Mini MEme

Here are my answers to Rachel's Mini MEme. Enjoy.

A Piece of Art that you Love
Asian Field by Antony Gormley. Made up of 190 000 hand formed figures, I saw it in July at the Biennale where it filled one half of the upper floor of Wharf 3 at Walsh Bay. The figures surrounded old pieces of industrial machinery that remained in the gallery, adding to the sense of their scale and mass. Working against any sense of uniformity was the individual hand made shape of each figure and the natural differentiations in the shading of the clay, resulting in patterns of grey and red. Looking at them you get this uncanny sense they they are looking back.


I also appreciated that every one of the 350 Chinese villagers from Xiangshan in south China who actually made the work had their name and photograph included on the walls of an equally large adjacent room. So the labour involved in actually making (as opposed to conceiving) the work was acknowledged rather than being hidden or ignored.

A Line in a Song or Line of Poetry that Reaches Your Core

Isaiah 1:18

"Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool."

Specifically the turn of phrase - "Come now, let us reason together."

An Experience in Nature that was Really Special and/or Spiritual
I walked alone into the Blue Gum Forest in the Grose Valley early one morning. I was entranced by the size and smooth verticality of the trees ... and much touching and hugging ensued ... (that sounds a bit strange doesn't it?)

The Movie that Changed the Way you saw the World.
The Movie? The Girl in the Cafe moved me in a way that few other movies have. That and Dancer in the Dark.

A Piece of Music That Makes You Cry
I'm not sure if any piece of music has specifically - on its own - made me literally cry, so how about almost makes me cry? Midnight Oil's In the Valley.

Ugh

What has happened to me? I seem to be lacking a little bounce today ...


What has happened to my brain?

Today

Fun abounds!

The weather is warm; my flat leaf parsley has gone to seed.

Today I have washed socks, finished reading Joe Orton's What the Butler Saw, and watched Richard Brooks' 1962 movie of Tennessee Williams' Sweet Bird of Youth. (Advertised in 1962 as "Provocative Adult Entertainment" - my, my, times have changed.)

Any Paul Newman fans out there? Either of his acting, or his spaghetti sauces?

Just surfing

Just surfing about and came across the site of Christian performer Richard Beeston. On his Biography page it says: "Richard Beeston is a performer who connects with his audience through great music and honest lyrics." Now I don't want to cast doubt on that at all, but judging by his site's logo (see above), he also connects directly with his audience via probes attached to their shaven heads.

Maybe the guy who designed this logo will see this blog and make a comment? Who knows?

Blackstump '06

Hey hey, Blackstump is on again this year, although I'm not too sure about the connotations of the whole 'iGod' theme. Is there some underhand corporate sponsorship going on, or is it simply an explicit declaration of something we all already know - that Microsoft is the tool of the Evil One?*

HOWEVER, all that to one side, I need to do a little research for the Blackstump Comedy Debate. The topic is that 'Celebrities Make Great Role Models". What I want to know from anyone who happens past this blog and feels inclined is, which celebrities do you see as the BEST and WORST role models (either for you personally, or for the kiddies) and why?

Do let me know.

*I acknowledge that this might hurt Bill Gates' feelings somewhat, and yes, he does give very generously to charities, causes, etc.

Rumours...

Rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated! Over the week that has (almost) gone by since my previous post I have:

1 - Listened to Björk's SelmaSongs repetitively.

2 - Hosted a Short Film Festival in the Town Hall. (and yes, it did go reasonably well...)

3 - Been sad at the death of Steve Irwin (and then had to hide myself away from the intense maelstrom of hypocritical media fanfare about how mighty, heroic and all conquering he was! If one more person mentions the word 'larrikin' in my hearing - no matter what the context - I'm going to inflict some serious damage by inserting my cricket bat up their left nostril sideways.)

4 - Read Creating Frames: Contemporary Indigenous Theatre by Maryrose Casey.

5 - Delivered a lecture entitled 'Narrative and Performance Segmentation' and resisted the intense desire to play for laughs (Not appropriate).

6 - Watched as my dear wife desperately sifts through mountains of year ten Romeo & Juliet assignments.

7 - Fallen asleep on the couch (twice).

8 - Had a conversation with a Grey Currawong (he was the strong silent type).

9 - Had two cups of chai.

10 - Held one conversation with myself during a tutorial and four while in the shower.

11 - Opened a bank account.

12 - Marvelled at the beauty of the morning sun (three times).

13 - Sat beneath the casuarinas on the banks of the Georges River and listened to the wind.

14 - Realised that there is a scrapbooking shop in Padstow Heights.

15 - Recieved two phonecalls from friends wanting costumes (one wanted to look medieval, the other like Jesus - hey, the same sack suited both!)

Sunday Bloody Sunday

So I found this via someone else's blog, but it's worth sharing!