sustainable love corporation

23.12.2011 be coffee, my friends.

2011-12-21T05:01:00.000-08:00

Empty your mind. Be formless, shapeless... like coffee. If you put coffee into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put coffee into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, coffee can flow or it can crash. Be coffee my friend.

NO disrespect to legend and guru Bruce Lee here, or his infamous Be Water speech which, according to a Wikipedia detail, was text that he had written for himself for the (two-season-only) tv series Longstreet.

ONLY wishes for a laughter and love-filled holiday. Remember: "Precious and few are the moments we two can share." - Walter Nims, 1972

Kindest regards,

The Sustainable Love Corporation

13.12.2011 avatar addiction

2011-12-13T14:47:00.000-08:00

Otaku alert: I was researching some support on the importance of avatars in the online experience and got caught up on www.faceyourmanga.com. Since I'm not a smoker, it has replaced iPad Tetris as my latest clear-the-brain-game. Hence, I'm building a mangatar army out of my facebook friends, and using one of their status postings for their comment bubble. The site still has a beta tag on it (although according to my facebook photos, I used it back in August of 2010 as well) so you might encounter a site crash and lose your work now and then. (I've made 14 mangatars and the page crashed 4 or 5 times.) But overall, that site is set up for some mega fun and easy sharing or buying of your pic.

Alas, if you're interested...here's some of the support I found:

"Sure, you could choose not to upload an image, but why would you? Then you’d be a faceless user that no one remembers or identifies with – making gaining traction in the network much more difficult." - 2008, Stephen Spencer, SEO Expert, Author, Professional Speaker

Here's the link to a study that shows people prefer same gender, human-esque avatars by Kristine Nowak and Christian Rauh for the Department of Communication Science at Connecticut University: The Influence of the Avatar on Online Perceptions of Anthropormorphism, Androgyny, Credibility, Homophily, and Attraction It was published in the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication.

Another study, this one found in the Journal of Interactive Advertising by Seung-A Annie Jin and Justin Bolebruch of Boston College, examines "the effects of different characteristics manifested by a company's spokes-avatar...an avatar conveys a stable virtual identity, such that consumers come to recognize their own personal virtual identity, as well as the identities of companies or brands, through the use of and interaction with avatars."

And a persuasive review for a book I can't wait to get my hands on by John Gieger in the Los Angeles Times for 'Infinite Reality' by social psychologist Jim Blascovich and Jeremy Bailenson, founding director of Stanford University's Virtual Human Interaction Lab. (Check the projects tab at the VHIL). From the review: Psychological experiments are finding that people actually change after "wearing" avatars: they become more confident because their avatars, or digital selves, are taller, or slimmer, or younger, or more attractive, or able-bodied. It is not just simple role-plaing: People are actually evolving, in a sense becoming somewhat different people."

happy hyper-linking,

Helen

notes on notes on notes

2011-12-07T10:02:00.000-08:00

Notes From the Belgrade Underground is the second in a series of location specific, multidisciplinary “scene-sampler” exhibitions curated by Sustainable Love Corp. Featured artists present photography, film, illustration, fashion, music and performance that provides a glimpse into the cultural climate of post Milosovic Belgrade ushered in by Otpor, an underground youth organization that combined pop culture and politics to mobilize thousands of people across Serbia, and championed by the organizers of Dis-Patch.

We’ll be screening 3 documentary films including Gold Along The Banks, by Nikola Zecevic, and

(On the Quest for)

Beograd Underground by Muriel Buzarra, Natasa Sarkic, and Carlos Lopez S and hosting Q+A panels with the filmmakers and guest panelists including Gordan Paunovic, CSR Manager at B92 radio, and Uros Radenkovic, Program Manager European Center for Culture and Debate "GRAD". The gallery space will feature installations and works from selected artists that appear in both films: visual and media collective SuperSizeShe, tattoo artist and illustrator Super Timor, and Fashion designers PullMyDaisy are confirmed to participate.

These exhibitions connect the influence of the social, economic, and political structures of “place” with the art that results from rebelling against those structures. The first “Notes From…” exhibition took place at Kunstraum Ampersand in Cologne, Germany and featured the industrial DIY powerhouse of Cleveland, Ohio. Works included contributions from comix artist Derf Backderf, poster artist Derek Hess, punk rock photo documentarian Steve Wainstead, and original works of concrete poet da levy.

As most people just don’t get the chance to travel much outside of their own “scene” or for that matter the 2D limitations of the world wide web, exhibitions like “Notes From…” that physically bring one place to another are both relevant and necessary for societal structures to evolve and meet the needs of the communities they are meant to serve.

We are confirming dates and locations for Notes From The Belgrade Underground. Aiming again for mid-June/July in Cologne, September in Berlin, and October for Los Angeles and Paris. Check in at the facebook page Notes From The Belgrade Underground for updates (including live music program.)

If you’d like more details and/or would like to receive sponsorship info, send a mail to helen@sustainablelovecorp.com or aleks@sustainablelovecorp.com

provocative partners

2011-11-22T03:56:00.000-08:00

For several years now, SLC has been collaborating with Design Provocation, the "brand" behind Irakli Kiziria. Idea swapping, project support, debating whether we should or shouldn't buy an island. The recent mention in Forbes magazine of the Louis Vuittondom has prompted me to post this interview I got out of Irakli at the end of June this year, when he was explaining to me the importance of this design provocation:

"To explain how I came up with the idea of making “luxury” condoms, I'm sure it was inspired by a combination of casual conversations about branding in general, about making sex sexier, or funnier (and funny is always sexy) and definitely about corporate social responsibility. Then suddenly it was in my mind. It took a little time to research the right design path and in the end, a produceable concept was ready to share.

I definitely think more about concepts rather than products. An interesting product will develop naturally from a challenging idea or construct, rarely is it the other way around. And it is usually clear to me when a designer creates something without a concept. It may have a theme, but not really a concept.

Interesting design, for me is a complex challenge with social, economical, even political dimensions. Its aim is to somehow manifest unspoken societal desires. This kind of design may be found anywhere and often, even its invisibility is what can make it so good. Making a One-way Product for the luxury industry has of course socio-economical implications. It's a contradiction that challenges ideas of consumption. This contradiction is another reason why I liked the idea from the beginning.

It was not my intention to actually produce these condoms, and I didn’t really try very hard to get in touch with LV. I sent an email as a courtesy and "for the record", but I hadn't really counted on hearing from them. The most important achievement of this project is, that it went viral and many people around the world believe that these condoms do exist. If you read comments on different blogs, websites (there are several websites, who posted this work) you will see how people react, see their desire and needs to really feel the brand! Some are writing that the price is 68$, some of them are discussing about the imitations. lol. I've gotten lots of e-mails and phone-calls from around the world, from people asking me if they can order them. I think there is enough evidence to answer the question if there’s a need for Louis Vuitton Condoms.

Every day I’m getting more feedback from magazines, blogs, HIV-foundations and other designers. Maybe Marc Jacobs will ultimately decide that it’s a good idea for the brand to produce them. And whether society needs luxury products or not, isn't really the question here. It's what society is actually doing with luxury products, and if LV is donating part of their profits for the HIV-research, they're doing a lot more than most."

www.designprovocation.com

Project copy: "Knowing that the LVMH group supports various foundations and scientific teams engaged in research related to public health issues, I developed an idea for a product to further benefit amFAR with a launch to coincide with World Aids Day.
Here’s the stimulating part…Where most designers stop at the packaging, the Louis Vuitton logo is actually molded into the latex of this product for a ribbing effect. No inks or dyes to compromize the latex.
Can you feel it?"

heiße preße

2011-08-31T10:17:00.000-07:00

Kölner Rundschau article on the exhibition and Kunstraum Ampersand. Falko Bürschinger and Helen Schneider pictured. Here, the text in German:

Die Punkrockszene Clevelands der 80er Jahre ist alles andere als tot. Ausgerechnet in einem kleinen Kellerloch am Rande des Belgischen Viertels ist das subkulturelle Lebensgefühl zwischen staubigen Polstersesseln, Sperrmüll, leeren Bierkisten und gelbem Absperrband wieder auferstanden.

150 Schwarz-Weiß-Fotografien von Steve Wainstead wer den nacheinander auf grobe Styroporplatten projiziert, während im Hintergrund punkige Klänge seiner populären Radio Show „Wainstead All Night“ die Uhr zurückdrehen. Die Installation im Keller der großzügigen Galerieräume ist Teil der aktuellen Ausstellung „Notes from the Cleveland Underground“, die zur zeit im Kunstraum Ampersand zu sehen ist.

Seit März haben sich sechs junge Galeristen zusammengeschlossen, um im Sechs Wochen Rhythmus die Arbeiten junger, noch unbekannter Künstjavascript:void(0)ler aus der Umgebung zu präsentieren. Ob Malerei oder Zeichnung, Fotografie, Skulptur oder Installation spielt dabei keine Rolle, lediglich ein Aspekt müsse stimmen: „Qualität ist das entscheidende Merkmal für die Auswahl“, betont Galeristin Katja Richter.

Für die dritte Ausstellung im neuen Kunstraum an der Venloer Straße hat Kuratorin Helen Schneider aus Cleveland die Arbeiten von Künstlern der dortigen Punkrock und Hardrockszene seit 1960 zusammengestellt. Nicht nur in einer Dauerausstellung der
begehrte Sammlerstücke sind die Drucke des international bedeutenden Posterkünstlers Derek Hess, der Plakate und Flyer für alternative Rockbands kreierte. Mit Feder und Acryl fertigt er surreale Szenemotive von beeindrucken der zeichnerischer Präzision. Die Grenzen zwischen Renaissance, Barock, Gothic und Punk verwischt Arabella Profffer in ihren kleinformatigen Ölgemälden. Darauf tragen aristokratische Punk-Ladies Tattoos zu barocken Gewän- dern oder pinkfarbene Haare zur königlichen Halskrause.

Trotz der vielschichtigen aktuellen Ausstellung möchten sich die jungen Galeristen nicht auf die Underground Szene festlegen. Dass sie trotz des bisher „erheblichen Besuccherauf kommens“ arbeiten müssen, Sammler zu gewinnen, ist ihnen bewusst. Große Verkäufe seien nicht von Anfang an das Ziel. Jetzt gehe es erst einmal darum, sich in der Kölner Galerien landschaft zu positionieren.

Bis 30 .Juli, Do. bis So. 12-19 Uhr, Venloer Straße 24, www.kunstraum-ampersand.de

cleveland + cologne = magical sound

2011-07-22T00:17:00.000-07:00

CONCERT: PAUL MAROTTA LEADS AN NRW ENSEMBLE OF TERRY RILEY'S IN C
Ensemble is: Fellow Styrenes member UK Rattay, Thomas Karstens, Harald Sack Ziegler, Rodrigo López Klingenfuss, Der Präsident, Sven Rossenbach, Paul Wallfisch, Harald Bernhard, Marc Matter, Ulla Grümmer and Christoph Clöser.
Plus a performance by DRUMS OFF CHAOS with POPNONAME
Musical Support by Marc Lansley
30. Juli. 2011
HALLE DEUTZ AIR, AUENWEG 173 GEB. 6C 51063 Köln.

The extent to which the Clevo Underground of the 1970’s shaped (punk) rock history is almost immeasurable. Bands like Pere Ubu, Rocket From The Tombs, Electric Eels, Mirrors, The Styrenes et al, liberated themselves from clichéd genre constraints and caused a Creative Big bang that isinternationally recognized—not only by the music elite. A creative energy was released from this working class city, which could be heard in the years that followed and resounds yet still.

Having spent time in both Mirrors and Electric Eels, Guitarist/keyboardist/bassist/vocalist Paul Marotta was a significant part of that scene. But by the end of 1975, those bands, along with Rocket from the Tombs, had broken up. As they were disintegrating, Marotta, was putting together the project variously known as the Styrene Money Band, the George Money Band, the Poli Styrene Jass Band and finally just the Styrenes. And he has kept the Styrenes going. With occasional periods of inactivity and constantly changing personnel, he led The Styrenes on a US tour in 2010 to celebrate the bands’ 35th anniversary.

As the band members were recruited more or less from the same gang of musicians, the Styrenes could be called the deviants among the deviants. Even by Cleveland standards, they were a bit ‘off’, a bit too weird, ROIR called them “kind of like Syd Barret backed by Pavement.” It was Marotta who was continually pushing the proverbial envelope: reinterpreting Terry Riley’s„In C“, and inviting Pagans singer Mike Hudson to perform on some of the band’s narrative pieces, in which spoken word and instrumental music are layered into hyp- notic, virtually cinematic experiences. (That collaboration began by mail „Paul sending Mike his depressing music and Mike sending Paul his depressing lyrics.“)

As the climax to the 6 week exhibition run at Kunstraum Ampersand (Venloer Strasse 24), NFTCU has invited Paul Marotta to lead a group of 15-20 musicians living in Germany and surrounds in a performance of„In C“ at Halle Deutz Air (Fritz- Schramma Halle). Having recorded the Terry Riley work with The Styrenes on Enja records in 2002, Marotta explains that the recording was made in a similar fashion to Riley‘s first Lp recording,„We played the piece all the way through, switched a few instruments around, and then we all played it again on separate tracks. That made 14 instruments. Three more guitar and keyboard overdubs and we had recorded a 20-piece rock band.“

Original Styrenes member UK Rattay will join the ensemble, and the program will be complemented by a performance by Drums of Chaos (A project by local legend Jaki Liebezeit of Can with Popnoname aka Jens-Uwe Beyer, and additional musical support by Cologne DJ/Producer Marc Lansley. As a finnissage event for the Exhibition at Kunstraum Ampersand, the concert is currently scheduled for July 30th at Halle Deutz Air. AUENWEG 173 GEB. 6C 51063 Köln, Germany

PRESS CONTACT: HELEN SCHNEIDER
+49 (0) 171 219 0038 mobile
helen@sustainablelovecorp.com
Facebook: Notes From The Cleveland Underground

europareising

2011-05-19T09:50:00.000-07:00

It's exciting to be working on the project management side of this year's c/o pop festival taking place this June 22-26th. Specifically, the Sustainable Love Corporation is working on Europareise -- the international networking platform within the c/o pop festival and the C’n’B – Creativity & Business Convention. Europareise is primarily aimed at festivals and institutions from all over the world, and this year will focus on the presentation of several international festival networks such as Festival Le Regroupement / Canada, De Concert, abrafin/ Brasil, Le Reseau / France, and more. All with the goal of intensifyng network exhange and promoting new alliances and business opportunities.

If you're in or planning a trip to Cologne, please join us!

june 18th through july 30th

2011-05-19T09:01:00.000-07:00

Final poster art by Derf. Location secured: Kunstraum Ampersand Venloer Strasse 24 in Köln. We're grateful to all the fine folks sending additional flyers, posters, tee's, cd's, etc... from Cleveland! And as this show gets ready to hang, we are already collecting material from Beograd, Serbia for NOTES FROM THE BELGRADE UNDERGROUND coming next year!

Präsentiert von The Sustainable Love Corporation, "NOTES FROM THE CLEVELAND UNDERGROUND“ ist ein interdisziplinärer Szene-Sampler, eine Initiative zum sub-kulturellen Artenschutz und bildet die gesamte Vielfalt der DIY-Subkultur ab: Bildende Kunst, Fotografie, Film, Literatur, Posters, Zines, die typographische Poesie der „concrete poetry“ sowie Klänge aus Clevelands künstlerischem und musikalischen Untergrund.

Beteiligte Künstler sind u.a.: Derf Backderf, Derek Hess, Arabella Proffer, Dott Schneider, Steve Wainstead, John G, Jake Kelly. Des Weiteren gibt es eine Ausstellung mit Arbeiten des „concrete poet“ da levy, die von der Michael Schwartz Special Collections Library an der Cleveland State University ermöglicht wurde. U.a. werden die Dokumentarfilme „if i scratch, if i write“, von Kon Petrochuk und „Clevelands‘ Screaming“ von Brad Warner gezeigt.

Solltet Ihr Rückfragen haben oder weitere Informationen benötigen, könnt Ihr uns gerne kontaktieren:

Helen Schneider, Kuratorin: helen@sustainabelovecorp.com

Aleks Ivkovic, Event Production and Sponsoring: aleks@sustainablelovecorp.com

time out for eulogies

2011-01-24T01:51:00.000-08:00

Jack Lalanne died yesterday at 96. He told the SF Chronicle in an interview, "Other people work at dying, I work at living!"

The video above was made around 2005, when I got my first video camera and was teaching myself the basics of final cut pro. I brought the camera along everywhere: to corporate events I had worked on, a commercial for Volvo that I produced, some concerts and weddings I went to, etc...

The Jack Lalanne footage is from a trade fair for people 50+ that I attended with my mom in Cleveland, Ohio. Mr Lalanne was a truly dynamic speaker and offers an inspirational opening to the video with the quotable, "Forget about what you used to do, think about what you're doing right now and do the best you can!" I loved hearing it over and over as I worked on the video and chose to close it with him addressing the audience..."Living is tough. It's hard. Dying is the easiest thing in the world!" and "The good old days are RIGHT THIS SECOND!"

Thank you Jack for our moment, and giving me some words to live by. You are an honorary spokesman for The Sustainable Love Corporation!

Link to New York Times article on Jack Lalanne... HERE.

nftcu facebook? affirmative.

2011-01-04T12:30:00.001-08:00

Carl of Offbeats at Floyd's Apartment. Photo by Steve Wainstead

Yup. Notes From The Cleveland Underground headquarters got it together and is present now on facebook. That social media hole is now filled, and though we will continue to update this blog with announcements and progress, you can turn to facebook for steady links and tidbits - even posting your own Cleveland related treats and trivia! Check out the photo albums of the contributing artists to see samples of their work - like the above photo by Steve Wainstead.

From 1983 to 1988, Wainstead avidly photographed the underground music scene in Cleveland, taking over 8,000 shots. Also a local (university) radio hero, with dedication and passion for punk rock music, one fan writes, "I remember listening to college radio as a young teenager but the person who was the most important for bringing great local punk rock to the air was Steve Wainstead. He was the man, the God for me and I am sure many other young punks in Cleveland. His distinct voice and on the air style is a true classic and something that no one should never ever forget. He is the quintessential radio personality for WCSB."

Notes From The Cleveland Underground has over 150 original Wainstead prints and contact sheets which will be scanned for a projection installation. Visitors will be surrounded by photographs of Cleveland bands, bands playing in Cleveland, and Cleveland scenesters while listening to recordings of his now infamous Wainstead All Night radio show.

Steve writes, "A Pentax K-1000 and a Pentax ME Super with autowinder were all I used... plus a Vivitar zoom, a Tokina zoom, and a Sunpak flash... oh, and a Tokina 17mm lens as well (ultra-wide-angle)." ;)

Facebook much?

free in cleveland. 10 cents elsewhere.

2010-11-19T08:05:00.001-08:00

Some Buddhist Third Class Junk Mail Oracles spread out on my table.

Thanks to Joanne Cornelius at the Cleveland State University Michael Schwartz Library, I'm sitting at a gigantic wooden table in Special Collections selecting original d.a. levy material to bring to Germany for the NOTES FROM THE CLEVELAND UNDERGROUND exhibition in March of 2011.

Cornelius, the Digital Production and Course Reserves Supervisor at the library attended a levyfest several years ago and convinced the library to create and expand a collection at levy "ground zero". From personal correspondence, original letterpress poems, concrete poetry by levy and poets that levy published, to copies of the Marrahwanna Quarterly and The Buddhist Third Class Junk Mail Oracle, (two of Cleveland's original alternative press publications) the collection is at your fingertips at clevelandmemory.com as a digital archive. I encourage y'all to dive in!

"d.a. levy is the true son of Kerouac's railroad earth. An American spirit of nether underground, who needs to be discovered by anyone interested in the history of radical poetics. For one so ahead of his time, now is definitely the time."

–Thurston Moore, Sonic Youth

For a summary on the NFTCU exhibition, see: Tuesday, September 28, 2010

is you is or is you ate my baby

2010-11-09T08:15:00.000-08:00

CLEVELAND, Nov 8 (UP) --A Cleveland cartoonist was dismissed from jury duty after informing the court of his childhood friendship with notorious serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Link to live article: here

And yet still...The Sustainable Love Corporation is proud to be bringing Derf to Cologne in March of 2011 as part of the Notes From The Cleveland Underground exhibition. Derf is also drawing the exhibition poster which we will be revealing in a few weeks.

Derf Backderf is one of the most widely published alternative comic artists in the US. He is best known for his cranky comic strip, The City, an offbeat, humorous portrait of urban life in the post-millennial rubble of America. The City has appeared in over 100 weekly papers during its 20-year existence, including The Cleveland Scene, The Village Voice and The Chicago Reader. Derf has also produced three award-winning graphic novels, all set in Cleveland and its environs. Punk Rock & Trailer Parks (2009), is a sprawling, rustbelt epic that unfolds in the punk-rock heyday of the Seventies, Trashed (2002) is a hilarious, stomach-churning memoir of Derf's career as a garbageman in his rural hometown south of Cleveland and My Friend Dahmer (2011) is the haunting true story of Derf's high school friendship with the infamous serial killer.

Derf has been included in Best American Comics (Houghton-Mifflin) twice in the past three years. He has been nominated for two Eisner Awards, named best cartoonist of the alternative press and received a Robert F. Kennedy Award for political cartooning. His work is in the permanent collections of the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame, The Library of Congress and the Ohio State Cartoon Museum, where a Derf Collection was established in 2009.

more derf at www.derfcity.com

NFTCU exhibition summary, see Tuesday, September 28th

truffle shuffle music and mysticism

2010-10-19T12:27:00.000-07:00

The final EP from the Walls album has just been released on Kompakt: 5 remixes of "Gaberdine" including the (above) Truffle Shuffle's Epic Stoner. The Sustainable Love Corporation is grateful to be thanked along with Okinawa 69 in the credits of the video, and can only tout the mad skills of Marc Lansley and Shumi who are the dynamic duo that is Truffle Shuffle.

For remixes, original music, live DJ sets, pre-produced sets or soundtracks, these gentlemen should be at the very top of your list. They can be reached via Kompakt, but if you want to avoid all that big label bureaucracy ;) you already have my email: helen@sustainablelovecorp.com

Ah... and Lansley cuts a hell of a video... if you need some of that.

carly takes cologne

2010-10-14T10:45:00.001-07:00

pictured right, carly cannell and jorge orozco-cordero of weetu and weetree

the image is from this months issue of CS Interiors which you can read online media.modernluxury.com

The übertalented, creative octopus Carly Cannell will be in Cologne from October 21-31st. In addition to moving forward on elements for the Notes From The Cleveland Underground exhibition, we'll be hitting the Orgatec trade fair. If you want to get on the calendar about your interior/architecture or identity/brand needs, send me a mail at helen@sustainablelovecorp.com

The hounds are called Coco and Lulu.

exit through the what shop?

2010-10-08T09:10:00.000-07:00

Paris Bustillos, created the film ‘Borf!’ which has now won two local awards, pictured with Helen Schneider, who supplied the music for the film.

Below, an article that ran in the Great Falls Connection last year. Friend and filmmaker Bustillos often takes the rough jams that I've done -In this case, with Mike Fonte- and weaves them into his film and video work. 'Borf!' will be shown this next month during Design Week in DC. To find out when or to learn more about the film, contact pbustillos@gmail.com

Borf Lives On: Award-winning film ‘Borf!’ documents story of graffiti campaign, Great Falls boys’ friendship. By Mike DiCicco

In the early months of 2004, strange images began popping up on surfaces around the nation’s capital, a voiceover says, as the camera pans across graffiti featuring the non-word "borf" and a boy with a manic grin.

"Was he trying to tell us something? Did he want to hurt us? Was there something wrong with him?" the voice wonders. "This is the story of a boy named Borf and the friends who wouldn’t forget him."

So begins "Borf!" the 28-minute documentary film that garnered a Rosebud Film Festival award last weekend. In late March, the movie was named best local film at the D.C. Independent Film Festival.

"To most people, they didn’t really know what any of this was. They just saw their property values going down or that there was this really creative guy out there expressing himself," said Paris Bustillos, who directed the film. He said it had been clear that there was a story behind the often-humorous quips and stenciled images, but no one had known what to make of them at the time. "And really, in the end, it’s about two friends who love each other."

THOSE FRIENDS were John Tsombikos and Bobby Fisher of Great Falls. In October 2003, Fisher, nicknamed Borf, killed himself at the age of 16. Tsombikos reacted by unleashing a wave of graffiti on northwest D.C., as well as other cities he visited. Much of his vandalism involved stenciled pictures of his friend or statements like "Borf writes letters to your children" or "Borf never dies."

Bustillos knew Tsombikos from a time when Fisher was still alive and the friends were making home movies together. He taught a week-long "digital video boot camp" for high school students, which Tsombikos took, producing a movie with Fisher. "I had been showing that movie for years as an example of what even a 15-year-old could do," Bustillos said. Shortly after reading a newspaper story about Tsombikos’ arrest in 2005, Bustillos was showing the movie again when he realized that the name in the credits was the same as that of the Borf graffiti artist, he said.

"I thought it was a fascinating and magical story," he said. He also had plenty of material. In addition to the movie Tsombikos had shot for the class, the friends had made hours of home movies, and "Borf!" cuts between interviews, shots of the graffiti art and scenes of Fisher acting.

TSOMBIKOS is also interviewed in the film, saying he used the Borf image as an example of suffering teens everywhere. "I didn’t really think too hard about whether I’d go to jail," he says to the camera, still silhouetted even though his identity is now known. "I would risk it. It was worth it for me."

He compares his 30 days in jail to high school, noting that the food and bell schedule were similar. "They just punish you with boredom. But it’s not that different from the outside."

knock-out film talent in the house

2010-09-30T12:32:00.000-07:00

Efecto Dominó from Gabriel Gauchet on Vimeo.

Nighttime in a quarter of Havana. A couple of men are playing a game of dominos while the women pass the time gossiping. Out of the blue, a man finds the granddaughter of Mercedes and Ramón at a park close by. It looks like she's been raped. The situation escalates, as chauvinist tendencies are incited to the point that a culprit must be found at any cost.

with Alina Rodríguez, Enrique Molina, Luis Alberto García,

Yoset Puentes, Violena Isabel Ampudia, Samuel Claxton, Jorge Ali

Awards:

Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival 2010 - Youth Jury Award

Lille European Film Festival 2010 - Young Talent Award

Independent Days Karlsruhe 2010 - 2nd prize

2nd Leiden International Short Film Festival - LisFE Award

International Videofestival Bochum 2010 - 3rd prize

Festival Brasileiro de Cine Universitário 2010 - Audience Award

I worked out the final english subtitles for the 35mm print with Gabriel for Efecto Dominó. The awards are flying in, but he continues to look for the right distribution deal. You can reach him at mail.gauchet@gmail.com or via www.gabrielgauchet.com with kudos or contacts. Ask him about the new film he was shooting on location in Zambia.

call to sponsors - reach the nerdcore cosmopolite

2010-09-28T02:12:00.000-07:00

paintings by arabella proffer www.arabellaproffer.com

Yes the search for sponsors is on. Check out the exhibition brief below, and let me know if you'd like to review the full sponsor proposal...

THE EXHIBITION:

As an action toward Sub-Cultural Preservation, NOTES FROM THE CLEVELAND UNDERGROUND will raise awareness of the historically significant and artistically vibrant Cleveland underground art and music scene in cultural communities throughout Europe. Starting with a 3-city tour in Germany (Cologne, Hamburg, Berlin), this exhibit functions as a “scene-sampler” from this powerhouse of DIY sub-culture, showcasing fine and performing art, photography, film, literature, zines, music, bands, the places that housed, and the personalities that hosted the alternative community since the 1960’s.

The first installment of NFTCU will feature Cleveland punk, literature and related works. The artistic vision: Through the recording and transcription of interviews with contributing artists, musicians and scene activists, we build an Oral History as well as a framework for the exhibition in a 3-tiered exploration of relationships; The Artist in Relationship with Material (medium, content), The Artist in Relationship to Self, and The Artist in Relationship with Environment (social, political, cultural).

The Oral History can be heard on one of several listening stations that will be staged within the gallery space among the displayed works. The material will also be available via online streaming, and the transcripts provide the text for the printed exhibition catalogue. We will also offer radio stations copies to broadcast in part or in whole, and donate audio and texts to public libraries. Confirmed visual artists include: John “derf” Backderf , Derek Hess, Arabella Proffer, Dott Schneider, Steve Wainstead and an exhibition of the works of da levy. The program will also be complimented by relevant film screenings and Q+A sessions with key contributors.

Proceeds from select exhibition merchandise will go to support the growth and preservation of da levy material at the Cleveland State University - Michael Schwartz Special Collections Library.

For information on sponsorship needs-opportunities-benefits contact: helen@sustainablelovecorp.com

andreas kaufmann in your own backyard

2010-09-27T09:10:00.000-07:00

I translated the press release for this project. Catch it if you can, and if you are interested in bringing this work to your hometown or a permanent location, contact Andreas:

Artists: Andreas M. Kaufmann & Hans Ulrich Reck
Working Title: "I CAN, BECAUSE I WANT, WHAT I MUST" Exhibition: Ruhr-Atoll: Kunst Wissenschaft Energie (Curator: Norbert Bauer)
Location: Baldeneysee in Essen-Werden
Duration: May 12 - end September 2010
Press Contact: RUHR.2010 GmbH / Marc Oliver Hänig / Tel. +49 (0) 201 888 2099 email marc.oliver.haenig@ruhr2010.de
Artist Contact: contact@andreas-kaufmann.com / hansulrichreck@yahoo.de

The site-specific U-boat sculpture „I CAN, BECAUSE I WANT, WHAT I MUST“ is the result of the collaboration between image scientist and art historian Prof. Dr. Hans Ulrich Reck and artist Andreas M. Kaufmann. Reck and Kaufmann have condensed the complex civil relationships embedded in the idea of "Energy", and manifested them in the form of a submarine on the Baldeneysee. Appropriately staged in a location that is historically associated with energy supply and demand, the boat itself is modeled after the American submarines implemented during the cold war to vividly objectify exported wars in general, and the conflict potential around energy resources in and for Europe. Thus exemplifying our demand for power in order that we maintain our standard of living, the sculpture also thematically embraces the energy of subversive artistic creativity.

One must leave solid ground to fully experience the Kaufmann + Reck work. As all of the other pieces of art shown on the lake, the sculpture is accessible by small paddle boats, which are available on the Baldeneysee. From the shore, the viewer sees only what looks like the observation tower of a submarine. At closer range, one can see that there is a statement cut from the outer wall, „I CAN, BECAUSE I WANT, WHAT I MUST“ as a mirror-image – the sentence can be read at the proper and intended perspective from the inside.

Hundreds of transparent slides from established commemorative archives are mounted as an image collage on the interior of the sculpture, and the cut-out letters provide „windows“ that allow daylight to illuminate the collage. These windows become monitors, thereby emphasizing only the images that are backlit by their shape, and limiting the access to the others. Atmospherically, the interior might remind the visitor of a Gothic chapel. Moreover, the energy from the sunlight that illuminates this picture-world during the day for the inside viewer, is stored and repurposed in the evenings to illuminate the windows from the inside outwards.

The image motifs concern collective memory, using publicly accessible images (press pictures from the last 20 years) that refer to the reality of social and political logic, and images of the visionary, the dreamy, the traumatic, and the obscure (i.e., stills from surrealist films, alchemic presentations, scientific and research simulations, fantasies of outer space, and works of art) – all forms of energy which our human logic probably commands far more than we admit to ourselves.

The swimming U-Boat Scupture is crafted from 6mm thick steel, measures 16,6 meters long x 7.3 meters wide x 6.5 meters high (at the tower). It can be found at the Meidericher Dockyard In Duisburg.

walt whitman in kölsch dialect

2010-09-27T07:51:00.000-07:00

Inspired by the need for something to do, my friend Holger and I decided to bring the camera along to the cave for a beer. The concept was to simply shoot something and decide what we’ll throw under it whilst enjoying our brew. This is the result. Walt Whitman’s O Captain My Captain… in Kölsch.

Though one-night projects like this lack what industry professionals might call “high-production value”, the fun factor of doing something completely self-indulgent and kind of unnecessary, keeps the wheels of creativity…lubricated.

Holger Hegemann is a playwright living in Cologne. His play “Schmitze Schäng und dat Gerti”, a drama about the Cologne Karneval during the era of National Socialism, premiered at the Severins-Burg Theater in November of 2007. The soundtrack is a jam called “Gyro”, recorded in Cologne by Mike Fonte on guitar and Helen Schneider on bass in June of 2009.

notes from the cleveland underground

2010-09-27T07:25:00.000-07:00

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I've been in Cologne nearly 3 years now, and just last weekend I met some fancy shirt at a club here who asked where I was from. When I told him I was from Cleveland, he actually said, “I’m sorry for you”. Isn’t that unbelievable? What a hoser. I don’t even think you can say anything to make yourself sound like more of an idiot than straight up insulting the city where someone grew up. Eh…especially if you’ve never been there. It just goes to prove how unenlightened people everywhere are. And not just about Cleveland. Europe needs this show now more than ever.

Born from a conversation about influential Cleveland punk of the 70’s and 80’s, NOTES FROM THE CLEVELAND UNDERGROUND has grown into a “scene-sampler” of goodies from this powerhouse of do-it-yourself sub-culture, and is targeted for a three-city tour in Germany (Cologne, Hamburg, Berlin) in the January through March of 2011.

NFTCU won’t be a conventionally-sparse, white-walled gallery experience where the visitor feels obligated to stop and worship one framed thing after another, but will give you that feeling more akin to hanging out in your favorite subversive record store (without the stinky carpet). That’s Cleveland.

Featuring the comic art of John (derf) Backderf, whose PUNK ROCK & TRAILER PARKS will be included in the 2010 edition of Houghton-Mifflin's BEST AMERICAN COMICS, guest edited by Neil Gaiman, the artifacts and artworks will be staged in categories; Bands/Musicians, Alternative Radio, Clubs/Shops, Photography, Fine/Performing Arts and Illustration, and Zines/Lit/Comics.

More details on participating artists and gallery locations coming soon.

Derf has been nominated for two Eisner Awards (the Oscars of comix), has been honored by the Society of Professional Journalists, was named the Alternative Press' best cartoonist in 2005 and was the recipient of a Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award in 2006. www.derfcity.com

race across america documentary - 2009/2010

2010-09-27T06:58:00.000-07:00

A story following the Great Grand Pac Masters 4-man relay riders and crew during
the 2009 Race Across America, a coast-to-coast extreme cycling event. 3,000 miles
of changing road conditions and environments, racing against the clock, takes its toll
on cyclists of any age. Boasting an average age of 75 however, the Great Grand Pac
Masters 4-Man relay team considers the idea of too old, too tired, and too risky as
"gone with the wind".

I was part of the ensemble camera crew filming RAAM in 2004 when these guys were
only 80. Theirs was one of three featured stories that completed a full documentary of
that years race. It aired on NBC in January of '05, and won the Boulder Colorado Int'l
Film Festival. The best part for me was being made an honorary team member at the
finish line in Atlantic City.

For the 2009 race, the guys specifically requested that I join them for the entire route
as an embedded journalist with their team. They knew they had a bigger...longer story
to tell. I rode with them all the way from San Diego to Annapolis, Maryland. I have
partnered with Stephen Auerbach, of AuerFilms on this project. His team is editing the
footage and the film will be ready for your eyes in late 2010. Auerbach produced and
directed the aforementioned '04 film, and his recent release Bicycle Dreams is currently
on the festival circuit. www.bicycledreamsmovie.com

Pictured from left to right: Bob Kash, Lew Meyer, Lee "Fuzzy" Mitchell, Chris Stauffer

street level youth media - let's hang benefit

2010-09-27T06:50:00.000-07:00

I love working with my friend Carly Cannell at weetu www.goweetu.com. In 2007, she was working with Cleverspin, and helped me put together an event to benefit Street-Level Youth Media.

The idea was simple…ask our pool of designer/artist friends to make a t-shirt for a one-night only party. At the party, the shirts would be hanged and sold for $25 each, all proceeds going to Street-Level Youth Media.

Wine and appetizers were donated by A Tavola Chicago www.atavolachicago.com, and was hosted in their second floor event space. Some new neighborhood friendships were forged and Street Level went home with some sweet cash to help further their mission.

The mission of Street Level Youth Media?To educate Chicago's urban youth in media arts and emerging technologies for use in self-expression, communication, and social change. Street-Level's programs build critical thinking skills for young people who have been historically neglected by public policy makers and mass media. Using video and audio production, computer art and the Internet, Street-Level's youth address community issues, access advanced communication technology and gain inclusion in our information-based society. www.street-level.org

The Sustainable Love Corporation is big on media literacy. Real big.

san francisco museum of modern art - rebellissance ball

2010-09-27T06:32:00.000-07:00

It was summer of Y2K, and I was doing some freelance work with Herring Media Group. I had just helped finish executing a multi-city architectural lighting event for Lexus, and was asked to step in and produce a benefit for the SF Museum of Modern Art.

The concept and timing coincided with the traveling Magritte Exhibition, and the artistic program was put together by SF/Munich based event maven, Babalou with then Contemporary Extension Chairperson, Jerrie Sue Gienger.

The event featured a performances by Tony Labat, the Extra Action Marching Band, Tim North on his Hoverdrum (yes…suspended from the artrium ceiling) electronic artist Jonah Sharp performing with cellist Kash Killion, DJays, light shows, tableaux vivante, human hors d’ouevres trays (powdered to health code restrictions of course), and even performance knitters who knitted themselves into a cacoon throughout the evening and emerged naked right before the Extra Action Marching Band appeared.

The band played and danced the guests outside where Lighting on Demand and Survival Research Laboratories staged and demonstrated a giant Tesla Coil in the adjacent parking lot. Can you say “wow factor”?