Hearts and Other Horrors

I found this through a link that Kirsten Miller provided on how to make "canned monstrosities", and since then it's become my favourite video on youtube. Before you freak out, the "heart" is actually made out of gelatin with corn syrup and grenadine serving as "blood". Here's a direct link.



I also recently discovered what is called a Mini Munny at the Urban Outfitters in San Fransisco. Apparently they've been around for awhile. Basically they are little monkey shaped figurines which you can sculpt, write, or draw on. The website even has a how-to/tip page for them. Even a few artists such as Tara McPherson have designed some which you can see here.

Germany's Upside Down House

This house was just built in Trassenheide, Germany as part of a project called The World Upside Down. The makers say it was "inspired by a range of similar buildings in Spain and America, in which the exterior of the house is upside-down, but not the interior". Visitors report that they feel dizzy and sick after just a few minutes, although the house is perfectly safe. You can read and see more here and here. If you ask me it reminds me of when that house squashed The Witch.

Kudos to Monica for the heads up!

Til' Death Do Us Part

Best known for her designs of sad-eyed girls from the Depression Era, Angelique Houtkamp has recently published an art book titled Tattoo Darling. In her own words her "imagery mixed with mythological dreams, antropomorphed critters, nautical iconography and haunting Hollywood romance". Even if you're not interested in getting a tatoo her site is worth a visit.

The Gold Bug

Named after the famous short story by Edgar Allen Poe, and located in Old Town Pasadena it rather reminds me of The Evolution Store in New York, albeit there is much more of a focus on art. Every time I pass by the displays are always different. It is a true mecca of the macabre. From heart shaped rings with a red velvet center and protruding golden arrows to ostrich feathers and bird bones, just about anything can be found here. You can find their address at their website and more information can be found here.

Bastille Day

Vive la Revolution!

Today is a French national Holiday commemorating the Fete de la Federation and the storming of the Bastille. Its one of my favorite holidays, not only because of the rich history, but also because of the wonderful fireworks performance that is held behind the Eiffel Tower.

Coincidentally, I happen to be reading a book that concerns the time period. It is called The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner. I must say I loved the American cover just as much as the original for its wit.

Death To The Normals!

Saw this near Hollywood and Vine.

Gotta Love It!

July 8th

Since today is my birthday I decided to post a list of historic events that have taken place on this date, as well as famous people who were born and died on this date.

1099 - First Crusade: 15,000 starving Christian soldiers march in religious procession around Jerusalem as its Muslim defenders look on.
1497 - Vasco da Gama sets sail on first direct European voyage to India.
1663 - Following restoration of the English monarchy, a new charter was issued to the American colony of Rhode Island. It guaranteed religious freedom regardless of 'differences in opinion in matters of religion.'
1709 - Great Northern War: Battle of Poltava: Peter I of Russia defeats Charles XII of Sweden at Poltava thus effectively ending Sweden's role as a major power in Europe.
1776 - The Declaration of Independence was read aloud in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1835 - Liberty Bell cracks (again)
1889 - The first issue of the Wall Street Journal is published.
1892 - St. John's, Newfoundland was devastated in the Great Fire of 1892.
1898 - The shooting death of crime boss Soapy Smith releases Skagway, Alaska from his iron grip.
1932 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average reaches its lowest level of the Great Depression, bottoming out at 41.22.
1947 - Reports are broadcast that a UFO has crash landed in Roswell, New Mexico.
1948 - The Moscow Conference convened to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the independence of the Russian Orthodox Church from control of the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople.
1999 - Allen Lee Davis is executed- the last use of the electric chair for capital punishment in Florida.

Born:
1528 - Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy (d. 1580)
1545 - Don Carlos of Spain (d. 1568)
1593 - Artemisia Gentileschi, Italian painter (d. 1653)
1621 - Jean de la Fontaine, French writer (d. 1695)
1792 - Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen, queen of Bavaria (d. 1854)
1830 - Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna of Altenburg (d. 1911)
1836 - Joseph Chamberlain, British politician (d. 1914)
1838 - Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin, German inventor (d. 1917)
1839 - John D. Rockefeller, American businessman (d. 1937)
1908 - Louis Jordan, American saxophonist (d. 1975)
1914 - Billy Eckstine, American jazz singer (d. 1993)
1924 - Johnnie Johnson, American blues musician (d. 2005)
1935 - Steve Lawrence, American entertainer and singer
1944 - Jeffrey Tambor, American actor
1949 - Wolfgang Puck, Austrian-born celebrity chef
1951 - Anjelica Huston, American actress
1958 - Kevin Bacon, American actor
1959 - Robert Knepper, American actor
1961 - Toby Keith, American singer
1961 - Andrew Fletcher, English musician (Depeche Mode)
1968 - Billy Crudup, American actor
1970 - Beck, American singer
1977 - Milo Ventimiglia, American actor
1982 - Joshua Alba, American actor
1982 - Sophia Bush, American actress
1985 - Jamie Cook, British musician (Arctic Monkeys)

Died:
810 - Pepin, King of Italy, son of Charlemagne (b. 773)
975 - King Edgar of England
1695 - Christiaan Huygens, Dutch scientist, son of Constantijn Huygens (b. 1629)
1721 - Elihu Yale, American benefactor and namesake of Yale University (b. 1649)
1822 - Percy Bysshe Shelley, English poet (b. 1792)
1850 - Prince Adolphus, 1st Duke of Cambridge (b. 1774)
1859 - King Oscar I of Sweden and Norway (b. 1799)
1898 - Soapy Smith, American con artist (b. 1860)
1905 - Walter Kittredge, American musician (b. 1834)
1913 - Louis Hémon, French-born writer (b. 1880)
1917 - Tom Thomson, Canadian painter (b. 1877)
1933 - Anthony Hope, British author (b. 1863)
1943 - Jean Moulin, French Resistance leader (b. 1899))
1967 - Vivien Leigh, English actress (b. 1913)
1971 - Charlie Shavers, American jazz trumpet player (b. 1920)
1981 - Wild Bill Hallahan, American baseball player (b. 1902)
1990 - Howard Duff, American actor, uncle of Hillary Duff (b. 1913)
1994 - Christian-Jaque, French film director and screenwriter (b. 1904)
1999 - Pete Conrad, American astronaut, third man to walk on the moon (b. 1930)
2002 - Ward Kimball, American animator -created the Mad Hatter and Cheshire Cat for Disney among others (b. 1914)
2006 - June Allyson, American actress (b. 1917)

It is the Saints Day of Elizabeth , queen consort of Portugal. Coincidentally she had a daughter named Constance, a mother named Constantia, and a great-great grandmother also named Constance who appeared in Dante's Paradiso.

Mark Ryden

I'm sure many of you know about this artist by now as he recently held an exhibit at the Pasadena Museum of California Art (and the flyers were hung just about everywhere in L.A), however, i couldn't resist. His exhibit was called Wondertoonel and you can find many of his paintings there. The rest can be found at his website www.markryden.com.

Many of his paintings are reminiscent of Heironymous Bosch and Sir John Tenniel. As one critic put it "His works recall a parallel universe of 1950s Golden Books and the whimsy of Lewis Carroll".

I also found it interesting that as a wedding gift he even presented Jessicka and Christian Hejnal of Scarling with a miniature portrait of the couple that was a faithful adaptation of Jan Van Eyck's "Arnolfini Portrait" which was later reproduced on the invitations, and that his work appears in the Christina Ricci film Penelope.

Can you say TRANSFORMERS??

How about HOLY SHIT

Story here.


Just a thought... We all know cars age -some better than others- but do they wrinkle now as well???

Pig Candy

The grass rubs our feet as we run, sticky and sweet. The heady scent of St. Augustine fills us, makes us giggle. Some of us wear shoes, some don't. I suppose we appear a motely group; there's Cindy with her sweet pink, knee length dress, carefully brushed hair and perfect heels looking every inch the prep; Robert in his mean streak leathers and boots and everyone else in between, laughing and shouting. Though, I suppose it doesn't much differ from what you'd expect to see in a gaggle of teens. All different, all the same. Anna runs beside me. Like me her hair is loose and wild, well fitting dress, though faded, haphazardly slung on, no make up. We are coming to the fences now, where the cars are parked and the movies play. We all climb up the rattling metal, some more easily than others. As always Ben has to reach up and help Peg jump down. Once over the crowd disperses, and I swerve right going up a few cars to the turquoise chevy silently waiting for me. I wriggle in through the window and my dress hikes up against the soft leather as I slide in. There you are, he says. I was wondering if you'd ever get here. Sure... I think. I'm always here 7:30 on the dot. He begins to kiss me in his usual fashion, first the ear then down to the jaw. I try to concentrate on the film playing in front of us before he gets to my lips. My concentration has definitely improved with time. His kissing is only a minor distraction now, and despite missing a few scenes every now and then I can pretty much follow the story line. I vaguely feel embarrassed. What must I look like to the other couples with my all too perfect boyfriend all over me, and me very visibly ignoring it all? The other girls used to say I took him for granted. And I used to listen and feel all rotten inside. I even had the gall to talk to Mr. Assenworth about it once, it bothered me so. Now I dont pay any attention to them. In fact they may even stil be saying those thing. Hmph. The scene changes to something lighter and Johnnie-O eases up on my face a little. I watch Cary Grant kiss that female actress, whose name I'll never remember. Tell her how much he loves her. Johnnie says that sometimes. I wonder if I should dump him, but i quickly reject the idea. Too quickly. He's sweet, and kind and perfect. The sort it would be easy to spend eternity with...Right?

Morning brings ice and crystal dew on green fingers, rustling slightly. We find ourselves in the park -Lover's Lane, or so they old stories said- strewn about on jackets and blankets like a pretty girl's rejected clothing. Murmurs and whispers fly around before we lazily rouse ourselves fully and begin the process of departure. There are shouts and peals of laughter here and there, but the gentle hush of morning has silenced us some and we mostly speak in whispers. We leave in our usual group, back tracking the way we came, through the field, across the old lot, over the ditch and fence to the silent houses. They're washed out now. No longer the inviting sentries of last evening. Now they have more in common with graves rather than homes. One of us, Robert I think, starts singing one of the old songs and soon the whole lot of us are screeching out the words.

Pretty Polynesian baby, I remember the night, when we walked on the sands of Waikiki, and I held you oh so tight...

Johnnie swings my arm in his and for a moment it's ecstasy. There's only this cotton candy sky, crystal breeze, and the sweet tune of memories better forgotten.

---

Running away from the cookie cutter houses with their warm lights glowing softly against the night. Its a certain safety we hardly take comfort it. The way you might keep a stuffed animal by your bedside every night though you seldom touch it anymore.

Devout Dolls

These morbidly interesting little creations are the work of Seattle based Sara Lanzillotta. She specializes in two headed headed dolls and animals, but is willing to do custom work. Many of her dolls have been featured in exhibits along the west coast and you can find some in select stores. My personal favorite is her Snow White. Her website is www.devoutdolls.com and you can find her Myspace here.

Mood Swings Anyone?

I dont really agree with any of the issues this paper runs but i admit that this is rather cool.

The Blue People of Troublesome Creek

On the news last week they ran a story about a man whose skin turned blue. Due to the overwhelming noise going on in the kitchen at the time I could not here the story properly nor could I find the article (I think the station was either MSNBC or CNN). Either way I did find this interesting story about a family that is known for inheriting the color due to intermarriage. The disorder is called methemoglobinemia which you can read more about here. There is also a brief article concerning the family here.