When I was a kid, I went through a phase where all of my desk supplies, notebooks and stationary were Ebru. Now, I’m dying to learn the technique myself at home.
Paper marbling is a method of aqueous surface design, which can produce patterns similar to smooth marble or other stone. The patterns are the result of color floated on either plain water or a viscous solution known as size, and then carefully transferred to an absorbent surface, such as paper or fabric. Through several centuries, people have applied marbled materials to a variety of surfaces. It is often employed as a writing surface for calligraphy, and especially book covers and endpapers in bookbinding and stationery. Part of its appeal is that each print is a unique monotype.
Here are two brief videos demonstrating the technique. I find it utterly hypnotic and magical.
Has anyone taken an Ebru class or tried this at home?
I meant to post this web series in my Halloween countdown (but am always swamped with dozen of links I can’t get to that time of year). Luckily, Victorian Cutout Theater has a special episode for the holidays.
Don’t let the voices tell you what to do this Christmas.
I never thought I’d hear anyone utter the phrase “when you invite your bros over for tea,” and it kind of made my day. This video shows Shaquille O’Neal being a great sport (pun intended?), for a great cause. Just wait for it, and let yourself be confused and entertained in the meantime.
The creator of Cirque Obscure recently shared his puppetry work with me, and these creatures are right at home here on SWS. One look at this, and I was sold:
All of these puppets have a distinct darkness about them; a sense of emptiness, melancholy…they are the misunderstood and the damned.
The aesthetic reminds me slightly of Tool’s “Sober” video (one of my all time favorites), which along with NIN’s “Closer” helped open me up in my early teens to dimensions of dark surrealism beyond what I had seen as a horror-obsessed child.
Watch the trailer for the latest release. I can’t wait to see the complete film:
I missed this Afterschool Special growing up, but it’s truly a (temporary spray-on hair color covered) gem. I highly recommend it.
Terry, the leading man, transforms instantaneously in an airport bathroom from an awkward orchestra geek to the world’s most innocuous punk. Is the resulting appearance-based prejudice he encounters a warning for parents to keep their children from going down this “bad” path, or a commentary on a shallow, judgmental society*?
*They make a point of having Terry save the day for a sad little girl with leg braces…by somehow materializing a doll with identical leg braces…while at a horse stable, after her mother is denied permission to just “strap her to a horse.” I’m not kidding.
Only one thing is certain: the special is entirely ineffective, and quite marvelously fails, at any of its possible aims. In other words: watch this ASAP.
My earliest conscious memories involve a (harmless) deep intrigue and love of darkness. As a very young child I used to enjoy traipsing around my local library, looking for spooky goodies. Still do.
Given my innate radar, I was drawn to this box immediately, as it was the only one in the kids section that had a black spine and cover with ominous writing instead of the usual kid-friendly color schemes and bubble letters.
I was further entranced by the Devil’s voluminous neck folds. Admit it…you can’t look away.
The Devil and Daniel Mouse (loosely based on the Faustian short story The Devil and Daniel Webster), was released as a Halloween special in 1978. Once I found this in the video section, I got my parents to rent it for me multiple times.
The plot (via IMDB): Finding their audience drying up in favour of rock music, two young mouse folk singers find themselves with a bleak future. Desperate for a better career and life, the female vows that she would do anything to become a rock star. Instantly, the Devil arises to take advantage of that and offers to make her a star in exchange for her soul. She agrees and she quickly becomes the star she’s dreamed of while her boyfriend, Daniel Mouse, is left behind. On the night of her greatest triumph, the devil comes to collect on her soul. In desperation, she turns to Daniel who must attempt the impossible task of trying to find an escape loophole for his girl’s release.
I’ll be straight with you here…The ending is pretty lame. Spoiler alert:
Despite a deep belief in the transformative power of song, I couldn’t get behind this. Perhaps a testament to the cynicism of my old age, I found myself thinking “A song does not negate a legally binding contract. Oh, come on Dana…it’s a cartoon! Suspension of disbelief! Think of it metaphorically, or something.” And even as a 4 year old I fast forwarded through the (intensely 1970’s) musical interludes. But this whole cartoon is worth it for the perpetually shape-shifting Devil, who is an absolute delight.
There are many fists of fury poses…
If you dig retro animation, watch this for good ol’ B.L. Zebub. Let me know what you think!
[Edit] Thank you, Bettie, for reminding me that this was sampled in Bauhaus’s “Party of the 1st Part.”
Whovians, this cello version of the Doctor Who theme song is gorgeous (maybe I’m just a sucker for anything redone using the cello).
Anyone watching the new season? What do you think of Peter Capaldi as the Doctor? I must admit, I completely stopped watching the show during the “Amy Pond” era because for some reason I found her intolerable, to the point that I couldn’t even give Matt Smith a fair shot in his role. I still miss the days of David Tennant and Billie Piper. But I’m getting back into it now.
This woman is beyond awesome; a renegade in the stuffy old world of granny crafts, with more spunk and spirit than most people 1/4 her age. And it’s not just the fact that she seems perpetually hopped up on Mountain Dew. She’s a genuine badass.
I wish there were more videos, but alas, Mrs. Teller only came out with a couple of them.
SheWalksSoftly 