The 36 Situations
1. Supplication
* a Persecutor; a Supplicant; a Power in authority, whose decision is doubtful.
2. Deliverance
* an Unfortunate; a Threatener; a Rescuer
3. Crime pursued by vengeance
* a Criminal; an Avenger
4. Vengeance taken for kin upon kin
* Guilty Kinsman; an Avenging Kinsman; remembrance of the Victim, a relative of both
5. Pursuit
* Punishment; a Fugitive
6. Disaster
* a Vanquished Power; a Victorious Enemy or a Messenger
7. Falling prey to cruelty/misfortune
* an Unfortunate; a Master or a Misfortune
8. Revolt
* a Tyrant; a Conspirator
9. Daring enterprise
* a Bold Leader; an Object; an Adversary
10. Abduction
* an Abductor; the Abducted; a Guardian
11. The enigma
* a Problem; an Interrogator; a Seeker
12. Obtaining
* (a Solicitor & an Adversary who is refusing) or (an Arbitrator & Opposing Parties)
13. Enmity of kin
* a Malevolent Kinsman; a Hatred or a reciprocally-hating Kinsman
14. Rivalry of kin
* the Preferred Kinsman; the Rejected Kinsman; the Object of Rivalry
15. Murderous adultery
* two Adulterers; a Betrayed Spouse
16. Madness
* a Madman; a Victim
17. Fatal imprudence
* the Imprudent; a Victim or an Object Lost
18. Involuntary crimes of love
* a Lover; a Beloved; a Revealer
19. Slaying of kin unrecognized
* the Slayer; an Unrecognized Victim
20. Self-sacrifice for an ideal
* a Hero; an Ideal; a Creditor or a Person/Thing sacrificed
21. Self-sacrifice for kin
* a Hero; a Kinsman; a Creditor or a Person/Thing sacrificed
22. All sacrificed for passion
* a Lover; an Object of fatal Passion; the Person/Thing sacrificed
23. Necessity of sacrificing loved ones
* a Hero; a Beloved Victim; the Necessity for the Sacrifice
24. Rivalry of superior vs. inferior
* a Superior Rival; an Inferior Rival; the Object of Rivalry
25. Adultery
* two Adulterers; a Deceived Spouse
26. Crimes of love
* a Lover; the Beloved
27. Discovery of the dishonour of a loved one
* a Discoverer; the Guilty One
28. Obstacles to love
* two Lovers; an Obstacle
29. An enemy loved
* a Lover; the Beloved Enemy; the Hater
30. Ambition
* an Ambitious Person; a Thing Coveted; an Adversary
31. Conflict with a god
* a Mortal; an Immortal
32. Mistaken jealousy
* a Jealous One; an Object of whose Possession He is Jealous; a Supposed Accomplice; a Cause or an Author of the Mistake
33. Erroneous judgement
* a Mistaken One; a Victim of the Mistake; a Cause or Author of the Mistake; the Guilty One
34. Remorse
* a Culprit; a Victim or the Sin; an Interrogator
35. Recovery of a lost one
* a Seeker; the One Found
36. Loss of loved ones
* a Kinsman Slain; a Kinsman Spectator; an Executioner
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Video Work
height="591" codebase='http://www.apple.com/qtactivex/qtplugin.cab'> controller="true" loop="false" pluginspage='http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/'> |
height="591" codebase='http://www.apple.com/qtactivex/qtplugin.cab'> controller="true" loop="false" pluginspage='http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/'> |
height="591" codebase='http://www.apple.com/qtactivex/qtplugin.cab'> controller="true" loop="false" pluginspage='http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/'> |
Monday, September 15, 2008
More Process
This stuff isn't necessarily funny, it's just something for me to share. See, sometimes I feel like the process is more interesting than the final product. I often feel that way, actually. And so I like to display my work with some small trace of evidence of the process. For instance, this entire blog connects to my other blog where the idea for this image originated. I like to show my large paintings with my shitty little zine-style comic books. I'll ruminate on this a bit more later, but for now, here are some images of process...
I like to think of this part of the process as being similar to the way dancers get body massages before they perform. Paying a lot of attention to the muscles and what's underneath, soothing and smoothing, slowly building up with anticipation and excitement. Uncle Muscles says "YES!"
Soldiers ready for battle.
Lots of color testing gets done in photoshop, but I need to physically try things out too. This little thing would be excellent as a painting. There are just too many options some times.
I like to bully myself sometimes when I make my work. Here's what happens when you rush yourself just a little. You end up making mistakes. I laid the transfer image upside down and didn't realize it until I started to brush the acetone over it. I removed the pages, gessoed over them, and decided that the scar I had given myself was really cool. This one stays as-is.
Here's the moment of expectation right before the color gets added. Again, this would be wonderful on it's own just like this. After I do what I'm about to do, this image will never look the same again. It's a bit tragic that this sculpture is gonna get squashed. But I'm getting bored of this image, so maybe the next one will be left unfinished.
I like to think of this part of the process as being similar to the way dancers get body massages before they perform. Paying a lot of attention to the muscles and what's underneath, soothing and smoothing, slowly building up with anticipation and excitement. Uncle Muscles says "YES!"
Soldiers ready for battle.
Lots of color testing gets done in photoshop, but I need to physically try things out too. This little thing would be excellent as a painting. There are just too many options some times.
I like to bully myself sometimes when I make my work. Here's what happens when you rush yourself just a little. You end up making mistakes. I laid the transfer image upside down and didn't realize it until I started to brush the acetone over it. I removed the pages, gessoed over them, and decided that the scar I had given myself was really cool. This one stays as-is.
Here's the moment of expectation right before the color gets added. Again, this would be wonderful on it's own just like this. After I do what I'm about to do, this image will never look the same again. It's a bit tragic that this sculpture is gonna get squashed. But I'm getting bored of this image, so maybe the next one will be left unfinished.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
I understand
I understand the need to make an awful lot of money. It's probably the most important thing in the world to sell lots of things to people so that you can buy lots of things so that people will like you because you buy and sell lots of things. So I probably shouldn't even think twice about this. But the people making and selling Indiana Jones toys have gone ahead and sold a version of Indy with the Ark of the Covenant. I dunno... That's just weird. It reminds me of the building-transformer in that Tom Hanks movie, "Big." I wonder what happens if you open it? Does your face melt off? And if not, will it have the tablets of the ten commandments in it? Will it have a mercy seat and Aaron's rod and a jar of mannah? How confusing would that be to a kid? When I get a toy I want some knives and guns to come with it, not a bunch of useless religious crap. ANyway...
Sunday, September 7, 2008
All of the places that are funny
Here is a list that will surely be edited, annotated, and possibly even expanded upon...
The edge of a cliff
The beach late at night
The operating room
Deep sea
In a hick-mansion
In a phone booth
At a street performance
At a library
In a cloister
On stage
Flying through the air
In a pond
In a basement
Maternity ward
Bird's nest
A Roman coliseum
In a city bus/bus stop
Girl's bathroom
The neutral-zone of a war or sports event
A crowded garage
A playground
Somewhere in wildlife
An executive's office
The hull of a ship
The crow's nest of a ship
Someone's lap
Dressing rooms
Middle-Earth
Front yard of a house party
A classroom
The attic
A fortress of solitude
A bird sanctuary
Beneath the stars at night
In an animal cage
Backstage/in the wings
A baby crib
On a tree branch
At the edge of civilization
At a convention
Islands
The wild, wild west
A dugout
A locker room
The side of the road
No-man's land of a battlefield
At an anniversary celebration
On an alien spacecraft
On the other side of a two-way mirror
A monster truck rally
On a pirate ship
Peeking around a corner
Peeking out of a closet
In a sex shop
A teenager's bedroom
In the king's court
At an open-mic
In the jaws of the beast
At a home-karaoke party
In a jar
In someone's thoughts
In someone's hands
On screen
In front of food
Across the room
Hung-up on a wall
Snow topped mountains
The dance floor
On a swing set
On horseback
Cramped in a car
In a parade
A graveyard
A gym
A health food store
A plastic surgeon's office
In a yearbook
The time-out corner
On a photo shoot
At a slumber party
At a bar
In front of a church
A slaughter house
On the internet
In a research lab
At a rehearsal
Tourist locations
Above a city skyline
A messy living room
At a stoplight
Sitting in the bleachers
In a cave
In the back of a truck
In the middle of the road
A magic show
On weight lifting/workout equipment
In between a narrow corridor
Sitting at a story-time circle
At the edge of the sea shore and the deep drop-off
In deep water
A dog park
In a sewing circle
In a tool shed
At a book of the month club meeting
In a workshop
Nowhere
On a yacht
At a debate
On a skiing trip
In bed with the lights on
At the root of a large tree
On a tree stump
At a funeral
Action that occurs unseen in the frame
On an iceberg
In front of famous works of art
At a museum
A competitive dance
In outer space
In a shell
In a broadcasting studio
At a tea party
At the scene of a murder
Inside giant clothing
Inside a giant ______
A wizard's chambers
In a karate class
In the home of a fictional character
In a meat closet
In a cake/present
At a family gathering
In a pool of urine
In a forest clearing
The diner table
Hell/Heaven
On a lake of fire
The check-out counter
A retirement village
Military outpost/lookout tower
Wedding reception
Office cubicles
In proximity to dangerous/cute creatures
Awards ceremony
Royal quarters
In a limousine
In front of a mirror
Psychiatrist's couch
The bed's side
Commentator/DJ booth
A speech podium
In a hot-air balloon
Under a little girl's bed
Safe above disaster
In front of the TV
In line at the movies
Tied to a pole
At a strip club
On a picnic
Sitting up awake at night
In a parked car
In a riot/mob
In a kiddie pool
At a card table
At a summer camp
On a hunting trip
In the back/front of an ambulance
At a homeless shelter
Out in the street where the children play
In a trophy case
At a winery
Under a bridge
In the dead of winter
On the sun
On a staircase
Buried underground
Up on a crucifix
In a rowboat
A scientist's apartment
Along the beaten path
At the water's edge
In a cargo van
On a viking ship
At a sermon
In a pigpen
Running down a hill
The dentist's office
On a bike
In a room full of toxic chemicals
At a costume shop
Next to an electrical outlet
A crowd going wild
At a non-violent protest
At a Buddhist monastery
On a pilgrimage
At Count Dracula's castle
Underneath a car
In a sewer
At a carnival
On the side of a mountain
In a beehive or other insect home
In a bear cave or other mammalian home
In a fish tank or other aquatic home
In the tub
On a diving board
At the drawing board
At a Native American settlement
An army camp
Patio of a coffee shop/tapas bar
In a wheelchair
A piano bar
In a robot
In a belfry
Outside around back
At a puppet show
At a freak show
At a fortune teller's shop
At a chess park
Along an animal path
At a sporting goods store
A detective's office
At a candle factory
At a second hand store
At a barber shop
A motel room
Over a valley
In pitch darkness
Along train tracks
At a pet shop
In jail
In a circus act
In the trees
In a hen house
In the balcony section
Front row seats
In a tepee
At the mailbox
At a tournament
At a boxing match
Coming out of the television/radio/etc.
In the front driveway
On a street court
In court
In front of the AC
In the desert
In the grass lands of Africa
At the concierge
At the baggage claim carousel
Prehistoric times
On a rooftop
A saloon
On someone's shoulder
Out of earshot
Broken into fours
At the scene of a terrible accident
At the racetrack
On a flying carpet
The edge of a cliff
The beach late at night
The operating room
Deep sea
In a hick-mansion
In a phone booth
At a street performance
At a library
In a cloister
On stage
Flying through the air
In a pond
In a basement
Maternity ward
Bird's nest
A Roman coliseum
In a city bus/bus stop
Girl's bathroom
The neutral-zone of a war or sports event
A crowded garage
A playground
Somewhere in wildlife
An executive's office
The hull of a ship
The crow's nest of a ship
Someone's lap
Dressing rooms
Middle-Earth
Front yard of a house party
A classroom
The attic
A fortress of solitude
A bird sanctuary
Beneath the stars at night
In an animal cage
Backstage/in the wings
A baby crib
On a tree branch
At the edge of civilization
At a convention
Islands
The wild, wild west
A dugout
A locker room
The side of the road
No-man's land of a battlefield
At an anniversary celebration
On an alien spacecraft
On the other side of a two-way mirror
A monster truck rally
On a pirate ship
Peeking around a corner
Peeking out of a closet
In a sex shop
A teenager's bedroom
In the king's court
At an open-mic
In the jaws of the beast
At a home-karaoke party
In a jar
In someone's thoughts
In someone's hands
On screen
In front of food
Across the room
Hung-up on a wall
Snow topped mountains
The dance floor
On a swing set
On horseback
Cramped in a car
In a parade
A graveyard
A gym
A health food store
A plastic surgeon's office
In a yearbook
The time-out corner
On a photo shoot
At a slumber party
At a bar
In front of a church
A slaughter house
On the internet
In a research lab
At a rehearsal
Tourist locations
Above a city skyline
A messy living room
At a stoplight
Sitting in the bleachers
In a cave
In the back of a truck
In the middle of the road
A magic show
On weight lifting/workout equipment
In between a narrow corridor
Sitting at a story-time circle
At the edge of the sea shore and the deep drop-off
In deep water
A dog park
In a sewing circle
In a tool shed
At a book of the month club meeting
In a workshop
Nowhere
On a yacht
At a debate
On a skiing trip
In bed with the lights on
At the root of a large tree
On a tree stump
At a funeral
Action that occurs unseen in the frame
On an iceberg
In front of famous works of art
At a museum
A competitive dance
In outer space
In a shell
In a broadcasting studio
At a tea party
At the scene of a murder
Inside giant clothing
Inside a giant ______
A wizard's chambers
In a karate class
In the home of a fictional character
In a meat closet
In a cake/present
At a family gathering
In a pool of urine
In a forest clearing
The diner table
Hell/Heaven
On a lake of fire
The check-out counter
A retirement village
Military outpost/lookout tower
Wedding reception
Office cubicles
In proximity to dangerous/cute creatures
Awards ceremony
Royal quarters
In a limousine
In front of a mirror
Psychiatrist's couch
The bed's side
Commentator/DJ booth
A speech podium
In a hot-air balloon
Under a little girl's bed
Safe above disaster
In front of the TV
In line at the movies
Tied to a pole
At a strip club
On a picnic
Sitting up awake at night
In a parked car
In a riot/mob
In a kiddie pool
At a card table
At a summer camp
On a hunting trip
In the back/front of an ambulance
At a homeless shelter
Out in the street where the children play
In a trophy case
At a winery
Under a bridge
In the dead of winter
On the sun
On a staircase
Buried underground
Up on a crucifix
In a rowboat
A scientist's apartment
Along the beaten path
At the water's edge
In a cargo van
On a viking ship
At a sermon
In a pigpen
Running down a hill
The dentist's office
On a bike
In a room full of toxic chemicals
At a costume shop
Next to an electrical outlet
A crowd going wild
At a non-violent protest
At a Buddhist monastery
On a pilgrimage
At Count Dracula's castle
Underneath a car
In a sewer
At a carnival
On the side of a mountain
In a beehive or other insect home
In a bear cave or other mammalian home
In a fish tank or other aquatic home
In the tub
On a diving board
At the drawing board
At a Native American settlement
An army camp
Patio of a coffee shop/tapas bar
In a wheelchair
A piano bar
In a robot
In a belfry
Outside around back
At a puppet show
At a freak show
At a fortune teller's shop
At a chess park
Along an animal path
At a sporting goods store
A detective's office
At a candle factory
At a second hand store
At a barber shop
A motel room
Over a valley
In pitch darkness
Along train tracks
At a pet shop
In jail
In a circus act
In the trees
In a hen house
In the balcony section
Front row seats
In a tepee
At the mailbox
At a tournament
At a boxing match
Coming out of the television/radio/etc.
In the front driveway
On a street court
In court
In front of the AC
In the desert
In the grass lands of Africa
At the concierge
At the baggage claim carousel
Prehistoric times
On a rooftop
A saloon
On someone's shoulder
Out of earshot
Broken into fours
At the scene of a terrible accident
At the racetrack
On a flying carpet
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Bad Spider-Man
Perhaps I should post the list of everything that is funny to me so that I can always have a website to refer to it.
Yes.
Yes. I think I will do that.
But first,
I'm glad that I do things because they will make only me laugh. I'm delighted that other people might eventually find them and see them and also enjoy these things, but my initial rational is to make something I like because I like it. Sometimes I forget to do this. And in making things for a process class it's good to do this. Here is a minor example:
These last two are a little bit sad, however. The thing is, I really honestly do feel unloved sometimes. I become aware of this and some unconscious force that is attracted to laughing at sadness triggers a response like this one. Why would I make fun of myself to myself? I guess it's like an insincere cry for help. I suppose I make these things for myself and the immediately want to give them to someone else. I can't tell if this is ego-maniacal or if it is complete selflessness.
Anyhow... here's everything that is funny to me... I will follow this up in my next post with every place that is funny to me.
Death
Impotence
Aggression
Sex
Loss
Failure
Deformation
Stereotypes
Pain
Self-empowerment
Monsters
Domesticated living
Religion
Holidays
The elderly
Foreigners
Authority
Jobs (noticing uniqueness)
Family
Emasculation
Power of nature over man/over nature
Things that behave “in their nature”
Youth culture
Fame
Media violence
Bodily functions
Revisionist history
Language
Female sexuality (Femme-fatale)
Entertainment
Music (as manipulative of feeling)
Parties
Rulers/imperialism
Politics
Foul language ("dick head")
Spying
Not giving a fuck
Science fiction
Scientists
Imprisonment
Testing something
Praying/toasting/eulogizing/speeches
When incredible/horrible is mundane
The theatre
Athleticism
Disbelief
Surprise/Awe
Suicide (inventive)
Classy, distinguished characters
Child-like ignorance/innocence
Child-like misbehavior
Speaking with the dead/incommunicable
Glorifying the abject
Deformity becoming advantage
Vulgar ramblings
Making out
Speaking with perfect diction & no contractions
Pointing out/realizing the consequences
Mutants
Extreme self-awareness
Cliché love songs sung with fuck-words
Hunting
Midlife crisis behavior
Having something to prove
Sensory Overload
Receiving life lessons, revelation, epiphany
Constraints/dictation of Fashion
Platonic love
Forbidden love
Instructions
Changing your mind (quickly)
Commies (the enemy)
Dated insults
Wisdom
Lessons/teaching
Pleasure inducing objects
Manufacturers of pleasure objects
Candy
Toys
Robots
Protégé
Sex toys
Behind the scenes
Psychosis
Blame
One-way conversation
Acting out of "character"
Divorced lifestyle
Penitent commitment to love/romance
Things money can't buy
Maternal instincts
Fear of family
Small fish, bigger fish, biggest fish
Explaining stuff to children
Children explaining stuff to adults
Slavery lifestyle
Trying to make people like you
Delusions of grandeur
Competition
Idyllic nature
Pleading
Persuading
Idyllic masculinity
Phobias
Motivation (tough love)
Motivation (not working)
Therapy
Embarrassment
Fatness
Ugly as beautiful (vice versa)
Hardcore as stupid (vice versa)
Poverty culture
Cheating
Infidelity
Self-loathing
Discomfort
Alienation
Memory (mis-remembered)
Superstition
Imitating
Emotional defense/safe-space
Recoiling
Placebo
The "News"
Wishing for death to come
Uniting past w/present, present w/future, etc.
Self-flagellation
Revealing too much about something
Tryst
Renaming the world
Mob mentality
Nudity
Dreams
Ghosts
Confrontation
Passive aggression
Bodily fluids
Wealth
Mockery
Dumb guy seems smart
Smart guy seems dumb
GLBT culture
Defiance
Wishes (fantasy)
Psychics/profits
Torture
Tickling
Tradition (ruining)
Customs (east meets west)
Refusing help
Correcting the mistakes of others
Only implying someone is dead
Masturbation
Inner monologue
Gloating
Body insecurity
Staring
Uncomfortable proximity/distance
Expectations shattered
Pointing out human mortality
addiction
First time experiences
Love of technology
Practical jokes
Doing a trick
Honesty when obviously a lie
Cannibalism
Sexually revealing clothing
Extreme sports
Prosthetics
Imagining/wishing harm
Cosmetics
Dying gracefully
Murderous rage
Pontificating, lecturing, Q&A
Colonialism
Imposing culture on others
Fetishes imposed on others
Isolation (esp. for long period of time)
The noble savage
Facing danger (bravely or otherwise)
Unrequited love
Lionizing/glamorizing someone/something
Being terrible at something
Telepathy
Complaining about a task
Science-related disaster
Job interview
Getting fired
Folktales
Parable
Drunkenness
Drugs
Euthanasia
Young death
Puppets
Voyeurism
Funny names/nicknames
Theft
Crying
Giving power to a cultural opposite
Hallucination
Earnestly in display of emotion
Disguises
Masks
Proverbs
Organized warfare/gentlemanly battle
Personification
The "versus" of the absurd
Schadenfreude
In the face/up the butt/in the groin/etc.
Inability to control laughter
Farting (esp. speaking openly about)
Excited over nothing
Trying to be helpful
Over/under eating/drinking
Flirting/courtship
Pastimes, leisure time
Artists (image, music, dance, etc.)
Explosions
Magic
Desire (money, sex, food, power, forbidden)
Rape (usu. Man-man, woman-man, child?)
List making, things-to-do
Choices
Animals (wild, domestic, aggressive, docile)
Pets
Admiration
Secrets
True love
Relationships
Myth (American, classic)
Patronizing
Food (as gross)
Strenuous exercise
Lack of inhibition (happy/sad/angry)
Close whispering
Execution methods
Non sequitur dialogue
Talking about someone who can't hear it
Knowing what someone is thinking
Eating/drinking things not to be eaten/drank
Cruelty
Fleshiness
Hot/cold
Presents/gifts
Strange talents/hobbies
Mythozoology
Escape while others suffer (capture,defeat,etc..)
Singing
Metaphor
Allegory
Irony
Onomatopoeia
Bodily organs
Sluttiness
Feeling sick
Medical conditions (pathological/hereditary)
Self-amusement
Revenge
Brotherhoods (young to old)
Cheering/chanting
Initiation
Honesty when it doesn't matter (while dying)
Sincerity/beauty in death (while dying)
Misfortune/bad luck
Bright idea (as illogical)
The golden rule
Menancing/nonchalant destruction
Overly dramatic
Famous characters
Impulsive gambling
Science as/in religion (vice versa)
Animals in human clothing
People in animal clothing
Misuse of a tool (appropriation)
Poaching endangered species
Teenage angst
Dirtiness
Confusing one with another
Fine art
Observing something from a distance (high & low)
Potions
Interracial issues
Night life
Being half-awake/sleep talking
Sleep walking
Get rich quick
Car accidents
Stalking
Obsession
That which can never be obtained
Sleeplessness
Obliviousness
Mental preparation
Collecting
Desperation for knowledge
Rhyming (nursery/rap)
References (pop culture)
Pointing out someone's desires
Subversive behavior/conspiring/plotting
Conspiracy theories
Bragging
Philosophizing/advice with analogy
Fragility
Cuteness
Talking animals
Self-centeredness/not sharing
Telling someone off
Extreme Idealism to the point it seems freakish
Introspection/thinking hard
Repetition (of object/behavior)
Wrong definitions
Things that fly/float
Scientific probabilities
Schoolmates
Schools (all types)
Getting caught
Nonsense words
Professors/educators
Bugs
Acting like everything is normal
Stoic Nihilism
Secrets exposed
Shirtlessness
No pants
Underwear
Disinterest when someone is trying to say something important
Private parts
Surgery
Dissection
Running in fear
Size (relative)
Sucking
The straight man
Calling something "pretty" or "ugly"
Sexual stimulation/turn-ons
Chastity/purity (male or female)
Adolescent vulgarity (poo-poo, doo-doo,etc..)
Weapons in the hands of innocence
Over-simplification
Attention deficit
Telling authority to "fuck off"
Loss of body control
Trying to figure out something (what it is)
Taking advantage of humbleness
Racists
Ignorance
Speech impediments
Display of self-gratification/satisfaction
Sexual titillation/partial nudity
Dancing
Pornography
Pious Behavior
Over-zealousness
Religious fundamentalism
Gross things
Stripping
Clandestine behavior
Promises of "forever"
Acting/pretending
Taking on another culture's identity
Gifted children
Rephrasing same thing twice
Shaming/chastising (giving & receiving)
Disciplining
Sinister poetry
Silhouettes
Men in women's clothing
Strange truths (biological/physics/etc.)
BJs
Body hair
Funny hair styles
Superheroes
Overcome with emotion
Emotionally confused
Jealousy
Calling what seems normal to be strange
Objects designed to look like something else
An unlikely hero
Heartbreak
Moral dilemmas
Nuclear family (normalcy)
Yes.
Yes. I think I will do that.
But first,
I'm glad that I do things because they will make only me laugh. I'm delighted that other people might eventually find them and see them and also enjoy these things, but my initial rational is to make something I like because I like it. Sometimes I forget to do this. And in making things for a process class it's good to do this. Here is a minor example:
These last two are a little bit sad, however. The thing is, I really honestly do feel unloved sometimes. I become aware of this and some unconscious force that is attracted to laughing at sadness triggers a response like this one. Why would I make fun of myself to myself? I guess it's like an insincere cry for help. I suppose I make these things for myself and the immediately want to give them to someone else. I can't tell if this is ego-maniacal or if it is complete selflessness.
Anyhow... here's everything that is funny to me... I will follow this up in my next post with every place that is funny to me.
Death
Impotence
Aggression
Sex
Loss
Failure
Deformation
Stereotypes
Pain
Self-empowerment
Monsters
Domesticated living
Religion
Holidays
The elderly
Foreigners
Authority
Jobs (noticing uniqueness)
Family
Emasculation
Power of nature over man/over nature
Things that behave “in their nature”
Youth culture
Fame
Media violence
Bodily functions
Revisionist history
Language
Female sexuality (Femme-fatale)
Entertainment
Music (as manipulative of feeling)
Parties
Rulers/imperialism
Politics
Foul language ("dick head")
Spying
Not giving a fuck
Science fiction
Scientists
Imprisonment
Testing something
Praying/toasting/eulogizing/speeches
When incredible/horrible is mundane
The theatre
Athleticism
Disbelief
Surprise/Awe
Suicide (inventive)
Classy, distinguished characters
Child-like ignorance/innocence
Child-like misbehavior
Speaking with the dead/incommunicable
Glorifying the abject
Deformity becoming advantage
Vulgar ramblings
Making out
Speaking with perfect diction & no contractions
Pointing out/realizing the consequences
Mutants
Extreme self-awareness
Cliché love songs sung with fuck-words
Hunting
Midlife crisis behavior
Having something to prove
Sensory Overload
Receiving life lessons, revelation, epiphany
Constraints/dictation of Fashion
Platonic love
Forbidden love
Instructions
Changing your mind (quickly)
Commies (the enemy)
Dated insults
Wisdom
Lessons/teaching
Pleasure inducing objects
Manufacturers of pleasure objects
Candy
Toys
Robots
Protégé
Sex toys
Behind the scenes
Psychosis
Blame
One-way conversation
Acting out of "character"
Divorced lifestyle
Penitent commitment to love/romance
Things money can't buy
Maternal instincts
Fear of family
Small fish, bigger fish, biggest fish
Explaining stuff to children
Children explaining stuff to adults
Slavery lifestyle
Trying to make people like you
Delusions of grandeur
Competition
Idyllic nature
Pleading
Persuading
Idyllic masculinity
Phobias
Motivation (tough love)
Motivation (not working)
Therapy
Embarrassment
Fatness
Ugly as beautiful (vice versa)
Hardcore as stupid (vice versa)
Poverty culture
Cheating
Infidelity
Self-loathing
Discomfort
Alienation
Memory (mis-remembered)
Superstition
Imitating
Emotional defense/safe-space
Recoiling
Placebo
The "News"
Wishing for death to come
Uniting past w/present, present w/future, etc.
Self-flagellation
Revealing too much about something
Tryst
Renaming the world
Mob mentality
Nudity
Dreams
Ghosts
Confrontation
Passive aggression
Bodily fluids
Wealth
Mockery
Dumb guy seems smart
Smart guy seems dumb
GLBT culture
Defiance
Wishes (fantasy)
Psychics/profits
Torture
Tickling
Tradition (ruining)
Customs (east meets west)
Refusing help
Correcting the mistakes of others
Only implying someone is dead
Masturbation
Inner monologue
Gloating
Body insecurity
Staring
Uncomfortable proximity/distance
Expectations shattered
Pointing out human mortality
addiction
First time experiences
Love of technology
Practical jokes
Doing a trick
Honesty when obviously a lie
Cannibalism
Sexually revealing clothing
Extreme sports
Prosthetics
Imagining/wishing harm
Cosmetics
Dying gracefully
Murderous rage
Pontificating, lecturing, Q&A
Colonialism
Imposing culture on others
Fetishes imposed on others
Isolation (esp. for long period of time)
The noble savage
Facing danger (bravely or otherwise)
Unrequited love
Lionizing/glamorizing someone/something
Being terrible at something
Telepathy
Complaining about a task
Science-related disaster
Job interview
Getting fired
Folktales
Parable
Drunkenness
Drugs
Euthanasia
Young death
Puppets
Voyeurism
Funny names/nicknames
Theft
Crying
Giving power to a cultural opposite
Hallucination
Earnestly in display of emotion
Disguises
Masks
Proverbs
Organized warfare/gentlemanly battle
Personification
The "versus" of the absurd
Schadenfreude
In the face/up the butt/in the groin/etc.
Inability to control laughter
Farting (esp. speaking openly about)
Excited over nothing
Trying to be helpful
Over/under eating/drinking
Flirting/courtship
Pastimes, leisure time
Artists (image, music, dance, etc.)
Explosions
Magic
Desire (money, sex, food, power, forbidden)
Rape (usu. Man-man, woman-man, child?)
List making, things-to-do
Choices
Animals (wild, domestic, aggressive, docile)
Pets
Admiration
Secrets
True love
Relationships
Myth (American, classic)
Patronizing
Food (as gross)
Strenuous exercise
Lack of inhibition (happy/sad/angry)
Close whispering
Execution methods
Non sequitur dialogue
Talking about someone who can't hear it
Knowing what someone is thinking
Eating/drinking things not to be eaten/drank
Cruelty
Fleshiness
Hot/cold
Presents/gifts
Strange talents/hobbies
Mythozoology
Escape while others suffer (capture,defeat,etc..)
Singing
Metaphor
Allegory
Irony
Onomatopoeia
Bodily organs
Sluttiness
Feeling sick
Medical conditions (pathological/hereditary)
Self-amusement
Revenge
Brotherhoods (young to old)
Cheering/chanting
Initiation
Honesty when it doesn't matter (while dying)
Sincerity/beauty in death (while dying)
Misfortune/bad luck
Bright idea (as illogical)
The golden rule
Menancing/nonchalant destruction
Overly dramatic
Famous characters
Impulsive gambling
Science as/in religion (vice versa)
Animals in human clothing
People in animal clothing
Misuse of a tool (appropriation)
Poaching endangered species
Teenage angst
Dirtiness
Confusing one with another
Fine art
Observing something from a distance (high & low)
Potions
Interracial issues
Night life
Being half-awake/sleep talking
Sleep walking
Get rich quick
Car accidents
Stalking
Obsession
That which can never be obtained
Sleeplessness
Obliviousness
Mental preparation
Collecting
Desperation for knowledge
Rhyming (nursery/rap)
References (pop culture)
Pointing out someone's desires
Subversive behavior/conspiring/plotting
Conspiracy theories
Bragging
Philosophizing/advice with analogy
Fragility
Cuteness
Talking animals
Self-centeredness/not sharing
Telling someone off
Extreme Idealism to the point it seems freakish
Introspection/thinking hard
Repetition (of object/behavior)
Wrong definitions
Things that fly/float
Scientific probabilities
Schoolmates
Schools (all types)
Getting caught
Nonsense words
Professors/educators
Bugs
Acting like everything is normal
Stoic Nihilism
Secrets exposed
Shirtlessness
No pants
Underwear
Disinterest when someone is trying to say something important
Private parts
Surgery
Dissection
Running in fear
Size (relative)
Sucking
The straight man
Calling something "pretty" or "ugly"
Sexual stimulation/turn-ons
Chastity/purity (male or female)
Adolescent vulgarity (poo-poo, doo-doo,etc..)
Weapons in the hands of innocence
Over-simplification
Attention deficit
Telling authority to "fuck off"
Loss of body control
Trying to figure out something (what it is)
Taking advantage of humbleness
Racists
Ignorance
Speech impediments
Display of self-gratification/satisfaction
Sexual titillation/partial nudity
Dancing
Pornography
Pious Behavior
Over-zealousness
Religious fundamentalism
Gross things
Stripping
Clandestine behavior
Promises of "forever"
Acting/pretending
Taking on another culture's identity
Gifted children
Rephrasing same thing twice
Shaming/chastising (giving & receiving)
Disciplining
Sinister poetry
Silhouettes
Men in women's clothing
Strange truths (biological/physics/etc.)
BJs
Body hair
Funny hair styles
Superheroes
Overcome with emotion
Emotionally confused
Jealousy
Calling what seems normal to be strange
Objects designed to look like something else
An unlikely hero
Heartbreak
Moral dilemmas
Nuclear family (normalcy)
Friday, September 5, 2008
Coinidence is not irony
Just a refresher on the difference between coincidence and irony.
I'm sure these guys thought they were being totally ironic when they decided to let their building catch fire.
Just a coincidence. That's all.
I guess... mmmmaybe... it's ironic that I'd post something about coincidence on a blog that seems to point to irony an awful lot.
So, yeah. There's your counter-example.
I'm sure these guys thought they were being totally ironic when they decided to let their building catch fire.
Just a coincidence. That's all.
I guess... mmmmaybe... it's ironic that I'd post something about coincidence on a blog that seems to point to irony an awful lot.
So, yeah. There's your counter-example.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Copying for too long.
This is work by the artist Brad Neely:
It illustrates rather well the mild revelation I experienced this weekend when I walked through the MIA looking for inspiration for composing images of drama and humor. I was mainly looking for things that would resemble the epic moment, and here, I came upon, again and again, images that while serious in their historical context, seemed overplayed, absurd, and ultimately humorous in their contemporary setting.
I think this comic does a great way of summing that up quickly.
...Anyway.
I have some issues with the similarities in my own work and Neely's work, so I'll just get them off my chest here and be done with it. I base an awful lot of my work off of his, because it is so accessible to my own personal tastes in drawing. I am deeply influenced by various other artists as well, David Shrigley, Marcel Dzama, and the creators of South Park to name a few, but it is often most rewarding and sometimes more personal for me to go to Neely's work first. He lives in Austin, Texas and is friends with a few of my own friends, so I guess there's got to be at least some similarities in our particular interests. Additionally, Shrigley is from Glasgow, Dzama is from Winnipeg, and the Southpark guys, being TV and not necessarily one person all make it harder to connect to these people on a regional-personal level.
Enough of that.
It illustrates rather well the mild revelation I experienced this weekend when I walked through the MIA looking for inspiration for composing images of drama and humor. I was mainly looking for things that would resemble the epic moment, and here, I came upon, again and again, images that while serious in their historical context, seemed overplayed, absurd, and ultimately humorous in their contemporary setting.
I think this comic does a great way of summing that up quickly.
...Anyway.
I have some issues with the similarities in my own work and Neely's work, so I'll just get them off my chest here and be done with it. I base an awful lot of my work off of his, because it is so accessible to my own personal tastes in drawing. I am deeply influenced by various other artists as well, David Shrigley, Marcel Dzama, and the creators of South Park to name a few, but it is often most rewarding and sometimes more personal for me to go to Neely's work first. He lives in Austin, Texas and is friends with a few of my own friends, so I guess there's got to be at least some similarities in our particular interests. Additionally, Shrigley is from Glasgow, Dzama is from Winnipeg, and the Southpark guys, being TV and not necessarily one person all make it harder to connect to these people on a regional-personal level.
Enough of that.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
I Agree... maybe.
“I used to think that everything was just being funny but now I don't know. I mean, how can you tell?”
~Andy Warhol
“Man is a rational animal who always loses his temper when called upon to act in accordance with the dictates of reason.”
~Orson Welles
“The worst thing that being an artist could do to you would be that it would make you slightly unhappy constantly.”
~J. D. Salinger
“You can produce a mental clarity in yourself when you do something hard simply because it is hard.”
~Anon
“Irony is seductive, but it is not an answer”
~Anon
“When I make a joke it is inherent to a story. Deep, situational and emotional jokes based on what is relevant and have a point. Not just one interchangeable joke after another.”
~Eric Cartman
“The only reason anyone ever does anything is out of boredom, spite, or laziness.”
~Jeff Rose
“If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you.”
~Oscar Wilde
“Do or do not. There is no ‘try.”
~Yoda
“It’s always easier to get forgiveness than permission.”
~Anon
“Ones person’s barbarian is another person’s just doing what everybody else is doing. The question is, whom do we wish to blame? More precisely, whom do we believe we have the right to blame?”
~Susan Sontag
“I want to express the world that I am living in, not the entire world but as a fragmented world… The question is not who is the victim, who is guilty, nor what is it about. It’s about the entire history and not just the fact… I want to confront the chaos… and the unclarity of the world, not by bringing peace or quietness… but by working in the chaos and in the unclarity of the world. I want to do something charged that reaches beauty in its density.”
~Thomas Hirschhorn
“If god told me to sacrifice my son I’d tell him to fuck off.”
~Brad Neely
“I’m not sure satire is the key to my work. Comedians manipulate and make fun of reality, whereas I actually think that reality is far more provocative than my art. You should walk on the street and see real beggars, not my fake ones. You should witness a real skinhead rally. I just fake it, I’m always borrowing pieces- crumbs really- of everyday reality. If you think my work is very provocative, it means that reality is extremely provocative, and we just don’t react to it. Maybe we no longer pay attention to the way we live in the world… we are increasingly anaesthetized.”
~Maurizio Cattelan
“I don’t want them to think! That would be the kiss of death… I just want them to know I’m thinking and I know that laughter opens the doors to perception. It… it allows a thought to get in because you’re completely unguarded and Zen-line when you’re laughing.”
~George Carlin
Monday, September 1, 2008
Funny.
Kind of funny?
Seriously NOT funny.
Funny again?
Humor, irony, failure are all working together in my work, but here's why I'm sort of conflicted with this whole thing: when someone uses humor to highlight the absurdity and contradiction of difficult conflicts (like when someone makes a funny-but-true rape joke as opposed to an always-funny fart joke), it would seem as though by laughing at this fearful event, it proves how powerless that fear really is. Or at least, it proves that it is not unapproachable from a perspective other than stoic seriousness. But I also think then that people often put too much faith in the power of laughter then, because laughing at something sad doesn't actually fix it. Laughter or humor may be a way of coping with something difficult, it may allow one to live in spite of sadness, or to make suffering more bearable, but after a while the jokes stop being funny and the pain and sadness persists, you know?
It seems like a great challenge to always make something funny again once it starts to get too serious, but that feels more like a cavalier attempt at endlessly deferring real engagement with conflict. It gets to be a kind of nihilistic, mean-spirited coyness that doesn't really make sadness approachable, rather it seems to be abetting it.
Does this make sense?
Irony is seductive, but it's not an answer.
I guess I'm also just looking for a way to understand joke making and humor as being engagement, and not an alientated, distanced approach to the world.
I mean, The Daily Show seems like something that might be considered engaging right? But is it really? Or is it the distanced coyness that I've been blathering about? Does that show actually motivate anyone to behave differently in their lives, or does it reduce the individuality of various conflicts into a generality of punchline jokes, where the only action is to recognize the conflict, laugh, and wait for the next joke?
I guess the choice to act is an individual one, and we shouldn't rely on other people to MAKE US make that choice, but there's still something to be said for motivation I hope.
Again, I'm really sorry if this sounds like some kind of mindless judgment that doesn't have a point. I've probably got some holes in this logic that I haven't worked out yet.
I was in New York at the beginning of the Summer and I met David Cross at a lecture he was moderating about "the state of contemporary comedy." I asked him about this stuff that I've just written here. he was no help. He was actually really nice at first, but then he started acting defensive and pretty much told me to fuck off. Probably because I sounded to him like some jerkstore academic who was trying to prove him wrong or attack him or something. I don't know. I wasn't trying to do that. I'm just an over-analyzing grown-up. Anyway, I'm not trying to do that now either. I just thought I'd catharticate it out.
Now I'm out.
Peace.
Kind of funny?
Seriously NOT funny.
Funny again?
Humor, irony, failure are all working together in my work, but here's why I'm sort of conflicted with this whole thing: when someone uses humor to highlight the absurdity and contradiction of difficult conflicts (like when someone makes a funny-but-true rape joke as opposed to an always-funny fart joke), it would seem as though by laughing at this fearful event, it proves how powerless that fear really is. Or at least, it proves that it is not unapproachable from a perspective other than stoic seriousness. But I also think then that people often put too much faith in the power of laughter then, because laughing at something sad doesn't actually fix it. Laughter or humor may be a way of coping with something difficult, it may allow one to live in spite of sadness, or to make suffering more bearable, but after a while the jokes stop being funny and the pain and sadness persists, you know?
It seems like a great challenge to always make something funny again once it starts to get too serious, but that feels more like a cavalier attempt at endlessly deferring real engagement with conflict. It gets to be a kind of nihilistic, mean-spirited coyness that doesn't really make sadness approachable, rather it seems to be abetting it.
Does this make sense?
Irony is seductive, but it's not an answer.
I guess I'm also just looking for a way to understand joke making and humor as being engagement, and not an alientated, distanced approach to the world.
I mean, The Daily Show seems like something that might be considered engaging right? But is it really? Or is it the distanced coyness that I've been blathering about? Does that show actually motivate anyone to behave differently in their lives, or does it reduce the individuality of various conflicts into a generality of punchline jokes, where the only action is to recognize the conflict, laugh, and wait for the next joke?
I guess the choice to act is an individual one, and we shouldn't rely on other people to MAKE US make that choice, but there's still something to be said for motivation I hope.
Again, I'm really sorry if this sounds like some kind of mindless judgment that doesn't have a point. I've probably got some holes in this logic that I haven't worked out yet.
I was in New York at the beginning of the Summer and I met David Cross at a lecture he was moderating about "the state of contemporary comedy." I asked him about this stuff that I've just written here. he was no help. He was actually really nice at first, but then he started acting defensive and pretty much told me to fuck off. Probably because I sounded to him like some jerkstore academic who was trying to prove him wrong or attack him or something. I don't know. I wasn't trying to do that. I'm just an over-analyzing grown-up. Anyway, I'm not trying to do that now either. I just thought I'd catharticate it out.
Now I'm out.
Peace.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
