Brain Eno's 77 Million Paintings

Photo credit: Brian Eno/lumenlondon.com via LA Times blog

Brian Eno's in town!!!!

It's Moogfest, so there's a lot of synthpop, electronic, krautrock bands playing in Asheville this weekend, and this year Moogfest has expanded its reach by adding an audio visual "act" to the lineup. Brain Eno's 77 Million Paintings, a constantly evolving environment of sound and light based on generative software, will be on display at the YMI through the month of November.

If you have a Moog pass you can go check out the installation all weekend. If you don't, the exhibit opens to the public on Wednesday November 2. Tickets will be $10 and can be purchased at the door.

On Saturday October 29, Eno will give an illustrated lecture at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium at 2pm. Moogers get first bids on seats, and then the general public is allowed admittance for $35. (That's about 7 drinks at Broadways, or a pretty fun dining experience for one at Zambras)

Anyway, the point of this post is to urge you all to get to the YMI during the month of November to experience this "visual music" phenomenon. Allow yourself plenty of time to become fully immersed. It's so hypnotic you might have a hard time leaving.

Here's a description of 77 Million Paintings off the Moogfest website:

http://moogfest.com/brian-eno/77-million-paintings/

At a press conference Thursday October 28, Eno had some enlightening things to say about art and his creative approach. Here are some of my favorites:

(These may not be verbatim because I was writing not recording.)

"I wanted to see where the threshold of eventlessness lies."

"I really like art when it's magic. I don't like it when it's just clever."

"With all the images [in the 77 Million Paintings software banks,] there is something like 100 million cubed [possibilities.] "What you see today you won't see tomorrow. The piece you just really loved will never happen again."

"I'm anti occult in a certain way " (when asked about the spiritualist overtones in his work,) "but very pro playing with your own timing devices."

"We've dignified the act of control, but we have to learn how to surrender to things. If you can't shape them you have to learn to be a part of them."

"We consider it a huge achievement to control nature. It's also a huge achievement to surrender to nature."

"Graffiti is very much like calligraphy."

"I see myself as a gardener more than an architect. I plant some seeds, watch them come up [and then decide whether I like what's happened and how I want to alter them.]

"[I commend them because] it's like trying to reproduce a Jackson Pollack painting" (On Bang on a Can's cover of Eno's Music For Airports.)

"I have strong opinions." (when asked what makes him a good record producer.)

On art mentors in art school: "What mattered is that they had strong opinions, because that forced you to take a stance in relation to their opinions -- [whether you agreed with what they said or not.]"

Podcast of the press conference recorded by Alli Marshall for the MountainXpress: part one, part two

www.lumenlondon.com for more Eno stuff.

{Pre}Happening on Walnut Street

On the evening of March 12th, one block of Walnut Street in downtown Asheville was closed to traffic in order to accommodate {Pre}Happening a multi media event sponsored by the Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center and Asheville's Media Arts Project.

Here Mark Koven and Gene Felice project video onto the BB&T building. The bus they are sitting on is called Easel Rider Mobile Arts Lab. Says Koven, "It is a project that was the vision of Diane Ruggerio, city superintendent. I have been helping her and her team put it together and we were really excited about its debut. It will be showcased again on April 9th during the Re Happening and again during the Hatch festival."

Video projections by Scott Furr

Performance by Claire Elizabeth Barratt

LED throwies bulletin created by participating audience members. (Wing structure built by Mark Koven.)

Sound by Elisa Faires and Chandra Shukla

The event was part of a series to promote April 9th's {RE}Happening which is set to take place at the historic grounds of the main campus of Black Mountain College. As stated on the website: "{Re}Happening balances the history, tradition and experience of BMCM+AC with the forward thinking and media-based collective of artists that define the MAP."

www.rehappening.com

themap.org

www.blackmountaincollege.org

Dance is the New Visual Art

DANCE IS THE NEW VISUAL ART
A video installation by Claire Elizabeth Barratt

OPENING RECEPTION
Saturday, January 8th

7pm – 10pm
FLOOD GALLERY
Phil Mechanic Building on Roberts Street
RiverArts District – Asheville NC

An installation of multiple videos on the subject of dance and movement.

Videos are all created by Cilla Vee Life Arts director Claire Elizabeth Barratt in collaboration with numerous artists from a variety of disciplines.

Collaborators include:
Kimathi Moore – Asheville NC – composer
Charles Elmer – Asheville NC – videographer
Michael Folliet – Asheville NC – videographer
Dr T – Boston MA – VJ video artist
Walter Wright – Lowell MA – sound artist
Randy F Simon – NYC / Jamaica – videographer
Tatsuya Nakatani – Easton PA / Japan – sound artist
Natasha Royka – Ottawa ON – dance videographer

The installation incorporates sculptural forms created of paper, fabric & wire that serve not only as screens for the videos, but also as devices to shape the space. Sound installation by acousmatic composer Dr. Rick Nance is produced by materials used for the installation.

Claire Elizabeth Barratt is a trained dancer, but she prefers to call herself a “motion sculptor.“ It’s a term she came up with while working as a figure model in New York City art schools for five years starting in 2002. Shifting from one pose to the other, she discovered that the contemplative movement was similar to dance. “Organically, it just started happening in my performances,” she says.
Read more: Motion Pictures; Verve Magazine Jan. 2011.

Luca Dipierro

Artistic violence sometimes reveals is true power in its ability to stand the test of time. A sensationalized video of gore and explosions, for example, may shock viewers one day, but after a few years it runs the risk of appearing campy. Consider, for a moment, how the sweetly disturbing illustrations of Edward Gorey or the videos of The Brothers Quay have been able to quietly provoke viewers long after their creation.

Such is the case with artist Luca Dipierro, whose paintings and video art are enchanting and macabre all at once. Aesthetically reminiscent of Mexican Day of the Dead Folk Art, antique circus posters and old comic books, Dipierro's work quietly infiltrates the mind through the disarming characterization of nuns, sailors, acrobats, hanged creatures, caskets and detached limbs. "The art I am interested in is one that is little, but adventurous," he says.

To produce his animations, Dipierro first creates paper characters using just acrylic paint and markers. Each paper cut element is rather small — no bigger than 4 or 5 inches, but often Dipierro must create multiples of something to establish movement in his work. Blood emanating from a hand in one animation required 80 red paper drops. "Some animators would just make a loop out of five or 10 drops," he says. "Instead, I cut the 80 drops. On a subliminal level, people understand that they're all different."

Dipierro plans to screen his videos in Asheville later this year. For now, his paintings are on display at Hip Replacements in downtown Asheville. DVDs of his videos are also available for purchase, and they are a must-see. The enlargement of his images through video adds dimension to the drawings, as does the haunting music/narration that accompany each vignette. Paper fibers, cut edges, brush strokes and shadows are more apparent at this scale than with the naked eye. "Animations are art plus time," says Dipierro, "it's not just telling a story — it's a painting that moves."

Read the full version of "Animating the macabre through paper and paint." written by Ursula Gullow for Mountain Xpress 05/05/2010

Check out Dipierro's stop animation videos and visual art through his website:
lucadipierro.com

His visual art is currently on display at Hip Replacements in Downtown Asheville.

Soundclash: It's electric

SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE ORANGEPEEL!!!!! $10

I'm not sure how many people in Asheville are aware that there is actually a thriving scene of musicians (nerds?) who compose really amazing music on their laptops and loop machines. This Saturday night several of the finest electronic musicians our humble town has to offer will be appearing at the Orangepeel. Some of these musicians (Auracene, J.R.R. Fool Killer, Kimathir) have composed soundtracks for movies or have appeared on national bestselling cds (Auracene.) Others have toured internationally (DoomRibbons) or received worldwide notoriety for their musical accomplishments (sys-hex, pomme de terre, IO)

Purists out there often scoff at the idea of making music on computers, but like any instrument, it takes time and inspiration to produce complex soundscapes via digital software. I've heard arguments that electronic musicians are simply allowing the software to make the music, but thats like saying that filmmakers allow the camera to dictate their cinematography or editing. The computer or electronic device is simply another instrument and how the musician handles it is where the artistry lies. 

Not only does this show promise to be a diverse sonic experience, but visuals will be provided by infamous VJ The Moon Foetus Proceeds from the show will go towards the brand-spanking new local radio station Asheville FM.

Here's some links to quell your anticipation:

Auracene

Music to Chaos in Berlin trailer by pomme de terre

Sys-Hex

DoomRibbons

A little chat with Jaye Bartell

Some of Jaye's stuff.

Pilgrim plays this friday evening at The Bebe Theatre in conjunction with John Crutchfeld's play "Songs of Robert."
If you miss this performance do not fret because Pilgrim will also be playing at Bobo's Saturday night.
Jaye Bartell is Pilgrim. With his haunting lyrics and simple melodies he is one of my favorite singer/songwriters -- Watching Pilgrim play live is always a captivating experience - Not just for his stance and delivery, but for the revolving musicians that accompany him and evolve the music.
Below is an interview I recently conducted with Bartell via chat on the internet.
Check out his music at myspace.com/pilgrimusic
You can download his entire album "Feeling Better Pilgrim" here
-------------------

me: Okay I got them.

I'm thinking I should...interview you!

for the blog, man.

Jaye: yeah!

11:56 AM

let's

me: For reelz!

Jaye: yeah, let's do it

give it a try

me: Right noW??

Jaye: I don't think I can

ask me a question though

me: okay.

hold on.

11:57 AM

Jaye: or type questions, I'll print it, and answer on my break

me: which comes first, the lyric or the melody?

11:58 AM

How has your experience as a poet effected the music?

11:59 AM

(help me out here.)

just talk about stuff...

Jaye: hold on

me: whatever you think you want to have expressed

Jaye: The melody typically begins the writing process. A lyrical phrase is then developed from a phonetic origin. It could be that there are semantic qualities to certain melodies, but the enduring interest is speech, or lyric speech, melodic speech. Robert Kocik (Check sp.)in NY has done some intriguing work on the semantic value of sounds, of phonemes specifically--the basic sonic aspects of speech. I'd like to claim that I operate with those concepts in mind, because they have more weight perhaps than matching "don't leave me" to "do re me," but I can only do so much.

12:06 PM

me: hee hee

tell me more!

12:07 PM

Tell me more about your instrumentation choices with Pilgrim

12:11 PM

Jaye: In poetry, I went for the musicality in language, with a major interest in rhythm. The old "machine made of words," making it move, that the writing would comprise, would be, not portray, an act of speech. Since music is necessarily active, and so temporal (at least in the way I'm currently doing it), I find that I'm focusing less on formal elements, although movement and vitality will always be important. With respect to both activities, and any other that may come along, all I require is that the process engages, that the materials respond to efforts, to ideas, impulses, and "the need to get said what must be said."

12:14 PM

me: Can you please tell me about your musical training/education..formal or otherwise.

12:15 PM

please include aesthetic/artistic inspirations etc

12:16 PM

Jaye: I can't say that I have been able to make any choices with instruments at this point. I want to play with an orchestra. The Asheville Symphony, I don't care. I'm doing as much as possible with what comes readily to hand. There are over 80 instruments in an orchestra, yet they all work subtly together, with swells and rises from time to time. I resist the muddle because my mind is so muddled to begin with. All that said, I'll just as happily play alone and pursue that kind of fullness with presence alone, of voice and whatever else.

12:19 PM

me: What kind of things do you like to surround yourself with?

What do you avoid and why?

12:20 PM

Jaye: Influences vary greatly, and I'm afraid that I can't admit them without lying to make myself seem more interesting. You should flip through my records and make a small list (But don’t mention Lou Reed or Leonard Cohen because that’s too obvious.)

12:21 PM

writers are always of interest, even with writing music.

12:22 PM

Creeley, Camus, Olson.

etc.

me:okay.

hold on..

12:23 PM

me: I need to do some stuff.. I will be back

12:25 PM

Jaye: R. Bresson wrote in "Notes on the cinematographer" to "avoid paroxysm of emotion, because tantrums of any sort are all the same." I like that.

me: whats a paroxysm?

12:26 PM

What's wrong with having tantrums be the same?

12:27 PM

Jaye: They have no dimension

Why scream in horror if it's the same as screaming in pain?

Why yell when it's the same as laughing?

12:28 PM

me: How is it the same?

I know I'm being too literal, but the perspective could be that the subtleties are just as important.

Jaye: Anybody can do them

12:29 PM

me: because everybody feels them

Jaye: at any time

so why communicate what is so common as to be granted?

12:30 PM

me: because it's a matter of empathy?

12:31 PM

Jaye: but what's the value in that?

me: I need to read the thing, but I think that the nuances of each tantrum is important

Jaye: In many ways, there is no nuance

me: because its how we relate to each other.

Jaye: I'm talking about in art here

12:32 PM

not an argument, or at the kitchen table

in film, music, poetry

me: what is the alternative?

Jaye: Not seeming to be something

Not indicating or dramatizing

12:33 PM

me: but everyone's definitions of those words are different

12:34 PM

Jaye: sure

12:35 PM

I give up

me: I mean, imagine if Martha Stewart threw a tantrum? an artistic tantrum? how awesome would that be, but then again, who's to say she's not doing that right now with her self referential magazine and cooking show.

maybe it's all a tantrum

like everyone's art, all the time is a tantrum of sorts

Jaye: The intensity to your response is the same intensity of response given by everybody else when they respond intensely

12:36 PM

As such, I can dismiss it as "intense"

Or folk music.

me: like whatever, take a chill pill man.

12:39 PM

Jaye: You're right about celebrity tantrums, blow-ups and outs. I think daily of Bill O'Reilly screaming "fucking thing sucks" at the camera back when he had an anchorman job and haircut. It was much better than French film.

12:40 PM

Better Ventures brings it on

This Thursday night local events organizing group, Better Ventures, is bringing on ELECTRO:ODYSSEY at the Emerald Lounge on Lexington Avenue in Downtown Asheville.
This is a touring three-day regional event of electronic music innovation. "From the dopest low-end bass dubstep to the glitchiest hip-hop tabla funk to the deepest house you've heard in years, this line-up will open new sonic dimensions in your mind."
Electro:Odyssey will also be happening on Friday in Charlotte NC, and Saturday in Charleston SC.
Better Ventures aims to promote artistic growth through the exchange of local and international talents.
Visit www.betterventures.net for more information.

Sewing the Muse: Josephine Foster

Brooke Priddy and Josephine Foster

I am currently working on an episode of Art Seen Asheville in the studios of URTV called "Sewing the Muse" which features the work and collaborative projects of local dressmaker, Brooke Priddy. In addition to Brooke I have interviewed a bevy of local talent who have collaborated with Brooke in some form. I will be posting blogs over the upcoming days about the people featured in the show and the wonderful talents associated with this project.

Cover Art for Hazel Eyes I Will Lead You

Josephine Foster has graciously allowed me the use of her music as soundtrack for "Sewing the Muse." A friend to Brooke Priddy, Foster has performed locally in Priddy's West Asheville shop, Ship to Shore. My introduction to Brooke and Josephine was a collaborative performance where Brooke cut and hemmed a gown upon the lovely Josephine while she majestically performed her indescribably haunting music. A self-proclaimed "opera school dropout" Foster uses traditional instruments like guitar, bells, harp, ukulele, dulcimer, kazoo and sitar to blur the definitions of folk and experimental music. Her sinewy voice weaves through her compositions as its own instrument akin to a musical saw. That Josephine Foster performed wedding and funeral songs at age 15 is no surprise giving that her music harkens celebration and melancholia simultaneously.
This Coming Gladness is her most recent cd release.

Two cool things in one night!

Tonight at 8:00 at the Firestorm Cafe,The Iron Ladies will be screened as an event to benefit Asheville's Tranzmission Prison Books Program. The Iron Ladies is a Thai comedy based on a true story about a men's volleyball team whose players are mostly transvestites, transsexuals and homosexuals. I haven't seen it, but it looks like it's gonna be campy as hell and awesome. Proceeds from tonight's movie will go towards the Asheville Tranzmission's Prison Books Program. You are encouraged to donate money and books that are LesbianGayBiTranny/Queer specific or are written by queer or tranny authors, or that pertain to gay men. The books will be sent to prisoners around the US who have requested them. Tranzmission serves to promote awareness and advocacy around gender issues, and they often throw fabulous fundraising events which is why I love them so much. More info about Tranzmission can be found here.
After the movie, check out Bobo's for some great electronic ambient bands including Body of John the Baptist and klezmiresque music by the once duet now quartet Ashes in Order

On Friday October 24th

Lube Royale

Lube Royale will be making a special appearance in West Asheville at The Rocket Club friday October 24th. I'm very excited about this because I've never seen them play live but I love their music and from what I've seen on video, their performances get arty and weird. Show starts around 11:00ish.

Also happening on Friday night at 9:30: The Rocky Horror Picture Show will be showing at 191 Lyman St. in The River Arts District to benefit the Asheville Free Book Exchange.

Rhett Thurman McGahee: Music and Metals

You might know her as the powerhouse singer for local Led Zeppelin tribute band Custard Pie but Rhett McGahee also shows off her rock*star qualities through the metal furniture she designs and fabricates out of her studio in the basement of her Asheville home.


ASA: How did Custard Pie come about? RM: David Connor Jones and I were known to break Zep tunes late night at parties, and people were always telling us we should do something with it. He would play the guitar, and I would sing. After a while, we took their suggestions and approached Woody Wood and Jamie Sterling to join us in a Zeppelin Tribute. None of us really had any expectations of anything but having fun, but people were apparently very much in need of some Led Zeppelin. We had a great crowd at our first show, and after that, the fan base seemed to grow pretty fast.


ASA: Did you have any idea that the masses were so starved for Zeppelin?? RM: We were blown away by the response. We were really just having fun. We all love Led Zeppelin, and enjoyed getting together and playing around with their music. We were thrilled and honored by the response.

ASA: How did you learn to sing like Robert Plant?
RM: I have never tried to actually sing like Robert Pant. None of us are trying to be them, but just play their tunes the way we would do them. I guess my voice just kinda sounds like him when I sing that genre in that vocal register. Weird, huh? When my brother first heard us, he said it was crazy how it was definitely my voice, but at the same time it did sound like Robert Plant.

ASA: Do you try to channel him when you're singing?
RM: No, not really. I guess the closest I get to "channeling" him is that the music of Led Zeppelin in general is very moving to me. I feel it's a part of who I am because I was so into them through so many formative years.

ASA: Have you ever worn the same outfit or accessory twice when performing?
RM: Accessories, yes. I love my angel wing necklace. They're my "Swan Song" wings. I think I've only repeated 2 outfits though, and it was simply because I had worn it first in a different city.
">"

ASA: How did you deal when over 3,000 people showed up for you're Downtown After 5 gig??
RM: That was insane and fabulous. It was freaky for the first few moments, but once we got our groove on, and the crowd was getting into it, it felt fine.

ASA: Have you ever worn the same thing twice when you're in your metal studio?
RM: Oh yeah. I have to wear my play clothes when I'm working. It's a very dirty process. Very.

ASA: What's your favorite tool to work with?
RM: I love my clamps. I have this new right angle clamp that is massive and super heavy duty. I also really love my self adjusting clamps. They make my work experience much more pleasant and efficient.

ASA: Favorite metal?
RM: I primarily work with steel, but I started off making jewelry. I don't know if I have a favorite, but I love the contrast between different colored metals. When I made jewelry, I brought in as much color as possible, working with different types/colors of gold when my budget allowed for it, and with copper, silver, and brass when it did not.
ASA: Can you talk about your designs a little? What trends are you into?
RM: I try to evolve a little with each new design. I lean toward the geometric side of an art neuvo aesthetic, but I have been pushing my work into a more organic realm in the last few years, and I dig it. I also have a subconscious tendency toward symmetry in my design for some reason, although I really love and prefer asymmetry consciously. I have fought the symmetry and won. I like clean lines and contrast, so mixing wood and metal, and incorporating different patinas is fun for me. I used to work with a lot of found objects, and often they would dictate my design, but I do more custom work than anything now, and that usually calls for new steel.

You can see more of Rhett's metal designs on her website: www.rhettstudio.com
To learn more about Custard Pie visit their myspacelle here.