Wednesday, January 26, 2005

The Department of Homeland KGB

They used the word "Home" in there to make it sound warm and friendly. All it is is another spy agency to spy on Americans. It's ironic that the "Freedom" obsessed W has taken more freedom away from Americans than any other president in the last 100 years. This blog isn't supposed to be a long dissertation, it's merely to point out that I have noticed.

Monday, January 24, 2005

Bad Monday...

One might start to think I'm cynical. But, I heard on the news this morning that this is the worst Monday of the year because the holiday debt, the approaching tax season, the weather, and the fact that it Monday. But I think unless you won the lottery today you would have to agree today is a bad day.

Friday, January 21, 2005

shit that passes for art

I have an issue with many of today's artists. The tools have never been better for making good art and yet:
*Sculptors make sculptures that look like random weldings, semi-organic looking pieces of stone.
*Filmmakers films are so lacking in content that most film projects end up being $70 million steaming piles you can barely sit through it once, and if someone paid you maybe you would consider watching it a second time, maybe.

I will concede there are still some decent painters out there.

My advice to anyone seeking to be an artist is to go to Florence, Italy and check out the statue of David. This statue is one of only a few instances throughout history of great art.

The statue of David, not the tiny replica statues, but the actual statue is 19 feet tall. It's in perfect form. It's telling the story of the exact moment when David is turning to face the Goliath, which is one of the coolest stories in the Old Testament, in my opinion. It's a story of courage, and the statue, when you see it in person, is utterly stunning. Even if you don't like art, I guarantee you will say, "Wow!!" It's breathtaking. A picture can't do it justice. You have to see it.

There's also a story of before Michael Angelo was about to carve the statue of David, he looked at the piece of marble for a month before the hammer even made his 1st chip with the chisel.

So, if your an artist, think of your as telling a story worth telling. Then, make it perfect.

If I was going to sculpt something today, the statue I think I would like to make would be a 25 foot tall moon man. I would make a perfect sculpture of Neal Armstrong standing on the moon with a giant American flag in his hand. It would take me a year to do it, but I think that would be as monumental of a statue as David, if I managed to make it perfect.

The Life of Jeff

The purpose of this blog is to talk about the things I am thinking about and experiencing.