[untitled]

Richard Long
Carrara Line
1985
Guggenheim Museum

Painted Horses

This is a short film that a couple of friends helped to make as part of The 48 Hour Film Project in Baltimore, MD. As the name implies, they had 48 hours to write, film, score and edit the film. For those not familiar with the film-making process, this is an extraordinary feat. And the end result is well-worth the time it will take you to watch it. UPDATE: The film won two awards -- it tied for Best Cinamatography, as well as Production Design. It's a tale of two sisters who've come home to attend the presentation of a special award to their father. In a forced attempt to re-connect with each other and their childhood, they discover something important about themselves...and each other. The end result is a natural and mutual respect for the other, to which no words are necessary. It reminds me that it's always the things that come naturally in life that are the most rewarding to one's soul. In fact, "forcing" naturally implies a lack of respect for the other. Are you forcing anything in your life? Maybe it's time to reconsider your efforts. Step into the shoes of another, examine the situation from their point of view and then extend them the compassion that you'd expect to recieve.

You don't know what you've got...

...till it's gone.

So one of the great things I've always appreciated about my office is that the common walls are lined with artwork. Monet's, Picasso's, O'Keeffe's and Miro's, to name a few. Abstracts, landscapes, and stills. From impressionists to realists. It's truly a mini art gallery.

So today I walk in and they're all gone! Nothing but dirty white walls and empty picture-hangers. So stark. So uninviting. I truly feel empty. I miss them. The color they added. The inspiration they supplied. The fresh air they breathed.

Turns out the maintenance guys are painting next week, so there's no need to despair; as the artwork will certainly re-appear against freshly painted walls of white that should only serve to draw out the beauty of each piece of work even more so than before.

So what's my point? Why am I writing this? Well first, to point out the necessity of art in our lives. But more importantly, to encourage you to buy some artwork to fill the blank spaces on your walls (and in your heart). Or better yet, create your own.

Everyone's Starting Over...

The Diggs - Everyone's Starting Over [Link to MP3]

So this is my favorite song of the summer.

And it seems especially fitting for a day like today.

True Love Waits

I'll drown my beliefs
To have you be in peace
I'll dress like your niece
To wash your swollen feet

Just don't leave, don't leave

I'm not living
I'm just killing time
Your tiny hands
Your crazy kitten smile

Just don't leave, don't leave

And true love waits
In haunted attics
And true love lives
On lollipops and crisps

Just lonely, lonely...
Just lonely, longing...

Radiohead, True Love Waits

Lyrics by Thom Yorke

Orange and Yellow

Mark Rothko

Orange and Yellow (1956)

Oil on Canvas

"I’m not an abstractionist. I’m not interested in the relationship of color or form or anything else. I’m interested only in expressing basic human emotions: tragedy, ecstasy, doom, and so on. The fact that people break down and cry when confronted with my pictures shows that I can communicate those basic human emotions...the people who weep before my pictures are having the same religious experience I had when painting them. And if you say you are moved only by their color relationships then you miss the point." ~Mark Rothko (1903-1970)