dan collier » art

Better dead than red!

dan — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 02:46:44 +0000

I always liked songs with parentheses in the title

dan — Fri, 16 May 2008 14:24:57 +0000

Vanity Fair has an article about Bob Dylan’s XM radio show. The article is basically a list of themes, one-liners, and other Bob-isms. The comments contain additional noteworthy on-air Bob.

I particularly like the following:

What do you do if you miss your mother in law? reload and try again.

(Puss o kram, Vivi, my dear svärmor)

Lipstick traces on cigarettes can get you in trouble or remind you of the wonders of the night before.

I once had a friend who said liquor will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no liquor.

I leave you with the words of Benjamin Franklin. “He that is of the opinion money will do everything may well be suspected of doing everything for money.” Thank you, Ben. Peace out.

A son’s familiar journey

dan — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:50:51 +0000

Jeff Jacoby, a Boston Globe op-ed columnist whose articles I read only when I’m prepared to disagree with nearly every opinion expressed, wrote an excellent opinion piece in today’s Globe titled “A son’s familiar journey” (update: the original article is behind a pay-wall but is available for free elsewhere). Like the author, I’m the father of an eleven year old and I thought he captured pride and frustration very well. After enjoying the article, true to form, I questioned Jacoby’s conclusions.

I’m also proud of my 5 year old son, who drew these picture I have to show off.

And he drew this picture especially for Cuz-cuz.

2008 Pulitzer Prizes

dan — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 02:25:54 +0000

The 2008 Pulitzer Prizes have been announced. Of note, the article in the Washington Post about violin virtuoso Joshua Bell busking in the Washington D.C. Metro station was very good, and won the award for Feature Writing. The Washington Post also won the International Reporting award for a disturbing series about modern day mercenaries. This article about Blackwater USA was part of the series.

Bob Dylan was given a Special Citation.

And among the winning Editorial Cartoons, was this:

I posted about last year’s Pulitzer Prize winners here.

yes we can

dan — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 17:09:00 +0000

will.i.am from the Black Eyed Peas wrote and produced the yes we can song after being inspired by Barack Obama’s speech the night he finished second in New Hampshire. Jesse Dylan, Bob Dylan’s oldest son, directed the video. will.i.am also wrote what amounts to liner notes explaining his rationale for the song:

[....]
no one on this planet is truly experienced to handle the obstacles we face today…
Terror, fear, lies, agendas, politics, money, all the above…
It’s all scary…

Martin Luther King didn’t have experience to lead…
Kennedy didn’t have experience to lead…
Susan B. Anthony…
Nelson Mandella…
Rosa Parks…
Gandhi…
Anne Frank…
and everyone else who has had a hand in molding the freedoms we have and take for granted today…

no one truly has experience to deal with the world today…

they just need “desire, strength, courage ability, and passion” to change…
and to stand for something even when people say it’s not possible…

America would not be here “today” if we didn’t stand and fight for
change “yesterday”…
Everything we have as a “people” is because of the “people” who fought for
change…
and whoever is the President has to realize we have a lot of changing to do

I’m not trying to convince people to see things how i do…
I produced this song to share my new found inspiration and how I’ve been moved…
I hope this song will make you feel…
love…
and think…
and be inspired just like the speech inspired me…

that’s all…

links

dan — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:20:00 +0000

I’m running out the door on my way to Jackson Hole, Wyoming for five days. If you have any ideas for what to do there, send me an email or leave a comment. Before I leave, I wanted to post the following link that I think everyone should read.

Ramak Fazel’s Amerika profiled in the New York Times – Ramak Fazel is an Iranian born, American raised US citizen that attempted to visit the capitol of all 50 states. Midway through his travels, he noticed he was on a watch list. Who keeps the list, why he was on it, and how one gets off are all unclear.

As someone that has enjoyed the freedom to sleep in a van in many WalMart parking lots in quite a few state capitols and even more remote stretches of American highway, I find the entire story of what is happening to Fazel to be very important. The question that prompted Fazel’s trip seems more uncertain than ever: What does it mean to be American?

On a happier note, check out Jennifer Maestre very cool pencil sculptures.

links

dan — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 06:56:00 +0000

Mobile Phone Photo Contest – Boston.com had a mobile phone photo contest. The winner is pretty good, but I think i liked Boston at night best. Here is the best photo I’ve taken on a mobile phone.

Cagle Cartoons is an editorial cartoon syndicator. They represent cartoonists in the US and internationally, and they take the helpful step of labeling cartoons “Con” or “Lib” (making it easier to ignore the liberals because earnestness is not funny). Here is a decent Hillary Clinton cartoon. A British cartoonist sums up the dollar woes, and a Swede comments on the Russian elections.

None of the Above – Malcolm Gladwell, the bi-racial author and writer for The New Yorker magazine, wrote an interesting article about genetics and IQ. The topic is back in the news with the recent disparaging and ironic comments about Africans by James Watson, co-discover of DNA. The immutable nature of IQ lost credibility with a recent study suggesting human evolution is speeding up.

I took an IQ test in 6th grade, I was 13 years old, and I found the results a couple years ago. I think it was WISC III, but it might have been WISC II. I did well, but after reading Gladwell’s article, I realize I might have done well on an outdated test. I remember the test clearly, but my overwhelming memory of the event was walking out of the almost two hour long test mentally exhausted and thinking “They think they know something about me from that?”.

Creative Commons China Photo Contest

dan — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 05:35:00 +0000

Knowledge Sharing Photographic Competition – Creative Commons China held a photo contest and the results are worth seeing. There were three categories: Society, Nature, and Portraits. I linked to translated pages, the original are here and may load faster. Via Joi Ito, who also shares this story concerning his adoptive godfather Timothy Leary.

If I had to pick one photo as the best, Howling winds before the storm is my favorite.

links

dan — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 21:21:00 +0000

Venice Art Biennial 2007 photos – Lots of nice photos. These are two of my favorite collections.

Name the 49 Countries in Europe – I’ll give you two that don’t show up on the map: Liechtenstein and Vatican City. Also, name the 50 US states.

Map of an Operating System – A representation of the layered approach of the OSI Model as implemented in the Linux kernel. This is a case of beauty in the details.

Rock Man

dan — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 02:44:00 +0000

A carving displayed among other more modest ruins in an old church courtyard in downtown Braga, Portugal.
Taken July 6, 2007 1:21 PM.