Portrait of Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin is all over the news today for some reason. And somehow I came across this magnificent portrait of her in the L.A. Times, originally taken by Brian Adams for Runner’s World:

Sarah Palin - portrait, or still life?

I am not really sure why the L.A. Times chose this image for the article, but as an art historian, this photo fascinates me. The props are spectacular – check out that hideous sconce on the wall behind her head, and the fuzzy moccasins on the window sill behind her. What does this mean?! Look at the blackberry in her hand! (Wait, are there two of them?)! And the flag (omg – I think it’s plastic!) casually placed on the chair for her to “lean on.” I posted this to my FB page and my friends started to analyze too. One person pointed out that the electrical outlet near the floor has a safety cover only on one of the two plug holes. Another was nauseated by the U.S. Army banner; using her son’s deployment as a prop. If you look closely at the carpet, you can see her tennis shoe marks on the freshly vacuumed carpet. You can almost imagine additional poses for earlier frames in the film.

The image is so carefully composed, and reminds me of Thomas Eakins’ 19th-century portraits of the learned men and women of his day (many of them very peculiar), depicted at work in their professional lives. Compare her to this painting by Eakins of Frank Cushing, who was one of the first anthropologists to “go native” by living with Zuni Indians in the southwest. Cushing was a bit of a rogue–and a maverick–in his day, too. Is it just me? Or is there a freakish resemblance in these compositions? On the other hand, of you turn Sarah’s portrait clockwise 90 degrees, it starts to look like an odalisque. Ouch – did I just say that?

Frank Hamilton Cushing by Thomas Eakins

Visual Literacy for College Freshmen

At U Penn this year, incoming Freshmen are taking a twist on the old classic summer reading project. Instead of reading a novel together, they are looking at a painting, Thomas Eakins’ Gross Clinic. This painting is rich with historical and cultural meaning, and opens the door to study of many topics, from American history, to medical practice and history, to psychological studies, and oh yeah, art history too. I love this painting and spent weeks in an art history seminar in grad school (ehem) dissecting it.  The university is using the project as a way to create community bonds between the local arts organizations and the students, between campus and community.

But I love it because it foregrounds the importance of visual literacy, something that I have always felt is ignored in our culture (it’s not one of the three Rs), yet which is becoming increasingly important in our world where we’re swamped with imagery. Learning how to evaluate what you see and interpret meaning from images is not innate; it is a learned skill. Reading, in my mind, is no longer just about interpreting the syntax of  spoken and written language. It’s heartening to see a major university embracing a visual expression as a way to explore and read about larger historical and cultural issues.

Art in the Crack of the LAC (MA)

Went to LACMA’s late Night Art event last night. They made very good use of the space between the Ahmanson and BCAM buildings, behind the Urban Light installation—a space I started to call the “crack in the Lac” with my friends. DJs pumping out the German techno and outdoor seating with bar created a very pleasant outdor hangout space. The best part though was behind the projection screen, where some LACMA staff (perhaps education staff? They always have the most fun) were there with art-making supplies for making puppets and photocopies of Franz West’s face for mask-making, and a mini installation of liquor bottles plastered a la Franz West (hidden treasures for sure).

The art was a bit difficult to see due to the crowds, and the readings in the galleries, which sometimes blocked the art from those of us who didn’t want to listen to the spoken word. Franz West was not for me (except as a cut-out puppet I made), but the Art of Two Germanys exhibition was quite impressive. It was huge though, and although the art was a bit depressing, you got the sense of something that must be important. Highlights included some great still photographs of performance events, including artists like Josef Beuys and Nam June Paik; and some monstrous Anselm Kieffer paintings. In one room, a chocolate sculpture by Dieter Roth proved how experiencing art through unexpected sensory information can make you take a second look (see object on left in image below). I had dismissed it on first glance, but then smelled chocolate and had to find the source of the smell. Those little terracotta monkeys are actually chocolate (and lions). One well-placed performance inside the gallery was a musician playing a leaden sounding composition on a double-bass in a room with a glasnost-era oil painting of Ronald Reagan looking skyward, and a red carpet leading away from him across the room.

Gallery installation shot of LACMA’s The Art of Two Germanys/Cold War Cultures.

Yes We Can – But HOW?

Just watched this promotional video for Barack Obama’s campaign on YouTube. It’s basically a music video with lyrics spun together from Obama’s speeches (which drip with allusions to the history and mythology surrounding race in this country), sung by various famous and semi-famous people.

The video is beautiful and moving. The message is a clear one. But it highlights my main issue with Obama’s campaign. I share his hope. I share his ideals. But I see little evidence of a real strategy to achieving these ideals. The campaign slogan generically for “Change” is a red herring. Dude, the Republicans want change too! The right-wing wants change! I want more specifics about what that change will look like. This video, with its black-and-white images and parade of stars is no more than a new form of name-dropping and celebrity endorsement. There’s just no substance there. Obama’s Web site says it all: “I am asking you to believe…” He wants blind faith…sound familiar?

Bogglific on FB no more…

I am saddened and feeling the twinge of impending withdrawl. Supposed copyright infringement has just gotten personal! I cannot believe that the big corporate suits are shutting down Facebook’s Bogglific! This is horrible. This game has reawakened in me a love of a game I have not played since I was a child. Hasbro, listen up! You owe these Bogglific guys a favor! They made you more customers. This should be rewarded. Instead you punish us all.

Read the DMCA notice.

Airplane rant – corporate paternalism gone wrong

I just got home from a trip across the country and saw the weirdest attempt of a corporation to kiss up to the consumer for some brownie points. The airline was Delta. The delivery was a commercial on the on-flight “tv”. In the break between shows, there was this commercial announcing that, in an effort to be green and save our environment, Delta would now be recycling on all of its flights destined for Atlanta.  The message was very proud, and went into much detail about exactly how staff (and you! aren’t you glad they are giving you options for recycling!?) would be helping to save the environment by recycling.

But wait – does this mean that *before* this “program” Delta didn’t recycle at all!? I mean, I didn’t know there were corporations that didn’t recycle out there anymore. Suddenly, Delta looks a little lame. And just a sec – this program is only being implemented on flights going to Atlanta?? What? Why only those flights? Why not all flights? Why only half-assed recycling? The real nail in the coffin for them, however, was the final statement: “Delta will be donating all proceeds from this program to X charity.” Proceeds!?! From recycling? Now I am so confused. If there are proceeds to be had in recycling, then they shoulda been doing this a long time ago! That’s just good business sense. Whoever is in charge of this company’s public image needs to get a clue.

Gamers, editing, and (mis)spelling

I have run across quite a few great articles/blogs about writing and the role of language and editors and writers lately. Is it me, or is this an issue circling recently? Two of them make great connections to gaming.

First, the New York Times ran an article Sunday about a new tv cartoon called WordGirl. Awesome. I haven’t even seen it yet and she is my hero!

In yesterday’s Seattle P.I. Regina Hackett  blogs about the humility she learned from gamers’ adaptations of misspellings. (Read to the end where she sticks it to CultureGrrl – go Regina!)

As an editor who has invented quite a few words through my own mistypings, I appreciate the straying of editorial issues into the mainstream.