December 21, 2008
Back in 2002, Sara and I purchased a DVD from Japan that featured an incredible motion painting by David Ellis and the Barnstormers. The film was called Apostrophe and it absolutely blew us away.
Much like what Blu did in MUTO, David's animated films are created by first painting, then erasing, and then replacing the artwork while a stop-action camera captures each moment. Similar to an incredible jazz performance, the Barnstormer's films were improvised and done completely collaboratively.
While Apostrophe is not available on the web, many of The Barnstormers films (as well as those done by David Ellis alone) can indeed be found on Vimeo and Youtube. For us, they're about as good as it gets.
Here's a few of our favorites:
First, if you haven't seen "Baker's", the work David painted over eight days earlier this year, be sure to click here (as for some reason it's on Youtube but not embeddable).
After you've done that, be sure to watch Scrounge a film of the Barnstomers (this time featuring Mike Houston, David Ellis, Che Jen, Sasu, Kiku, and Kami) that was produced during an artists' residency in September 2005 at The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu:
Then watch "Letter to the President" that was done in the winter of 2003. The Barnstormers painting in this film include Sonia Rubinstein, West One, Shie One, Chuck Webster, Yuri Shimojo, David Ellis, Christian Mendoza, Kenji Hirata, Che Jen, Mike Ming, Doze Green, Michael Houston, Martin Mazzorra, Jose Parla, Rostarr, Alex Lebedev, Madsaki:
And finally, watch "Daily" a film David did in 2004 over the course of three weeks:
To learn more about what The Barnstormers were all about, watch this:
Posted by marc at 11:55 AM in Essentials |
March 20, 2006
First off, you'll no doubt want to stock up on some supplies. The good folk at All City Records , 7 Crow Street in Temple Bar, will be able to sort you out with all the paint and markers you'll need. While you're there, have a browse through their vinyl and you might find a musical gem or two as well. If it's a glue-gun, industrial-strength adhesive, a brush or just a few nails you're after, stroll over to Decwell's D.I.Y. at 60 South Great George's Street, which is just a couple of minutes away.
Dublin is a small enough city and you'll get a feel for the place pretty quickly. Have a wander through all the streets and alley's between South Great George's Street and Grafton Street and you'll find plenty of nice spots to leave some work. Temple Bar is another nice area, and you'll also find plenty of abandoned buildings along the Luas (Tram) line that are in need of a make-over. But don't rely on our humble thoughts; hit the the streets and go where your legs take you!
Asbestos is easily the most prolific street artist in Dublin. From his legendary "Lost" posters, to his distorted animals and anonymous dolls' heads, he's always dropping interesting stuff around the city...
Frankenstyles also lines the streets of Dublin with some great work. Keep a look out for his wood-and-wire sculptures, dangerous looking bottles of home-brew and some quality paste-ups too...
BLuE bRIckS do whatever they can to promote active creative engagement with our surroundings...
The wonderful message of Chicago's You Are Beautiful has spread to Dublin...
If you want to seek out some good art in the pleasant confines of a gallery space, have a look at the current shows in Four http://www.fourdublin.com/ over at 11 Burgh Key, the Douglas Hyde Gallery in Trinity College and Monster Truck on Francis Street. The Irish Museum of Modern Art http://www.imma.ie/ in the former Royal Hospital on Military Road is well worth a look too.
Feeling hungry? Head along to Cornucopia at 19 Wicklow Street where you can get some of the finest vegetarian food around. Even the most hardened meat-eater will find something tasty here. Their breakfast menu is unbelievable...
If you want to check out a few shops, be sure to pay Road Records at 16B Fade Street a visit. Run by some of the nicest people you could meet, and stocking loads of indie, alternative, electronica, punk, reggae, country, folk, blues and all manner of great things, they've been keeping our ears happy for years. Also, Red Ink, hidden away above Flip at 4 Upper Fownes Street is one of the city's best kept secrets, packed full of loads of great zines, mags and books from all over the world.
Up for a few cool beverages, some great music and a bit of a dance? You're in luck. There are some great club-nights in Dublin whatever your musical taste. Backlash http://www.backlash.ie/ at Wax on South William Street every Thursday offers some great DJs and always pulls in a good crowd. The Ballroom of Romance http://www.ballroomofromance.com/ happens fairly randomly in various venues, but it never fails to disappoint, bringing bands from both near and far to play. Skinny Wolves is another class monthly event that's always a dead-cert too. Finally, if you want to wind-down on a Sunday evening with some beautiful experimental soundscapes, go along to Lazybird http://www.lazybird.org/ , above the International Bar on Wicklow Street. Check the sites for the most up-to-date schedules.
Another few things to look out for when you're in Dublin; the genius that is Candy Magazine runs an event called Sweet Talk which sees designers, photographers, filmmakers and street artists from around the globe coming to show and talk about their work in a nice and relaxed atmosphere. Go to one and we promise you'll be knee-deep in creativity by the time you leave. And maybe a little drunk too. Venues and dates also vary, so check out their site.
If you happen to be in Dublin in late December, you might be lucky enough to pick yourself up a t-shirt of hoodie from our friends at Angry, who open up their office-space once a year to sell some of their class designs.
Finally, DEAF (Dublin Electronic Arts Festival) takes place every October in various venues across the capital and is always brimming with loads of quality audiovisual adventures.
... and if you ever feel that pressing urge to get away from the madness of the city, there are some beautiful parks around - check out Merrion Square, the Iveagh Gardens or the lush grounds of the Irish Museum of Modern Art. Better still, hop on a DART and head south to the last stop on the line (Greystones) which is just an hour away. Not only does the journey offer you some of the most amazing views you'll see from a train, it also leaves you right by the sea, and with plenty of good places to make your mark along the way...
Have a great stay!
Your friends,
Posted by marc at 4:57 AM in Essentials |