the vegetable orchestra

in a recent comment on my Giant Pumpkin Regatta entry, Kristin Posehn brings this video of the Vegetable Orchestra to my attention:

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live seafoods are famous…

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i really can’t make an argument against this statement.

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subwayz

me and my pal Elyse have been having a war of words regarding the subway sandwich shop chain. apparently awhile back i made some sort of half-hearted endorsement of said chain, and now elyse has brought it upon herself to remind me via text messages how disgusting subway really is. now, i don’t even remember making this endorsement, and if i did i probably meant it in relationship to other utterly disgusting fast-food options such as macdonalds or burger king, perhaps in the same way i’d endorse a sunburn over hot-acid burns.
but come to think of it, subway is a bit of a guilty pleasure, falling into the same category of motel 6. it’s not that i particularly like either, but being one who travels often, i do appreciate their predictable consistency when rolling into some truck stop of a town late at night after driving for hours on end. it’s really an internal conflict; I love finding funky old motels and mom-and-pop diners, and am saddened by the fact that they are slowly going extinct because the big chains are muscling them out, but at the same time, playing “funky motel roulette” at 1:00 am after driving 600 miles can lead to horrific ends, as can ordering the wrong biscuits and gravy from the wrong greasy spoon diner. I have found some amazing motels out there, but I’ve found some frighteningly disgusting ones as well. for every Wigwam Motel or El Rancho Hotel (two of the most amazing places on earth), there are also dives I’ve stayed at that are dingier then I care to recall here.
so while I’ll maintain my appreciation for a fast-food chain that has items such as (gasp) fresh vegetables, I’ll agree with Elyse that Subway ain’t no Joe and Aggie’s Cafe or Frontier Restaurant. (and perhaps elyse will even grab me a stack of Frontier post-cards while she is in the ABQ).
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it’s tuba christmas!!!!!!!!!!!


tuba christmas

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miami report #4: tow zone

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miami report #3: art walk

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miami report #2: art

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Too much art can be hazardous to your health. That was the realization that Sean Healy and I had while drinking our last round of Pina Colada’s at the Miami airport. We had been attending the Art Basel Miami Beach art fair and had seen what must have been thousands of works of art, and now we were completely wrecked. The fair is ridiculously gigantic and turns the city of Miami into one giant traffic jam of art. While the parties and late night extravaganzas probably didn’t help matters, the art certainly had a lasting effect: it was as if our eyeballs and brains were seared from too much art perusing, as if we had been staring at some super-bright light bulb for hours on end.
According to their website, “Art Basel Miami Beach is the most important art show in the United States, a cultural and social highlight for the Americas. As the sister event of Switzerland’s Art Basel, the most prestigious art show worldwide for the past 38 years, Art Basel Miami Beach combines an international selection of top galleries with an exciting program of special exhibitions, parties and crossover events featuring music, film, architecture and design… An exclusive selection of more than 200 leading art galleries from North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa will exhibit 20th and 21st century artworks by over 2,000 artists. The exhibiting galleries are among the world’s most respected art dealers, offering exceptional pieces by both renowned artists and cutting-edge newcomers. Special exhibition sections feature young galleries, performance art, public art projects and video art. The show will be a vital source for art lovers, allowing them to both discover new developments in contemporary art and experience rare museum-caliber artworks.”
ABMB does seem like a pretty important event in the art world, and I was very honored that they chose to include my installation future so bright in their video program, but after experiencing the festival in person, I have come to the conclusion that the fair is really just SPRING BREAK FOR THE ART-WORLD. For five days, an estimated 50,000 people descended on Miami Beach to buy art, schmooze, drink Pina Coladas, and look awkward in swim wear. Celebrity sightings included Tom Wolfe, Lance Armstrong, and the dude from PaperRad. The fair has a very small curated program, and then selects around 200 galleries (from hundreds of applicants) to set up booths to display and sell art. It’s a lot like an antique mall, except the booths are run by fancy gallerists and art dealers instead of cute old ladies. And unlike an art museum, the work here was for sale.
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The official fair takes place in the Miami Convention Center and adjoining Botanical Gardens (where my video showed), but the ‘official’ fair really is less then half of the entire attraction. Jumping on the coat tails of the fair, several satellite fairs have emerged, setting up shop in nearby hotels, warehouses, vacant buildings, and even the shipping containers that much of the art was delivered in. With names such as Aqua, Pulse, NADA, Red Dot, Scope, Flow, Bridge, Photo Miami, Art Miami, Art Positions and god knows how many others, these ancillary fairs added an interesting, puckish flare to the entire event. Rental of the cheapest booth at the main fair costs a staggering $35,000, so obviously the smaller side fairs offer an opportunity for younger and riskier work to get into the mix.
But it also turns into something too big to possibly consume, at least for someone of my amateur status. I got off to a strong start on the first day, seeing about half of the booths in the convention center and the stuff at the Aqua Hotel. And on day two I was able to check out the Aqua Wynwood warehouse space (where Elizabeth Leach was set-up) and a few of the shipping containers, but I quickly realized that I was losing steam fast. Looking at that much art, and dealing with that many people, is absolutely exhausting. By day three I was starting to wonder if I even liked art anymore, and the thought of spending more time indoors with all these weird art people when the beach was a mere block away just seemed wrong.
And then there were the parties. So many parties. So, so many parties…
But before running out of steam, I did see some stuff I really liked. I am also realizing that my favorite works of art are often interactive, and look more like something you might expect to find in a children’s museum than an art gallery. Zilvinas Kempinas’ piece ‘Lemniscate’ consisted of a long piece of magnetic tape that was held aloft by the air current created by two electric fans. It was beautiful and looked like something you might see on Bill Nye the Science Guy and was probably my favorite thing at the fair. I also liked Julieta Aranda’s ‘There has been a miscalculation,’ which recreated a dust-storm in a giant clear cube, and Anish Kapoor’s untitled inverse mirror, which would liven up any party or shared public space. Here is a short video I made of these new “children’s museum for adults’ pieces that I like so much:

interactive and moving works at art basel miami from matt mccormick on Vimeo.

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miami report #1: mazzy is missing

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one one-hundredth of a second away from needing to get a new camera


one one-hundredth of a second from needing a new camera from matt mccormick on Vimeo.

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NATIONAL MUSEUM of FUNERAL HISTORY (TM)

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NATIONAL MUSEUM of FUNERAL HISTORY (TM)
ANY DAY ABOVE GROUND IS A GOOD ONE (TM)
“Experience unique national treasures and the country’s largest display of funeral service memorabilia in the 20,000 square foot National Museum of Funeral History.
The museum is the home of rare artifacts and interesting historical information about one of our most important cultural rituals.
Among many fascinating items, you will find The funerals of the Famous Gallery, which exhibits artifacts and information on a variety of political and celebrity figures, including Elvis Presley, Martin Luther King, John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, Mickey Mantle, and many more.
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There are also presidential funeral exhibits such as the original “Eternal Flame” that burned at President John F Kennedy’s Arlington grave until 1998 and memorabilia from President George Washington to President Richard Nixon. In addition, the museum exhibits an exact replica of President Abraham Lincoln’s stately coffin, one of only two in existence today.
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For the car enthusiast, the museum showcases a collection of horse-drawn hearses from as early as 1832 to other one-of-a-kind funeral service vehicles, all of which are still operable. Included in this exhibit are funeral sleighs, horse-drawn hearses and mourning coaches, a 1916 Packard “funeral bus” intended to replace the funeral procession, a 1921 Rockfalls Hearse made of six different types of wood, and a 1938 Henney-Packard Flower Car.
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A full-scale replica of King Tut’s Sarcophagus highlights the exhibit in the “funeral directors” of ancient Egypt, who were the first to use sophisticated embalming processes thousands of years ago.
Other permanent displays include 19th century mourning clothes, various types of mourning jewelry and a late 19th century mourning room with a Victorian setting.
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Recognized both nationally and internationally, the museum is ever changing and home to many rare collections, some even featured in movies and plays.
The National Museum of Funeral History enlightens its visitors with the interesting and often “mysterious” rituals that surround death.
The Museum provides a unique and entertaining atmosphere to hold corporate events and parties, from small 50-person cocktail parties to fully catered events with hundreds of guests. In addition to the Museum area, we offer over 10,000 feet of dining, kitchen, auditorium, and private meeting space.
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We offer an enjoyable experience that cannot be matched by other museums.”
(this text was entirely lifted from the museums brochure. after visiting the museum the other day, which is in the suburbs of houston in a slightly awkward building, i decided there was no way i could better describe the overall feel of the place then to simply let them speak for themselves. but do visit their website at www.nmfh.org)
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Posted in ghost towns & road trips, notes and observations, things of cultural significance | 3 Comments