bidirectional abduct span

"The longer you look at an object, the more abstract it becomes, 

and, ironically, the more real." - Lucian Freud

Not long ago, Jenny Bowker posted this on the SAQA list and I was immediately  taken with the elegant simplicity!  The 'Rules' apply across the board and can be used in every aspect of life, not just art, and you don't have to be a chimpanzee!  Here it is, and thanks, Jenny:

"Desmond Morris had been watching chimpanzees playing with a new swing - an inner tube on a rope - that had been installed in their area. He came upwith this set of rules which can be applied to all our play. It covers - in his words "painting, sculpture, music, sports, writing, speech and even scientific research - we can carry on to our heart's content, all through our long lives, complex and specialized forms of exploration and experiment".

"The rules can be stated as follows:

1. You shall investigate the unfamiliar until it becomes familiar.

2. You shall impose rhythmic repetition on the familiar.

3. You shall vary this repetition in as many ways as possible.

4. You shall select the most satisfying of these variations and develop

these at the expense of others.

5. You shall combine and recombine these variations one with another.

6. You shall do all this for its own sake, as an end in itself."

JR has been busy in Germany where he completed several new pieces on the streets of Berlin. In town for his “Wrinkles Of The City” project, the French artist new pieces are including portraits of ageing individuals who have, over the years, witnessed and experienced the transformation of Berlin.”

Inside Out New York City coincides with the world premiere of the documentary film Inside Out: The People’s Art Project on April 20th as part of the Tribeca Film Festival, and will later have its television debut on HBO on May 20th.  JR (previously here and here) is bringing his large-scale participatory Inside Out Project to NYC starting next week. People are invited to take their self-portraits in a specially designed photo booth stationed in Times Square. Some of the black and white instantly-printed 3′ x 4′ posters will be displayed in Times Square but each portrait-taker is encouraged to take their poster back to display publicly in their home community. 

Next stop Mexico?! If you’re lucky enough to be in Mexico City within the next year, “Appearances Can be Deceiving: The Dresses of Frida Kahlo” will show at Museo Frida Kahlo in Mexico City until November 22, 2013.

The Lazerian dog mascot (nicknamed “Gerald”) was converted from a computer model into a flat layout, which was then printed onto several sheets of A1 paper. The layout was then hand cut, folded and glued to form a physical model entirely using paper. The triangular joints give the sculpture rigidity, despite the fragility of paper. A miniature, D.I.Y version of Gerald was created and has now been customised by over 100 artists from around the world. They will then travel around different galleries and events. The launch exhibition will be in New York on 16th May 2013 More can be read about the Gerald project Here

(SO much more accessible than the life-sized resin lab I worked on a while ago!  Wish I would have had these paper models-  they can be worked on flat, printed, glued, whatever, and then easily transported and assembled! ) 

Got Salad Spinner?  Lettuce-Keeper?  Burp tops?  Check the face on the  yellow lady on the right- she's biting her tongue.

Bunny vanquishes leopard.  Go Bunny!