Sunday, July 25, 2010

Vertigo

In response to my last bit of snark, Professor F. has referred me to Acerone's most recent posting. These interesting street photos (reminiscent of the street photos of Garry Winograd that Unreal Nature takes such delight in), are all taken on basically the same slant except one of a young lady. But she has a coat belt hanging at the same slant as does a building roofline in the background, so the theme is persistent. Here is another of those slanted photos (presented for the purpose of commentary, I hope Acerone does not mind):

What this photo does to me, and maybe that is intentional, is throw off my balance. If you will, my semicircular canals are put at a slant, as so:

If one rights the picture:

The canals are brought back to upright:

And a further modification further decreases the sense of imbalance.

Now I am not suggesting for a moment that Acerone's pictures drive me wild as did the cockeyed one out of Matisse's studio window. Acerone's photographs are done with intent, and they certainly achieve a sense of unsettledness with me (but I am unsure if this his his/her attention.)

The inner ear is a fascinating organ. It is almost as complicated as the eye. The hair cells (in both the cochlea and the semicircular canals) are sensitive to movement down to as low as one Angstrom. Bending the "hair" opens channels for, among other things: SODIUM IONS. You see, you can't get away from it.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Another point of view

In an interesting post over at Unreal Nature, there are comments about paintings which then, as is usual in art and music, at a later date turn out to be 180 degrees out of sync with what comes to be established opinion (I am certain that there are artists where opinions sway back again to ground zero or, perhaps, 42 degrees, anyway.) What struck me was the comment "lopsided". This referred to Matisse's rather avant garde painting of Notre Dame, but I was struck by its applicability to the photo out of Matisse's studio window, the scenario for the paintings. It drives me wild when people print photos crooked. (I know, I know, I am a Neanderthal). In any case, I took the liberty of photoshopping that particular photo simply by righting it (2) and cropping it (3). To my eye it is much more pleasing and doesn't make me think that I am going to topple off the edge of the planet, thankfully not into the Seine.

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Friday, July 16, 2010

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Friday, July 09, 2010

Tuesday, July 06, 2010

Friday Crab Blogging

By order of her Majesty the Queen of the
Rappahannock
Rapidan.
The glorious Carrier of Water for diverse Philosophers of visual imaging. And Sundry Cheeses (big and otherwise):