Actor Meets Artist

While browsing the internet's more wonderful pockets of fact and memorabilia (some would call this procrastination, but I prefer to call it "research") I came across an interview of Maria Abramovic, a performance artist who has been credited with being a strong forward force in the field. However, unlike being interviewed by a reporter or TV personality, she is interviewed by James Franco (Freaks and Geeks, Pineapple Express, 127 Hours) which makes it seem more of a blending of the arts. They cook together and talk about religious practices in foreign cultures, amongst other things.



I am trying to find a longer copy of this (it's from the Wall Street Journal), but in the meantime, I should mention that I came across this on Awesome People Hanging Out Together, a photoblog which is inspiring and sometimes rather curious, like this gem - Trent Reznor (of Nine Inch Nails), Jon Stewart, and Marilyn Manson hanging out together.

Kurzweil's Singularity

As this blog is part of an Art & Technology class, I'll be using this post to further the discussion of Raymond Kurzweil's theory of a Technological Singularity, both as a valid scientific theory and as a self-fulfilling prophecy - much as most science fiction and futurism seems to fall into.

Kurzweil's theory doesn't necessitate my full explanation. In short, he states that in 2029 we will have technologically advanced (especially through biotech, quantum computing, and genetic modification) far enough that our technologies, our computers and our networks, will be tied in as one with our biological selves. Some people believe this is complete hootenanny, while many people agree that this seems like a theory worth listening to. To add some credit to Kurzweil's theory, he has correctly predicted the creation of the internet along with other current technologies not only in description, but in time.

Another part of this theory that becomes a bigger picture piece is the fact that strongly backed and widely believed theories like this end up becoming more-or-less true either because people force them in that direction (through science, marketing, change in public image), or people justify seeing them as having happened, i.e. in 2029 we may have computer screens implanted in our skin, and some people might take that to be some sort of singularity. Part of this is a social movement towards technology. Another part of this has to do with the people making, creating, and solving major technological movements - usually "nerds." In Lawrence Krauss's The Physics of Star Trek, he makes the major argument that sci-fi - things like Star Trek, Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, science fiction books even bleeding into Kurzweil's realm of futurism - are a major force in where we go with technology because the people creating technology find their inspiration in their joy. Their love for the ideas of new technologies and advanced computers is not founded by the enjoyment of taking in these creative works, but it is certainly fueled by it. Who doesn't want to be beamed back home at the end of the day? Who doesn't want to take the load of their brain and their body with benefits of biotechnology?

All I know it it has to be better than a Josh Hartnett movie.

Perfection

It's hard to call yourself a perfectionist. As a child, it seems like something we should all be. Then as we grow up, people say "no, you don't want to be a perfectionist," or "oh, you're like that." People begin to hint at how perfectionists never get anything done and can't get out of their own way. But is this true?

Perfection is an endeavor that some chose to pursue, feeling like there is an end to this search. It can mean obsession, complete consumption with the idea of making something perfect. This leads to the "it's never done," mentality, which leads to constant refinement and alterations. While revision is permissible and part of the design process, being able to accept something as having reached its finishing point is different.
A professional painter of cars, props and models once said to me, "I'm not perfect, and I don't want to be. I just want my work to be amazing and I want to always be able to progress in my craft." In this, there is a humbleness that exists. Through this calmed approach to doing good work, this painter was perfect, when viewed from outside eyes. In his own eyes, he was doing the best he knew how to do, always wishing to do better.

To me, the achievement of perfection in a particular skill or focus in life isn't do to everything perfectly, or even right at all. It is a state of flow; of zen. Being able to do an engine swap on a car in a weekend isn't something that can be done by perfectionists, but to outsiders it seems like something that needs to be done perfectly. It takes a mental state of movement where things go together as a result of skill, preparation, and the right state of mind. The same goes for a major work of art, writing, or circuitry which others come to accept as "perfect" - the creator may know its flaws, but is not bothered by them, as there is a bliss to the ease in which they have executed their job. Not because they're perfect, but because they're good.