ABW moments before closing. Empty halls. Locked doors. Cold anticipation for the long walk back.

I love the way Albrecht Dürer signed a great number of his works of art. His initials so elegant, so simple, so exact and yet he used slight variations in style with each print or painting. Dürer, a master of his trade(s), produced some of the most amazing works of art in history. I love his signature so much that I stole assimilated it for myself. And yet my clunky Adobe Illustrator version (below) still can not compare to the simplicity and genius of his typography. A Germanic version of Roman lettering.

With my version, I plan on using it simply as a watermark for photographs.  Small and hopefully unnoticeable so that it doesn’t take away from the viewing pleasure of the actual photograph. I dislike large watermarks. When people use large watermarks, I tend to notice the watermark more than the actual photo. Take a look at my (re)creation.

Because I wanted it to be small, I felt that increasing the thickness of the lettering would make it more legible.  The exact size is yet to be determined.

Would you consider this more a consecration or a desecration?

: My new favicon 

2/14 – Update: So I made one almost exactly like his.

A (updatable) list for me to keep track of what I need to do/buy before departing for Burning Man 2012.  I have begun the research process. AND for those who must ask what is Burning Man? Check out this wonderfully written exploration of Burning Man.  It’s amazing.

Does anyone have any good costume ideas for me?! Something to wear in the land of no vending. 2012 Art Theme: Fertility 2.0

Purchase

• Few bottles of sunscreen. SPF 1000+.
• 2 extra camera batteries for both the Nikon and the Sony.
• Sombrero/Cowboy Hat (Protections from the sun)
• Goggles (Protection from sand storms)
• Fixed camera mount for bicycle handle bars.
• Large Canopy Tent
• A weeks worth of portable and highly sustainable food.
• As much water as I can pack.
• Prepare some gifts to give. (one of the ten principles)
• Water proof camera case for Sony.
• Head lamps for night riding.

• White Robe with Hood. White bandanas.
• Plastic 5-gallon utility bucket (with lid!) and heavy-duty black garbage bags.
• First aid kit.
• Battery-powered radio and tune into BMIR.
• Camelbak?
• Water tight protective bag.
• Earplugs.
• Cologne. Cause there will be no showers.

Prepare

• Pre-Tan
• Tune up bicycle for desert exploration. Balloon tires? Repair kit. Tools. Lock.
• Rent vehicle for the two week road trip.

Along the Way

• Hike the Rocky Mountain National Park.
• White water raft.

Photo Sources:

Both images are from the Burning Man website.

Lugged my tripod and camera around a cold and deserted campus. Tried my hand at some slow shutter speed photographs.  Too much shake still in the majority of the photos. I have since purchased a better tripod and a remote shutter.  Next time, I won’t even need to touch my camera.

Do you see it?!  Walking around this town is similar to finding all of the hidden packages in Grand Theft Auto.  Three down, 97 more to go!

See Also: http://andyz.me/blog/2011/discoveries/

LISTS! Things I want to see or do this year. So if you want to hang out, plan on attending one or more of these events with me. :D

Iowa City/Iowa/Ill Things
Gamicon Phi. Feb 10 – Feb 12. Be nerdy.
Chicago Film Festival. Feb 23 – 26
Iowa State Fair. Aug 09 – 19
Gun Range – Shoot things. Feel powerful. Photo Op.
Attend a Gun Show – Photo Op.
Get a license to carry. Prepare for Government take over.
Find a driving range. Hit golf balls.
Take a fencing class with Courtney! (Done!)
Climb rock wall at Rec Center.
Art Institute of Chicago (Visit)
Museum Of Contemporary Art Chicago (Visit)
Field Museum (Visit again)
Saint Louis Art Museum
Des Moines Art Center.
Take a yoga class.

I’m still poor so I can’t afford to leave the country just yet but here are some US bound events I definitely want to try and experience this year.

Fly into Vegas, Rent Motorcycles, Ride the Grand Canyon. Make sure to bring lots of sunscreen. March timeframe. Visit the Grand Canyon Skywalk, Hoover Dam, etc. (Thanks to my friend Ron for the idea)

Burning Man . Sep 01. Black Rock City, Nevada. Tickets: $240-$420 (Tickets Purchased!)

Crystal Bridges Art Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas. Anytime.

Attend one of the U of Iowa Recreational trips. I’m not sure if I want to Kayak the everglades or rock climb just yet but anything they do would be cool.

Feel free to throw any other ideas my way.

The year’s end is refreshing.  I savor this period of time like a fine wine.  Not for the gift giving or the party partaking but rather for the cognitive thought process one utilizes while swishing around and sampling from the events that took place over the course of the last twelve months.

Normally, I would spend days deliberating and painstakingly deciding upon the top ten movies considered worthy of anybody’s consideration.  This year, however, either a decrease in funds or an increase in a social life (more so the prior) resulted in a significant decline in the amount of movies ingested. Legally or illegally. So I decided to choose a swift three for your reading and viewing pleasure instead of the lengthy ten per normal protocol and procedure.

Without further stalling…

Top Ten Three Movies of 2011

1. Bill Cunningham New York  {IMDB}
Nothing I watched this year has inspired me more to be a greater individual and more active photographer/artist than this movie.  Bill Cunningham’s love and devotion to his craft lit a theoretical fire under my theoretical @$$.  I thoroughly enjoyed this documentary which encompasses the life of Bill Cunningham, a well known New York “street” fashion photographer, who lives to do what he loves without much concern for anything else.  I have zero interest in the fashion industry but this movie made the fashion world compelling in a way I’ve never experienced before.  Check out his ‘On The Street’ bit off The New York Times website.

2. Drive  {IMDB}
A badass movie with a badass character (Ryan Gosling as “Driver”).  ‘Driver’ because his role as the driver is more important than his real name or who he is as an individual. He drives and drives better then everybody else on the road.  Driver is the strong, silent type with a super human ability to maintain his calm and stay collected even in the craziest of situations.  He’s both a gentlemen and a scholar. A robin hood among thieves.  There is an interesting dialogue exchange between Driver and a child where Driver asks the child if there’s no such thing as a good shark (shark meaning bad guy).  This scene is a great examination of Driver’s own character.

Then there’s Carrey Mulligan as Irene (the leading lady) who makes it very hard not to fall head over feet for in almost every scene she’s in. I had to remind myself to close my jaw on more than one occasion.

3. Hanna  {IMDB}
Hanna, a proficient and deadly child assassin.  I for one enjoyed watching this girl somersault around, snapping necks and slitting throats.  There was even an interesting perspective on nurture over nature (possibly a little over done).  I have alway regretted that I wasn’t raised to be a top notch deadly assassin by some underground organization or unsurpassed master of the trade.  I’ll make sure my children recieve that which I never got. ;)

Check this movie out, especially if you enjoy movies like Leon: The Professional or any of the Jason Bourne movies.

Honorable Mentions: Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Rule of Margin, The Help, Source Code, The Thing, and Captain America.

Movies I Haven’t Seen Yet (That would probably effect my decision making altogether): The Decedents, Sherlock Holmes 2, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Artist, Take Shelter

Worst Movies of 2011: Hangover II, Bad Teacher

Most Anticipated Movies of 2012: The Hunger Games, Django Unchained  (Quentin Tarantino), The Dark Knight Rises (Christopher Nolan), Only God Forgives, Marvel’s The Avengers, Bond: Skyfall, Red Dawn, World War Z, Gravity, and Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson)

Now that my movie listing fetish is satisfied (for the time being) I can concentrate on other worldly matters.  2011 was a tough year for my family as I’m sure it was for a lot of people out there.  I can only count my blessings and focus on the positive as I look to the future. 2011 was a year of…

Huge props to whomever helped create that video.  You’ve moved millions.

My 2012 New Years Resolutions
Stop using the word ‘but’ so much in my writing.
Stop with the uncertainties and write with greater confidence
Take a writer’s workshop possibly.
Get a bike. Bike the trails.
Walk more. Run even
Climb that damn rock wall like I’ve always wanted to do.
Learn to have more patience.
Stand up straight.

This next year will be an exciting one. Armageddon here we come.

A Gabriel Lueders performance piece at the Old Capital. Just another reason to love Iowa City. More information about Gabriel Lueders or his Mandala Cocoon can be found here.

In honor of the completion of my Western Art and Culture Before 1400 class, I am going to post images of works of art that influenced my thoughts the most.

Anybody that has taken any art history classes in general should be able to recognize the majority of these images rather quickly.

Chauvet Cave, France, c. 32,000-30,000 BCE (Prehistoric)
This cave is probably best explained and explored through Werner Herzog’s documentary titled Cave of Forgotten Dreams.  This cave sparks a few interesting topics for debate.  One being that Neanderthals 40,000 years ago were on the verge of greater sophistication.  There’s evidence of musical instruments, personal ornaments, and signs of religious concept.  Also what would influence a being from this time to go far back in to a deep dark cave and paint (from memory) the life forms witnessed in the world around them?

Venus of Willendorf, Austria, c. 22,000-21,000 BCE (Prehistoric)
A small (4″-5″) limestone statuette thought to be a fertility idol for those who carried it. Completely prehistoric so nobody understands who exactly created it or for what reason. This one is easily the most recognizable Venus but there were numerous Venus’ found through out ancient Europe. A paleolithic Barbie doll perhaps. Either way, these Venus’ are the earliest representations of the human form.

Moving from Prehistoric into a time of written documentation, at the same time skipping the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia, the Ancient Egyptians are by far the most interesting group of people to study. With the idealized imagery of their Pharaohs (Gods on Earth) and upper class citizens. To their use of hieratic scale and symbolism to show the importance of one person over others. To their carefully planned and twisted perspectives to show off all the best features of a certain individual, all at the same time.

Akhenaten and His Family, 1348-1336 BCE (Armana Period)
Akhenaten is a particularly interesting Pharaoh, because up until his time, all the pharaohs before him were depicted with perfectly chiseled bodies and highly structured poses. Akhenaten is the first pharaoh to be portrayed as pudgy, often feminine leader with a slouching/irregular posture. He is also credited for turning a polytheistic Egypt into a monotheistic society worshipping Aten (the sun) and forgetting all other gods. At least during his time of ruling. After Akhenaten, Egypt quickly resorts back to monotheism.

It was also a new concept to see a Pharaoh depicted during such a personal and humanistic moment with his family. But take a look at his alien babies. Possibly a result of an incestous marriage all to maintain the sanctity of the royal bloodline. Not just anyone could marry a Pharaoh, so often times, they would marry their sisters or even sometimes their daughters to keep the royal bloodline pure. Aten would be the sun disk in the middle shining favor down on to the Akhenaten family.

Judgment of Hunefer Before Osiris, Book of the Dead, 1275 BCE (New Kingdom)
Also sometimes referred to as The Weighing of the Heart.  I favored this image because of the correlation with the weighing of ones soul/sins in Christian Theology (which won’t exist for another 1,300+ years).  The idea that the actions you commit here in this world will act as a determination on what happens to you in the next is a universal idea or concept. Probably to keep people from doing harm to others. This image even depicts a Death figure (Anubis) that acts as a guide for the dead.  After being judged and approved, access to heaven is granted to stand before Osiris, for all eternity I suppose. There’s even a god that forever records everything that takes place.  All fascinating concepts.

Coming Soon
Part 2 : Classic Civilizations and the Middle Ages
Part 3: Early Renaissance