Mobile Music no3,

Mobile Music no3.







Mobile Music no3 travelling, on the road and compared to tents :

Mobile Music no3 on the road : width is same as a standard car

Mobile Music no3 on an ordinary modern street with electric tramway

Mobile Music no3 can be placed anywhere and it looks good

Mobile Music no3 : size compared to two large tents

I got a horse from the Weald, the animation is just right for this scenario.
How does this tree scene compare with Emporer Song Hui Zhongs painting...
Definitely his tree is a lot skinnier, and he is sitting at a tiny dainty Qin table, yes, I must make a Qin table!

Dubai

Dubai Art related events

I heard of a friend who did a sculpture in Dubai, what was his experience? He had many assistants, all of them zero experience, it would have taken him longer to teach these people to do the tasks than to do them himself. On top of this, the assistants were skinny people who are not interested in working at all! The only one who is physically too frail to do physical work, also unskilled, was an intelligent old man, who could help him figure out and set up mathematic geometric trace lines. That was his experience. But then, I am always curious about places I have never been to. I want to go to Dubai to have a look, if there is a small place that needs, say an ornate geometrically floral patterned DGM, sculpted in white marble, wouldnt that be nice?

I have made a stop over once a couple of years ago, reminds me of Shanghai, building building building, and it took 4 hours (this included traffic jams, and bus scheduled stops etc) to take a city bus from point A to point B, the same trip in a taxi took 20mn.

It has one of the most beautiful underpass bridges that I have seen, all vegetal formed, ornate and pretty.

dgm paper cardboard model

Paper cardboard model of DGM mobile music no2.

real life reporters in sl, young girls in Paris subway

More Secondlife to real life reports, what is the future of sl?

Young Girls in the subway
I was on the line no1, leaving the Champs Elysee station and a group of tiny girls ran into the subway car. They were tiny, physically the size of 13 year olds, but I couldnt figure out if these were grown up small sized person, or young girls dressed to look older? I just thought, maybe they were of a small size race? Just like there are Giants in Paris. Very tall black people, and they are very elegant. These girls were speaking Italian, and the expression on their faces were not young girls, but rather tense and gaunt. However, if you look at their faces, they are young girls - not adults only the expression is adult. There was also a very strong body musk smell coming from the group. But they were dressed in jeans and normal mod clothes.

After one or two stops the whole group got off and a message came through the announcement: its says, be careful of pickpockets, keep close watch of your bags, there are pickpockets in the form of young girls.

So, I guess those were professional pickpockets. A new group, there were no such groups before. Ten years ago, there were groups of young men, they just encircle tourists, rob and leave. Nobody could do anything about that. But this type of bandit work is gone. Now, its little young girls... hahahahah.

Becarefulllll of young girls. :)

Creative cooking

Swannjiejie made a special dish today. Its his inventive sparerib with peanut sauce, tomato, onions and Korean hot sauce - just a tiny tiny spoon of it as its fire in your mouth! We discussed what goes well w this sauce. Rice, vermicelli? Spaghetti? He thinks its rice. I think rice noodles, like a Satay pho soup. This should be a big hit, what shall we call this new dish?

How about Spareribs and coconut curry sauce? Is there a name for this type of food, a mushy texture that you pour on top of a basic staple food. Hmmm, i think this would be wonderful on top of steamed manioc. Yes. This would make it a super dish not just a topping on rice.

Manioc a la spareribs a gogo?
Sparerib ratatouille au manioc?
Sparerib bobo in a tortilla?

I must start naming all these delicious food that Swannjiejie whips up.
We had the Color-your-World dry fried noodles a year ago.

Usually we eat in cycles, this is cycle number? I will count up all the special food in the next entry.

I want to invent some Mahjong food - what else could you have aside from fresh fruit plates? Lots of finger food is good. You eat less, its more fun. And tapas, like tiny fried squids, stuffed hot pepper... and a nice shot of whisky, good saki, or rum and okra bits. For coffee, I especially like tiny round balls of donuts.

Ice cream, green tea with black sesame - no banana too much food.
Green tea and passionfruit w mango - wonderful
durian - all by itself with good quality sweet fresh water
taro and mango puree ice cream - exquisite

YSL Grand Palais, red lacquer fauteuils

Show at Grand Palais, its a long line up, but I got in after 1.5hr, and since it was closing, it was not as packed as all that. I even had time to visit two rounds.

My favorite objects in the whole auction are two red lacquer chairs from the 30s, its very simple, leather back, leather seat, and clean slim lines. Price? 300,000euros, well... is it worth that much? Two armchairs? I like to have these chairs in my house.

Then there are many other things that are beautiful, but nothing really that exceptional. Maybe the exceptional pieces are already gone. I think it would have been very nice if his real surroundings were kept and displayed instead of dispersed like this. Anyway, maybe these are not really things he lived with, just parts of "sellable" stuff.

Saw a short video of life of YSL, from a clean prize winning dress designer til old age, very old, voice trembling, flabby, stocky torso. YSL very elegant, there was music from India Song, nostalgic melancholic, beauty for special beautiful people.

I cannot help but compare him to Karl Lagerfeld, I also saw a movie of Lagerfeld. Very different personalities. I also like Lagerfelds apt, full of objects and sumptuous settings.

YSL said in the video that, the best that a woman can wear is a man who loves her with his arms, arms around her. If she is lacking that, well, I am here. He said.

Now thats nice. Isnt it? He didnt save women - as Berge declared, YSL is much more humbler, he says merely that, while the one you really want is not there, well, how about me? I am here, I can help.

:)

Anna May Wong youtube, Grand Palais, No feast lasts forever, legacy, lineage, health and culture

Anna May Wong Youtube

MingPao News in Chinese, YSL grand palais auction - Berge says, all women in the world owe YSL for his inventivity in fashion... and YSL knows it too... hmmm politician/buisness man sales pitch here. Seems like he did a lot for the Chinese dissidents for TianAnMen affair in 1989, a political animal he is. He is not one to make a non-business deal, just listen to his offer of exchange, so much hot air concerning the two sculpture head taken off a fountain from an imperial private garden. At the same time, whatever, doesnt matter, its coming to an end, isnt it?

世紀拍賣會 目錄1800頁

【明報專訊】今次聖羅蘭藏品拍賣會被外界視為「世紀拍賣」，因為733件藝術品當中包括古今瑰寶，估計總拍賣價達30億港元。拍賣成功與否，將被視為藝術品市場在金融海嘯下的風向標。

這次的拍賣品屬於聖羅蘭及其拍檔貝爾熱在70年代開始蒐集的精品。當中有荷蘭抽象畫家蒙德里安、後印象主義畫家塞尚、法國印象派畫家馬奈、抽象畫家萊熱等的油畫、雕塑和家具等精品，集現代派、印象派，古典和東方風格。全場最昂貴的是從未公開的畢加索1914年立體時期油畫，估計至少值2.5億港元。羅馬尼亞雕刻家布朗庫希的木雕、愛爾蘭設計師格雷(Eileen Gray)製的「龍椅」、15世紀法蘭德斯掛氈等，皆為稀世珍品。競投品目錄分5卷共1800頁，重達10公斤，一本目錄售價已要200歐元(1991港元)。

佳士得已花逾996萬港元在巴黎大王宮佈置1200個座席的拍賣廳，並展出競投品，相信這個周末會有多達5萬人入場參觀。周一起一連3日的拍賣，佳士得安排了100條競投熱線。大會又設晚宴招待嘉芙蓮丹露、德斯汀荷夫曼和米積加等名人，並安排300名準買家參觀聖羅蘭在塞納河左岸的故居。

佳士得形容這次拍賣會，就只有1987年溫莎公爵夫人珠寶拍賣等少數拍賣會可匹敵。

雖然有些專家懷疑銷情，但佳士得表示聖羅蘭的光環給其藏品添上特殊價值。貝爾熱也樂觀地說﹕「在危機時代，大家不再想買股票，藝術品卻能保值……聖羅蘭與我一樣癡迷於藝術品，購入時從未講價。」

法新社/泰晤士報



All this, coming to an end, after the sale, what happens? If he had children - he could have, if he had wanted to, by adoption or whatever, by surrogate parents etc. but nothing can stop the time machine. And your descendants, would they love the art as you have? Where are you going to put all this stuff? What is art? Shouldnt it be in the public gardens, not necessarily in museums where you have to pay 10euros to get it, but where and what kind of cultural gifts could you leave the people behind, what is art ultimately for? 1800 page catalogue, I would like to get a copy. It must be sumptuous, :)

I am going there today to have a look, hope the line is not too long. Today and tomorrow. Artist and Architects - somebody told me once, that A+A is like P, you have to take the position that the client asks you to. What kind of client is Mr.B?
But on the other hand, who doesnt have to take in consideration of the others wishes? out of love or whatever... that doesnt mean its something bad.

Besides, not all people are equal, some are more equal than others. hahahahahhah

This comes back to a ted talk I saw, improve health, then culture, then people could enjoy the time they have in their life. Not so much "legacy" in the future, or lineage. Lineage is important in the global sense as a passing culture onwards type of idea, not as a family continuation idea. Because that son or daughter you have might just be the wrong person to look after your things. They probably sell it as quick as possible to not have to deal with taking care of loose ends, and in a elegant gesture, solde to the one who deserves it!!

La collection Saint Laurent exposée au Grand Palais

Béatrice de Rochebouët
20/02/2009 | Mise à jour : 18:09 | Commentaires 2 | Ajouter à ma sélection

Depuis lundi, 150 personnes s'activent, jour et nuit, pour l'installation de cette collection historique dans une fabuleuse scénographie de Nathalie Crinière, sous la verrière du Grand Palais. (Jean-Christophe Marmara/Le Figaro)
Dès samedi, et pendant trois jours, une mise en scène à la hauteur de l'événement dévoile cette extraordinaire collection de 730 pièces vendues, à partir de lundi, par Christie's et Bergé & Associés.


» La visite virtuelle de l'exposition


Géant ! Le mot n'est pas trop faible dans la bouche de ceux qui ont pu assister aux préparatifs de la vente du siècle. Depuis lundi, 150 personnes s'activent, jour et nuit, pour l'installation de cette collection historique dans une fabuleuse scénographie de Nathalie Crinière, sous la verrière du Grand Palais. Dans un froid polaire, le ballet des 150 ouvriers, transporteurs, tapissiers et hommes de Christie's est incessant pour parvenir, en un temps record, à placer, au millimètre près, chaque objet dans son écrin.

C'est le noir et le blanc, sobre et chic, qui a été choisi comme dominante du décor, à l'image des deux collectionneurs, Pierre Bergé et Yves Saint Laurent, dont le portrait trône sur une gigantesque affiche devant les marches du Grand Palais. Cette entrée de leur collection dans ce musée éphémère marque la consécration suprême de leur talent, de leur intuition, de leur œil, de leur goût si personnel (Lire nos éditions du 16 janvier et 5 février 2009 ). Aujourd'hui, Pierre Bergé la savoure pleinement comme un roi mécène des arts de la Renaissance.



Cliquez sur l'image pour voir l'infographie en grand

L'émerveillement est total pour le visiteur qui n'aura pas eu la chance de voir l'antre d'Yves Saint Laurent, rue de Babylone, ou celle de Pierre Bergé, rue Bonaparte, toutes deux mêlant splendeurs du passé et œuvres modernistes avec un art sans pareil. Dans ce parcours guidé en douze salles, duquel on ne peut s'échapper, on retrouve par le jeu de reconstructions de certaines mises en scène l'atmosphère unique de ces deux demeures jouant sur la collision entre époques, styles et continents. Collection de rêve

De la rotonde avec ses voiles blancs où trône le Minotaure, le chemin conduit a une première salle qui célèbre l'archéologie puis au fameux grand salon de la rue de Babylone avec ses boiseries de chêne accueillant le grand Brancusi en bois de 1914-1917, le Picasso de 1914, le Matisse de 1911, le fauteuil aux dragons Art déco d'Eileen Gray. Les sculptures mènent à une grande pièce blanche où sont accrochés les Mondrian et les Léger. L'orfèvrerie avec ses trésors de la famille de Hanovre précède les tableaux anciens, tel le Frans Hals qu'affectionnait tant Pierre Bergé (salle 6). Un long passage occultant la salle de ventes de 1 200 places guide le visiteur jusqu'au temple de l'Art déco avec ses podiums en zigzag comme au Musée des arts décoratifs où trône la grande enfilade de Printz ou le mobilier de Jean-Michel Frank (salle 7). La salle des trésors et ses camées débouche sur la salle à manger d'Yves Saint Laurent de style XVIIIe , puis sur un grand couloir avec la collection d'émaux de Limoges en partie venant de chez Hubert de Givenchy.

Avant les tableaux XIXe, le salon de musique (salle 11), avec sa suite de 15 miroirs de Claude Lalanne, termine ce parcours sur une note aussi magique que chez Saint Laurent. Il ne faut pas moins d'une heure pour déambuler dans cette collection de rêve où le temps semble suspendu, avant que celle-ci ne prenne son envol vers d'autres sphères, à partir de lundi soir.

Comment assister à l'exposition et à la vente

Gratuite, l'exposition de la collection au Grand Palais est ouverte ce week-end de 9 heures à minuit, et lundi de 9 heures à 13 heures. Au-delà de 1 500 personnes présentes dans l'enceinte, le public devra patienter avant d'entrer. Pour avoir une chance de voir les objets, il est préférable de venir le matin avant 10 heures ou le soir après 20 heures.

La salle où se déroulera la vente à partir de lundi, à 19 heures, compte 1 200 places assises et 300 debout. Impossible d'assister à celle du 23 sans être inscrit au préalable chez Christie's (tél. : 01 40 76 83 51). Celles des 24 et 25 sont libres d'accès.

YSL collection for sale at Grand Palais, Shigeru Ban cardboard teahouse

Shigeru Bans cardboard teahouse

Pierre Berge sells his collection built w the late YSL, among the objects are two bronze heads - a rabbit and a mouse - astrologic signs from Yuan Ming Yuan, stolen during the Opium war and China asks for it back.

So Berge says, he will give them to China, if China agrees to stop Human rights mistreatment, Tibetan issues etc. The two sculptures are estimated at 3 to 4 million euros each.

This is a very interesting issue I think, vis a vis Berge, these two heads would make China bend to his specification of what "Human Rights" comprised of? What else would Berge give up to gain the Human rights issues? Just two heads that originally belonged to the owners to begin with?

We have one business man, rich one, two bronze decoratif items - out of 12 originally made - on the fountain of one imperial garden that was robbed during the war, and a whole countries internal policies. This is the equation, can these items be equated in some ways? Does it make sense?

And the obelisk at the Place de Concorde - would France give it back to Eygpt? Or maybe its good that we all know its a great Eypgtian creation and is displayed here as a landmark in Paris? How do you view this?

Hair modification, custom made Fashion

How things are made in sl?

Falastear Aeon, creator of hair at Little Heaven; showed me how to change hair color by myself! Suddenly i see how the hair is made!

I could change all the hair colors i want and style too... what a gift!
I bought Carla Milktea hair, but the color i really want is black with red highlights - can sl reproduce this type of subtlety?
so, ... here is a picture first.

Guqin conference in Taiwan April 24-25

Swannjiejie watching YouTube tv

Professor Yang Qing and child player at Beijing 2003
Mao Huisheng playing for us at home

Digital Guqin Museum confirms the invitation by Taiwan, and is preparing for a presentation for Guqin master players and scholars in real life on April 24-25 !!

We will see how real life people Guqin Masters react to secondlife guqin people. :)

Ideally, if they have a double life thats best - but most people dont have that much time - so we will be experiencing a passage from one side crossing over to the other side.

Time to get concert clothes together, first design of Guqin concert outfit coming.
one Suiseiki ready, maybe incense burner, outdoor willow tree, rocks, little boy avatar... the "shu tong" - the boy who brings you books and tea. Technical set ups, microphone, headphones for a mixed-reality mini concert. Furniture, vehicle, media displays of youtube... drinks, shoes, hair, lounge items, mannequins to display possible outfits for men and women...

and maybe make a Half HunDun guqin. One thing after the other.

Barbie fashion show, fashionista

Runway Barbie Fashion Icon for 50 years, webcast of the show.

some photos of Barbie Runway show, funny I just cant find the webcast anywhere! Why is it such a secret?

Sl is a lot like playing Barbie dolls.

sl user survey, IM Pei, Louis Kahn, Chris Marker, shoe string budget film making,

sl User survey 2007
General Psychological Engagement finding:
The Psychological Engagement model in virtual communities is form by elemental types of engagement: Emotional engagement, behavioral engagement, perceptual engagement. (Ortiz de Gortari, A, 2007)

Take a look! If we are to continue doing things in the virtual world, we might find users voices important.

sl user survey

For people who are not familiar with virtual worlds - it is a concept that is hard to understand without having made an avatar and "drive it around like a probe".

Sometimes its useful to see a survey - what do people do in sl? How engaged are they emotionally? and, are survey questions accurate? are there questions that should have been asked?

For example, I was in an "avatar parade" and interviewed the artist who set up the project; he said he was never in sl before the project and, he was a video artist in rl. The setting up of the technical aspects to make it work was artistically very accomplished, he thought of everything. Who came to the parade? The same few avatars who are interested in such activities, and they return over and over again, but always the same people.

Would a survey of visitor numbers show this fact? Or who are the visitors? The quality of their engagement? etc etc

As IM Pei said in a film on Louis Kahn, its not quantity, its quality thats important. He said he had a lot more projects than Kahn, but Kahns architecture is quality. Louis Kahn is quality. But IM Pei never pretends that he is anything other than high quality, well built, well made, a star corporate architect. His talks on architecture concerns how many parking spaces you need for a building; unlike a lot of other people who goes on and on about poetics of space, icnoic functions and all the abstract philosophies behind their design. Pei said, hes Chinese, and when the client doesnt agree with what he proposes, he puts it aside and come back another day; but Kahn, Kahn would have slammed the door and never return. What does Kahn say about his buildings? He talked about what a brick wants to be and could be snappy when the audiences question is not worthy of a serious reply. Compare to Philippe Johnsons statement on Kahn, how much more elegant as a person he is. Johnson makes comments on Kahns "prettiness" etc. and this guy is in the world, he says that if one guy has flowers lining up from the street to the office door whereas the other has a half eaten sandwich lying next to the drawing board... who would Jacqueline Kennedy pick?

What do architects talk about now in their public presentations?

Yesterday, I read about Chris Marker who made his "La Jetee" film with only a few seconds of continuous footage - he said, he didnt have a film camera, he borrowed a machine for half a day. And all the sounds were recorded with a regular ordinary tape machine. Now, why is Marker so mysterious? Are there many hidden stars making superb shoe string films at home these days?

Must documentary films have a "social issue"? (yes, if you want someone to fund it!)

robots in rl and sl, Barbie, sl IEEE

my little robot watch

One of my favorite things in rl :: top 100 ::
number 70 :: robots :: they should not simulate a human being with real soft skins etc; but they should use their own material to have an essence of a being thats alive in their own rights
I love robots, in real life and in sl...
So, cant wait to visit this place...

IEEE Opens Robotics Lab in Second Life
NWN seems to be on an inadvertant robotics kick this week (as here, and here), and this machinima that just came across my news stream will continue that trend: the geek shogunate at IEEE (the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, or more colloquially, "eye-triple-ee") has opened a two-sim island in Second Life. To judge by this machinima, it's a cross between a simulated real world corporate campus with workshop spaces that look like Italian villas, and a metaverse center with "information pods" and meetings spaces for enterprise use. The first branch of IEEE to put down roots is the Robotics and Automation Society, who according to IEEE's official Second Life site, will "Provide tutorials on how to create and program robots in Second Life." Though I have a feeling the already active robotics community in SL can teach them just as much. Visit for yourself: direct SLURL to IEEE islands at this link.

Barbie Doll 50th anniversary show in Paris in the month of May, at the Doll Musuem. I would like to see that.

i like the Barbie Dolls, I bought a lot of them, I dont have too many but when I see real people who look like Barbies, with a wanna-be-Barbie spirit... hmmm, I would say, a little frightening. :)

Anyway, when I first came into sl, I felt like I am Barbie or, playing with eBarbie dolls... except, we could do soooo much more things... :)

- First-ever Barbie Runway Show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York www.Barbie.com/BarbieStyle : 50 world-renowned fashion designers will come together for the first time ever and showcase real-size, Barbie-inspired looks at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in the Tent at Bryant Park. designers will celebrate the past, present and future of fashion, as inspired by Barbie doll, first launched in 1959 as the “Teenage Fashion Model.” (Runway show on February 14, 2009; to be webcast live on Barbie.com)

Designer list for Barbie Fashion Show
Alexander Wang
Anna Sui
Baby Phat
Badgley Mischka
Betsey Johnson
Bob Mackie
Brian Reyes
Calvin Klein
Carmen Marc Valvo
Catherine Malandrino
Chris Benz
Costello Tagliapietra
Derek Lam
Diane von Furstenberg
Donna Karan
Erin Fetherston
House of Field
Jeremy Scott
Juicy Couture
Kai Kuhne
Kenneth Cole
Koi Suwannagate
Lyn Devon
Marchesa
Michael Kors
Monique Lhuillier
Naeem Khan
Nanette Lepore
Nicole Miller
Norma Kamali
Peter Som
Rachel Roy
Rag & Bone
Rebecca Taylor
Reem Acra
Robert Best
Rosa Cha
The Blonds
Three As Four
Tibi
Tommy Hilfiger
Tory Burch
Tracy Reese
Trina Turk
Tuleh
Twinkle
Vena Cava
Vera Wang
Vivienne Tam
Yeohlee
Yigal Azrouel

Mixed reality events, Dusan Writer, MahJong Game

Barbie Doll Automatic mahjong table for a co-ordinated, stylish apartment

Mahjong Addict travelling automatic table!

Automatic mahhong table. I saw them everywhere at little clubs, not as nice as this one. This looks like a Barbie Doll mahjong table! But they were all automatic at clubs, even at little proletariat quarters. Very nice. Is it a good idea? Yes, for public play, definitely yes. But for home use? hmmm, i prefer both. Hahahahha.
I like to have a nice delicate game table, but its also nice to have this fat Barbie Doll table. Two different esthetics, not only in the look but the whole procedure. Why not get both? :)

Does a real MahJong game exist in secondlife? Like a real Go game, or a real chess game? I have a computer solitaire type of Mahjong game - but I want a real MahJong game... does it exists in Secondlife? If you could get people together to play MahJong for real it might be very attractive... :) Automatic Mahjong tables in real life is everywhere, it is very easy to make in Secondlife, but the mathematic possibilities etc maybe very difficult?

Apparently, there are real online mahjong tournaments with real cash prizes! well, what about mahjong in secondlife as a social game? Then you could see the other players ? Is it useful? Do mahjong friends in real life also may do other general friend things with them? :)

Somebody told me, more than one - that man and woman are never friends, there is always some kind of romantic interest - that this is an important ingrediant in any man/woman relationship? Well, I think the interesting, unconditional friendships always has some coloration of romance in it, man woman or whatever, you can never tell who is who... its true.

Primer on Organizing a Mixed Reality Event
02.04.09
Advice from Dusan Writers blog

Web Worker Daily recently published a nice summary of the key elements needed to set up a virtual world event intended to happen simultaneously with a real world event. Aliza Sherman, the author, is familiar only with Second Life, where she has held two events.

There are eight key points that Sherman recognizes:
1 - Get Virtual Help: Sherman suggests help from talent in both the real and virtual worlds
2 - Know the Lay of the Land: In other words, co-own an island in Second Life. This helps immensely when clients come to you lacking their own SL land.
3 - Think 3-D and Interactive: Offer 3D notecards (in addition to the standard billboards) that avatars can pick up and stick in their pocket. Er, inventory.
4 - Think Promo Items (Freebies): Give away things like virtual t-shirts, or, if the promo is for a food company, virtual food that the avatar can eat. Yay freebies!
5 - Show the Virtual Event in the Actual Conference Location: Self-explanatory, really. Set up a few laptops and if possible project onto a large screen.
6 - Stay on Message Virtually: As in the RW, staying on message applies virtually as well. Hosts can keep avatars from being distracted by the novelty of Second Life or other virtual worlds by communicating key messages.
7 - Hire Security: “It is so easy to build and create objects in Second Life, and it is just as easy for a troublemaker - or “griefer” - to do the same at your event,” writes Sherman. Security can eject griefers quickly and effectively.
8 - Spread the Virtual Word: Playing on the advent of SL bloggers, an event can attract decent word-of-mouth through SLers writing about it in-world.

Finally: “Don’t skimp on your Second Life event or treat it as an afterthought. Virtual world events are valuable to, and attended by, people from all over the world. You can expand your reach quickly and exponentially when you hold a virtual world event.”

China, Eygpt

Somebody send me this page... and I review what I did, in this park. Nice. She showed us her impression of the parks in China from then to now.

What do people see when they go to China?

I received a note from Rezzable, about a fashion show - also similar feeling, people see Eygpt, cleopatra, pyramide... how many people really show a personal view from the past to the present? Wouldnt it be nice to see more of this continuity type of viusal blog?

astrakan

Its not popular to wear fur these days, so i see lots of astrakan coats for sale. The most beautiful ones are from Italy. They tend to have blond, light brown, gray, chestnut colors, whereas in France its mainly black. Blond color astrakan looks so chic.
They say its really cruel the way they harvest this type of fur. What is not cruel? Would people accept rabbit fur more readily? Since you have to eat it too? I saw a monkey fur coat too. That is sold as a rare type of long hair fur. Well... i think rabbit fur is fine. Astrakan is very rich in texture and a lof of the fox fur is soooooo humongous, like a gorilla!

New York Qin Society, John Thompson Toadall sound silkqin, Stephan Dydo Electric Qin, Real life end of the Digital Guqin Museum, Anna May Wong

Lets look at some contemporary Guqin groups around the world,
New York Qin Society.



Bun-Ching Lam I saw the opera in HK "Wenji- Eighteen Songs of the Nomad Flute", in which the Qin was featured prominently, was premiered at the Asia Society and the Hong Kong Arts Festival. People at NYQS are all super top folks!

10 string qin : 5th century ten string qin reproduction of an old qin by: Bo Lawergren

Electric qin : by Stephan Dydo

Very interesting electric qin - I have wanted to make an electric qin since 2003; I had wanted it to be transparent with inclusion of flowers... as an object. See, someone already made the electric version with pick-up, I should be able to do it easier then, as the technical aspect has already a pioneer! But I must find out about inclusion, how to make no air bubble in a block of tranparent glass like material... would it be good to do it, easy to see the qin nodes etc etc.

I like this maple electric qin, beautiful! By Stephan Dydo.

John Thompson : silk string qins with historical informed style of playing
Found this site after my visit to NY, very interesting group. New input in the art and culture of Guqin. John is the only person on earth who could play the entire book of ShenQiMiPu, a MIng Dynasty Handbook of Guqin pieces. Beautiful person too!

ShenQiMiPu, url: http://www.silkqin.com/02qnpu/07sqmp.htm

New York Qin Society

Now a word about tea, what are guqin elegant gatherings without tea and dainty handmade cookies, candied ginger, crystalised rose petals etc etc.?



'Tang Lady Playing Guqin'
This handmade Tri-color pottery statue features a voluptuous Tang female musician playing the Guqin (an ancient string instrument in China). This group of statues present an official female band, who played music for the royal court of Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618~A.D.907). by a contemporary artist Gao ShuiWang

These elegant but plump women follow the standard of beauty prevailed during that time. They wear their hair in buns, dress in wide-sleeves long robes and traditional cloud-head shoes, playing different traditional Chinese music instruments.

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I must start everywhere at once - just like a painting.
No need to study and pass time on tidbits - I have seen enough by now.

I have come to a point to attack the real life connection to the sl virtual models now. I am preparing for a call for cultural objects with Guqin theme, tea, tea leaves, wine, alcohol, cups, teapots, paintings, clothing, fashion, instrument, books, musical notation sheets, tools for making the guqin instrument, gardens, stones, plants, architectural set ups, chairs, book shelves, tai chi animations, exercise balls in synchronisation, breakfast vendors, theatre pavilion on water garden, plants, library, studies rooms, audio visual rooms for projection of guqin videos, including movies, YouTube clips, small vegetable gardens, flower, bonsai etc. These will be imported into sl and displayed. The real life corresponding guqin players will join in live demos, live online playing if they so wish. And while not playing, tea drinking, exercise, lunch, all this will be part of the events in contemporary sl DGM.

I want this musuem/ virtual place to be a kind of tea house, informal hangout, point of gathering of peoples to show and tell, share in their pleasures. Not only limited to guqin playing, but contemporary lifestyle. A giant size nodal point where people could enjoy leisure.

Afterall, get real, why pretend that we are upholding authentic ancient rites? How can you be sure that you are authentic?

Unless you are a researcher of historical guqin music and culture details - this means, official and non official people all those who have been doing real authentication with references so we could all learn about the detective works. Otherwise, we are all doing our personal interpretations depending on our cultural backgrounds. We are alive, and the people in history books are elsewhere now.

Isnt it great that the ancients did what they did? We should do what we could too, in our own time and not need to always justify the merit of our doings on "authentically" just like the ancients.

Anna May Wong, the first American Asian Actrice - timeless, beautiful. This is also Asian too. Not only old Qin and calm and quiet and peace... Asians are also this, subtle, sexy, delicate, elegant and youthful - non abrasive. We need this too.

Ayikis texturable mannequin

Ayiki made a texturable mannequin to display fashion. Got a copiable version.
Really interesting, how to protect your work and enable mannequin to wear someone elses clothes.

photo of the everyday, Jane Bowles

I was reading the New York Times, stories that I havent read for so long.
Took a photo of what I see in front of me.
Would you be able to weave a story based on what you see infront of you? I like to read things and situations, not so much words now. Maybe I will change later.

Read "Two Serious Ladies". I had always wanted to read Jane Bowles. Very strange story lines. We dont know what is happening to these two women. How does a sweet soft, almost timid little woman decide to take on a common though pretty prostitute as long term live in companion? And all these strange figures they behave with realism to their character but how did they get into these situations? As the story unfolds, there seem to be a wacky hidden twist that makes us accept what is being told even though its a time warp type of story telling.

Then I googled her photos - she looked like a crazy high strung woman, not at all attractive. Who knows, photos are often not at all representative of the real person and context are all selective, so, we will never know for sure.

How does real life compare with stories told? as compared to a kind of Secondlife?

I dont have a strong wish to see Secondlife people in real life, it is probabaly not a good idea afterall. :)

Anna May Wong youtube, mixed realities at Universities

Mixed reality courses at Open University of Bruxelles





Anna May Wong, very beautiful photos. Photo credit: Anna May Wong Society, name of the photographer?