Happy Birthday, Dad!

You guys were so sweet to wish my Mom a happy birthday that I thought I would point out my Dad's birthday.

Please wish my Dad a Happy B-Day! As you can see, he is enjoying retirement.

(Just leave comments by clicking on "comments" just below and choose the "Name/URL" option button where you leave your comments. First name is fine!)

Tiny Home

No, our house isn't tiny, but I am experimenting with tilt-shift photography. I was curious how different real tilt-shift photography (actual Nikkor tilt-shift lens) is from faked Photoshop stuff. I might create some short stop-motion videos if the real tilt-shift is interesting enough. I want to avoid Photoshop. I don't have anything against PS. I mean, I've been using and teaching the dang program for SO many years, now. I am not much of a purist, either, but there is something about the natural tilt-shift imagery that attracts me. Naturally, if I could get up at high angles so I can look at everything from an elevated level, that would help considerably to make things look smaller. I am hoping to experiment with this while in New Zealand.

New Pacific Studio - NZ

These are some images of the New Pacific Studio in New Zealand where I will be doing my next residency.



Of course it looks beautiful, and since January is a summer month in the Southern Hemisphere, it should be a very nice time to be there. I am not sure which room or studio I will occupy. These are just images of various rooms from their web site. Yeah... I just horked 'em.



The studios seem nice, but I might be doing more digital and video work, so I might not actually be in a studio as much as you might think. I will either be outside filming things, or sitting in front of my computer, like before.

OEA Awards exhibit

"Extraordinary Rendition #2"
6' x 4' graphite on paper drawing

I have not shown this drawing publicly (not even sure it is done) and likely won't show it again until I have all the work completed for the intended exhibit. It is a part of an installation including a half dozen other drawings, several video projections, etc, but I gave it to the Bemis Underground for this year's Omaha Entertainment Awards. If you want to see it in person, it is in a group exhibit with many other artists. I won't be there I will be in New Zealand by then), but you can always let me know what you think if you happen to stop by the exhibit.

Bemis Underground (11th & Leavenworth)

Friday, January 2nd:
Opening Reception - 7 pm to 10 pm

January 3rd, 4th, 10th and 11th:
Exhibit will be open to the public from noon to 4pm each day

Knit Andy Kaufman

Maybe I will start a whole new direction with my art. I will start knitting famous dead celebrities. Yeaaah.

Sorry, I am busy the next couple of days packing and preparing to leave the country (again). Plus, I am troubleshooting my MacPro, which is acting up. Hopefully it is something simple like the graphics card.

War is Over

If you want it...



Merry Christmas

Darker version, for those up to it.

"Why so serious?"

[to quote the Joker]

After various comments that I am too serious or angry with this blog, I decided to pass on a Christmas gift idea.

The Bank of Tim

Finally, someone pretty much sums it up. Gonna form my own bank and get my piece of the pie. 14 minutes long, but you could just watch the first half (start to 8 minute mark, or so). Warning - this might make you angry (I hope):

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

and if that doesn't bum you out, watch the first half of this one (particularly the spot around 2:17 to 2:40):

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

OEA Awards

After virtually exiting the art world for more than a year and only just recently getting back to new work and new exhibits, I was surprised to find I was involved in a show that was nominated for an Omaha Entertainment Award this year. Of course, it was really only possible because of the other talent in the show (State of the Arts - group show). It does remind me that I REALLY need to start scheduling exhibitions, again, however... I need to start looking at the East Coast, I think

Graffiti animation

An old high school friend was talking with me about graffiti and it reminded me about this very cool video:


MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.

Mark Roper reads Halcyon

This is about 12 minutes long. I promised I would post this since you will have to wait a long time to see Angel. It is the essay I posted earlier that Mark Roper wrote about his poem, Halcyon, and his mother.

Iowa State Capitol

His Majesty, the King Admiral Pope of the Universe Baron William von Gross, this wacky and brilliant friend of mine, was at the Iowa State Capitol building recently and took these pictures of a bizarre and seemingly inappropriate (or at least confusing) sculpture. He sent them to me in an email with the following text:

I'd stopped by the Iowa State Capitol building in Des Moines yesterday because it's a pretty cool building and I like that sort of stuff...anyway, just on the south side of the current capital is an immense monument for "the soldiers and sailors of the war of the rebellion" put up at beginning of the 1900s at the site of the old state building. At it's base is the gem attached in photos, yes that's a plow our sweet sister Miss Iowa is straddling. Slavery, schmlavery, THAT's what the boys were fighting for.

Meet Mark Roper

The animation, Angel, has been derailed (all me - EDIT: I mean I have been distracted) and recently a few people have been asking about it. They have also wanted to know who the poet Mark Roper is, especially after reading his essay about his poem, Halcyon (I might post a video of him reading the essay, as well).

This is a short clip of Mark reading his poems when we were at the Tyrone Guthrie Center (an artist residency program) at Annaghmakerrig, Ireland.

Meet Mark


Introducing Mark Roper

Shoe vs Bush

“This is a farewell kiss, dog.”



Wow. Even I didn't throw a shoe.

Lux Center installation - video

This is just a simple, short video to show how the projection looked during the reception.

Climate Crisis Coalition, pt 2

The great people at the Lux took images of the piece as it was being set up and as it melted. Here are seven shots















Sadly, the face didn't really melt as expected. The dirt stayed right where it was, pretty much unchanged. I might experiment and try a new version of the portrait, just for fun...

Mark Gilbert & Ted Kooser

I went ot a nice presentation at the Joslyn Art Museum of Mark Gilbert's work. Ted Kooser (Pulitzer Prize for Poetry - 2005) did some readings of his poetry, as well. Good stuff.

Wikipedia experiment

Many months ago, a writer named Timothy Braun who teaches at the University of Texas in San Antonio, was explaining to his students why he would not allow them to use Wikipedia as a source for their papers. He emailed a few of his friends and asked them to alter his Wiki page. I documented what I was writing as web archive files. I seem to have lost one of them, but below are three of the four changes.

Granted, it probably isn't all that humorous if you don't know Tim Braun. Even if you don't know him, hopefully they are at least mildly amusing. It made a clear point that it was indeed very easy to alter the pages with blatantly false information (note the "new messages" link that threatened us for "vandalizing" the page). Of course, it would have been just as easy to use mildly incorrect information, but it wouldn't have been as fun.

The following web archives should work fine on a Mac, but might need to be downloaded first on Windows, then opened in Safari. Don't worry, there is nothing wrong with the files (even though your browser may warn you so).

NOTE: Apparently only people on Macs can view "archive" files. Sorry Window users. If there is a Windows expert out there with a fix, let me know.

Version One
Version Two
Version Four

Sadly, version three appears to be lost forever.

If I had an Elephant

I've been taking time off after all of the art stuff from last week. Plus, tons of Brodericks are visiting from out of town (weren't around for Thanksgiving and won't be for Christmas, either...)

Back to art next week... until then, here is something I did as a wee bairn (w/ thanks to my Mom for saving it)

Art Week, part 4

The Lux Center for the Arts hosted my contribution to the Climate Crisis Coalition's "Global Day of Climate Action." Although only some of the events have been listed for the USA, you can map a handful of the US events here. This is the only event in Nebraska that I know of.

This is an update to the installation I did for the CCC last year as the Kyoto Protocol was set to expire. On December 6th (the 2008 Global Day of Climate Action), writers, artists, musicians, performers and activists will be holding events all over the world. The CCC has stated there will be hundreds of thousands of people in 92 other countries around the world participating in the global event.

Of course, the US was one of the few countries that did not sign on to the Kyoto Protocol because Bush refused to do so.

The quote is created with letters cast from red ice and placed on a bed of ice. The quote will melt over the span of a few days. In case it is too hard to read online, here is the text:

Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air, ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow, ice and rising global sea levels.

2007 Climate Change Report / Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

Since Bush is soon leaving office, however, and since he refused to sign the protocol, I decided to add him to the piece with a portrait created with ice and soil. Now a lame duck, this portrait will fade away as his presidency does. As he melts, his portrait will turn to mud.



It is really hard to draw with cups of soil and handfuls of ice. The portrait looks more like Kucinich that Bush, but oh, well.

I shot some video and I will try and post some of that soon. The video projection shows a rectangle of flames blazing over the ice. It looked better after the sun set. These images were taken while there was still some light out.

Special thanks to Stephanie Leach at the Lux Center for inviting me and helping cast the letters, and to Maranda Allbritten, Conner McKissack and Allie Feezell who helped me arrange the quote.

Also thanks to Ezra Small at the Climate Crisis Coalition.

44 days

Art Week, part 3

[click on image for detail]

The RNG Gallery at Dixie Quicks in downtown Omaha is holding a Reception and Holiday Art Show/Sale this Saturday, December 6th from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. I know I rarely ever put any of my work up for sale, but it is for a good cause (to help the RNG). I will have a handful of slightly older pieces hanging alongside many great local artists. I don't have a complete list of participants, but here are some of the artists:

Jill Rizzo, Joey Lynch, Wanda Ewing, Larry Ferguson, Sue Knight, Liz Veracruz, Renee Ladesma Hoover, Rob Gilmer, Marr Lowe, Bill Hoover, Peter Cales, Joseph Broghammer, Amy Nelson, and many others...

People will be able to take work down the moment they buy it, so if you want to see the work, you will want to come early. I will have cheaper work which might sell earlier, and expensive work, which might not sell at all, even at drastically reduced prices (you know, the economy, and all)

Saturday, Dec 6th
6:00 PM - 10 PM

RNG Gallery
1915 Leavenworth Street
[Dixie Quicks Entrance]
Omaha, NE 68102

Art Week, part 2

The Lux Center for the Arts will be hosting this year's installation that I am contributing to the Climate Crisis Coalition's "Global Day of Climate Action" (click on the Omaha flag). Neither the Lux nor the CCC site will post images before the event (since the piece won't exist until Friday), but the Lux might after the event . I'm not sure. I will post images here, however. The Lux is calling it a Happening, and it will take place:

Friday, December 5
5:00-7:00 pm.

Lux Center for the Arts
2601 N 48th Street
Lincoln, NE 68504

Art Week, part 1

This post has been backdated. I wanted to post it before the Lux announcement since Scott's opening was the day before. Oops - if you noticed they appeared in the wrong order, congrats! You win a prize

This is Scott Blake's work. I dig what he has been doing. The portraits are created from barcodes (from the backs of Bruce Lee's DVDs). If you scan parts of the portrait, videos play that correspond to the barcode. For example, scanning Bruce Lee presents various clips from his movies. Scanning Andy Warhol shows clips of soup being poured into a bowl (with the projector mounted above).