creatures

The hero that is Fail Whale

Posted by hil

3D Fail Whale

My little kinetic sculpture of the lovely Twitter Fail Whale, based on the image by Yiying Lu that is used when twitter.com is over-capacity. The image is called ‘Lifting up a Dreamer’. I’ve wanted to make this since I first saw the image some weeks ago.

This is a short video of it in action, complete with twittering birds!

More photos here. (Update: fail whale widget here)

I remain optimistic and supportive of Twitter in the long term, because I think the real-time courier service rationale that was the founding impetus of the service constitutes a new branch off Doc Searls’ live web, and makes our online interactions a quantum step closer to Allen Searl’s original vision of  ‘a Web where anybody could contact anybody else and ask or answer a question in real time’. Twitter’s track facility, presently down but still promised, provides the real-time search of people and and what they are talking about right now.

Maybe the progression of branching-off goes a little like this:

static web > live web > real time web
google > blogosphere > twittosphere
our property > our history in time > our real-time conversation
search by sending out bots> search by listening for pings > search by tracking people and words in real time

It may be that Twitter’s primacy will be usurped by some other real-time service that gets up ahead of them in the race; I hope not. But many great progressive ideas start off serendipitously or in fun without their full implications or potential being known, and in those circumstances it’s silly in hindsight to say the founders ought to have seen further, planned better and acted quicker than they did.

Vegetarian recipes

Posted by hil

Long ago I read that families tend to rotate only about 10 recipes, even if the ten change from time to time. So I’ve been working on finding ten or so vegetarian main dishes that I really like as a way of increasing the number of vegetarian meals we eat. I decided to put the ones I am using regularly online. (Not the prettiest interface, but simple and functional like the  food –  I couldn’t bear the thought of a foodie socnet!).

The hoodoo of a repaired door

Posted by hil

My ducks are so funny. I repaired the old door to their pen a couple of days ago; its the same old shape, hinges and wire, but has three sides of new timber. But will the ducks go in and out? Not on your nelly! These creatures that can so easily not notice if one of their babies goes missing, do not trust that door one inch. The first night I had to catch them individually and put them in, yesterday they didn’t come out all day, then today I had to chase them out. Now they have been lingering suspiciously outside again, but have finally decided to make the daring crossing in, lured by new pond water.

Paul Vincett: Monster Workshop puppets

Posted by hil

Million Puppet Project

I was very taken with the cool Monster Workshop puppets, particularly the leathery demon puppets (above and below right), that were sent in to the Million Puppet Project at Unima 2008. They were made by Paul Vincett, a 3D illustrator and puppet maker. They were behind glass, so difficult to photograph well, but you can find great pictures on his website, for example here or here.

Million Puppet Project

About 40 of the puppets that were sent in to the Million Puppets Project were auctioned at the end of the festival, and I think the one above right brought in the highest bid of the night. Below you can see two of the furry monsters who had just been adopted on auction night, and the very pink Loverly Gloverly who also went for a top price.

Auction night

There are two videos of the demon puppets online (I love the way one of them shakes its ears in such an animal kind of way):
Buried and forgotten and this one:

Unima 2008: Carnival Day

Posted by hil

A mindblowing day at the puppet carnival: see my Flickr photoset for heaps more photos; I’ve just chosen a few here. Also Naomi and Gary have more, too, each a different take :). As far as I can see its just the three of us blogging from Unima 2008.

Cheryl Linnaker’s Yawaru gecko

Puppet Carnival Day

Joan Baixas’ masterclass present the ‘Great Laughing Mutant Project’

Puppet Carnival Day

Hersute Monsiour Telefon, the puppet I put in the Million Puppet Project

Puppet Carnival Day

Trans Faunas by Swerve Association

Puppet Carnival Day

Perhaps one of the creatures by Edith Cowan University Contemporary Performing group?

Puppet Carnival Day

Murphy’s Puppets Allenby’s FAMOUS Flea Circus

Puppet Carnival Day

Swerve Association’s sheep

Puppet Carnival Day

actgov.jpg

My attendence at Unima 2008 is supported by the ACT Government

Delightful strange creatures

Posted by hil

Students from the Edith Cowan University Contemporary Performers Group, lead by Deborah Hunt entertained the lunchtime crowds in James Place, Perth, yesterday, as part of the UNIMA Worl Puppetry Festival. These made my day! By chance there was a busker playing, and they worked their activities in around what he was playing.

Puppets at Unima Worl Puppetry Festival

More photos in my Flickr photoset.

actgov.jpg

My attendence at Unima 2008 is supported by the ACT Government

From the UNIMA World Puppetry Festival

Posted by hil

I’m spending the first few days here at the in Perth at the 20th UNIMA World Puppetry Festival doing the master class Making Ningyo-Joruri, given by Nori Sawa. I’m really enjoying it. Nori says his workshop usually takes a week, so we are working hard to fit it in in 3 1/2 long days. So not much time to dally on the web at the moment! One of the nice aspects so far has been meeting up with fellow bloggers Naomi Guss (who is sharing the masterclass with me) and Gary Friedman.

I’ll have some photos taken in the workshop later on, but here are some taken during the first evening.

Some of the roving entertainers, Riders, were at the Welcome BBQ and Official Opening at the Perth Town Hall last night.

UNIMA World puppetry Festival

UNIMA World puppetry Festival

UNIMA World puppetry Festival

Molly and Jacko were part of the official party and the Welcome to Country given by the local indigenous people.

UNIMA World puppetry Festival

UNIMA World puppetry Festival

The UNIMA poster catches the light on a lovely mild Perth night.

UNIMA World puppetry Festival

Gabrielle Griffin performing at the Transit Lounge:

UNIMA World puppetry Festival

actgov.jpg

My attendence at Unima 2008 is supported by the ACT Government

Big Dog

Posted by hil

I had been ingnoring all the posts about Boston Dynamics developing state-of-the-art robotic quadruped, Big Dog, because I just get otherwise like that sometimes, but having just relented, it really is amazing. I hate to see such big defense involvement in it though, and to read it described as an army mule.

Update: Funny