No Greater Joy

http://stevemccurry.wordpress.com/2012/03/06/no-greater-joy/

Films

These are the films Nicole and I have watched together recently.

The World in a Suitcase

So here is a link to Jared's thesis. I haven't read it, but I found it while doing some research and thought it might be nice to read when we finish the collection up. I also thought it might be nice of us each to leave a little review on amazon for him when we finish (:

I look forward to discussing with you all on Sunday, and if there is anything that you forget to say or would like us to think about for future discussions, comment here!

Ballad of the Hanged

Sooo.... I recently used my favorite French poem in one of my paintings. I mentioned it to Reema once upon a skype-date and thought I would share it here as well since it touches upon a number of interesting themes. If you'd like to see the original French you can find it with this link:

http://medieval.ucdavis.edu/20C/Villon2.html

Otherwise, here it is. The Ballad of the Hanged by Francois Villon:

Brothers, men who live after us,
Let not your hearts be hardened against us,
Because, if you have pity for us poor men,
God will have more mercy toward you.
You see us here attached five or six:
When our flesh that was nourished so well
Is over time devoured and putrified,
And we, the bones, have become cinders and powder.
Let no one laugh at our misfortune:
But pray that God absolve us all!

If we call you, brothers, you ought not
To have disdain even though we were killed
By law. Often, you know
That not all men have a righteous mind;
Excuse us, now that we have passed,
Toward the son of the Virgin Mary,
That her grace will not be slow for us,
Preserving us from the infernal fire.
We are dead, no soul harries us;
But pray that God absolve us all!

The rain has washed and purified us,
And the sun has dried and blackened us:
Magpies, crows have dug out our eyes
And pulled out our beards and eyebrows.
Never do we have rest;
The changeable wind blows us first this way, then that,
To its pleasure without ceasing,
Our skin has more bird peckings than if it were sewed.
Do not leave our company then;
But pray that God absolve us all!

Prince Jesus, who is lord of all,
Keep us from the tyranny of Hell:
Let the Devil have no claim over us
Men, make no mockery here;
But pray that God absolve us all!

I know that I'm more spiritual than religious, but this poem really speaks to me. What are your thoughts?

FEAST

One of my friends who is pursuing art at St. Norbs sent me this link, and I found it very interesting. I've discussed food and the dining experience in relation to relationships/communications with Kelsey in the recent past, but this exhibit at an art museum in Chi-town takes it a step farther. I feel as though I would like to try out this concept--making a meal a sort of performance art, making it memorable and enlightening. I think this face-to-face connection is often lacking in modern society, and I'd like to change that-- at least in my own life.

http://smartmuseum.uchicago.edu/exhibitions/feast/

-the link for videos is at the bottom of the page & these are particularly awesome. They do an excellent job of showing the diversity of radical hospitality projects.

Hey, my brother sent me this link today. Basically, this artist creates these sculptures and then submerges them into the ocean where they eventually become a part of the landscape! Isn't it amazing (and slightly eerie, too)?!