J’ai pris cette photo, intitulée “Escalier atomique”, dans l’Atomium, à Bruxelles en juillet 2008. Postée sur Flickr en novembre 2008, elle est rapidement devenue ma photo la plus populaire et la plus vue. Aujourd’hui, elle est reprise sur deux blogs, dans des esprits très différents.

Elle figure d’abord en bonne place dans une sélection consacrée aux “points de fuite” (vanishing points) photographiques, sur Designora.

Plus cocasse, elle illustre un article consacré à… la découverte d’un site de fabrication de la bombe atomique en Algérie, sur le blog de JSS. Le téléscopage est amusant, mais aussi un peu inquiétant. Le titre sensationnaliste de l’article surplombe en effet un article beaucoup plus ambigu, où le conditionnel domine, où l’on apprend que cette découverte remonte à près de 20 ans et où rien ne signale que la photo n’est pas une vue réelle du site en question.

Je ne sais pas si je dois les contacter pour qu’ils changent la photo. Qu’en pensez-vous ?

Photographed by bricolage.108

Olympus XA2 + Kodak Ektachrome 400 (Expired August 1982) + redscale
film technique

– License

Photographed by bricolage.108

Olympus XA2 + Kodak Ektachrome 400 (Expired August 1982) + redscale
film technique

– License

Maze Portrait of Al Gore: An Inconvenient Maze:

More Mazes are available at http://www.InkBlotMazes.com

Maze created by Yonatan Frimer. Entrances and Exits are marked with arrows.
You can find more mazes like this one at http://www.teamofmonkeys.com

Há um recurso no Photoshop, desde o CS3, que poucos profissionais tem usado na edição de suas fotos. Trata-se do Vanishing Point (Ponto de Fuga). A dificuldade está em entender como ele funciona. Nesta vídeo-aula, de quase 10 minutos, mostro como podemos usar essa poderosa ferramenta para tornar tarefas complexas, bem simples. No início do vídeo há também a explicação de como usar o filtro Lens Correction, que também serve para corrigir imagens com distorção de perspectiva. Espero que gostem!!! O tutorial foi feito no Photoshop CS4 para Mac, em inglês, mas o recurso também existe no Photoshop para Windows.

Há um recurso no Photoshop, desde o CS3, que poucos profissionais tem usado na edição de suas fotos. Trata-se do Vanishing Point (Ponto de Fuga). A dificuldade está em entender como ele funciona. Nesta vídeo-aula, de quase 10 minutos, mostro como podemos usar essa poderosa ferramenta para tornar tarefas complexas, bem simples. No início do vídeo há também a explicação de como usar o filtro Lens Correction, que também serve para corrigir imagens com distorção de perspectiva. Espero que gostem!!! O tutorial foi feito no Photoshop CS4 para Mac, em inglês, mas o recurso também existe no Photoshop para Windows.

Un saludo cordial a todos los lectores de los oídos vírgenes, gracias por sus comentarios y visitas.

Primal Scream, esta banda experimental oriunda de Glaswgow Escocia, que en el año 97 lanzó al mercado uno de los discos más experimentales del pop, mezclándolo con la electrónica, la psicodelia , el dub y el Krautrock, el Vanishing Point; nombre inspirado en la película del mismo nombre del año 71, otra referencia a este película es la canción Kowalski quien es uno de los personajes principales de esa película, el disco como se menciono anteriormente experimenta con el pop, creando melodías hipnóticas Stuka, Star o Trainspotting (que también aparece en el soundtrack de la película del mismo nombre), así como una versión más “espacial” de la canción Motörhead de la banda Hawkwind; lleno de letras de protesta (Burning Wheel) y de dudas existencialista (Medication).

Se dice que este disco nació por motivo de la depresión de Bobby Gillespie, pues su anterior trabajo (Give Out But Don’t Give Up) que a pesar de tener buena música no tuvo buena acogida ni en el público ni en la crítica, pues sea eso cierto o no hay que agradecerle por este magnífico disco.

TRACK LIST
1. “Burning Wheel” – 7:06
2. “Get Duffy” – 4:09
3. “Kowalski” – 5:50
4. “Star” – 4:24
5. “If They Move, Kill ‘Em” – 3:01
6. “Out of the Void” – 3:59
7. “Stuka” – 5:36
8. “Medication” – 3:52
9. “Motörhead” – 3:38
10. “Trainspotting” – 8:07
11. “Long Life” – 3:49

DESCARGAR
Pass: oidosvirgenes
Hasta la próxima entrega

As some background, in June 2007, Vanishing Point signed an exclusive agreement with DeEspona Infografica to sell their collection as individual models and to convert the models to other formats (Poser, Vue, Lightwave, etc). We have had an excellent relationship with the people at DeEspona Infografica and we’ve always been happy with the sales their products bring in.

On Friday, October 2, 2009, David Avgikos of Digimation filed an IP (Intellectual Property) claim at Smith Micro’s Content Paradise. He claimed that we (Vanishing Point) were illegally selling products made by DeEspona Infografica, which he alleged were owned by his company:

From: David Avgikos [mailto:davida@digimation.com]
Sent: Friday, October 02, 2009 8:52 AM
To: David Przeracki
Subject: DMCA Complaint
Importance: High

Dear Sirs,

It has come to our attention that your site; www.contentparadise.com <http://www.contentparadise.com> is marketing, hosting, and selling several hundred 3D model products by “De Espona Infografica” which infringe on IP exclusively licensed to Digimation.

In 2005, the First Instance Court n° 26 of Madrid (Spain), Proceedings 468/2000, condemns DE ESPONA INFOGRAFICA, S.L., and Mr. JOSE MARIA DE ESPONA DELGADO, to stop production, commercialization and advertising (including internet) of the product named “DE ESPONA 3D ENCICLOPEDIA”. The models on your website (http://www.contentparadise.com/searchimageviewdetail.aspx?searchText=De+Espona+Infografica) are the same 3D models contained in the First Instance Court’s forbidden product “DE ESPONA 3D ENCICLOPEDIA”.

Therefore we request that you cease and desist the marketing, hosting, listing, delivery and sale of all 3D models from “De Espona Infografica”. I would appreciate your acknowledgement of the receipt of this request, along with confirmation of their removal. Please find attached a copy of the referred Judgment.

Yours faithfully,
David Avgikos
President
Digimation, Inc.
250 International Parkway, Suite 320
Lake Mary, FL 32746
(407) 833-0600 v
(800) 854-4496 toll free in US
(813) 283-4906 f
www.digimation.com <http://www.digimation.com/>
defense.digimation.com <http://defense.digimation.com/>

As you can see, it’s a formal-type letter, with no introduction about him or his company, nor any kind of negotiable solution, which could be mutually-beneficial. (More about this in a minute.)

David also attached a number of PDF “Judicial Judgment” files as proof of his claim. Unfortunately, these PDF files were written in Spanish, which no one at Vanishing Point could read… and neither Digimation nor Content Paradise translated for us.

Since Digimation filed their claim on a Friday, they probably knew the issue wouldn’t start to get resolved until after the weekend. This meant that any disputed products were placed on an “inactive” status and would not be available for sale.

I immediately contacted Jose DeEspona, the owner of DeEspona Infografica, and I received this reply. Please excuse the spelling and grammar errors: English is Jose’s second language, but I think he’s more than able to get his point across. The added emphasis is mine.

I was the founder and director of a company named REM Infografica in 1996. This company distributed some of our models from a previous collection for two years, until I left the company in 1998 because it was [bought] by two Spanish companies named Planeta Corporacion and Telefonica. One of the new executives at REM Infografica sold illegally a part of our collection to Viewpoint, forcing us to initiate a legal dispute against REM and Viewpoint. The process started ten years ago, and is still unfinished pending of a Supreme Court resolution here in Madrid. Meanwhile Viewpoint and Digimation have used the process to fagocitate our current collection, that have nothing to do with our older collection.

During this period REM Infografica was dissolved in 2001 to try to avoid this issue, and also Viewpoint disappeared in 2007 being absorbed by a company named FG. Before being purchased, Viewpoint sold the rights of the disputed models to David Agvikos from Digimation, ampared in a provisional resolution done at the first instance judge that given partial rights to REM Infografica over the old models, telling that the old models and the new ones [were] the same, but these two collections never [were] compared because they used a legal trick to avoid the comparison. Of course we presented the allegation to the supreme court and was accepted one year and half ago, then the legal proof [which was] never done, [still] must be done at last in a new session to be fixed in the next months by the supreme court.

We have the rights over our current collection, and we are fighting to recover our rights over the former REM collection that also was developed by us and their IP never sold to REM Infografica. As the judge understood the complexity of the question and having reasonable doubts about the whole process, they always have allowed us to continue the commercialization of the collection until the unrealized judicial proof will be done and the supreme court decides about it. For this reason Digimation or Viewpoint or REM never was capable to stop us from selling our models, because is legally impossible meanwhile we retain our registered rights at the Registro de la Propiedad Intelectual de Madrid no.M-80412/1999 and the Deposito Legal no. M-39731-1999. David Agvikos knows perfectly this situation from the origin, as he was our former distributor for some of our old plugins as the MetaReyes software, and he purchased our own collection ten years ago, seven years before buying the supposed former REM 3d Models Bank collection from Viewpoint. We have registered also notarially other crimes done against us, as copying our entire TASCHEN´s 500 3D objects books images and web content. David Agvikos is simply a convicted criminal condemned in United States as you can check with a single search at Google, then this act is only an additional crime in his personal list. Also David knows that initiating a parallel legal process concerning this issue in any part of the world is illegal, until Spanish courts will dictate a definitive sentence about the issue, as is clearly specified in the responsibility clause signed between REM Infografica and Viewpoint Digital on December, 16, 1999, then the initiation of an illegal procedure can be prosecuted penally as prevarication, here in the European Union and also on the States.

I understand your worries about the issue, then you can do two things: retire all our models from your site or continue the selling. We appreciate your effort in distributing our models, then we wish you can continue on. I understand you can be worried about this, then you can do two things: removing our models or continue on the selling. Turbosquid´s Wisdom brothers also knows this story, and they were frightened by Viewpoint four years ago, being forced to retire our models, but they relisted them again when the supreme court accepted the claims. BTW, David was his former associate at Turbosquid, and Turbosquid entered in dispute with him some years ago, wining Turbosquid the process and David being condemned.

Disgracefully the Spanish justice is very slow, specially in complex civil cases as this one, then the process can last for some years more, but we will not stop and will persist until recover totally our rights over our past work.

As you perfectly know, this business is entirely based in confidence, then I hope you will decide with the correct criteria. In any case I recommend you maintaining all your detailed history of sales done at your different distribution sales, because Digimation or DeEspona Infografica can request them in a potential future process. During the last four years we have sent a copy of our sales invoices to the judge, including all the sales done via Vanishing Point and paid via Paypal, then if you have possible pending payments or accidentally unreported to us for any reason, I encourage you to actualize those pending payments as soon as possible.

I [will] communicate [with] you, I will send a copy of this email to our lawyer, to be registered notarially for possible damage future claims to us or to third parts. Feel free to send a copy of this to [other sites] or to the own David Agvikos, then maybe he can understand at last in what type of legal mess is involved since four years ago.

Best regards,

signed digitally by Jose Maria de Espona, CEO, DEESPONA INFOGRAFICA SL, Ballesta, 9 MADRID 28004 SPAIN, European Union CIF B-82067455B ,on October, third, 01:16 2009.”

As Jose mentioned in his e-mail, doing business in the digital world is based on trust. I’ve been doing business with Jose for a number of years and he (and his company) have always been above-the-board with me. Am I now supposed to take the word of a random stranger, whose only proof is a document in Spanish, which I can’t read?

On October 7, 2009, David sent another IP claim, this time directed at Vanishing Point. His e-mail was worded the same as the one he sent to Content Paradise:

From: David Avgikos [mailto:davida@digimation.com]
Sent: Wed, Oct 7, 2009 at 3:02 PM
Subject: IP Violation

Importance: High

Dear John,

It has come to our attention that your site; www.vanishingpoint.biz is marketing, hosting, and selling several hundred 3D model products by “De Espona Infografica” which infringe on IP exclusively licensed to Digimation.

In 2005, the First Instance Court n° 26 of Madrid (Spain), Proceedings 468/2000, condemns DE ESPONA INFOGRAFICA, S.L., and Mr. JOSE MARIA DE ESPONA DELGADO, to stop production, commercialization and advertising (including internet) of the product named “DE ESPONA 3D ENCICLOPEDIA”. The models on your website (http://www.vanishingpoint.biz/memberpage.asp?memberid=4877) are the same 3D models contained in the First Instance Court’s forbidden product “DE ESPONA 3D ENCICLOPEDIA”.

Therefore we request that you cease and desist the marketing, hosting, listing, delivery and sale of all 3D models from “DeEspona”. I would appreciate your acknowledgement of the receipt of this request, along with confirmation of their removal. Please find attached a copy of the referred Judgment.

Yours faithfully,

David Avgikos
President
Digimation, Inc.
250 International Parkway, Suite 320
Lake Mary, FL 32746
(407) 833-0600 v
(800) 854-4496 toll free in US
(813) 283-4906 f
www.digimation.com

I sent Jose another e-mail about this claim and he sent this reply:

Dear John,

As the judicial process is still pending of resolution at the Supreme Court here in Madrid, then it´s impossible to prosecute Digimation for this question until a final resolution will be pronounced, and if there is no any additional allegation to a more higher tribunal, like the Constitutional Tribunal in Spain, or the European Tribunal at La Haya. But we can prosecute Digimation if they initiate a proceeding against some of our distributors in any part of the world, for prevarication in an ordinary penal tribunal, as then we can use our current Supreme Court acceptance in the total revision of the proceeding and also the first sentence of the preliminaries that we won in 2001 and dictated by the own 1st instance tribunal of the alleged sentence, that allow us selling the product meanwhile the process will not be definitive, because the Digimation actions would be then a direct confrontation against the own 1st instance resolutions. We will report to this judge a notarial copy of this email, but please send us a notarial copy of the DCMA claim from Digimation when occurs, if occurs, to be presented to this same tribunal.

Digimation, like in his day Viewpoint and REM Infografica, knows perfectly these judicial original circumstances about the whole process, and for this reason both Viewpoint and REM have dissolved or their own companies to try to clean their hands to avoid any future legal responsibility in the process, that no doubt will means a multimillion compensation once a final resolution will be established. After ten year of legal fight for our rights, no doubt we will continue the process until we recover TOTALLY our rights over both collections (DEI and REM) and we will be compensated appropriately to the last cent for the accumulated damages of ten years of litigation in a civil case, that never prescribes in the European legislation and I think also never prescribes in the American one. No doubt Telefonica and Planeta will pay for it as final civil subsidiaries of REM Infografica here in Spain, and also Digimation there in the US, for assuming, in their conscious act of purchasing the supposed rights over the REM collection, all Viewpoint responsibility in the issue. We have a good amount of notarial info about all Digimation activity in the last decade, then our prosecution against them will be trivial and instantaneous once the final sentence will be pronounced here.

As I told you in my previous email, I understand your worries about all this, then feel free to retire the models or continuing the sales, but I repeat, if you persist in the distribution, don´t forget to send us a notarial copy of the DCMA when occurs, something that I doubt will occurs because neither Viewpoint or REM never did such stupid thing in ten years of litigation, knowing perfectly the civil legislation in Europe and US about these civil questions.

Also feel free to send an unaltered copy of this email to the own David Agvikos, or allow us doing it with your permission. As the previous email, I send a copy of this to my lawyer to be included in our monthly notarial report to the 1st instance tribunal (the same that dictated the so alleged sentence by Digimation).

Best regards,

Jose Maria de Espona

I replied to David, telling him about our contract with DeEspona Infografica. I also sent him copies of the e-mails I received from Jose to let him know that the DeEspona people know about his actions.

This leads to a number of unanswered questions:

1) Did David not realize that these claims would get back to Jose and his attorneys, and that these actions could be used against him in their ongoing legal case?

2) As I mentioned earlier, we’ve been selling the DeEspona products on Vanishing Point and Content Paradise since 2007. Why is David/ Digimation only now sending out IP claims?

3) Why did David/ Digimation jump straight to a request to have products removed? If they actually own these models, couldn’t they have offered any kind of settlement, which could have benefited both them and us?

Off the top of my head, I can think of one solution that could have been offered: they claim ownership of the DeEspona products and we pay them the sales commission we used to pay DeEspona. This way, we continue to sell the products and they make money. Instead, they asked us to remove the products, which means we don’t make any money, but this doesn’t increase their sales.

October 8, 2009 update:

I receive this e-mail from our contact person at Content Paradise. Rather than quoting their e-mail directly, I have paraphrased:

After reviewing the information, we feel it is the best interest of our company to disable all of the products listed for sale by De Espona Infografica where ownership is in dispute. In order for us to put the content back on our site, we will need evidence from Jose that a settlement has been reached between the parties stating that DeEspona Infografica owns the content.

On October 13, Jose sent me a Supreme Court resolution (in PDF format), dated March 17, 2009. As Jose mentions in his e-mail, this resolution completely invalidates Digimation’s resolution, which was dated in 2005. This resolution is also in Spanish, but I can clearly see the date-stamp on the first page which says “22 Mar 2009″.

Here’s Jose’s e-mail message to me:

I send you attached the last resolution from Supreme Court done in March, 17, 2009 about the whole proceeding, accepting the allegations against the proceeding, as it has been detected by the Supreme Court, severe irregularities in the 1st instance judicial proceeding, as not doing the comparision between collections and because the judicial technician of the other side presented in January, 2008 a notarial communication about doubts over the origin of the presented collections provided by the own demandant (REM Infografia/Viewpoint) and that contracted the own judicial technician, named Pablo Vieira. (I don´t know what is the english name for the judicial technician, in spanish is the Perito Judicial, the technical person that evaluates the proofs presented by both sides in the proceeding. We obtained a notarial declaration from him two years ago, putting in doubt the origin of the collections provided by the demandants, as he don´t knows if these collections to be compared were authentic or not, then invalidating the whole reasoning in the 1st instance sentence).

I only translate the final decision of the Supreme Court in this document, as the previous is the presentation of our case and the legal support for the veredict:

“The Judicial Room agrees:

1.We admit the extraordinary appelation for Judicial Infraction and inaccurate proceeding put by the procesal representation of Jose Maria de Espona Delgado and “DE ESPONA INFOGRAFICA SL” against the sentence done on March, 13th, 2007 by the Provincial Audience on Madrid, section 12th, in the appelation paper 473/2005 that comes from the proceeding of minor amount number 468/2000 in the 1st Instance Judge number 26 of Madrid.

2. It must delivered a copy of this document of extraordinary appelation for processal infraction and inaccurate proceeding formalized, with their attached documents, to the appelated side in this Judicial Room to allow an opposition against the resolution in a dateline of twenty days, meanwhile it will be active the acts of this Secretary.

In this way agrees the Excelent Magistrates signing ad margem”"

Obviously this decision [invalidates] totally any previous resolution about the issue, including that resolution that is used by Digimation for intimidating Content Paradise, at least until the Supreme Court will be capable to do a whole revision of the trial, including a new comparision between the alleged collections, to be convocated and done in the next months.

Best regards,

Jose Maria de Espona
CEO
DEESPONA INFOGRAFICA SL

Due to this court decision, I have asked Content Paradise to re-instate our products for sale at their site.

November 5, 2009 update:

An agreement has been reached between Vanishing Point, Mogware, and Digimation about this issue. At this point, the details are confidential, but I’ll continue to post more information as I can.

More updates will be posted as this issue continues.

Polaroid by Cat.

I’ve been so busy doing crazy nerd stuff lately, I almost forgot to tell you about this very cool double bill at the New Beverly Cinema last week. It was a one night only screening of the European cut of QUENTIN TARANTINO’S DEATH PROOF (never before screened in the U.S.) and one of the greatest and most intelligent car chase movies ever made, VANISHING POINT (1971). Being a big fan of both films, as well as a HUGE gearhead, I had no choice but to jump behind the wheel of my own muscle car and race to the theatre to catch a double dose of MOPAR madness!

This is the white 1970 Dodge Challenger that is the star of both DEATH PROOF and VANISHING POINT.

For those of you who are not in the know, MOPAR stands for MOtor PARts that are exclusively made by CHRYSLER and used on certain vehicles under the CHRYSLER, DODGE and PLYMOUTH banner, which had it’s heyday in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Cars like the CHARGER, SUPER BEE, ROAD RUNNER, DEMON, GTX, BARRACUDA, DUSTER and the CHALLENGER are all classic MOPAR’S that ruled the streets with their big block engines (440-6, HEMI), bright paint jobs (HEMI-ORANGE, SUB-LIME GREEN) and incredible designs and engineering. They were among the coolest and most badass muscle cars of that, or any other era in American automotive history. Drive one and you’ll understand why nothing beats Detroit metal and no imported tuner car can hold a candle to them.

The white 1970 DODGE CHALLENGER is a major part of both DEATH PROOF and VANISHING POINT. DEATH PROOF references VANISHING POINT a lot and is the reason ZOE BELL wants to ride on the hood of a CHALLENGER so much. The ‘70 CHALLENGERS in both films are pushed to the limit of their awesome powers and are featured in incredible car chases.

Before DEATH PROOF started, we received a pretty awesome surprise. QUENTIN TARANTINO was in the house and came up to the stage to introduce his film. If you’ve never seen QT talk about one of his own movies before, his enthusiasm is infectious and makes you love the film in question even more.

QT revs up the New Bev crowd! Polaroid by Cat.

QT is such a huge nerd that he actually wore his own costume from DEATH PROOF to the screening! He talked about how this was his cut of the film that was shown at Cannes in 2007 and released in Europe. He was very happy with the fact that DEATH PROOF is really loved and admired in France, where it is known as BOULEVARD DE LA MORT. After his intro, he took a seat in the packed theatre with the rest of us and we all sat back and watched DEATH PROOF. It was fucking great!

I loved DEATH PROOF back in 2007, when it was released as the second feature of GRINDHOUSE, along with ROBERT RODRIGUEZ’S PLANET TERROR. I remember thinking that it was not only the better overall film between the two, but that it was also the only thing about GRINDHOUSE that wasn’t a parody of some sort. I was expecting it to be a slasher movie with a car (which the first half is), but I didn’t expect it to turn into a cross between a 70’s car chase epic and a RUSS MEYER film (which the second half does brilliantly). It rounded out the whole GRINDHOUSE experience and elevated it to a level of high art, while totally appealing to my love for 80’s slasher films, hot girls and muscle cars, all in one film! I love how the first act (there are only two) is a slow build and you’re not really sure what’s going on until the big car crash, where Stuntman Mike’s motivations become all too clear. The final car chase is brilliant and exciting, but most importantly, it is a showdown between not one, but two of the greatest classic MOPAR’S ever created. THE 1970 DODGE CHALLENGER VS. THE 1970 DODGE CHARGER, which is the muscle car equivalent to KING KONG VS. GODZILLA!

Stuntman Mike has some serious sexual hang ups.

He also shares a foot fetish with the director.

A gearhead's wet dream of a car chase! '70 DODGE CHALLENGER VS. '70 DODGE CHARGER!

After the movie, QT took the stage and conducted a 45 minute Q and A session, where he talked a lot about the film and how much he enjoyed making it. There were a few cast and crew members in attendance, including former Basterd, OMAR DOOM. All the great music from the Texas Chili Parlor scene is from QT’S own jukebox AMi, which is the one in the movie. He also said, that listening to the laughter and applause from the New Bev audience for his movie was music to his ears and he thanked us for that. I hadn’t seen DEATH PROOF in awhile and I must say that after watching it by itself in the theatre, it is truly a great movie. Next up was ZOE BELL’S favorite movie…

VANISHING POINT is about a man named Kowalski (played by BARRY NEWMAN) who takes a job to drive a brand new, white ‘70 Dodge Challenger from Colorado to California. When he picks up some speed from his drug dealer for the trip, they make a crazy bet on how fast he can get there for the cost of the drugs. Almost immediately the cops are on his tail as he drives top speed through the state, but they can’t catch Kowalski in his killer Challenger and he becomes a folk hero with the aid of a blind disc jockey, played by CLEAVON LITTLE.

This is Kowalski! You can't stop him!

But they do try.

A naked hippie babe on a chopper!

VANISHING POINT is like one long car chase of a movie with an existentialist riff on alienation and how freedom has been sacrificed for conformity in the post-industrial age. Seriously, this is one deep movie! Kowalski is a hero, simply because he refuses to stop for the police and I love the living shit out of it for that. The ending of this movie is the perfect statement of non-conformity. If you’ve never seen it before, you must!

That was one great double feature with an awesome surprise appearance by QT! Programming those two together was genius. Thanks again New Bev! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to look through the latest Auto Trader for an old MOPAR to fix up!

Both D

]]> http://flickrfanstan.wordpress.com/2009/10/03/flickrfan-redundant-couples/ Sat, 03 Oct 2009 00:19:12 +0000 sgarrett6 http://flickrfanstan.wordpress.com/2009/10/03/flickrfan-redundant-couples/

Photographed by sharkbait

What was once no doubt, state of the art telecommunications equipment at Smithfield Market.
Are you old enough to remember the time when you couldn’t carry one of these in your pocket?

We are on TedDave’s EffraFC photo walk.

– License

© PatrickSmithPhotography

#mce_temp_url#

Okay since I am going in about Myanmar Metal scene and all that stuff, I think I should list up some metal genres and bands I listen to.

I like Melodeath, Thrash, Power, Death, Black, Progressive, Speed, Symphonic, Gothic, Traditional Heavy, and even Metalcore… well almost all metal genres. And I am big fan of Children of Bodom, Judas Priest and Metallica. I also like Iced Earth, Dimmu Borgir, Behemoth, Iron Maiden, Kamelot, Vanishing Point, DragonForce, Cannibal Corpse, Apocalyptica, Black Sabbath, Dream Theater, Opeth, Kreator, Arch Enemy, Amon Amarth, Nightwish, Exodus, Megadeth, Slayer, and so on. As for -core, As I Lay Dying, Trivium, Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall and I Killed the Prom Queen. Okay enough for the list. Let’s get to the point.

Metal scene in Myanmar…

To say the truth, whenever I think of it, it makes me frown.

Well, I’ll say an example. There are ten metal fans from Myanmar. Among those ten, five have only listened to nu-metal and -core bands and have never heard of bands like Iron Maiden. (You can refer to those “metal fans” as “so-called”s if you want).

If you meet someone in Myanmar who claims to like metal, ask him what he listens to. Most likely, he will begin talks about Avenged Sevenfold, Bullet For My Valentine, Slipknot and/or Marilyn Manson. I’ve met some dudes who say,”Slipknot is Death Metal, so heavy!!!” and I was like “WTF was that!???”. When I show them Iron Maiden, they gave me something like “Is this even metal?”. There are also some people who say,”Metallica ain’t good. They ain’t heavy. blah blah blah”. If they want to listen to all that screaming, go listen to screamo.

Also, they are some people who’ve only listened to Slipknot and Marilyn Manson and think they’ve listened to true metal. And they blabber stuff like,”Metal is just screaming out and they don’t need to care about lyrics, blah blah blah.” Imagine how much I got pissed off. Metal is one of the music genres which has various and really lyrical themes. The themes range from Religion, Mythology, Philosophy, Politics to Society, Personal Struggles, Suffering and Love. There are also loads of concept albums (e.g-Kamelot’s Epica, Black Halo, Iced Earth’s Something Wicked Saga).

And another thing, metal isn’t all about being heavy. Try listening to bands like Vanishing Point, Kamelot, Nightwish, etc. Also, there are ballads like The Unforgiven, The Unforgiven II, etc by Metallica and A Tout Le Monde by Megadeth. What I want to say is,”Don’t blabber if you really haven’t listened to metal.”

One more thing, metal fanbase here still isn’t really big and mostly those “metalheads” listen to nu and -core. I used to like nu-metal. But I stopped listening to it, once I got in touch with Melodeath, Thrash, Power, Death, etc. Try it out. Compare nu to other metal genres. There, you will see the difference.

As for Metalcore, I still listen to it. I enjoy listening to bands like As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage, I Killed the Prom Queen, etc. I used to be a big fan of Bullet For My Valentine. Even now, I listen to some of their songs. What I want to say here is just because they’ve listened to those -core bands, they act like they’ve listened to true metal. Some don’t even know AILD or KSE.

This shouldn’t happen.

To all those “so-called” “metalheads” in Myanmar, if you really like metal, explore! Go in depths! Don’t just stop with nu or -core. The bad thing here is, you can’t buy much metal CDs. About half of the albums I have were downloaded.

The underground metal bands here mostly play metalcore. Well, I like All Else I Fail and Last Day of Beethoven for metalcore. For other metal genres, I’d list Yakkhadeva, Architect of Misery and Book of Death. I also wish I could see more underground metal bands that create other metal genres than metalcore.

I guess, Metal scene in Myanmar will take some time to become like Hip Hop or Punk scenes which are currently growing rapidly.

But anyway,

Horns up!

\m/

The lines of the bench slats, spaces and bricks leading to a vanishing point form, what was to me, an eye catching geometric design.

© 2009 D L Ennis, All rights reserved.

NOTE: Permission for the use of my images is granted for personal websites and blogs but is to include a link back to this site and proper credit given to me, D L Ennis. Link to be used…(Visual Thoughts http://dlennis.wordpress.com/)

NOTE: Commercial use, and the creation of prints, must be purchased! For more information you can contact me here.

]]> http://grahamnunn.wordpress.com/2009/09/13/brisbane-writers-festival-poetry-has-the-last-word/ Sun, 13 Sep 2009 09:44:02 +0000 gnunn http://grahamnunn.wordpress.com/2009/09/13/brisbane-writers-festival-poetry-has-the-last-word/

It was fitting (well for this Lost Shark anyway), that a session featuring five fine poets brought BWF 2009 to a close. The featured poets were Emily Ballou, Bronwyn Lea, Felicity Plunkett, Nathan Shepherdson & Lionel Fogarty. These poets had the last word, and for those of you who couldn’t make it, here are some of their words.

Darwin’s Noah – Emily Ballou

Taken from her collection, The Darwin Poems. You can read more of her work at: http://emilyballou.com/blog/

the square root of a full stop is the square root of 64 – Nathan Shepherdson

Taken from his new collection, Apples With Human Skin (UQP).

Antipodes + other poems – Bronwyn Lea

These poems are taken from her debut collection, Flight Animals (UQP). Her most recent collection, The Other Way Out was recently published by Giramondo.

The Negative Cutter – Felicity Plunkett

Felicity’s collection Vanishing Point (UQP) won the 2008 Thomas Shapcott Poetry Prize.

Remember Something Like This + other poems – Lionel Fogarty

Taken from Lionel’s collection Minyung Woolah Binnung.

I have just this minute come home from The Lyceum’s latest offering: a world premiere of Vanishing Point’s newest production, a devised peice based on ‘The Beggar’s Opera’ by John Gay. This peice, however, bears almost no resemblance to the 1728 ballad.

Firstly, credit where it is due. The director, Matthew Lenton, makes no secret of his inspiration: film noir, and comic-book glamour. Think Sin City, or V for Vendetta. Sexy stuff, with big guns and suspense and fabulous costumes.

The trailer for the show, at least, promises that this gritty dystopia can be translated onto the stage, (well, onstage or down an alleyway…)

It is going to be, then, heavy on the looks.

And there certainly are fabulous costumes a-plenty in this production. In this, if nothing else, it lives up to the movies. Split – with a nifty trapdoor on stage – between a rich post-diluvian society and the thieves who inhabit its underworld, there are two competing aesthetics at work in the production: impractical glamour and a militaristic uniform of curious cast-offs. Costume Designer Eve Lambert does a magnificent job:
the upper world boast saucer-round hats, double bowler hats, and hats which accentuate the angles of the face. There are outsize ties, full skirts, and faces covered in surprisingly normal-looking stocking material. All is impractical glamour and showy materials, hinting at lives of leisure.

The underworld is alive with grime, metal shouler-pads, gas masks (a slightly cliched low), and looks as if the cast raided Armstrong’s and then took the clothes for a really really rough night out on the town. It is brilliant, youthful, vibrant, and really quite wearable looking (I was tempted to nip backstage and raid their costume box…)

The high-tech set has some problems: a projection screen forms the background of the upper-world, and cannot really be seen from the upper circle, an unfortunate irony in a class satire. The actors stagger around on a sand dune. Aesthetically pleasing, but neither inkeeping with the supposedly urban landscape nor practical: instead the actors just look constantly drunk.

But it is the script which transforms this production from potential glory to dreary disaster. Mimicking the sparse dialogue of certain graphic novels is all very well, but it depends on several simple principles:
all speech must forward the plot, or it is superfluous. All dialogue must be highly stylized, or it ceases to support the overall tone of the piece. And the dialogue must be limited: a single exhange, perhaps, per ‘frame’ of action. This script, which possibly sent Gay spinning in his grave, dragged along with a total abscence of pace or urgency. There was no suspense, and an overload of faux-political speechifying. And listen, guys. No matter how great a gimmick it is, if the man talking through the voice distorter cannot be understood, then it is never, ever going to be impressive, merely indulgent and frustrating. I fully recognise the power of some devised theatre, but this amply demonstrated the advantages of having a pre-prepare script.

Not even the acting could save it. Despite the supremely talented Sandy Grierson’s best efforts, most of the acting mistook hysteria for stylised melodrama, and the result was a constant confusion of wild pitchings in an attempt to find the tone.

The music, written and performed by Glasgow-based pop art band ‘A Band Called Quinn’ was good fun, bu nowhere near slick enough to provide a soundtrack to something aspiring to glamour. Rather, it felt a little bit like going to see a decent band who spoil your evening by insisting that they are joined by some actors who also sing from time to time. Most odd.

The glamour, the guns, the setting and the script: none of these quite lived up to the play’s big-screen inspirations. Furthermore, it was two hours long with no interval.

The Lyceum usually have a winter program with high points and low points, but despite innovation and moments of aesthetic brilliance, this is a definite low. Go for the costumes, go for the set – even, if you are a fan, go for the band. But for heaven’s sake don’t go if you have any fondness for ‘A Beggar’s Opera’, or, indeed, for dramatic writing.

http://www.lyceum.org.uk/webpages/show_info.php?id=9100

]]> http://yasirmx.wordpress.com/2009/09/06/google-maps-offers-street-view/ Sun, 06 Sep 2009 20:57:13 +0000 yasirmx http://yasirmx.wordpress.com/2009/09/06/google-maps-offers-street-view/

I came across a blog with an interesting article, mentioning that google maps featured the author. My attention was drawn closer to the maps at that time and I tried to target a known location in the United Kingdom.

Referring to the above image, Google has taken privacy into consideration by editing the live satellite picture by blurring the plate number of the cars.Awesome!!! Back in 2008, I used to take the stairs circled in red in order to reach the bus station.Have a look at the picture below.

Besides, the engineers have also implemented vanishing point in google maps. I can’t believe the unzoomed images acquired are crystal clear

Unfortunately, not all regions in the UK can be “Street viewed” andI have started to miss those moments which I have spent last year in UK.

]]> http://forthgallery.wordpress.com/2009/08/28/the-red-jacket-by-lee-gilbert/ Fri, 28 Aug 2009 09:52:15 +0000 forthgallery http://forthgallery.wordpress.com/2009/08/28/the-red-jacket-by-lee-gilbert/

You are cordially invited to the opening of 

The Red Jacket by Lee Gilbert

Closing Reception on 30th September 09, Friday from 7pm to 9pm @ FORTH GALLERY
(above Bee Cheng Hiang on Pagoda St, just outside
Chinatown NE Line MRT Station Exit A)
69A Pagoda Street (2nd Level)
Singapore 059228
Tel: 6222 7809
Email: sales@forth.sg

For detailed map, please visit www.forth,sg/contact.htm
Mon-Sat 12noon – 7pm Sun 12noon – 5pm

The exhibition run from 27 September  to 30 September 2009

Attendance at the exhibitions are FREE.

About the Exhibition

A Tribute to James Dean:

born 08 February 1931,

died 30 September 1955.

As in the Eagles song, “too fast to live, too young to die, bye-bye”.

 

James Dean, best remembered clad in jeans and tee-shirt, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, oscillates from ticklish softie to introspective tough guy throughout his three films.

 An icon of freedom, power, and mastery, the car lights up a character, such as the rebellious teenage outsider played by James Dean in the gasoline-soaked “Rebel Without a Cause”. Released a month after his fatal crash in a competition Porsche, this Oscar-winning performance captured the moral decay of American youth, critiqued ineffective parenting, and foreshadowed the growing differences between generations, a continuing trend.

 This collection is a re-interpretation of “outsider” themes from film. The work focuses on Rebel, but including others such as J.G Ballard’s “Crash!,” Guillermo Cain’s “Vanishing Point,” and Stephen King’s “Christine.”   

About the Artists

Educated in the United States and now a Singapore Permanent Resident,  Lee Gilbert  works in varied media, including painting in acrylics and oils and sculpture in precious metals, stone, and concrete. A former student of UK artist Mr. James Holdsworth of Block43 and Singapore oil painter and art teacher Mr. Wee Shoo Leong, he has participated in several exhibitions, including his solo show “Launch! – the Subculture of Speed,” at Singapore’s PanPacific Public Artspace in September 2008.

 

Please sign up to our mailing list from www.forth.sg or email to sales@forth.sg

 

]]> http://grahamnunn.wordpress.com/2009/08/23/blinded-by-a-million-bright-things/ Sat, 22 Aug 2009 22:23:56 +0000 gnunn http://grahamnunn.wordpress.com/2009/08/23/blinded-by-a-million-bright-things/

My eyes are watering, my calves burning slightly, and my head is swimming with words. The Million Bright Things who hit the QPF stage yesterday lit up the Judith Wright Centre with the endless possibility of poetry. Last night for me was a landmark event, with Festival Director extraordinairre, Julie Beveridge, putting together an event which featured every poet on the programme. Forty artists, one by one had their moment in the spotlight. It was high octane poetry, each artist leaving nothing behind as they left the mic and the audience wanting more. And as Neil Murray closed the show, there was that feeling that peoples lives had been changed… the energy bristling, the smiles splittingly wide.

If you are anywhere near Brisbane today, do yourself a favour and let the bright lights of QPF 2009 illuminate you. Kicking off today with the launch of Felicity Plunkett’s debut collection, Vanishing Point and the session, Choreography of Chance featuring Rhys Rodgers, Santo Cazzati and Maurice McNamara, you just know, life will be better for it!

Today’s programme is online here.

]]> http://markponsford.wordpress.com/2009/08/21/dodge/ Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:40:16 +0000 manuptheroad http://markponsford.wordpress.com/2009/08/21/dodge/

Dark dreams.

Thinking about Sam Shepard, Monte Hellman, Harry Dean Stanton, Two-Lane Blacktop, Vanishing Point, Gregory Sandor, the Mojave Desert, the Salton Sea. . .

People I’ve never met. Places I’ve never been.

Polaroid 355 Automatic.
Fuji FP-100B film.

]]> http://thirdheaven.wordpress.com/2009/08/19/i-within-i/ Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:58:34 +0000 luciferion http://thirdheaven.wordpress.com/2009/08/19/i-within-i/

(I Within I by Vanishing Point)

Silence I reject you for everything you held from me.
Twisted, entangled I longed for your embrace.
Hope I received you,
you gave me light and truth to me.
Awakened I breathe again, I breathe again.

Now this is who I am.

Trust I inside you, in every way you sheltered me.
I’m searching, fate will you leave me dying?
Faith, open my eyes,
bring life into this heart of change.
Escaping my shadows of fear I have in me.

Surround me, become me,
descending I reach for your hand.
But you could not believe.
So you see, you found me,
now believe the truth to understand.
That this is who I am, that this is who I.

Why do we exist through changes,
when we just die in stages, in search for the truth.
Why do we continue grieving, for years we have been
bleeding, abandoned alone.

That this is who I am,
that this is who I,
That this is who I am.

]]>