tantramar

Brand's Buildings

This is an old picture of Stewart Brand from 1961. Over the last week I've been watching his How Buildings Learn TV series. It's an old BBC series from 1997. I don't know how I discovered it, probably through this guy, or this guy.

It's a really nice series of six shows about the various ways buildings change and grow over time. Growing via natural rhythms of interactions with humans more than erosion or physical extensions.

It has great stories littered throughout the 6 episodes and vastly improved my week. Brand has the best delivery of almost any documentary narrator I've heard, poignant, thoughtful and rhythmic.

The series is based on his book in the same vein if you fancy a read. Brand also created the Whole Earth Catalog, which I wrote about here. Here's the first episode of How Buildings Learn. Enjoy.

Strawberry Swing

Just in case you haven't seen the Shynola video for Coldplay, you probably should, it's pretty nice.

WARNING: you may want to turn the volume down / or off depending on how you feel about Coldplay..

Technicolour Inspiration

This is great. Dan Meth, an animator has compiled a little video of all his influences. Like a little blast from the past. 

Ah nostalgia... such a sweet bedfellow.

Marco Brambilla

This is a still from one the craziest most brilliantest things I've seen in ages. Marco Brambilla produced this video piece for the Standard hotel in New York.

How did you come up with the concept for this art installation?

The idea of doing a "video mural" had interested me for quite some time and the journey from hell to heaven depicted in this way seemed to be a good fit.

Amazing!

Click here to watch it and read more.

Sorry I can't embedd it.

Thanks to Kon for the tip.

Nothing Quite Like Dumbing Down

Thanks Moll.

Quimby The (Moving) Mouse

Happy is the day when I find a new Chris Ware animation. This time Quimby the Mouse gets an outing. I saw this had been done a few weeks back but dammit, Vimeo is blocked in China so I've only just bee able to view it.

It's really nice, as you might expect and the music is by Andrew Bird, so it's a double win.

Victory!

I don't watch too much TV and don't watch broadcast TV at all anymore but every now and then a series will seep into my consciousness and I'll become completely addicted to it.

It happened with Curb, Arrested Development, The Wire and Generation Kill and perhaps I'm a bit late to the game but I'm loving Entourage. I'm sure most people know about this show. But seriously it's way better than the typical 'a few friends dicking about' type shows.

All the main characters have their individual charms but holy cow Kevin Dillon is good in it. And I don't mean he gives a good performance I mean, Jesus wept, why hasn't be been in more shows!

He plays wannabe actor Johnny 'Drama' Chase, brother of huge movie sensation Vincent Chase (see any real world similarities?). His moment of fame and what he always gets recognised for (in the show) is Viking Quest. This clip is his disgruntled plea to fans of the show to rally with him regarding his supposed mistreatment by the TV studio.

Don't take my word for it.
He got nominated for Emmys in 2007 and 2008 for his performance in Entourage.

Wild Times

I don't get excited about films much anymore but I'm pretty excited about this.

Could Spike Jonze really have done it justice?

God I loved that book growing up.

Rex On Keyboards

Bubblicious from Rex The Dog on Vimeo.

I enjoyed this too much not to post it.

Killing Time

I watch very little TV, mainly because it's so poor. I loved The Wire (almost too much) and so when I heard about David Simon's Generation Kill project I jumped on it. I can say I've enjoyed it significantly.

David Simon adapted Generation Kill from the book of the same name by Evan Wright. Even was a Rolling Stone reporter sent to Iraq in 2003 to get a troop perspective in the first wave of the war.

The series shows marines as you might expect any group of people united by a bizarre scenario to be - quite varied. They vary from racist, bright, stupid, sexist, insecure and constantly ragging on each other to pure downright unbelievable. As a result the show is pretty entertaining while also not pulling any punches on what modern warfare might be like.

The 7 part series came out last summer in the U.S.. Maybe it'll turn up on British TV in a year or so...

The History Of The Internet

This is pretty good if you haven't seen it. Clarity and history in just 8 minutes!

History of the Internet from PICOL on Vimeo.

Kermit I Love You

God, I love The Muppets. Great song, great video.

via Not The Kinda Cool

Beautiful Losers Hits London

The documentary, Beautiful Losers, is finally being released with the London premier this Saturday. Betacast have organised two screenings and an after party Saturday evening. Tickets for the Saturday screening are sold out but I think there are still some for the Monday screening. And there are also a few tickets left for the after party which looks pretty good too. I shall be there on Saturday sucking in work by some of my favourite working artists.

Lego Tetris

I'm still knee deep in stuff but this was too nice to pass up. Animated Tetris, it's scarily mesmeric.

The UK From Above

This is a great little (1 minute) film of traffic flow from space. Cars, ships and planes and the lines they follow. The BBC annoyingly won't let you embed stuff so you have to watch it here.

(Andrew Marr presents the series Britain from Above, the first episode of which will be broadcast on Sunday 10 August at 2100 on BBC One.)