Being Practical

Many years ago I purchased “Practical Ventriloquism” in a thrift shop. Mine was a 1938 edition of the Robert Ganthony tract first published in 1883.

Having grown up in the age of “How To,” the use of “practical” in that sense was unfamiliar enough, that the title always had me wondering: Were there other books out there on alternative aspects of voice throwing? Theoretical ventriloquism, perhaps? Or experimental?

By now, even “How To” is dated and has long since given way to “DIY,” and “For Dummies.” Ventriloquism for Dummies, anyone?

Here are a few other “practical” books …

Practical Taxidermy

The Practical Phrenologist

Practical Eugenics

Practical Macrame

Practical Palmistry

Practical Orchestration

The Practical Ostrich Feather Dyer

Here are some of the dyed feather samples included in the book. I love the dreamy seaweed-like quality. Dye recipes for each can be found in the text.

Naval Gazing in Annapolis

Gilded footballs from every victory against Army are enshrined behind glass, including the one from the first confrontation in 1890.

I recently visited Annapolis to attend Tableau Software's Tapestry conference on data visualization. I’ll post details about the conference when the links to the presentations are in place.

I had some time before my scheduled return to New York, so I grabbed a tour of the U.S. Naval Academy.

First stop was Lejeune Hall where we got to size up the 33’ platform, off which every midshipman must jump in order to graduate.

Above, you can see half of the Olympic-size swimming pool. The other half lies beyond the moveable bulkhead at the far end.

What might be mistaken for Marimekko carpeting, is the floor of the wrestling room.

Campus architecture is dominated by the Beaux-Arts style of Ernest Flagg. In addition to Dahlgren Hall, below (2), and the Naval Academy Chapel, he designed Bancroft Hall which houses all midshipmen and is the largest dormitory in the world.

Bancroft Hall on a frigid Annapolis morning.

The entire second floor of the naval museum in Prebel Hall is devoted to ship models. Displayed on the first floor is the original flag from the Battle of Lake Erie bearing the "dying command" of Captain James Lawrence, "Don't Give Up The Ship." 

Beneath the Naval Academy Chapel, lie the remains of John Paul Jones in a massive, ornate marble sarcophagus. Above ground, in addition to a sumptuous Tiffany window, there are water and sea-themed stained glass windows representing passages from both the old and new testaments.

The many antique shops along the charming streets of historic Annapolis abound with Naval Academy memorabilia.

eBay Eyes: Mustad Sample Cards

Unless you were an early 20th Century purveyor of fishing gear, I wouldn’t expect you to know that these cards, the backs of which you are seeing in the first three images, display fish hooks. They are from O. Mustad & Sons, a Norwegian company dating back to 1832. I’ve yet to snag one of these on eBay—they are not cheap—and it’s probably for the best. If I ever came to own one, I would have a hard time deciding which side to display.

eBay Eyes is an occasional presentation of found visual treats from that ever-expanding, electronic mega-marketplace.

How To Lose Your Virginity, AGAIN!

If you missed "How To Lose Your Virginity" at the DOC NYC film festival last November, you now have another chance to catch Therese Shechter's eye-opening documentary. New York Women in Film and Television is screening it tonight (Tuesday, February 25th) at Anthology Film Archives, in New York, 32 Second Avenue.

Therese at the Kinsey Institute

Credit to the Credits: 20 Feet From Stardom

I was completely expecting to love “20 Feet From Stardom,” the Oscar-nominated documentary about backup singers. What I was not prepared for, however, was to be bowled over in the first 3 minutes of the film. They had me with the opening credits.

The title sequence takes vintage album covers, publicity shots, and concert stills, and obscures, Baldessari-style, the faces of the “stars,” with a large colored circles. This simple graphic device forces you to see only the backup singers, telegraphing visually, what the film delivers on in depth. And it’s all set to Lou Reed’s Walk on the Wild Side (“and the colored girls sing …”). Very satisfying, indeed.
 
You can view the actual title footage on graphic designer Scott Grossman’s site. You can read more about director Morgan Neville’s homage to Baldessari in this New York Times piece.

The solid silhouetting used here, is another Baldessari device.

Letters from Sochi

Curious to see for myself the city the whole world will be watching for the next two weeks, I decided to make an impromptu visit to Sochi. Flights to the lush subtropical resort town, as well as unfinished hotel rooms, were all booked, so I opted for Google.

The photos here were taken in August 2012, so the scenery is a bit different from what greets any visitor right now. Most notable is the massive construction to be seen everywhere.

Puzzling, however, is the absence of stray dogs. Until locals started spreading word of it, authorities had been using poison to cull the population of Sochi's strays numbering in the thousands. So how is it possible that in August 2012 there was not a canine in sight? With all eyes on Sochi, has the "retouching" of history, a technique so prevalent in the old Soviet Union, been resurrected for the Olympics? Google already blurs faces and license plates, did they disappear those pesky street dogs as well?

Two links to check out:
1. The challenge of constructing an an entire Olympics infrastructure on seismically precarious wetlands. (scientificamerican.com)
2. Photos of Sochi in the first half of the last century. (World Post)

Lenin mosaic at Riviera Park.

I'm pretty sure these say "mini market"