The Obstruction of Action by the Existence of Form

A good reminder that having friends enriches many things-- adding or heightening the joy of something that one might not initially highly value on it's own.

Walking through the Blanton art museum in Austin, TX this weekend I did a sudden double take when I passed the image on the left- turns out I do in fact love all the work by R. Eric McMaster the museum had- but the initial "hockey = @aetherseer = good!" knee jerk association brought special delight. The image on the right, beautiful on its own right, also made me think of several Discord folks and thus held extra charm.

Normally I'd say I have negative interest in all things "sports ball" but second hand Tumblr mutual subject matter and view points does leave a mark. The helmets above provoked a sudden "I should show this to @odense" thought.

Thankfully the whole thing appears to have been uploaded to Vimeo by the artist.

Text accompanying the exhibit below the cut

R. Eric McMaster's work explores the protocols that govern various sports by manipulating, isolating, or restricting the rules and conditions that determine athletes' movements. For example, the gymnast in the video A Change of Atmosphere performs his pommel horse routine underwater, struggling with the awkwardness of breathing and the challenge of buoyancy rather than balance in the absence of gravity. In the photograph and video The Obstruction of Action by the Existence of Form, two hockey teams play shoulder to shoulder in a rink McMaster constructed at less than one- tenth of regulation size. The compressed space creates an event that is both comical and even more combative than a typical match-the players cannot avoid physical contact. The Obstruction of Action by the Presence of Order appropriates footage from the 2012 Summer Olympics of gymnasts awaiting the signal to perform. The video is silent, with no sportscaster commentary distracting from the tension evident in the athletes' faces as they await permission from an unseen, unheard authority figure. Despite years of practice, they-and we-know that perfection is impossible. McMaster has stated, "When we experience the familiar disrupted, we often can't clearly categorize the experience." His challenging of athletic norms suggests the possibility of new ways of seeing and being in the world. While the results are often humorous, they also create empathy for the vulnerability and pressure athletes experience. Heightened awareness of the regulations to which they are subjected likewise encourages us to reflect on the social dynamics and conventions governing our own lives.

I sat through all the videos & watched The Obstruction of Action by the Presence of Order twice in fact as A joined me halfway through A Change of Atmosphere. The gif comes from the brief shaky video I took to immediately send to @aetherseer -- not captured was the snickering and snorting of A & I laughing throughout the game (w/ much respect and admiration for the piece)

If you can, you should absolutely check it out-- it's on display till August 25, 2024

Happy Edible Book Day!

Was fortunate enough to hop over to @epitomereally's yesterday for some social (and productive!) crafting - was able to distribute a couple of the book cookies I made this year. Highlight was witnessing @justheblueberry pop one of the minis in her mouth exactly as I had pantomimed to A when describing my objective of the project. Success! 🙌*

The books don't hinge, there's just a number of them baked in various degrees of 'open' - but some of them had a pinch of text

* I've never made this type of icing before, never worked with edible wafer paper before, and it's been a long time since I've made a basic sugar cookie so learned a lot this round and will be better equipped for future years

New job means the brain's been a' churning with code lately. Putting some cycles towards @renegadeguild this month-- signature order spine lines are (languishing) in review (as Draft) and I threw together a typeset assembly tool in hopes of finally (collaboratively) tackling the idea of a Renegade cookbook.

Launched in honor/anticipation of Edible Book Day (April 1st), the Renegade PDF Potluck tool is currently accepting entries. Currently only available to Renegade Bindery folks (thems on the Discord) -- you can find the link & info in the Event on the server.

Deadline for entries is tomorrow (Saturday, March 22nd 2024) @ midnight PST but seeing as only 2 entries have been submitted so far, might be extending that a bit.

Looking back at my old drawings, I deeply miss Dr Sketchy's... I also realize now that the Renegade crew stepped in neatly to fill that part of my life/heart when COVID began. Also sad to see gaming as an artistic influence peek in '17 (Intercon!), followed by a bout of Critical Role and then totally disappear.

Two Katherine Addison short stories, bound as minis for @mythrilthread as part of a personal little trade. I received the copy of Tumblr stories in addition to a glow-in-the dark mini so I clearly made out like a bandit on this swap. Not to mention, @mythrilthread also bound my typeset for the @renegadepublishing Tiny Book Bang this summer 💅 I think you could officially call me a collector at this point....

And yes, I do believe those papers are from the @aetherseer gift pack. And that's a scrap of some Duo I nabbed during @renegadepublishing meetup.

Edwardian Ball 2024. a success. good times. pleased with my new sketchbook. moved by the performances. love how it's constantly evolving. looking forward to next year.

A Long Way by betts [link]

Bound for the @renegadepublishing Tiny Book Bang. Typeset by indoor cat press, who has also bound it themselves in delicious sunshine duo with a rich red edge coloring.

Sometimes things just come together well, and for me this is such a case- I really like how it turned out. It helped that I know Game of Thrones and happen to have a lot of red and gold supplies on hand. Perfect scrap of red leather with an ideal scrap of fancy paper (thanks again, @aetherseer). Buff 'n rub wax treatment of the edges and in a stroke of luck (and several strokes of the hammer) the title fit perfectly on the fore edge. Not the usual place one puts it, but I'm working with a limited toolset. Highlight of the whole project- reading it.

white winged dove / shadow of a dragon by chrysaliseater [link]

Bound for the @renegadepublishing Tiny Book Bang. Typeset by @admiraltypress. I brought this typeset as uncut sheets with me to @fantailpress's for a @renegadepublishing meetup where we practiced suminagashi in Rhi's yard. In the sweltering heat, if I remember correctly. I don't think I even marbled this... I remember @marvinhere was in town, I think she marbled the text for me.

Hello, @lifeandtimesoftrying! It's weird to think the video is out there lurking somewhere... it's unlisted though, intentionally hard to find, and only available to those on the @renegadepublishing Discord, which is 18+...

Better than a crufty, near-year-old video is a LIVE bind along! And it just so happens there will be a new Mini Monologues & Bind Along w/ me Thursday, February 8th @ 6pm PST! (which will also be recorded and made available to those participating in the Binderary event on the server, still 18+ tho)

Supplies and Tool lists to be (re)released shortly. Msg me if you can't/wont join server and I'll slip you the info & steps for you to give it a run on your own.

Looking back at all the Januaries spent here so far... quality of that sketching really peaked in 2015. I've a fondness for the effort I put into photographing my weird books in 2018 and the time spent stoned. Every time I see something from early 2020 my heart breaks....

Am very thankful that I was able to make it to the Seattle Renegade Boxing Day meetup! Wonderful group of people there, very good times.

El hosted and demoed how the printer toner/foil laminating process works! Am severely tempted to invest... You can see macro shots of the results (plus toner pickup from not-foiled area when going through the machine). Of course I got to handle a number of books- featured here are macro shots of one by @runawaymarbles.

You guuuuuuuuuys!! Ril sent this to me back in August and I fell in love! A number of folks who I've met up with have had this waved in their face since it's adorable and so easy to carry around. It lives on the little bookshelf @natrix-nembrotha made now, but while I was reading it, I'd wrap it in one of my first dye scraps to keep it safe.

It's a story I knew I should probably read but (aside from Sherlock Holmes) was 'too old' for my casual reading tastes. Luckily, it was perfect for the @renegadepublishing Tiny Book Bang! While I've modded several exchanges for Renegade, this was the first that I participated in. Typeset was done 'blind'- as in, I use LaTeX and didn't actually read much of anything other than chapter titles and opening lines. Getting to read it (and boy was it readable-- the hinges on that thing are a beauty and the paper is so fine! real joy to hold) as a 'real' book was a (prolonged*) joy!

Another one of the books I did for Tny Books Bang by Renegade Bindery.

This is The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde typeset by @simply-sithel in octodecimo format (with the book being 5x7 cm. Ish).

For this one I went back to a fun time in my life when I used to cut out tiny paper portraits of my friends and family. So the cameos inlaid on the cover are cut out by hand. I also made the Rorschach-esque endpapers. Also, this teeny tiny book is chonky enough to warrant actual sewn endbands, so there they are.

The eight Tumblr Saint

I worked with my ink collection for this one. Actually used it as an excuse to go out and buy several new shades... it's what she would have wanted.

because he's a poet by red0aktree [link]

Bound for the @renegadepublishing Tiny Book Bang. Typeset by @mythrilthread. Bookcloth hand dyed by @epitomereally for her Everything is Relative to You project... and I think she gave me the end pages as well...? Edges are buff 'n rub wax.

and thus begins the yearly tradition of scrambling to figure out this year's sketching setup for the Edwardian Ball. It happens the same time of year, every year... ...and yet, here I am, days before the ball, without the right notebook to go with outfit.

2024 off to a wretched start.... Just got home after (again) being away for too long to find the meager remains of a porch thefted packaged... I'd been warned by neighbors (who collected the fragments) but I'm fucking crushed to find the postcards missing... like... fucking postcards? It said right there on the box what it contained... why couldn't they have just left them behind with the box?

This follows last night's driver-side-window smash and grab of A's jacket and beloved baby yak hat.