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How Art Derails 1000 Years Of Animal Instinct

April 30, 2012 by Lonnie Lardner

Worth watching to the end.

“Rasta” the rare Hungarian Vizsla slowly stalks a frozen wolf-like figure on a golf course (though it turns out to be a coyote). This is real time, not slowed down.  The slow creep toward the sculpture actually took about 6 minutes, cut down to a bit over 2 minutes. The shot is shaky because it was recorded on an iPhone.

Notice Rasta’s “aha moment” when, upon discovery of the ruse, he seamlessly shifts into “play mode” and fetches his ball.

Historically the Vizsla is older than most breeds and its existence can be traced back to the 10th century.  Through the years the Vizsla has held a rare position among sporting dogs – that of household companion and family pet. Experts say The Vizsla is a natural hunter endowed with “an excellent nose and an outstanding trainability.” Although they are lively, gentle-mannered, demonstrably affectionate and sensitive, “they are also fearless and possessed of a well-developed protective instinct.”

Primitive stone etchings, estimated 1,000 years old, show the Magyar huntsman with his Vizsla and falcons.

Filed Under: Newsmakers Tagged With: art dupes dog, dog meets wolf video, oldest dog breed, sporting dogs, vizsla breed, vizsla vs: coyote

Getting Close

April 14, 2012 by Lonnie Lardner

(Pic #1) Close-up, peeling paper and paint on newspaper box, Santa Barbara, California. Lonnie Lardner photo.

“Show me something I’ve never seen before, or something I know well – in a way I’ve never seen it.”

  — Mike Dressler, Photographer, Time Magazine

My favorite moment when capturing an image comes when I spot something interesting within a larger scene. On a run through the streets of Santa Barbara I recently I spotted this old metal newspaper box with a patch of sea green shapes on its bottom panel (Pics #1 and #2). The ripped white paper poster seems to have been sprayed by a local tagger.

(Pic #2) Wide-shot, old newspaper box, State Street, Santa Barbara.

Blown up, it became a sweet abstraction that reminds me of a pattern that might make a cool background for a comic diflucan super-hero or villain like video designer Mike Henry’s take on Batman’s nemesis, Mr. Freeze (Pic #3).

Then, near the iconic Santa Barbara pier, I saw an awful over-ground pipeline stretching out over the beach, and zoomed in there too. As I moved in closer, I could see black and white striations that turned out to be bird poop. Again, close-up, it turned out to make a really nice vertical pattern (Pics #4 and #5). Even when nature “unloads” on us, it can be a beautiful thing.

(Pic #3) Left: close-up, news-box papered front panel. Right: Batman's nemesis, Mr. Freeze, illustration by Mike Henry.

(Pic #4) Close-up, Bird poop on Santa Barbara beach pipe

(Pic #5) Wide-shot, Santa Barbara beach pipe

(Pic #6) Contemporary painting, poop-inspired?

Filed Under: Found Art Tagged With: art is everywhere, close-up photography, macro lens, MIke Dressler, newspaper box, patterns in nature, Santa Barbara, zooming in

Today’s Pic: “That Ain’t No Kelp Bed”

April 9, 2012 by Lonnie Lardner

Capturing Carwash: Photo by Jim Maschke, Plainwell, Michigan

In my query “what in the world?” on Facebook this week, 3 people guessed right. The other answers ranged from “green space aliens, spinach leaves, a spa treatment, kelp, and a scuba diver on acid.”

The award-winning photo above was taken by Jim Maschke, a photographer in Michigan who just happened to feel inspired while being pulled through an automatic carwash. The picture was awarded Best in Show in a local photo contest. Jim used a Sony Cyber Shot 12.5 Mega Pixel with a Zeiss 2.8-5.5 lens.

And did you know there is an official International Carwash Association? The group even has a documented “glossary of terms” from A to W. (I was impressed that they got that far.) Some of my favorite terms are:

“Reclaim pits”

“Dilution Ratio”

“Mitter Curtain”

“Presoak Foamers”

“Treadle Pad”

“Variable Frequency Drive”

“Auto Dump Feature”

When I tried to explore the super-secret meanings of these highly valued terms, I was denied access. Apparently, the ICA holds its operator information pretty close to the chassis.  Membership to the reported $23-billion industry costs close to 300 dollars, so I decided not to pursue the matter any further. But just for the fun of it, check out their link here.

 

Filed Under: Found Art Tagged With: award-winning photo, Jim Maschke, Michigan, photo contest, Plainwell, Sony Cyber shot

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