Filmed on the island or Corsica, I love how this film makes me unwind. The slow and relaxed feel makes this film almost sensual. The close ups and the wide landscape shots really makes me feel like I’m there experiencing all of the little nuances that you notice when you’re in a new place and trying to take it all in. Plus, I like how the story is told through the woman and the dog’s wonderings of the island, but there is no need for anyone to speak. It is just the viewer taking it all in just as the person behind the camera did.
Rio remains a mystery to me. At least the inner depths of its culture. I was there a few years ago for two days. Yes, I know two days in one of the world’s most fascinating cities is not enough time and I realize that now that I’ve been there and saw basically nothing- not for lack of trying though. In my defense, it was cloudy and wet the 48 hours I was there and to top it all off, the Christ Statue was covered in scaffolding. I was told it was pointless in going up to see the view as all I would see was a thick fog. Try as I might, I couldn’t see anything that I wanted to check off my “to see” list. I’m still trying to get back there to see what I missed.
See, lots of clouds
Despite the clouds and the damp I did get to experience a few things there like the Favela, also known the shanty town, and a few impromptu soccer games on the beach. And through these small experiences I got a sense of the drastic opposites that make Rio culture what it is.
The laid back attitude mixed with intense energy and athleticism. Everyone in Brazil seems to be incredibly fit and I couldn’t find one unattractive person my whole time in the country (which amounted to about two weeks). Brazilian people are just plain gorgeous.
It is also a place that never seems to sleep yet it seems almost tranquil at times. There is always something going on, yet at the same time it just feels like any other city with its ebbs and flows.
The extremely wealthy and the extremely poor. I spent a few hours in the Favela and witnessed how many of Rio’s inhabitance survives from day to day. From the highest point, I looked down at the the housing for the wealthy and down at their expensive shopping and personal boats. The contrast was staggering.
What I like most about this video is the color and the movement. It really encapsulates everything that I had experienced and what I had had assumed about the place- not that any of my assumptions were proven correct after visiting. It’s a place that still kind of scares me for its energy and the unknown that I have yet to discover. Someday, I will return to experience it all again.
If I could be anywhere right now, I think I would choose to be here
or here
or here
or here
But instead I’m at home. I can’t really complain because I really do like where I live, but sometimes you just want to get away and explore a new culture and place. More to the point I’m looking for sun. I never really got summer last year and the PNW isn’t known for it’s warm or sunny winters, so I haven’t really seen the sun in a while- except the amazing weather we had a few weeks ago. I am more than ready to soak up some rays and feel warm again.
In the past I’ve traveled several times a year so being in one place for more than a few months is driving me nuts. I just need to buck up and enjoy where I am for the moment- it’s something I’m working on but it isn’t easy when you’re used to being constantly on the move.
So to help with my “itchy feet” syndrome, I’ve been enjoying various travel videos, all of which I want to share with you. Some are of places that I have been to and loved, and some are of places that I hope to someday visit.
I have a thing for typography- you’ve probably picked that up from some of my other posts. So although we don’t usually associate type with being handmade, instead, we think of them being more of a computer generated art form, the history says otherwise.
I know I’ve recently posted a video made by the same people- The Art of Making: Red Dress, but I really love this short. I also think that it encapsulates the idea of hand making something and really slowing down to craft something special.
Sorry to disappoint if you thought I was going to reveal how to make the perfect cup of coffee, I’m not that caffein obsessed. Actually I have to confess that I don’t even like coffee but you sure can’t do the following with a cup of green tea.
This just proves that anything can be the perfect art medium. It just takes the right person to take advantage of it. I don’t know if there is anything that stands out to me more in this film as the subject matter. Much of what I create lasts for as long as I want it to- or even longer depending on where its posted or screened. This is a whole other kind of art that I marvel at because of the enjoyment time is so limited, so kudos to someone who has the patience to create something so detailed and beautiful, only to see it melt away a few minutes later.
Despite the fact that most of my work is digitally created on a computer, I still love paper and paint and pencils etc. When I was growing up, I spent hours in art classes learning how to make all sorts of useless items but I thought were very exciting.
I no longer have as much time with physical tools as I would like, which is probably why I enjoy Handmade Portraits: Rob Ryan. The one time that I made something similar to Mr. Ryan’s work (aka cutting out shapes on a page to create the picture) I ended up tearing most of the page and gave up. Obvioulsy I wasn’t patient enough, but maybe now I could make it through a whole sheet.
On a deeper level, I like that there are stories within stories in each piece that he creates. Behind every piece of art is a great story but we don’t always see that as plainly as you can here.
Sometimes you see a video and wonder how it’s made and then spend a while trying to figure out the method and either try it yourself or give up and move on. Very rarely do you get a tutorial on how it was made.
I’m not one to go looking for “how-to” videos to do with clothes (in fact it never dawned on me that they existed), but this came up while I was searching for scarves for a gift the other day. I’ve never been very original when it comes to how I wear a scarf so I figured, why not?
Yes, I got some great tips on how to tie a scarf other than the first option, which is my usual “go-to” but what I really liked was the whole composition of this video. The editing was great and it was a fun way to make what could have been a very boring tutorial, exciting. And, if I got bored of how to tie a scarf, there was plenty of other things for me to watch and amuse me. The mark of any good video- it keeps your attention.
So of course after oohing and aahing over the video, I was intrigued by the way that it was put together and lo and behold, there was a link to how the director put this together (here). It really isn’t as difficult as it appears, but it took a lot of planning and coordinating. I can’t imagine how long it took to film all of the segments. In documentary there isn’t quite as many planned shots, which is probably why I like it more than narrative film, so this boggled my mind.
I was so impressed by the scarf video that I watched a few other videos on the same account and loved this one too:
Now that we are all up to date on women’s fashion for the season, I’m going to go and try to piece together how to do something similar to this last video. Wish me luck!
Probably something that most of us take for granted- signs. They are every where. They are on the sides of buildings, on walls, dragging behind airplanes, on street corners, and hanging on door handles. We cannot go more than a few steps without seeing one, but we probably don’t take the time to think about the origin of each sign. At least I don’t. I find that I’ve learned to ignore many of them.
Perhaps I would notice them more if I could tell that time and effort had gone into its creation and that it really was a piece of art. Sadly, most signs that I see are machine made. And perhaps that’s why I like this trailer. It makes me stop and think about what I’m looking at and all the while, pointing out that we have traded in artwork for a cookie cutter print. Once again, handmade seems to have its advantages…
To stick with the food theme this week, this film is simply mesmerizing and proves that food really is a work of art. I don’t even like chocolate and I want to try this dessert!
emfirno 