jobs that create only dependence further dependence on an infrastructure.  As such, and particularly in a desert town like Sierra Vista where life without that infrastructure is largely unimaginable to us, is not a good thing.  
The first step to breaking this circle of dependency is to learn about the environment, learn how to exploit it for our own benefit.  If nothing else, people need to learn how to produce a high percentage of their food from their own property.  I knew people who lived in Boston on very small properties who could subsist during the summers entirely on what they grew in their small gardens.  Why is it that in Sierra Vista, where a substantial number of homeowners live on lots in excess of a quarter acre, don't produce even an iota of their own food?  Its one thing to live in a large, densely populated city and not produce food - but in a place like Sierra Vista, where land is plentiful, the only excuse is laziness.  Even those who are wealthy monetarily would benefit from making a percentage of their land productive.  Why don't we do it?  
I think the Republicans are very right on one idea, at least.  Less government is better government.  
We really should cut back on government programs everywhere, while beginning programs locally and commercially to teach people how to live locally and self-reliantly.  Classes in small plot agriculture, animal husbandry and so forth should be a vital and integral part of education, as should trade ethics classes.  Notice I didn't say "business ethics".  I said trade ethics.  Fact is, one shouldn't need to be in business in order to live in comfort.  At least for now, I'm going to make a clear division between trade, and business.  
Once we have pared services back significantly, we need to see what works on its own, and what doesn't. Its only in observing where things start to break down where we can see what public programs are really necessary, and which are luxuries.  
Consider this:  in the modern United States, a family can own the clear title on their property, and even subsist entirely on food and goods they consume themselves, but because of government taxation, they still need to earn money in order to keep their property.  Property taxes are an evil better left for another entry perhaps. 
I must reinforce both to myself and to anyone who might read this that I am woolgathering.  I'm not espousing any belief.  I'm trying things on for size.  A theory is just a theory. 

How Illuminated Manuscripts were made

My own style - a kind of naive hybrid which  borrows some traditional techniques, but uses my own block letters rather than a calligraphic script.  This page is in progress - much work remaining, particularly in the border.  The painted face in the lower right is pretty close to completion, but there are still several layers to go here.!

I'm not a traditional illuminator.  Although my book is inspired by Medieval books, my style is neither historical or authentic - the images sometimes but not often refer to old works, but my interest lies in making something new rather than reproducing something old.
That said, I have to say that I have a great respect for people who do work with reproduction in mind.  Their work is often stunning, well researched and often made using all home made materials, including inks, sometimes even parchment.  Hand work well done is always fantastic.  I'm including a pair of links, one to a short film about the process of illuminating, and the other part of a terrific series about the creation of a new manuscript using traditional methods.  I'm something of a pirate when I look at these videos - with a keen eye to stealing every bit of technique that I can from these wonderful artists.  I'll continue keeping a lookout online for videos, supply sources and so on and will strive to include more of them on this blog.
Heres a link to a terrific short film that shows all the major steps involved with creating an illuminated manuscript, from the making of the parchment out of sheepskin, through the binding process.  Simply wonderful! How Illuminated Manuscripts Were Made movie

Heres another video, part of a series on YouTube showing an artist making a manuscript of her own.  I'm posting a link about the pricking process, which is how Medieval calligraphers transferred the ruling to their pages in preparation for lettering.  The whole series is worth watching - the artist has included segments on many different steps in the process, including one which shows how she paints some of the highlights into her illuminations.

Online Manuscripts

The Aberdeen Beastiary is reproduced in its entirety online.

The internet is opening up new resources all the time.  Just a few years ago, it would have taken more time, money and energy than most people have to see the manuscript that is available online here.

Its not just a few pages available either.  The Aberdeen Bestiary is posted in its entirety, and in addition to the pages, there are transcriptions and translations of the text available.  If you are a calligrapher, an illuminator, or just looking for inspiration, this site is a must see! It also give some hints about how the manuscripts were created.  Particularly useful are the images that show the use of "pricking" to layout pages. 
If you are interested in the design and the making of Illuminated Manuscripts, then you will find the Medieval Manuscript Manual to be quite delightful as well.  It will give you an idea of the workflow that bookmakers created in order to streamline the process, give you a historical background and some very good imagery too!

Photoshop for artist's workflow

If you are a traditional artist not quite sure of what Photoshop is all about, I have a few suggestions for you.
I've been painting for most of my 54 years - but have only used Photoshop for the past 15.  Initially I thought of it as a primarily photographic tool, using it only to improve and process photographic images. Early on, that processing began to include collage and other compositing techniques, but mostly it was still a tool for modifying photos.
For the past 6 years, I've been exploring its paint and drawing capabilities.  When equipped with drawing tablet, such as the Wacom Intuos 4, or the Genius PenSketch, photoshop becomes the ultimate drawing tool.
Because drawing took a lot of paper, which required a lot of storage space, I started to minimize it in my workflow.  With Photoshop, the materials requirement goes away.  I can draw to my heart's content, and the only storage needed is a good external hard drive.  With a tablet engaged, Photoshop gives you access to a myriad of wonderful drawing tools - pencils, pens, brushes, chalk, pastels, crayons.  Each of those tools has a wealth of parameters that can be adjusted, and with a little practice you'll create tools that feel comfortable.  The tablet is as flexible and sensitive as any hand media, and with the ability to work in layers, new opportunities are brought into play to add depth and polish to a drawing.
Because I was shying away from drawing, my skills were becoming stilted and tight.  Now when I an getting ready to work on a painting, I'll spend an hour sketching and loosening up in PS - and what I do in Photoshop strongly impacts my abilities as a painter.  With Photoshop, I'm taking more time to practice and explore, without the onus of the cost of storage and paper.
Once I've loosened up in Photoshop, I'll begin to work on my canvas, board, or book.
As a prep tool there are also other areas where Photoshop excels.  I can work up a drawing to get an idea of the coloration, mass distribution and so forth, even bringing it up to a near finished image quality before I begin working in physical media.  If I want to, I can print my drawings on paper when I get to an image I want to work, and physically paste that image onto my canvas or other media, or transfer, as I would have anyway, with charcoal or carbon paper or other dry media.  Ultimately what that means is that I can have a perfected drawing to start my underpainting into.  Fantastic!
I've also enjoyed making images in Photoshop that would take much longer to accomplish in physical media, or even create things that wouldn't be possible in physical media.  So in addition to my hand made work, I now have a substantial portfolio of Photoshop images (this year alone, I've made in the range of 400 completed works!)
But wait!  I can work it both ways.  I can draw an image on paper by hand, scan it, import it into Photoshop, and carry on the work digitally.  So if I'm in the field, without camera or computer, I can do my drawing on paper, and since I've been honing my drawing skills with Photoshop, my drawings are cleaner, surer and more articulate than then had been!  Or I can work both directions - sketch in photoshop, print out on paper, work up in ink, scan and re-import into photoshop.  If I do my printing on art paper, something with tooth and texture, I can get some very interesting hybrid images incorporating the best of both traditional and digital work.
Since I'm working with the Adobe Creative Suite, anything I do in Photoshop can be exported to any of the other applications - so I can work a hand made sketch up into vectors in Illustrator, or add the images to typesetting and graphic paste-up work in InDesign.  In Dreamweaver and Flash I can continue to diversify the images by adding them to html. files and applying animation and interactivity.
And thats just the tip of the iceberg.
If you are a traditional artist, wondering how Photoshop could work for you, these are just a few suggestions.  There is loads of stuff that I haven't touched upon.
Happy painting!

Leaving things behind.

We tend to leave behind things that are "merely aesthetic" and replace them with things that are more utilitarian, and in the long run the culture suffers for it.  Its like throwing the baby out with the bathwater!  

I remember reading Dylan Thomas when I was in highschool.  

He was kind of cool, but didn't make much sense to me, until I heard recordings of him reading his poetry aloud - that was like lifting a veil.  There was a level of meaning, yes, that I hadn't grasped by my silent reading, but there was also the sheer pleasure that the sound and rhythms of his voice evoked.  The poems became powerful, invocations, spells, magic.  

Shakespeare was the same way.  Seeing a staged production of "The Tempest" was a real eye opener.  When I read the play to myself, it seemed dark and serious and engrossing, but onstage it was flashy, quick-witted, often hilarious, and very straightforward.  

We need to take some time to reestablish some new oral traditions.  I'd love to see some people take on the task of memorizing and performing "The Odyssey" for example.  (Odds Bodkin, bless him, has done it, and it was wonderful!)  Some of the younger poets involved with the poetry slam movement have got the right idea - write the poem, then bring it to life!  

We are also losing in other realms.  Movies, watched on a small screen in the privacy of one's home are convenient - but the pleasure and socialization that can be had by going to a community movie theater far surpasses the more personal experience.  And better still, rather than watching a film on a screen, to see a live performance, either musical or theatrical. Each of these experiences are similar, but they are not by any means the same.

When I'm working on the book, people often come over and ask things like "wouldn't it be easier to do that with a computer?"  The fact that I'm working hard and consistently every day on the project seems to puzzle them completely.  Then I let them thumb through a few pages for themselves and I watch, not without a bit of humor, as they lose their understanding of what a book is for a moment.  Often, after a few pages have be viewed, the inquirer will look at me and say something like "I've never seen anything like this!"  And they understand, somewhat.  Were I to duplicate the book, it would not have the same impact.  Each painting is hand made.  That means that the images have a different level of meaning and intention than they would if printed on a press.  There is a texture to the paper.  The ink and paint have multiple levels.  If you look closely, the marks reveal the actions of the brush, or the pen that created them.  Some of those things would transmit in a published version, but not all.  Something of the magic would be lost in translation.  

When an artist makes a painting, the surface of the paper or canvas or board is activated by the paint.  The marks are made by physical actions, and each action is a significant thing in and of itself.  When we see a painting reproduced digitally, we can see indications of those physical actions, but the reproduction doesn't really represent those actions completely.  One is just a surrogate for the other.  You can see something of a painting in a reproduction, but you can't see everything.  And you can't smell the oils, run your fingers across the surface to feel the bumps and ridges in the paint, change your angle of viewing to see the difference in the glazes and impastos from one region to the next.  

I think its sad to see paintings kept imprisoned in museums where there are barriers between the viewer and the artwork, or the pictures are under glass, which diminishes the color presence, and neutralizes much of the surface of the painting.  

As far as books go, I think its sad that Illuminated Books have become so rare that when we do see them, they are protected under plexiglas vitrines on pedestals.  Books were meant to be handled, studied, even altered.  Certainly one wants to protect them and preserve them, but surely it shouldn't be at the cost of using them for their intended purpose - which is to open a magical door, to be read and touched and smelled and seen.  When you hide a book or a work on paper under glass, you also freeze its history.  No more fingermarks, tears, dings, scratches, other indications of that books history will manifest.  Forensic scientists can find out a lot about books by examining them chemically - but the present time would reveal nothing of their usage because they have been taken out of the world.  

I'd like to take my books on tour - set them up on tables in public places, let people pick them up, open and page through, read as much or as little as they like, make an impression on the book with their hands, breaths, sneezes.  A book can't develop a memory if it is hidden in a safe.  

I would suggest that making things by hand is always preferable.  That doing it digitally should be an alternative when something must be accomplished with expediency, but computers should not be our only tools.  They should be an adjunct to the artworks that we have learned to make, not a replacement for them.  

So here is a bit of a suggestion:  if you are a poet, memorize at least a few of your poems and recite them out loud any time you can, both alone to yourself, and in front of other people.  If you write a play, make sure it get staged.  If staging is too expensive, have public readings.  If you can't afford a hall to do the readings in, do it in a park, a city square, someplace public.  

When you take your work public, make sure that there is interaction.  Don't discourage comments, criticisms, suggestions.  Interact with the audience.  

Tee shirts of this message available here

The firefighters who came out to fight the Monument Fire here in Sierra Vista did a terrific job.  Now that there is rain it looks like the fires are nearly over - its good to look out upon the landscape and instead of seeing smoke, see monsoon cloud formations - vast temple-like columns of clouds that seem to bring the heavens down to earth.  Its amazing to see just how much this landscape changes from day to day.  One day the sky is crystal clear with no clouds in sight.  The next day there is a veritable city of cloud castles.  Later that same day, the tall clouds give way to sheet clouds that look as though someone has punched holes into them.  At sunrise, there are lenticular clouds over the mountains, like hovering motherships coming in for a look-see.
Anyway, thanks to the firefighters who took care of the Monument fire for us.  The work they did created miracles for a lot of people.

Philip

When is a computer not a computer?  When is a man not a man?  When do the two coalesce and form an alternative entity?

I hear that Philip K. Dick wrote over a thousand pages in his exegesis.  He wrote them longhand, although he was an adept typist.  When does a man become a conduit for something else? 

Is our intelligence a product of the body, or its inhabitant?  Is our intelligence reliant on the body, or does it have an independent existence?  How far is far?

Is Writing a true thing?  Do we exist in another world when we write, do we cross over into an existence that is somehow shared with another world?

Israel said that Hawaiians live in both worlds – so he was not afraid of death because it is a mere crossing over.  He said not to cry for him when he died, but in truth the day he passed away, the wailing could be heard at every part of the Big Island echoing in the valleys and among the hills and forests.

His producer said that Israel would have laughed about that.

In a perfect world. 

Jabberwocky

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDM4qGgh4No
I was puttering in the studio last night, wanting to see just how well iMovie works as a basic, no frills movie editing tool.  I made the video in one take using a Logitech Webcam, and Quicktime 10. I used the onboard mic on the Webcam for video.
After recording the video, I imported it into iMovie, which took just under a minute, then scrubbed through the movie to find the line divisions where I wanted to insert lyric prompts.  That done, I applied a comic book style from the supplied Apple templates, and added my text bubbles from the text menu.  The entire process, from the start of recording to having the item posted on both YouTube and Facebook took just over 20 minutes.  Although the video isn't perfect, as a novice with no prior exposure to the iMovie 11 application, its not bad!  My assessment of the software is that it works really well, and that with a little practice and preplanning, is capable of making excellent home videos, while acquainting newbies with the basic ideas of film editing and production.  This one definitely gets a shortcut on my desktop!

Shiva becoming Tezcatlipoca in Zepolotl

In that time, two deities were inhabiting the one body.  Shiva had traveled to Zepolotl where he met the disembodied spirit of Tezcatlipoca, the Smoking Mirror.  This was sometime during the 50th or 60th cycle of creation, when hot dogs had not yet been discovered, so all they had to eat was people and fruit.  The day that this was painted, Shiva was the surface deity but Tezcatlipoca was beginning to exert himself.  The time was around noon, and he hoped he would be in time to see the great Iguana sunning itself.  August was near.

Another Movie or Two I’d Like to See

How about a movie about new recruits training to be Imperial Warriors in the Star Wars universe?  The rebels are terrorists, the Empire is largely stable but beset by beggar warriors who want to bring it down, nearly a million people are killed when a rebel force destroys an orbiting defense base (Deathstar).

How about a movie in which Nikola Tesla actually builds his free electricity generators and powers the entire world, while selling independent generators that absorb their energy from the sun, so that people can be autonomous from a central grid. These uniquely free people develop a society in which free enterprise is the rule, and collectivism is seen as an unnecessary and archaic idea, because people actually treat other people fairly. 

How about a movie where   God is actually a microorganism living in the Marianas Trench.  In a moment of revelation, a woman swimming is caught in a rip tide which takes her directly to the trench.  She finds herself alone on the ocean at night bourn up by highly saline seawater, surrounded by the microorganism God which is glowing faintly green due to electro-cellular excitation.  She is hit by a rogue wave, swallows a large mouthful of seawater infested with the God organisms and suddenly finds that she can hear their thoughts.

How about a movie about a janitor who not only is very good at his job, but loves it more than any other activity.  He has a nice home, and a stable family.  His kids want to go to college.

How about a movie where the goodguy is really a completely good guy, and he wins the day because he is good. 

How about a movie where drug overlords are depicted not as violent thugs, but as businessmen committed to the ideal of a free society where people are allowed to make their own choices about whether to use or not use drugs.   They use the legal system to successfully pass a law which allows this to happen.  After the legalization occurs they immediately funnel money into treatment and educational facilities for users, so that they can learn how to safely use the drugs without fear of addiction or arrest. 

How about a movie where a man owns a house.  The city he lives in decides it wants to put in a road which will cross over his property.  He doesn’t want the road on his land because it will interfere with the grazing of his cattle.  He explains his problem to the city council and they decide that the public interest includes this fellow too, and so they find an alternative route for their road.

How about a movie where two people with drastically different points of view come together to talk.  After each explains his POV, they discuss them in more detail, eventually agreeing that neither one’s world view actually excludes anything in the other.  In fact they find so much the same between the two templates that they learn to respect each other and each other’s beliefs. 

How about a movie about the turtle and the scorpion where the turtle carries the scorpion across a river.  When they get to the other side, the scorpion tells the turtle that although his nature dictates that he should now sting the turtle to death, he himself has risen above his nature to become something more than a scorpion.  The two go their separate ways, now lifelong friends.

How about a baseball movie where two rival teams (one male and one female) are embroiled in the game of a lifetime.  During the sixth inning, they are beset by a torrential downpour.  Rather than running inside to get out of the rain, they all take off their cloths and wallow in the red mud of the baseball diamond.  The bump in viewership is so huge that from then on, all sports events are replaced by events where mixed gender “teams” take off their clothes together and play like five year olds. 

How about a movie about a man and a woman that does not have any sexual innuendo at all?  They are good friends, and remain that way through out the movie.

In This World (a brief poem)

In this world or in the next one, I am undefined. On this river through this forest, my soul is fed. On this train, on this passage, there are strangers. In their bags in their pockets, there are answers. Ask your question plainly phrased I'll understand. Send the message to the widow, undismayed. Seek asylum in the pictures on the wall. Your berth is ready for you down the hall. You are always welcome stranger to my dream. Enter without trepidation or esteem. You can surface if you wish it is no trap to keep you here. Your presence here is not required I only desired when we've retired to sleep, to dream, to persevere. Have you any of your own? Pleasant dreams that you can share? I will follow if you allow it. Different dreams are like fresh air.

Eric Talerico, January 2011

Here’s a movie I’d like to see

I’ve always wanted to make movies.  My high school friends can attest to that – I worked hard on a few very strange pieces of film while in Heidelberg.  Since then, I’ve spent so much time watching movies that I think I’ve been inside of theaters for more time than in almost any other location (not including workplaces and homes.)  As an adult I still daydream about it.  Sometimes for example in conversation I’ll preface a comment by saying “Here’s a movie I’d like to see” and then I’ll move on to describe said film.
So:  Here is a movie I’d like to see.
It is the distant future. 
One man has discovered on the universal web that back in the days before computers became common, one w0man had built one in her garage.  This woman was taught by God how to make the computer, and when she was finished, she also made a tiny data storage device.  God then dictated a new testament to her, explaining all aspects of reality and reconciling science with religion.  In it, it is rumored, all contradictions are explained. 
The computer was destroyed by a government agency, who feared that this woman’s machine was a weapon.  One of the agents knew otherwise, having had a revelation of his own.  Acting on this, he warned the woman in advance of the ensuing raid.  As a result, she managed to escape before the raid, and the data storage device faded into ignominy.
The man who discovered the story begins to research  it further – and discovers, in an online photo album from the woman’s time, a picture of her.  Around her neck, she wears a pendant.  In the legend on the screen, it says that the pendant is an onyx, a gift from a friend, but the intrepid research scientist knows differently.  It is the data storage device. 
The rest of the movie would outline the researcher’s quest to find both the data storage device, and the story of what happened to the woman after she went underground.  The two stories are then presented in parallel timelines, as we watch the amazing life of the prophetess unfold.  Meanwhile the researcher is unaware that some of his searches have alerted the authorities that he is looking into the mysterious data storage device and begins tracking him. 
So here is another movie I’d like to see:
A woman works at a grocery store.  She has a stable, happy family, makes enough to get by and even put something away.  He children love her, as does her husband.  Her neighbors are a lesbian couple with an adopted child.  This couple also lives happily and their child is both brilliant and well adjusted.  There is no conflict in the movie and no plot.  It is just a depiction of life lived as it should be lived – in contentment and fulfillment. 
So here is a movie I’d like to see. 
In 2012, Philip K. Dick, who has been dead since the late 70’s, walks into a small convenience store.  He aggressively accosts the cashier there, saying three times “VALIS is coming!” Then he disappears.  Later that day, the video from the store’s surveillance camera is aired on television.  During the broadcast, an image of Philip appears on the screen, repeating the message, and then saying “VALIS” has arrived.  The rest of the film would be an examination of the final years of Dick’s live, interspersed with segments about how interaction with VALIS has transformed the world. 

Freedom from Religion

I call this image "Modern Business Ethics".  I guess its a cartoon more than a drawing.  One building burns but a barefoot man seems ready to jump from a building that is not burning.

He is wearing a tie but that may not indicate that he is a business man.  He may be a singer or an artist. The costume is not the person and the map is not the territory. Sometimes the map doesn't even resemble the territory and sometimes the costume does not even resemble the person.

We don't know from the image just how high up he is.  For all we know, he might be on a small staircase, or on the low pedestal of a statue.  Things are not what they seem.

We don't know if the fire was an accident, or whether it was set on purpose.  Or perhaps I've painted a burning building because it was easier in my cartoon to use fire rather than showing a controlled demolition.  Who knows? Its art.  I like art that poses questions rather than giving answers.  If enough people ask the right questions, we will know everything we need to know.

They say that we have freedom of religion.  I don’t agree.  You may have freedom to choose a church, but if your church or beliefs are outside of the Judeo Christian model and you are open about it, people treat you badly.  Although people are tolerant on the surface, they will treat you differently when you are not there. 
They say that we have freedom of religion but what I’d rather see is freedom from religion.  The laws of a nation should, if the nation has a rational footing, allow people to not only choose between religions, but also the option to choose no religion, or to choose one that is not currently popular.  Why is it that in this country which holds its freedoms in such high esteem, members of pagan faiths are treated as if they are crazy and marginalized? Why are atheists reviled and agnostics kept at arms length? 
Even as our lives are ample evidence of the interference of some higher power, and even as it is clear that the response and understanding of a higher power is a very unique and personal experience, our society marginalizes anyone whose interpretation varies significantly from “God the father in heaven who will punish you if you are bad and reward you for worshipping and believing in him:. If you percieve the mystery as a goddess, a pantheon, a god even marginally different from the centrist one, you are never really a part of society.  In essence you are a heathen, one who lives outside the fold,. 
Who is your shepherd?  What gods do you see when the moon is full.  When you hear the whispers of the mysteries, what do you see or hear?  Is it science?  Is it Mathematics?  Is it Art?  Is it Politics?
Because of the focus on a single theology (my understanding says that Jews, Christians, Muslims and Mormons, amoung others all essentially subscribe to the same faith) and our refusal to recognize different responses to the mysteries, we have become blinded to the powers and intentions behind reality.  And being blinded to them means we cannot distinguish between them. 
Blake saw heaven in a wildflower and eternity in an hour.  Saint Francis saw God in acts of charity and kindness to all creatures.  The Bacchae saw miracles in drunkenness and excess. Are any of them correct in their observations or were they misled?
If you never confront evil, you can never defeat evil
If you hide the truth behind denials you have not erased the truth but only hidden it.
If you look for your gods not in books, but in the world, you will find evidence as compelling for the one idea as for the next.  If you look into your reality for evidence of gods, you have already taken a step towards misguiding yourself. 
If you hide the truth behind denials, it does not erase the truth. 
When you talk to most searchers, and ask them what they are looking for, they will preface their answer with “Well I hope to find that…”
Does this mind set, with its hoped for outcome, predispose the searcher to look only at evidence which reinforces the hope, or does the focus of the hope enable the searcher to better see what is there before them
What one person sees, another may see differently.  If I had your eyes, and you mine, would we see the same colors that we see now?  How do I know that what I see as red with my eyes isn’t what you see as blue with yours?  The shape, color and health of our eyes must, in some way, effect what we see.  What would it mean if what you see as blue is what I see as red, and yet we both call the color yellow?  How would we know?
Creatures who were created equal, change the minute they start gestating.  Each fetus has already developed some differentiation from its equals.  This can be effected by the quality of the sperm, by the quality of the ovum, by the health of the womb and the mother and her place in the world.  Once outside the womb, that equality is further erased so that by the tine we are adults, we are each radically different from our fellows.
We all enjoy a point of equality.  When the sperm enters the ovum, we have the same number of cells and a nearly identical physical identity. Beyond that point of conception we all differentiate and by the time leave the womb, we have already become unique, a combination of the genes and the histories of our parents and our families. 
As adults, some people choose to honor that moment of equality, but most, even the most liberally minded, make judgements about the quality of a person based on a template passed on by parents and culture.
Acculturation creates inequalities and politics fosters them.
All struggle is a response to inequality.
All struggle is a response to equality.
The bird of paradise entices a mate with a ritualized dance.  If his dance is found wanting by his intended mate, she flies away.  He tries again with another. 
Differentiation in these communities is determined by who mates with whom.
When humans court, men do a dance for the women, and the women do a dance for the men.  Although both genders partake in the rituals of courting, in the end the decision still lies with the female – whether to mate and bear children or to go in different directions. 
Recreational sex is nothing more than practice for procreation.  When the body decides its had enough practice, there is fertilization.  This is something that happens inside the body, beyond the realm of courting or choice. 
Some creatures mate for life.  Others only for a season or a second.  Some creatures eat their young, some creatures eat their mates.
Does a male black widow understand that he is to be sacrificed once he has mated?
When she devours his body, does she also incorporate his thoughts with her own?
Do male black widows ever survive the mating?  If they did, would they live long, or even live to mate again?  Is the death of the male black widow an inevitability?

Extreme Political Metaphors

A few stabs at a metaphor for the United States Government:
There is a long dark tunnel.  Its only wide enough for one person to pass.  After walking for nearly a day in different directions, with different destinations in mind, two people meet in the center.  They cannot pass each other. 
One says to the other “You have to go back, you are blocking my way!” The other one says to the first “No, you have to go back – you are blocking my way!”  Neither is willing to back down, so both remain standing there at the impasse, until they both die from exhaustion. 

Or:
There is a long dark tunnel.  Its only wide enough for one person to pass.  After walking for a day or more, two people meet in the center.  One says to the other “You have to go back – you are blocking my way!” The other one says to the first “No, you must go back, you are blocking my way!”  After awhile, one gets tired of waiting for the other to back down, so he takes out a baseball bat and knocks the other one out.  Then he can move on.  The other one, severely wounded, remains in the tunnel.  When he wakes up, he cannot remember which way is the right one, and eventually he dies because he can’t find his way.
Or:
There is a long dark tunnel.  Its only wide enough for one person to pass.  After walking a week or better, two people meet in the center.  One says to the other: “ If we both turn to the side, and slide past, we can both continue on to our destinations!” The other, being a rational man, agrees.  When they have traded places, one offers the other water.  They drink.  The other offers the first a bit of bread and fruit.  They shake hands.  Happily, they both continue on to their individual destinations.  
Or:
A man is walking in a tunnel.  It is a very long and dark tunnel. Behind him walks another man.  Near the mid point of the tunnel, the two hear footsteps coming towards them from the other direction.  The first man says to the second:  don’t worry.  He takes out a weapon and fills the tunnel in front of him with fire.  The footsteps in the other direction cease. The two move forward in the tunnel, where they find the cooked body of the one who was walking the other way.  Together, they feast on his body.
 
Or?

Curiouser and Curiouser

I remember studying the original painting by Jan Van Eyck in Ms. Mauck’s art appreciation class.  The images was nice enough – beautifully painted but just a pretty picture – until she started to explain some of the symbolism in it.  That was a chinese box moment for me.  Suddenly art wasn’t just fun or pretty anymore. It was also challenging, charged with meaning and secrets, a beautiful world all its own and a language as well. 
Well I was working on an image the other day – really just playing with the shape tools in Photoshop CS5, and making landscapes.  This particular one was crying out for something man made- a human presence to supplement the cold beach.
I went into my photo portfolio looking for a figure or two, but nothing seemed suitable.  I found a group of photos from a car show back in October, and one of the cars had a hand grenade welded onto the muffler cover.  I extricated the grenade from the photo and imported it into the landscape.  Now I had something edgy to work with.  The image implies something explosive about to happen.
Then I thought of marriage – my nephew married last April, and I th0ught of importing a pic or two of the wedding, but unfortunately had not brought the drive with my wedding snaps on it.  So instead I went online, where I found an excellent high res image of the Arnolfini wedding.  What’s more explosive than a wedding, fraught as it is with possibility and power?  Why a wedding with a pregnant woman of course.  The cake in the oven is an explosively attractive idea.  I loved the idea of the Arnolfini’s finding themselves in the modern world.  The only problem was the lighting – the Arnolfini’s were lit from a window in the Van Eyck picture. In order to explain the difference, I added a beam of light to my own landscape. 
If you look closely you can see that superimposed on the ground is a page from my book. 
These days, Ms. Mauck’s lesson still rings true!  When I paint or draw I always try to include some elements of vocabulary – they may not be coherent words, but even inarticulate ones communicate something. 

Happy New Year

Have you thought of a resolution?  I have too many to count, but most important is that I find a way to keep the Mind at Work Mind at Play project going.  I’ve made a lot of headway in 2010, and want to pick up the momentum in 2011.  In addition to the physical book, I’ve also done a ridiculous number of paintings in Photoshop (such as the one above)  which I’m beginning to arrange into a digital volume.  It would be lovely to have 2011 be the year that I really start to make the project shine! 

Happy holidays all around – Keep writing, drawing, running, diving, playing, whatever it is that makes your heart sing!.

Here’s to fixing the world this year.