A Special Message from Optimus Prime

...and a Happy New Year!

The Twelve Months

Over the past couple years, I've noticed some of the holiday traditions I've enjoyed for years have slowly disappeared. The thought was a little sad at first, but as nothing lasts forever, I realized it meant the opportunity to create new traditions.

Last year, one of these adoptions included sending out holiday cards. This year, I decided to continue the tradition, but I couldn't decide on what the illustration would look  like. Many options developed, including a few displayed below:

I was not satisfied with any of these options. I started thinking about what I could do in 2012 that would be better, more iconic, than just another winter holiday themed image. "Important" numbers started flowing through my mind: 2012, 12/12/12, 12/21/2012. The choice was obvious.

The Twelve Days of Christmas.

Part of my interest in The Twelve Days of Christmas involved an incident over Thanksgiving, where I mistakenly claimed that one of the gifts in the song included "lepers leaping." As I remember it, my brother was quick to point out that it was "lords-a-leaping," and that receiving a group of lepers would be quite a poor gift indeed. Through this incident, the realization was made evident: I could not name all 12 gifts. The lack of this knowledge freed my mind and allowed me to imagine new gifts that could be given, such as leaping lemurs (quite the improvement over lepers), Danny Partridge stuck in a tree, or...

What were the original 12 gifts?

The question was stuck in my head and needed to be solved. A quick internet search later lead to an unanticipated result: there were more than just 12 gifts to choose from.

Now, any practical contemplation on the song would infer that yes, there would be many different versions of the song. Even today we have variations of the melody, including The Twelve Gifts of Christmas or The Twelve Days of Yaksmas. Yet, I never would have imagined that there would be previous incarnations of the song that included much better gifts, such as ships that sail or bears that fight!

Of particular interest to me was an old French folk-song. 

The Twelve Months

In the book Chants populaires des Flamands de France: recueillis et publiés avec les mélodies originales, une traduction française et des notes, published in 1855, author Charles de Coussemaker writes about the song Le premier jour d’l’année, also known as Les Douze Mois or The Twelve Months.



In his description, he cites the song as being a traditional folk song derived from pre-Gaul druidic tradition.

The first verse...



...asks the question “What will my love give me on the first day of the year?” and answering with “one lone partridge that flies in the woods.”

The remaining verses...




...though slightly different than the gifts we typically associate with the Twelve Days of Christmas, follow the same format, asking what one’s love will bring, and answering with everything from the familiar turtle doves as well as a variety of other birds, to the strange, extravagant, and odd gifts of branches, windmills, and horned bulls.



De Coussemaker then follows up with a paragraph (seen above) describing how in it’s current state, the song has been extremely distorted. Despite that fact, he felt it important to publish in the collection out of respect for the country’s druidic heritage. He then concludes with a sentence about how the song has spawned several versions of the song where symbolic religious value is assigned to each hour of the twelve hour period.

In case any of you want to play and or sing this song for yourself, the musical notation is displayed below:

Life on Mars?

Though nothing will be confirmed until the first week of December, Curiosity may have dug up organic material, which could indicate the possibility of life on Mars.

David Bowie may finally have closure.

How to Mix the Perfect Story*

 1. Use characters you would like to spend time with.

 2. Place said characters in a world you would want to live in.

 3. Put them in situations you would prefer to never face yourself.

 Place all three into a shaker, add ice, mix, pour, enjoy!

 BONUS RULE! Add or subtract rules as per personal preference.

As always, please use rules responsibly.

*"Perfection" is subjective, therefore the author of this post cannot be held responsible reader's inability to meet expectations. 

GIF and only GIF

The Oxford American Dictionary has declared GIF as the word of the year apparently. I guess that means I can republish this:

If you haven't watched it already, you should definitely check out the PBSOffbook video about GIF.

It is fantastic. Really, you should check out all of their videos. The only piece of criticism I have towards them is the fact that they only put out a new video every other week. That said, if that is what it takes to keep up the quality of the videos, let them take two weeks!

 Question: If GIF is considered an artform, what are the most successful ways of displaying them in a museum setting?

Possible solutions include:

1. Projectors upon a wall.
2. Utilization of specially designed digital photo frames.
3. Connecting directly with portable digital devices with methods such as NFC, QR, or other scan based transmission of data.

Finally, if you want an example of great GIF work, check out the following:

Dain 8)

If We Don't, Remember Me

From Me to You

OFF THE WALL - CLASH OF THE RACQUETEERS

Since June, the majority of my free time has been spent training for the 2012 Northshore Inline Marathon and creating a deluge of art for Halloween. However, having completed the marathon in September, and with Halloween wrapping up a few days ago, my nights and weekends have been rather aimless.

Until now...

Since 1994, I have been in a constant state of competition with one man. Prior to our meeting, neither of us had peers we could classify as equal. Whether it be a feat of art, intellect, or sport, the two of us would fight tooth and nail to best the other. Now, 18 years later, nothing has changed.

So may I present an event of moderately epic proportions:

HOW IT STARTED

The following account contains moments of truth. Be warned.

• MARK: Hey man, want to go to a Burlesque Show?
• DAN: Gonna pass on that one. Wanna play some racquetball tomorrow?
• MARK: Sure, what time?
• DAN: Let's say noon.
• MARK: Sounds good!

The next day...

• MARK: So how much does it cost to play?
• GYM EMPLOYEE: $10 for a day pass, or $50 for a punch card.
• DAN: How many sessions are on the punch card?
• GYM EMPLOYEE: 10, plus you will get the first day free.
• MARK: That means we could play 11 matches of raquetball.
• DAN: That means you can lose 11 matches of raquetball.
• MARK: That sounds like a challenge. 
• DAN: No, more like truth.
• GYM EMPLOYEE: *staring at computer screen*
• MARK: I bet I can beat you best out of 11.
• DAN: You're on.
• GYM EMPLOYEE: So you guys...want punch cards?
• DAN & MARK: *slamming down money* YES! 
• MARK: *shaking Dan's hand* May the best man win.
• DAN: May the best man win. How do you play racquetball again?

Diagram of a Raquetball Court

BASIC RULES

The winner will be determined by the best of 11 matches. The winner of each match is determined by the best of three sets. Each set consists of two 15 point games plus an 11 point tiebreaker if needed.

Points are earned when the serving player successfully ends the rally.

A rally begins when the serving player bounces the ball once in the service zone and commences with a successful serve that lands behind the receiving line.

A serve must hit the play wall, and is allowed to hit one additional side wall before landing behind the receiving line.

The receiving player may allow the ball to bounce once on the floor or hit the ball on the fly. Once the receiving player has hit the ball, it must strike the front wall before striking the floor. Unlike during the serve, a ball in play may touch as many walls, including the ceiling, as necessary so long as it reaches the front wall without striking the floor.

Should the receiving player end the rally, no points are earned and the receiving player now becomes the serving player.

Any disputes will be settled through a series of sub-competitions and/or outside arbitration.

WINNING

The first player to win 6 matches is considered the winner. As part of the competition, the losing player must then make a piece of artwork (henceforth referred to as THE TROPHY) in the media chosen by the winner. The winner is then allowed to retain THE TROPHY upon completion. Should the loser not complete THE TROPHY within 30 days from the final match, the loser must forfeit $100 USD to the winner.

So far: Dan 1 - Mark 0

This early defeat is humbling. It looks like I'll have to retreat back to training and discover the secrets of racquetball.

Stay classy, and stay tuned!

Something Smells Fishy...

Ichthyosapien 61912
Digital Painting
2012

Lately, I've been working on a project that I have been thinking about for a long time. Originally, the project was a series of essays connecting classic movie monsters with fears and phobias. Though I may return to the lengthy written discourse the project originated as sometime in the future, for the time being, the project lives as a series of portraits called Social Monsters.

The first portait, Zombie 5412, actually marked the first time I made an artistic rendition of the walking dead, as I wrote about previously. Originally, it was created for a friend, but the enjoyment it brought encouraged me to complete and entire series of related portraits. Icthyosapien 61912, as seen above, is the third portrait of the series and one of the more challenging pieces I have ever completed. In fact, the image seen above is the second version of the piece. The first was much more heavily inspired by Creature From the Black Lagoon.

The goal is to complete the series in time for Halloween. If I feel inspired, I may write the full essays to accompany each image explaining what fears and phobias each monster represents and why. For now, I'm content just making the images. What are your thoughts?

The 8-Bit Arts

Mega Man

Sense memory is an amazing thing. A single, errant scent, sound, or taste, and a person can be thrown back decades in time to relive experiences long forgotten. For anyone who invested hours of their childhood playing the NES, the modern art scenes inspired by 8-Bit acts as a bridge to worlds familiar yet foreign.

Blip Festival NYC 2012 just concluded. Had I access to a TARDIS, I would definitely check it out. Lacking said technology, I'm left basking in they afterglow remotely.

Moleman 2 - Demoscene - The Art of Algorithms has been released for a few months, but since it is a documentary about an art scene that is still generally unknown by the general public, it felt important to showcase.

Loved is an example of what I hope for more of in the future of video games. If you have a couple minutes, I highly recommend that you play it. The game is relatively short, and worth more than a few plays.

There is still an incredible amount of 8-Bit inspired arts out there. What are your favorites? Also, Happy Memorial Day!

Sun Flowers

"My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it."

 -Mark Twain

My mother has given me so much over the course of her life, but the one gift I have valued over all others is the gift of imagination. Through it, she has given me the heavens and the earth as well as a light to guide me through the brightest days and darkest nights.

This year, to say thanks, I reached up and stole a piece of the sun to create these "sun" flowers especially for her as a small token of appreciation and a symbol of the light and love she has always provided.

How I Learned to Stop Bashing and Love the Zombie

Zombie 5412
Digital Painting
2012

For years, I've avoided zombies. They are far from my favorite monster. I'm much more of a werewolf guy myself. However, as a first, I feel this zombie portrait turned out alright. I may even try another in the future. Any opinions?

The Journey Towards Cloud Consciousness

There will come a day when iPhone level tech become so pervasive that every child will be given a device upon birth. The device will then track the child's educational growth and adapt in both programming and hardware to match the child's maturity level. The data that the device records will follow the child into adulthood, acting as a lifetime resume, giving employers metrics regarding the individuals learning curve that will influence the hiring process.

The device will follow the individual into old age, acting as a companion and a caretaker, tracking things as common as an inventory of paper towels or toilet paper and automatically reordering before the individual runs out, to as specialized as mental and physical acuity, scheduling trips to the doctor when necessary.  Eventually, the device will act as the AI necessary to keep the individual's consciousness alive by transmitting all the knowledge the individual collected as well as patterns of curiousity and creativity based on algorithms into the ethereal web, forming a Cloud Consciousness, and allowing the next generation of DaVinci and Einstein to collaborate with the living over the course of centuries.

Toys like this are only the first step towards that future, and it will be beautiful. :)

8 Bit Bonanza

Yesterday, I crafted a font called 8BitBonanza. The font is based on memories of old videogames, specifically the hand-held variety. Feel free to download and use it for whatever you like. If you do something cool with it, let me know in the comments!

Enjoy!

Project Glass and Three Visions for the Future of Art

Back in 2003, I wrote a story involving a pair of glasses called ASpects, or Augmented Spectacles. It was a silly name, containing the anachronistic duality of a conceptual item. Having to wear glasses myself, the idea of turning my physical hindrance into a technological advantage had been a dream since being introduced to Geordi LaForge. Now, in 2012, Google introduces Project: Glass. For some, it sounds like hi-sci-fi, with the harshest critics claiming vaporware. For hopeful futurists, it is like being told Santa Claus is real and is bringing you cyborg vision.



Google itself has done a fantastic job describing some of the prospective everyday uses for the technology, but what about more specific applications? Certainly it will bring a new level of discourse to business, providing stock traders with up-to-the-second tickers available right within their field of vision. Should a sports model be available, it would surely be outlawed on the professional field of play, as applications could theoretically be developed that would allow batters to determine the speed of a pitch, and providing them signals regarding whether to swing or not. What applications could the art world develop for use of this prospective new technology?

I propose three options. Not the last word in any sense, but examples of possible uses:

1 - Use in Development

Painting a canvas is messy, especially when you lack a steady hand. Even an artist with dedicated focus can pull back and find they have added an arc instead of a line to the portrait. An obvious option involves the use of a straight edge to guide the brush, but then we run back into the dilemma of mess. Projecting a line or shape onto the canvas is another option, but then you still have to factor in shadows.

With AR glasses, an artist could establish some of the more difficult lines and arcs and synch a virtual screen over the breadth of the canvas, giving the artist a guide to follow that doesn’t smudge the paint or place the artist in uncomfortable positions while trying to keep out of the light.

Hanging the piece would also become simpler, as an onscreen level would show how far left or right you need to nudge the piece to be parallel to the ground. 


2 - Use in Media

What will be most interesting is the use of AR glasses as a medium itself. The lines between traditional and digital media will blur to the point of indistinguishable from one another as artists begin coding their canvas to synch with what the viewer sees. A landscape painting will suddenly become a haven for a pre-programmed imaginary friend living in the Cloud.

Portrait without AR Glasses

Portrait with AR Glasses

3 - Use in Collection

You’re seated in a coffee shop, reading a magazine, when you view one of the most gorgeous sculptures you have ever seen. The AR glasses scan the tag that accompanies the image and discovers that the piece is being exhibited at a gallery across the city, is for sale, and has received five-star ranking from countless critics within the city. With the bat of an eye, you have purchased the piece remotely and are given directions to the gallery so you may pick it up in person, as well as browse what else they may have in their collection that is similar to the sculpture.

As I mentioned before, there are countless other possibilities, and I’m sure we won’t even uncover a small sampling of them until the glasses are available and within the hands of the public. What other uses can you envision for AR glasses in the art world?

The Show Must Go On and On and On...

Narcissus and the Golden Man

"That is, an artist who creates lots of work probably experiences

prolific days and slower days." - Buffy Sainte-Marie

Despite my resolve to remain patient, February and March became a sort of time trial. During the course of the past two months, I found that I could produce a show from start to finish in an incredibly constrained amount of time. Though I have never been one to procrastinate, I have always felt that I work best under pressure, and thus have produced ten pieces of the best art of my career all in the span of 20 days.

Stories 01, or Red

The reason for my artistic surge was the Altered Esthetics Solo Exhibition Program. The program is meant to assist new and emerging artists in launching their careers. Back in August, when I first heard about the program, I was searching for a challenge that I could utilize to up-the-ante of my creative talent, having felt that I was growing complacent. So, I chose to apply. Part of the process included a proposal of the type of show you would like to produce. Feeling overly ambitious, I crafted a carefully worded proposal about creating a show within a show, about art from art. Being selected for the program, I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to implement my proposal to much success.

The show ran from March 2nd - 29th at the Spring Street Tavern in Minneapolis, Minn., with a reception held on March 10th. Altered Esthetics even wrote a nice blog post about the show. The show itself consisted of images from two individual series of images; Stories and Between the Lines.

Stories was a series of six images inspired by fairy tales that had hidden within them the essence of all great stories, thus telling a story in itself.

Original thumbnail for Between the Lines 02

Between the Lines was a continuation of the idea behind Stories, but with a different theme. BtL was at its core a purer representation of the original proposition that was submitted to the program. At its base, BtL was ten images that could stand alone as individual pieces of artwork. As a collection, it told the story of an artist's journey. Finally, hidden within the pieces themselves, much like Stories, were keywords that, when combined, spelled out the overall theme for the show itself.

Overwhelmingly, comments about the show and reception have been absolutely positive. I am incredibly grateful to have such supportive friends and family, as without them, the pieces would not have been as strong, and the show would not have been the success it was.

For those of you who missed the show, yet would still like to see it, there is hope. I am making arrangements to produce an extended version of the show in the form of a viewbook. Details are still amorphous at the moment, so keep an eye on this blog, as I will inform you of its completion as soon as it is ready.

In case you are impatient, have a look at Stories, and see if you can solve the puzzle:

New Year and Next Steps

As the Steve Miller Band was kind enough to teach us, time keeps on slipping into the future. In the past, I have meditated on the concept of time, its existence as a unit of measure, and how it has become an omnipresent entity while doing my best to stretch and compress this dimension to fit my personal needs. From where I currently sit, I can count eight different clocks within my line of sight, each set at a different time due to careful ignorance or the toil beset upon them by their immortal ward.

Recently, there has been a cartoon circulating that displays a Mayan showing off his calendar wheel, expressing concern to his fellow Mayan that it ends in 2012, to which the craftsman replies "that's really going to freak somebody out some day." Though I understand the humor in the second Mayan's statement, I am more intrigued by the calendar craftsman himself, and the calendar he displays. Yes, it expires in 2012, but it is still useful for thousands of years. Though our tools and measures and calendars may expire, time always marches on. So why measure at all? Why not just live in an endless cycle of sleeping when tired and waking when not, regardless of the sun's position in the sky? It's not a new notion that setting our schedule by the setting of the sun is rather antiquated, especially with the growth of 24 hour conveniences. Da Vinci is said to have slept in 20 minutes spurts every four hours, a technique that added hours to his work day, yet would be heavily frowned upon in the modern workplace. Or maybe this isn't a matter of keeping to cycle, but rather keeping sane?

Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. By keeping a cycle, and noting specific beginnings and ends, one has set aside points at which to assess their actions and determine whether changes need be made, even if the changes only fortify the plans one had previously been pursuing. Hence, resolutions.

Woody Guthrie wrote a list of resolutions that are familiar without being common or restrictive. For me, I like to keep my list short and sweet, as it is easier to remember and accomplish:

slow down, plan ahead, proceed with confidence.

Though it may seem small, it actually cuts a wide swath in the actions of my life. If you want something more detail oriented, I present you with the following list: 

1) Read/Write/Draw more -

Over the past couple years, I have grown complacent when reading, and have developed a form of speed-reading that encourages quick sprints across the body of a text in favor of the deep diving necessary to keep information. It is not a bad thing, as it has developed a sense of thin-slicing, but it has limited the amount of information I gather from any source and has made it more difficult to make it through long pieces of narrative. This growing tendency toward thin-slicing has also had similar effects on my writing and art. Slowing down will grant me the time necessary to re-engage literature, art and life, and hopefully reduce the number of unread books on my bookshelf drastically while simultaneously increasing productivity and communicativeness.

2) Reduce overhead -


Like many, I have fallen into routines that waste time, money, and resources in general. By planning ahead, it is my hope to cut out many of these habits so as to live a simpler, more care-free life over the course of the next year.

3) Eliminate "I am horrible/fantastic" - 

Recently, I came across a piece of advice that boils down to "I am horrible/fantastic: Don't think either." I have a habit of leaning towards the horrible spectrum in most of what I do, despite occasional evidence to the contrary. Whether it is in art, writing, or life in general, the idea of proceeding with confidence falls within the golden mean, or walking a path between vice and virtue, to allow for maximum happiness.

So there it is. My resolutions for 2012. What are yours?

However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.
- Winston Churchill

In other news, the start of 2012 also heralds a transition into the second five year period of my 15 year plan. Of course, this brings with it good news and bad news.


The good news: I met all the goals I made for myself in the first five years.

The bad news: I just barely made my mark.*

Considering the bad news isn't so bad, I see no necessarily reason to redress the first five years any further aside from using the lessons learned to head into the next five years with even greater confidence and courage.

With that, I wish you all a fantastic new year, and the best of all that can come from it!

---

*As I wrote this, I realized though the pun was not intended, it was still quite apt.

3 More Lessons - The Wonders of Penny Arcade

NOTE - Over a year ago, I wrote a number of posts regarding my Top 10 Influences. Consider this to be the unofficial #11.

Penny Arcade, by Mike Krahulik
October 23, 2008

In 1998, Messrs. Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik debuted what has become the most successful webcomic to date. This is not hyperbole or opinion. This is fact. They have taken what had started as secondary content for an already established site and have turned into a cultural zeitgeist amongst a land of memes. One could say Penny Arcade did for the internet what The Simpsons did for television, but they would be wrong, if only for their lack of scope.


I could go on and on, about how they branched out into books, games (both digital and analog), conventions, a television network (does it still qualify as television if it is exclusive to the web?) and a full-blown charity that is so incredibly noble that it can actually rekindle a person's hope in humanity. Did you know they actually have their own line of clothing as well? I don't mean t-shirts here either. I mean an actual clothing line that is aimed at a specific market demographic.


Like I said, I could speak at length about the incredible kingdom they have created. However, that has already been touched upon in so many other forms, that it is pointless for me to retread on that ground. Furthermore, if you are reading this, then there is a good chance that you have taken more than one road-trip down the information superhighway, and have inevitably heard some mention of Penny Arcade. Instead, I want to talk about what Penny Arcade has done for the comics medium and what it has taught me.



ANOTHER NOTE - Before I continue, I want to establish some shorthand. From hence forth, Tycho shall refer to Mr. Holkins, Gabe shall refer to Mr. Krahulik, VG will be shorthand for video games, and PA will refer to the overall entity of Penny Arcade.

 

1 - Patience and persistence pays off, but don't be afraid to experiment

Lookouts, by Mike Krahulik - January 15th, 2010

Art does not sprout fully formed from the artist's head like a Grecian goddess, nor are artists born with an inherent talent or style. Everything that an artist produces that is aesthetically beautiful takes time and effort. Gabe is no exception.

If you take just a quick glance at the PA daily strip, and you may take for granted the time and effort that goes into it. It's not the hours of time Gabe spends drawing each strip, but rather the years of dedication that show up in every panel. The current look of the average PA strip took years to chisel out of nothing.

The original Lookouts strip
from June 10th, 2009

Even more impressive than Gabe's daily work are the occasional strolls down long-form narrative and solo pieces. In these, Gabe displays a keen eye that knows when to add and when to subtract detail. One of the most striking of these instances comes from the original Lookouts story from June 10th of 2009. In it, Gabe escapes the trappings of conventional, animated realism to exhibit a more etherial, impressionistic take on the background. With the loss of any solid backgrounds, swirling colors and strategically placed lines take the place of a definite setting, allowing for a world of simultaneous whimsy and worry.

The Girl and the Ghost, by Mike Krahulik
November 19th, 2009

These same traits can be found in an earlier piece called The Girl and the Ghost, from November 19th, 2008. In it, the same impression of a world found in The Lookouts is displayed in a more haunting fashion.

About a six months after the debut of the Lookouts, Gabe returns to the fertile forest playground with a solo piece that could easily be a fusion of the original strip and The Girl and the Ghost.


To often, artists can drown in the boredom of their style. Though some critics may balk  at an artist's shift, it is necessary for any creative person to breath and experiment, if for no other reason than to improve upon what they already produce. In the case of PA, I am thankful that Gabe takes the time to produce solo work, because without it, the adventurous, long-form jaunts, such as Lookouts and Automata, may not exist; and though I may wish to see more long-form narrative from Tycho and Gabe, I am more than happy to take what they provide over having nothing at all.

Automata, from
June 12, 2009

2 - Creating comics can be applied to the greater good

Growing up, I loved comics. The art, the action, the writing - I loved every aspect of the medium. What I loved most were the morality lessons that were found within the pages of X-Men and Avengers. X-Men taught me that people are people, and you shouldn't discriminate based on their differences. Avengers taught me that you must stand up for what you  believe is right, even if the opposition is bigger or more powerful. In essence, comics made me want to make a better world so much that I took the following, self-written oath, and still stand by it to this day: I SWEAR BY MY LIFE to change this world for the better!

In 2003, PA created Child's Play as a response to the fallacy of VG's influencing youth towards violent behavior, and I had just started college. Through intense study of writing and art, I had decided that comics were the alpha and omega of broadcasting ideas from one human to another. I was so convinced by this fact that it became the central thesis of my entire college education. By my senior year, with months left before graduation, I was infected by the same idealism that hits most college students earlier in their student career. I remembered my oath, and realized that I had been training myself all wrong. Imagine if Batman vowed to avenge the death of his parents by waging war on crime, and then four years later winds up with an art degree and no idea how to fulfill his goals because he was distracted by the shimmering allure of comics. To exacerbate an already embarrassing situation, I had just received a rejection letter from the internship I had foolishly banked the entirety of my future plans on. With graduation fast approaching, I had no idea what I was going to do after school. Instead of devising any concrete plans, I sat in my Computer Science class and gorged on PA.

Whether I had forgotten, never known, or just hadn't put the pieces together, PA had already created the solution to my problem. They had leveraged their success into actual charity. They weren't just giving money for others find solutions. They were giving money, raising money, and making the solutions themselves. In the case of Child's Play, they were raising money to purchase VG's and toys for the children's wards at hospitals to make what is a genuinely frightening play a little less scary for kids who had to be there.

By themselves, comics may not be able to cure diseases or stop wars. They can make the world a little less frightening through their own accord, but if used wisely, they can assist in collecting the resources necessary in stopping social ills and direct them towards the organizations that can.

3 - The future is nothing if not an echo of the past

One of the oft-overlooked cornerstones of PA is the commentary by PA co-creator Tycho. A person who has only read the comics themselves can be forgiven if they view PA as nothing but a series of dick-and-fart-and-VG jokes that can appeal to the masses. Inexcusable are critics who judge PA based on the jokes alone. To do so would be akin to calling Shakespeare or Mozart hacks because you believe the entirety of their work revolves around basal humor.



Tycho is a writer of immeasurable talent who is able to connect with the audience. Like Shakespeare or Dickens, he weaves the narrative of everyday life together with what the audience wants, with what the audience relates to. In fact, much like Dickens, Tycho is able to produce profusely on the perfunctory and still make you care. His interests aren't solely based in and around VG culture, but transcends the black hole of mass media and steeps itself in everything from Milton to Dungeons and Dragons.


What is a writer if his work doesn't resonate with the audience? The short answer is obsolete, but in reality, would they be a writer at all? Like all the writers of the past, Tycho could write to satisfy critics, but doesn't, because the critics aren't the target. He just writes like others breath. He, like Dickens, is the voice of the public; his words are a tapestry of the era.

Paracosm, Brikabrak, Cerebus and Mini-Comics

I just woke up from a nap. It was one of those naps where there was no actual sleep, and my eyes only stayed close if I concentrated on them doing so. Really, it was just a brief period of complete and total inaction. No thought, no movement. Much like watching TV, but without the painful numbness that accompanies prolonged exposure.

When I returned to general consciousness, I was filled with an overwhelming sense of dread. A harbinger of doom was sitting in the corner, making snide commentary. After checking all the usual sources, it was finally concluded that the harbinger was just having fun at my expense.

***

I'm closing in on finishing the first chapter of my new project, Paracosm. If there was anything for me to be excited/anxious/ecstatic/concerned about, it would be this. However, instead of taking any real pause to consider what its completion might create, I am more interested in writing the next few chapters. Especially since the conceptual format of the project is so fluid. Paracosm - Chapter 1 is a pale shade of what it was upon conception. Overall, Paracosm has a loose sense of where it should go, akin to the directions of Horace Greeley: "Go west, young man."

Move forward. The only direction I have for this project. Years of planning and practicing and preparing have ultimately left me with nothing but drive. Cast aside are any concerns regarding quality. Instead, I'm doing a project that is solely for my own interests. Most of the work that has gone into this project is just a method of chaining down a fleeing sanity disgusted with the environment it has been left to deal with.

***

The picture above reminds me of an extremely short story I wrote possibly a year ago. If you will permit, I would like to share it with you:

Where the Ideas Come From

Underneath my bed, there is a small troll named Brikabrak. He is not a troll like the ones of legend, known for eating children and other horrible things. Nor is he one of whimsical fancy, associated with granting wishes and being generally delightful. Brikabrak is, for the most part, just an ordinary troll. However, at night, when I lay my head to sleep, Brikabrak climbs out from under my bed, and whispers stories in my ear as I dream. Sometimes they are old stories, like how the tortoise got his shell. Some stories have yet to occur, such as the story of Zeta, the first child born of the singularity. But he tells stories. New stories, every night, only ever repeating himself to suit my own preferences. And as such, I have yet to banish him from under my bed. For as long as he keeps telling stories, he shall always have a place in my room.

***

I've started reading Cerebus. I'm starting with Volume 13. It is good. That is all I'll say about that.

 

***

 

April 9th is Mini-Comics Day. I may do something to celebrate. I'll let you know if anything develops. I encourage you all to try something as well. Even if it is as simple as folding a piece of paper twice and scribbling on the sub-pages, there is something uniquely fulfilling about creating something that you cannot understand until you do it yourself. The more I think about it, the more likely I am going to create some sort of 8-page monstrosity for the sake of creation. For now, I think I will end this one-sided discourse with the web in favor of meandering whatever ethereal pathways I can find between now and slumber.

Peace and Love, my very special friends!

Memetics and ME

The piece pictured above, Beneath of the Mask, is such a beautiful and succinct representation of my personal ideology, I may cry. This piece resonates to my eyes as a choir of angels would to the Pope's ears.

It should be of no surprise to anyone familiar with my work or interests that memetics and the blur that occurs between life and creation are a source of much interest to me. Grant me but a few precious minutes to expand on and unravel the cosmic complexity held within this portrait and hopefully explain why the vast, spiraling abyss of memetics is so intoxicating.

Pictured above is a representation of the character V from Alan Moore's work V for Vendetta (hereafter referred to as VfV). In the book, V acts as a match for the fire of revolution in a dystopian society analogous to Moore's view on Thatcher's UK. Moore's ideas on utopia (or, the lack thereof at the time which he wrote VfV) fueled the creation of VfV which, in turn, fueled the creation of V himself. V's appearance isn't coincidental. It is in based on the legend and iconography of Guy Fawkes, a man who's legend is central to the idea of a failed idea, the Gunpowder Plot, that was in fact inspired by his own ideology.

So we have Moore's creation V, who was inspired by Guy Fawkes, whose legend was birthed by a failed idea; kill the king. However, look at the moniker of Moore's character: V. V is the 22nd letter in the Latin alphabet, a derivation of numerous previous alphanumeric systems which originated from hieroglyphs, which derived from pictographic cave paintings, which were originally conceived to convey ideas from one person to another across the distance of time and space. The alphabet, and all other logoforms, come from the same basic concept: the transmission of ideas.

Not only is V the creation of Moore, based on the idea of Guy Fawkes, whose entire legacy revolved around ideology, but his very moniker is a symbol representative in the transmission of ideas, which is in fact a major driving force in the characters psyche throughout the pages of VfV. V's very purpose is to spread ideas, as is the purpose of Guy Fawkes with his failed plot, the essential use of logoforms such as his moniker, and the very profession of Moore, his creator.

But let us return to the work of art that crowns this lengthy monologue. The image of V is constructed of numerous letterforms, referring back to the characters moniker as well as acting as numerous, individual reminders to their very essence and use as logoforms. Furthermore, the alphabetical logoforms that construct this representation of the creation of Moore are also the main medium of Moore himself, and can hearken back to the ENTIRE HISTORY of language itself, which is yet another construct built to disperse the viral reproductive constructs that are ideas.

The entire portrait is built both literally and metaphorically on the quote taken from VfV: Ideas are Bulletproof. However, maybe the quote would be more precise and better served if a single word were replaced.

Ideas are Immortal.

An idea more precise, but not exact. For ideas are not only immortal, but also living, changing, evolving. Ideas and concepts are entities as much as ourselves, as they grow and change and mature just as we do. However, they never die. Not completely. Hence their immortality.

Sure, certain ideas may disappear for awhile, but they still exist somewhere, whether they are hiding in the minds of others, or wrapped up in other, similar ideas, they always exist, and they always will.

Or so I like to think...

Recurring Nightmares and Other Small Horrors.

Most people would attribute being chased by a murderer or some other monstrously devilish construct a nightmare. Though it can be quite frightening to some, to me it is more of a challenge. Most of my dreams or nightmares have been lucid for the past ten years or so. If you aren’t familiar with lucid dreaming, take a moment to familiarize yourself with the concept.

A typical dream for me will include self-powered flight and travel over large distances. If ever a monster does appear, it will usually be something I inevitably find a way to vanquish. On the few occasions I cannot overcome said monster, the dream itself becomes recurring.

A recurring dream is a dream that is experienced over and over again until some sort of resolution is found. In the past, I have had a few recurring dreams, the most outstanding of which involved being part of a team of monster hunters sent to eliminate a vampire giant. This dream would fill my nights for three years. Of course, I had other dreams at that time, but Vampire Giant would inevitably return once or twice every other month. The dream itself was so vivid that it would be difficult to forget, unlike many other dreams that would be nice to recall from time to time.

Vampire Giant finally resolved itself before I graduated high school. Neither the original dream nor the resolution has reappeared in my night cycle, though both are often recalled for daytime viewing enjoyment.

Within the past year, a new nightmare has evolved. Though not recurring, it is serialized. It involves a war between the Land of Oz and Wonderland. The Red Queen is in a dispute with the Nome King, and the more disreputable forces on both side are in constant conflict with each other. Meanwhile, there is a third faction of peaceable peoples on both sides that unite in the middle, yet are so small they have to scatter themselves across the landscape, hidden from the aggressors. In this dream, siding yourself with either side is dangerous, as you are never sure who is with which side, while remaining neutral is an immediate death sentence from both sides.

My part in the dream involves trying to get my brother and me out of this joint, magical landscape, from here on out referred to as The Wonderland of Oz, or WoO for short, and back home in the real world. We take flying swan boats, mine carts on an underground railroad, and walk on foot through countless, bustling cities. All the while, we are trying to safely navigate the combustive political atmosphere that constantly surrounds us while looking for a doorway back home.

We had already escaped in a prior dream, but now, this past evening, I find myself face to face with the WoO again. Sides had shifted, allies had become enemies and enemies have become friends. The Red Queen and the Nome Queen finally realized how beneficial it would be for both of them to join forces. Thus, a new landscape of fascist classism had been developed, where the once peaceful masses were enslaved to fuel a terrible machine that kept the King and Queen in power. To use whatever memories I had of the previous WoO as a map for safe travel through the landscape would have been suicide, as the warring had only gotten worse. Before the WoO still held a portion of its beauty and luster, but now, due to the constant fighting, there was very little left but the hollowed out husks of an Emerald City, now surrounded by cold, merciless factories producing horrible, mindless machinations for use in this newly formed empire.

As mentioned before, I am not afraid of monsters chasing me. More frightening now, at this point in my life, is trying to stay afloat while swimming against the black tides of a tumultuous society. The WoO dream encapsulates that fear perfectly. Not for quite some time have I woke more chilled with fear than with this series of dreams set in the WoO.

With that said, I will end this with a Happy Halloween.

Impatient Patient

Okay, so the title is a little misleading.

In all honesty, I was quite patient.

I waited patiently in the exam room for 45 minutes. Had I been at the dentist or the hospital, someone would have popped their head in to explain that the doctor was running late. Ironically, everyone at the optometrist lacked the foresight to offer this courtesy. Instead, the doctor casually strolls into the exam room and makes no mention of why he was tardy, nor offers an apology for the unnecessary wait.

Instead, he smiles, and pretends that nothing wrong has happened.

In fact, no one had the decency to comment on it at all until AFTER I verify that I arrived on time for my appointment, and not 30 minutes early. Even then, the only person who apologized for the wait was someone who had, up until that point, had no direct contact with me whatsoever.

Yes, I appreciated his apology, but he had nothing to apologize for. In fact, I felt compelled to apologize to him for being put into the position where he had to apologize for actions that he had neither control or knowledge of.

For the record, if you are ever running late, regardless of who you are, and you know you are running late, and you can't contact the person waiting, at least have the courtesy to spend the extra two seconds needed to apologize and take responsibility for your delay. Do not pretend everything is running smoothly and hope they have already forgotten about the time you have wasted. Furthermore, don't have someone completely unconnected to the event apologize for you only after your lateness has been commented on. They have nothing to apologize for. Do the right thing. Be forthright and accountable.

Please...

Thank you.