Michael Kenna

“Imagine being out at night, alone, under starry skies, listening to silence, watching the world slowly move, all senses alive, thinking, imagining dreaming. The camera is recording, creating, documenting, seeing what the eye cannot see – cumulative time.”

swan

Cooling towers

birdpole

aoshima

Tree

l114

Published in:  on September 8, 2009 at 3:17 pm Leave a Comment

The Devil is a Lustful Woman

Venus is the second brightest point in the sky, following the moon.

Venus
In Roman mythology Venus was the goddess of love.
The Babylonians called her Inanna, goddess of love, but also of womanhood.
She has also been known as Morning Star. In the bible the morning star is referred to as Lucifer, meaning ‘light bringer’ in Latin. Lucifer is spoken of as a fallen angel, now commonly believed to be Satan. King of Babylon.

Lucifer

How you are fallen from heaven,
O Day Star, son of Dawn!
-Isaiah 14:12

Lucifer is said to have sought too high a power, and for it, to have been cast down to the underworld.

Venus shines brightly at both dusk and dawn, but soon fades.

Luciferin is the name of a chemical found in fireflies and glow worms. It’s what brings them their light.

Fireflies glow to signal their location to other fireflies. The main reason for this is reproduction, however in part of asia they have been known to synchronise in groups of hundreds.

In humans pheromones are produced in order to attract prospective partners.

Venus_of_Hohle_Fels_090513-science-pinup-hmed-1145a.hmedium

In women, this unconscious hormonal signal has been known to cause menstrual synchronization.

Some theories suggest that menstrual cycles are highly influenced by nocturnal light, with evidence showing that a bright light in the morning can help promote a regular cycle.

It is also thought that prior to artificial lighting the moon had a much greater influence on the cycle, it’s varying brightness affecting the body.

Moon

The moon is the brightest object in the sky.

yamazaki's moon

Published in:  on July 6, 2009 at 3:23 pm Comments (1)

The Known Universe, Online, On A Computer, In The Known Universe

Look at this. Preferably at 4 in the morning when you’re looking for an excuse not to go to bed…

Published in:  on November 12, 2008 at 5:06 pm Comments (3)
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Alex Kanevsky’s X-Ray Series

If you haven’t seen Alex Kanevsky’s other work, then you really should. It tends to look more like this:

These are from a series of etchings he did. I’ve just found them, and other than knowing they’re based on or inspired by X-Rays, there’s not much more I do.

But I’ve never let ignorance stop enjoyment of something good.

 

Published in:  on October 18, 2008 at 11:15 pm Leave a Comment
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Photographs from the Arkansas State Prison 1915-1937

This site has about 40 more photo’s on it. I don’t know their full story, only where and when they came from. I assume they’re mostly just mug shots for the prison records, but the photography is brilliant.

1


I’m thinking of using 2 of them for developing some characters I’m writing at the moment.

Clarks Magic Step Shoes

One of my strongest early memories from our house in london were these shoes.

Although not the shoes themselves. There was an advert, or leaflet… or maybe just a page from a magazine which my sister – who must have been like 7 at the time – had stuck up next to her bed.

“Magic shooooes?”

And for the youtube haters (cause the quality can sometimes be a bit shite)
HERES ANOTHER LINK

Published in:  on August 23, 2008 at 3:43 pm Leave a Comment
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The Petrol Pump Shake

Question:
Is it an exclusively male habit to shake the petrol pump tip once you’ve finished filling your car?
pump
A friend of mine used to say that men are better milk frothers too.
There must be a whole bunch of things that descend directly from living with a built on external attachment.

Published in:  on August 19, 2008 at 9:36 pm Comments (1)
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The X-Files Hand

Recognise this?
X-Files Hand

It’s the hand print used in the X-Files opening sequence.
Out of all the images used to start the TV show, this was the only one which always caught my eye, and so I decided to do a bit of research.

The process is called Kirlian photography, and is essentially the creation of a photogram by passing an object through and electrified field. I’m not going to embarrass myself by pretending I actually know what I’m talking about, so if you want to know a more detailed explanation then have a look at the wikipedia page.

The technique has been bounced around through various alternative groups, mostly trying to find something supernatural in it. And that’s not as ridiculous as it may sound.

Explanations have always been slightly… incomplete. I mean the science is there, but its part of that “we kinda get it” school of thought.

These are two images that Uri Geller made:
Uri 1
Uri 2
Point of contact is the tip of the index finger, but as you can see there is more than just the finger tip being shown. Now I know, I know… Uri Geller. He’s a douche. But he does occasionally display some interesting abilities – albeit mostly accidental.

But that’s all… meh, not so interesting, and to be honest I find attempts to prove supernatural occurrences within nature to show a real lack of faith in nature itself. Just let it do what it will, and you’re bound to find more interesting results than anything you could contrive yourself.

And that’s what these are:
The same technique used on just leaves.
Leaf 1
Leaf 2
Leaf 3
Leaf 4
Leaf 5

And this flower:
Flower

I find them quite beautiful.

A Sense of History


Short film by Mike Leigh.
A friend showed me this the other day.
It’s basically a 20 minute monologue performed by Jim Broadbent (who also wrote the piece) as the 23rd Earl of Leete.

Just watch it all, and you’ll soon realize how hilarious it really is.

Richard Colman

It seems this guy is getting all the coverage he needs at the moment, but there’s no harm in joining in.

I really think his work is something quite special. There’s something enticing about the almost religious aesthetic combined with what is quite often very graphic content.

I love the vomiting rainbows.

Colman1

Colman2

Published in:  on July 18, 2008 at 12:48 am Leave a Comment
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