Monthly Archives: March 2007

Poem of the Week: Be faithful Go

Posted on March 31, 2007 by cicada

Life is more complicated, more mysterious and more convoluted than the party, the army, the police. Let us detach ourselves a little from this truly horrible everyday reality and try to write about doubt, anxiety and despair. -Zbigniew Herbert My … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry | 2 Comments

The Peas That We Freeze Here

Posted on March 30, 2007 by cicada

Frank Soltesz Today’s Inspiration: Fresh Frozen Frank Soltesz Since childhood I’ve loved diagrams and models of complex buildings, like factories. My favorite Babar book was Babar and Father Christmas, in which Babar falls through a ski slope into a 2-D … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art | 1 Comment

The Nesting Instinct

Posted on March 29, 2007 by cicada

It’s been quiet here on the blog lately, because I had to move out of my house. I closed the sale yesterday and filed the last paperwork this morning. I’m emotionally attached to this house – I did most of … Continue reading →

Posted in Department of the Drama | 6 Comments

Hey, my biology degree is good for something after all!

Posted on March 23, 2007 by cicada

Modern Mechanix » Hen Changed to Rooster by Biologists Those crazy Biologists! What will they do next? And what is that huge black rubber apparatus? (Possible sign that poultry modification is my vocation: our high school’s mascot was a chicken. … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Frivolity, Science | 1 Comment

I assume it’s a rhetorical question

Posted on March 22, 2007 by cicada

“Biology and Art: Two Worlds or One?” (April 14 at NYAS) The best part is that Wim Delvoye, creator of the Cloaca Project, will be there. Enough said. Cloaca Project Musée d’Art Contemporain, Lyon Wim Delvoye, 2003 Via Adventures in … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art, Biology | Comments Off

Poem of the Week: In the Night Orchard

Posted on March 21, 2007 by cicada

Much has been made of Shenandoah editor R.T. Smith’s “Southern” voice and perspective. Margaret Gibson says of his 2004 collection, Brightwood: Vernacular, down-home, these are poems given to remembering, and they make a faithful account. They find healing in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry | Comments Off

Bilingual birds

Posted on March 20, 2007 by cicada

Red Breasted Nuthatch – Desire oil and mixed media on panel Caroline James, 2006 One bird species learns another’s lingo (MSNBC.com) When we lived in the woods, we had our own flock of nuthatches. They were our favorite birds. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art, Biology, Science | Comments Off

Dissatisfaction

Posted on March 20, 2007 by cicada

This blog will probably skew a little personal for a week or two, because I’m in the midst of a major career change. The distressing thing is, I’m getting hammered by friends right and left, because I seem “insufficiently excited” … Continue reading →

Posted in Department of the Drama | 2 Comments

Pollution kills, but art’s the crime

Posted on March 19, 2007 by cicada

Ossario Sao Paulo, Brazil Alexandre Orion This graffiti was created in reverse – by cleaning grimy city surfaces. It’s sort of a lift-and-scrub technique in which the dark areas are old, crusted pollutants. Authorities didn’t know how to charge the … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art | 2 Comments

Looking to Remember

Posted on March 18, 2007 by cicada

Cognitive Daily: Artists look different Cognitive Daily alerts us to a study quantifying the different visual scanning techniques used by artists and non-artists. Here’s a figure from the study, tracking eye movements in yellow: The trained artist (right) looks at … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art, Biology | 4 Comments