Take Away Shows
I’ve recently become enamored with the music vlog Concerts à Emporter ("Take Away Shows") from the French music blog La Blogotheque. And I feel compelled to share it with you.
The concept behind the show is simple: catch up with musicians passing through Paris (for the most part, amongst other major cities) and have them perform live… impromptu, on the streets, wherever they may be. There is something quite zen and calming about many of these performances. Take, for instance, the latest video, featuring Andrew Bird strolling leisurely along the stone streets of Paris with his guitar, attracting the attention of nary a traveler:
This performance from The Shins on a bright sunny day makes me feel warm and ready for spring. I love how they break out with Alone Again Or as they stroll to find a place on the Paris streets to perform.
These are just a couple of the wonderful performances to be found within, including Grizzly Bear performing while crammed into a tiny hotel bathroom, and a performance by Arcade Fire from inside a freight elevator. I could go on and on, but you could probably just find out for yourself. :)
I find myself inspired and feeling a bit more at peace with every performance.
Way to Lose Weight!
Best spam from my work inbox today:
Why wait to lose those unnecessary pounds. amputate
Why not? It’s an easy way to lose weight! You don’t need that leg anyway, it adds an extra couple of pounds.
The Night was Broughten
Last night was 7x7 Magazine’s Bring on the Night silent auction benefit for SF Camerawork, where they auctioned off the top 25 photographs in their recent contest.
Bring on the Night
I’m pleased to announce that the above photo that I shot (at Club Deluxe last December) has been selected as a top ten finalist in 7x7 Magazine’s Bring on the Night Photography contest!
Prints of the top 25 photos are being auctioned off to benefit SF Camerawork, a “non-profit organization encouraging emerging and mid-career artists to explore new directions in photography and related media by fostering creative forms of expression that push existing boundaries”.
Congrats also go to Derek, who I noticed was also on the list of top ten photos for this contest as well!
I’m excited that my photography is slowly making its way into the public eye. I’m even more proud that I’ve been forgiving enough to myself and to my artwork that I feel comfortable in submitting my photography to these kinds of things. Self-criticism is a hard to thing to overcome.
How to Feel Miserable as an Artist
I forgot how I found this, but it’s been posted in my line of sight on my cubicle wall:
How to Feel Miserable as an Artist
- Constantly compare yourself to other artists.
- Talk to your family about what you do and expect them to cheer you on.
- Base the success of your entire career on one project
- Stick with what you know.
- Undervalue your expertise.
- Let money dictate what you do.
- Bow to societal pressures.
- Only do work that your family would love.
- Do whatever the client/customer/gallery owner/patron/investor asks.
- Set unachievable/overwhelming goals. To be accomplished by tomorrow.
I do a lot of these things frequently, but remember this list to snap me back into proper form within reasonable time. It’s all quite good advice.
Wikipedia Meme
I debated succumbing to another meme, but this one is informative! (found via Cygnoir)
- Go to Wikipedia.
- In the Search box, type your birth month and day (but not year).
- List three events that happened on your birthday.
- List two important birthdays and one interesting death.
- Post it.
My birthday is 27 September.
Three events:
- 1821 - Mexico gains its independence from Spain.
- 1822 - Jean-François Champollion announces that he has deciphered the Rosetta stone.
- 1998 - Google is first established
Two important births:
- 1840 - Thomas Nast, German-born political cartoonist (d. 1902)
- 1934 - Wilford Brimley, American actor (heh)
One interesting death:
- 1917 - Edgar Degas, French painter (b. 1834)
I ain’t taggin' anyone, so tag yourself. :P