Me Love Cookies

It's such a relief to have the explanation pros on the job. After the chorus line antics of the WSJ and the faux-sophistication of NYT et al., Ernie and Cookie Monster cut to the chase.

Winds of Dune

Winds of Dune ... August 6, 2009

As is almost always the case, I'm of two minds about this. On one hand, the publication of Dune (© 1965). was a cultural watershed *. Part of science fiction's weltanschauung, It can stand quite comfortably on its own, without reference to its age or circumstances. Even Frank Herbert's own sequels ( through Chapterhouse, with another in note form) had a whiff of shtick to them. We were treated to "wheels within wheels within wheels" a tad more often then good writing necessitated.

On the other hand, Mr. Herbert did write sequels, and Brian ( his son along with co-author Kevin Anderson) has his notes, along with the legal and familial rights. The hard and cold is that we all wondered who the Bene Gesseret were, what Jihad was being referred to, and how the heck a starfaring culture ended up with an Emperor, witches, and all the other twisted Dramatis Personae. Now we know. While each sequel is a dilution of the original moment, chasing the dragon as it were, I still read them. (Thank God for public libraries.) More books are reported to be in the works. (please; no Sligs of Dune IV) I guess you can treat them like lollypops after a fine meal, pleasant, but not the main course.

* (note to the reader: please forgive the pun, I couldn't help myself.)

Sargent Peppers

Christmas on Earth ... December 1967

Sunday Morning Read

Sunday.. Coffee.. Get the round-up out, then more coffee. The last entry is a doozy. I've heard some pretty convoluted theories over the years , offered by some earnestly single minded folks, and I think this one takes the cake in the mountain / molehill category.

This Week

• The Hubble Ultra Deep Field in 3-D
• Bringing *.gov documents out into the open
• Marine Tools (pace: Marilyn and Ed)
• Crisis or Not
• Icebergs
• Lady Gaga, Illuminati Puppet

Enjoy your Sunday

La Chiffoniere

La Chiffoniere ... 1978

This piece, by Jean Dubuffet, (so passioné, so décadente, such a salesman) stands by the Hyatt at Justin Herman Plaza. Made of stainless steel with black epoxy, its title translates roughly to ragpicker. If you catch it in the morning, as the sun clears the horizon, it seems to de-cohere as the glare catches one plane, then the next.

Unfortunately, La Chiffoniere is a textbook example of shoddy placement. It's tall, and doesn't scan as a whole piece until you step back. When you're next to it all you really notice are the sheets of stainless, discolored by bird droppings, and the underside, featuring various gifts from the gimmies. Traffic paths from the buildings to the street flow around it closely. Getting a larger view is blocked in most directions by the building and the one clear sightline, out in sk8ter country, shows a side view with the armatures visible. A wet rag and about a ten foot move would change things right around.

Ganesha

Vighneshvara

Keeping with my interest in the intersection of Indian and American culture, here's Ganesha, done by Carlos Ramos (The Monkey Puzzle). You can see previews of his upcoming show at The Cory Helford Gallery. Chalkzone meets the son of Shiva. As Vighnesha, he is the Lord of Beginnings, in his aspect as Vighneshvara, he is the Remover of Obstacles.

Lumière et Compagnie

Premonitions of an Evil Deed

Forty of the world's leading directors used the original Lumière picture camera to create short films. Here is David Lynch's entry. All effects and continuity were done in-camera and the time limited to a single roll of film.