List of Monumental sculpture projects 2015

  • 1 http://swannbb.blogspot.fr/2015/02/sunday-robot-play.html
  • 2 http://shuengitswannjie.blogspot.fr/2015/02/interactive-reading-room-tea-house-2015.html
  • 3 http://swannbb.blogspot.fr/2014/06/neo-ming-bed-luxembourg.html
  • 4 http://swannbb.blogspot.fr/2013/02/yuzi-paradise-tell-moon.html
  • 5 http://swannbb.blogspot.com/2011/09/12th-changchun-international-sculpture.html
  • 6 http://www.saatchionline.com/Shuen-git

Tuesday 27 October 2015

Airstream roof top hotel;South Africa

http://www.momondo.fr/inspiration/rooftops-epoustouflants/?utm_source=SocialMoovFacebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=rooftops-epoustouflants&source=disp-Facebook-General.blog-promo

Rooftop camping – Cape Town, Afrique du Sud

Les caravanes Airstream sur le toit du Grand Daddy Hotel
Les caravanes Airstream sur le toit du Grand Daddy Hotel © Grand Daddy Hotel

Les hôtels sont très créatifs lorsqu’il s’agit de tirer parti du meilleur de leur toit, et notamment le Grand Daddy Hotel de Cape Town. L’hôtel a importé sept caravanes de type Airstream, rutilantes et vintage, directement des USA et a établi un camping très cosy sur son toit, où vous pourrez loger. Très original!



http://www.tracygallagher.com/2010/06/hotel-of-the-week-scooooore-with-a-novel-hotel-in-south-africa/airstream-bar2-2/

One fun place to stay is the Grand Daddy Hotel…but specifically check out the Airstream Penthouse Trailer Park located on top of the hotel. Yep, it is exactly how it sounds – Seven highly designed Airstream trailers are parked up on the roof for guests to stay a night or two or three…
Each trailer has hot and cold water, toilets and showers..so it is not your “daddy’s campers” at the Grand Daddy hotel. It is definitely for the traveler who has seen it all. The hotel group behind this likes to have fun and invoke humor into their boutique hotels. Each trailer has a unique design from different local designers. Some rooms are pretty whimsical, adding to the fun ambiance.

more pic


In addition to the cleverly decorated and slick Airstream trailers, the rooftop has a tented sky bar for guests, complete with couches and heaters to enjoy the nighttime sky.
The Grand Daddy is making sure guests have a cozy place to watch all the World Cup action this summer (but remember when you travel..it is winter there.) Think comfy couches, a fully stocked bar, and big screens.

Sunday 25 October 2015

rainbow tree from seeds



How to Grow Rainbow Tree Eucalyptus deglupta Mindanao gum seeds Part 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Taf2_qZACR8
rainbow tree


How to Grow Rainbow Tree Eucalyptus deglupta Mindanao gum seeds Part 2




PAPER TOWEL METHOD OF SEED GERMINATION - EASY & FAST
www.larksperennials.com

Saturday 24 October 2015

Friday 23 October 2015

好奇藝術 Kunstkammer 61 : Graphic Novel : "Unflattening", doctoral dissertation in graphic novel form by Nick Sousanis

好奇藝術 Kunstkammer 61 :  Graphic Novel :  "Unflattening", doctoral dissertation in graphic novel form by Nick Sousanis/ Harvard University Press

http://mostlysignssomeportents.tumblr.com/post/130485371991/doctoral-dissertation-in-graphic-novel-form

Thursday 15 October 2015

gem corn harvest





compare to Indian Corn bought at City Hall Farmers Market, Toronoto on 14Oct2015:

The Indian corn has v beautiful colors, they are matt and opaque.  The vendor says they are from Mexico.

Some of the gem corn from GemCorn Heritage seeds are also opaque, but some are glass like, thick translucide coating.



Ready for harvest, more gem corn grown from 1st April.2015:

Tuesday 13 October 2015

好奇藝術 Kunstkammer 60 : Poetry: "Slow Mountain Train" by Roger Greenwald

好奇藝術 Kunstkammer 60 :  Poetry:  "Slow Mountain Train", book of poems by Roger Greenwald

Poetry opens up a timeless space.  
And I would have been gently taken into an airy private free zone.  
Books, pictures, films, poetry, sculptures, gardens, music, fashion, food, people, having tea with someone, a sun filled corner with a sofa, and so many endless sources of visual audio sensual streams coming slowly and suddenly : poetry is here.

On : "A Thing You're Saying"
The poem speaks of a situation where we are protected by a special magic shield, the shield of a foreign language.  A foreign language is not something that you could translate word for word, it is a total world in itself.  It is a punctual instant subtle privacy part of another system, another world.
All because of our capacity to speak another language.

Delicately, its not hiding, a foreign language is a glossy shield, we could see out and others could not see in.
You can be as open and direct as you choose, the protective shield would always be there.
Even the most private moments, in the closest physical space, the words and its worlds are delicately shielded.

In a loud and public place, in the privacy of your home with social and intimate friends, you are magically shielded.
And you are in your poetic precious quiet space, where you could be looking out and no one could look in, they cannot catch this part of you.

By Shuengit Natasha Chow

---


p16

A Thing You're Saying
你在說的事

When you speak another language you can say  
當你會一种外語時你可以講

        exactly what you feel   
你真正的感覺

in the middle of a subway car   你可以在地鐵裏講

and no one will understand you.  
也沒人會聽懂

When you speak another language  
當你會一种外語時

no one will understand one word.  
沒人會聽懂連一個字都聽不懂

You can stand in your living room  
你可以站在自家客廳裏

and speak and no one understands.  
在講啊講而又無人會聽懂

You could gather your friends around you  
你可以把你的朋友聚集起來

        at the table     
圍在枱邊

        and lift your glass      
舉起你的酒杯

        and say whatever you wanted     
你說你想講的

        and they wouldn't understand a word.     
而他們會一個字都聽不懂




You could tell them word for word    你可以一個字一個字地解說

       what your truelove said once    你心上人以前說過的

       in your bedroom     在你的睡房

       while you were kissing     當你在親吻

       her stomach.     她的肚子

And they wouldn't understand one word.   而他們會一個字都聽不懂

You can talk out loud at four in the morning   你可以四點早辰大聲講

       lying alone in bed       獨自睡在床上

       on your back       臥着

and the downstairs neighbor will hear you  樓下的鄰居會聽到你

       but won't understand       但會不懂   

a thing you're saying.         一點都聽不懂



Poetry:  "Slow Mountain Train", book of poems by Roger Greenwald

(Tiger Bark Press, 2015). 

Sunday 11 October 2015

Thursday 8 October 2015

Experimental garden #3 : Bing Cherry Tree

Experimental garden #3 : Bing Cherry Tree

https://organicviewsbyjackie.wordpress.com/organic-places-in-ontario/

Growing cherry tree from a pit

Bing Cherry tree.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbKS8HDwOdM



http://www.arborday.org/trees/treeguide/TreeDetail.cfm?ItemID=809

Bing Cherry

Prunus avium 'Bing'

When it comes to cherries, the Bing variety tops the list in terms of popularity and production. This hallmark of cherry trees grows in both a standard and dwarf form and can be a major producer once mature. In fact, a standard Bing cherry tree can provide as much as 50–100 lbs. of cherries per year!
The cherries are large and heart-shaped with a firm, meaty, purplish-red flesh and a semi-free stone that is easily removed—making them ideal for fresh eating and preserves.

Hardiness Zones

The bing cherry can be expected to grow in Hardiness Zones 5–8. View Map

Tree Type

This is a fruit tree, grown primarily for the edible fruit it produces.

Mature Size

The standard Bing cherry typically grows to a height of about 35' and a spread about 25' at maturity. The dwarf variety grows to a height of 12–15' with a spread of about 12–15'.

Growth Speed MediumGrowth Rate

This tree grows at a medium rate, with height increases of 13–24" per year.

Sun Preference

Full sun is the ideal condition for this tree, meaning it should get at least 6 hours of direct, unfiltered sunlight each day.

Soil Preference

The Bing cherry prefers well-drained, sandy soil. It is not drought-tolerant.

Attributes

This tree:
  • Produces large, heart-shaped fruit with a firm, meaty, purplish-red flesh and a semi-free stone--ideal for fresh eating and preserves.
  • Provides up to 50–100 lbs. of cherries per year when mature (standard tree).
  • Blooms in early spring, with clusters of white flowers that have a delightful fragrance.
  • Is available in standard and dwarf sizes. Our standard Bing seedlings are budded onto Prunus avium mazzard or sweet cherry, and our dwarf seedlings are grafted to Prunus besseyi (sand cherry).
  • Yields uniformly ripe fruit sometime in mid-June or mid-summer.
  • Needs regular watering through dry periods.
  • Requires cross-pollination with a compatible variety with the same bloom time that is growing within 100' for standard trees (20' for dwarf trees). We suggest Black Republican, Sam, Black Tartarian, Schmidt, Cavalier, Stella, Gold, Van, Heidelfingen, Vega, Montmorency, Vista, Ranier and Windsor.
  • Has a chill hours (CU) requirement of 700–800. (Chill hours are the average hours of air temperature between 32° and 45° F in a typical winter season.)
  • Begins to bear fruit in 5–6 years (standard tree).
  • Features simple leaves that are dark green, measure 3–6" long and have blunt teeth on the margin.
  • Grows in a rounded shape.
  • Develops smooth, glossy, reddish bark studded with short, horizontal, corky stripes.
  • Should be planted early in the season because leaf buds open early and the roots are slower to establish.

Experimental Garden : #2 Vertical planters.

Experimental Garden :  #2 Vertical planters.

http://funorfactz.com/10-gardening-hacks-to-turn-your-thumb-green/2/

Vertical Pipe Planters

2
http://www.healthy-holistic-living.com/21-garden-hacks-tips.html
A little PVC and a drill can get strawberries going almost anywhere. This hack is great for folks who want fresh fruit but don’t have space. Try it in apartments!

Experimental Garden :: #1 - Gem corn : how colors are "cultivated"

Experimental Garden :: #1 - Gem corn 2015 April-Oct : How corn colors are "cultivated"


http://www.gardendesign.com/vegetables/glass-gem-corn.html

Corns
Garden Design
Calimesa, CA
Photo by: Seeds Trust
Tassels, silk, and glass gems—objet de luxe or, well, grain? If you're thinking of a certain husk-swaddled treasure, you are correct: Corn in general, and a rare heirloom variety in particular. Tassels and silk, with their pollen and ovules, are the so-called trimmings that produce an ear of corn. And glass gem is the name of a beautiful variety with a palette of improbable colors: lilac, merlot, robin's egg blue, pearl, baby pink. Yes, it's real, and, as an heirloom, its seeds will grow true.
Glass gem corn was born in Oklahoma, bred by a part-Cherokee farmer named Carl Barnes who had a knack for tinkering with corn. Over successive generations, Barnes selectively saved and planted seeds that demonstrated vibrant colors. Eventually, the octogenarian "corn teacher" bestowed his seed collection to Greg Schoen, corn-breeding protégé. Schoen, looking for a safe place to store Barnes's legacy, in turn passed on a sampling to fellow seedsman & seed saver Bill McDorman (at the time, McDorman was the owner of Seeds Trust, a small seed company. Today, he's the executive director of Native Seeds/SEARCH). Naturally, the seed lover selected several of the curiously-named "glass gems" to plant in his garden. He was not disappointed. "I was blown away." McDorman recalls. "No one had ever seen corn like this before."
Seeds sold quickly once photographs hit the internet (there is now a long waiting list at Seeds Trust, who anticipate available seeds for December). Why the demand? Glass gem is an extraordinary example of corn's natural growth. Anyone who's buttered a cob is familiar with the slight idiosyncrasies of its kernels—a lighter white nestled by a darker yellow, perhaps. This is because each kernel is independently pollinated via its own silk stigma, which correlates to unique set of genes, including those that control size and color.
Corn
Garden Design
Calimesa, CA
Variations of glass gem corn. Photo credit: Seeds Trust.
In fact, just about all corn ears were multi-colored before human selection. And before 1950, most of the corn grown in the US was open-pollinated. Today's commercial corn is hybridized—bred for flavor, color, and size. As to how different colors evolved, or were selected for, one science writer summarizes thusly: "Livestock feeders prefer vitamin-rich yellow kernels, Southerners like white kernels, and Native Americans favor blue. Years of deliberate selection, careful pollination, and storing of seeds produced these single-color corn ears. ... In general, colors help a plant attract or repel other organisms or hide from predators. Colors also occur as an integral part of biochemical reactions. Some studies suggest corn pigments promote resistance to insects or fungi that invade an ear of corn."
The silks that precede the kernels are no different from any other flower's stigma (pollen receptor). A well-developed ear has 750 to 1,000 ovules (potential kernels), each producing a silk (of which about 400 to 600 will be fertilized and eventually produce kernels). Silks are covered with fine, sticky hairs that catch and anchor pollen grains. When pollinated, each silk will yield its own fruit, or kernel. When the ovule at the base of the style is fertilized with pollen from a variety with a gene for a certain color kernel, that color can manifest as a single kernel in the new ear. And where does the pollen come from? Pollen anthers develop at the top of the stalk, in tassels arrayed like luxurious fringe. Each tassel contains from 2 to 5 million pollen grains. An individual's pollen rarely reaches its own silks, so the pollen usually comes from an adjacent plant. And, depending on the neighborhood, all sorts of color combinations can feasibly grow.
It should be noted that, while glass gem corn is edible, it's not sweet off the cob. It's a flint variety, which is often used to make flour, or simply ornamental.
Curious gardeners have lots of questions about glass gem corn, and those who have managed to secure seeds have already shared their experience planting them. Here are two useful comments by readers of a Discover article:
On growing: "I grew some gem corn this summer. I planted twenty or so kernels, and got five really good looking ears- each one with a different range of colors. Some ears that didn’t work well were pollinated by nearby yellow sweet corn, and were pure yellow themselves. I used sunlight only."
On the genetics: "It is not sweet corn. It is a flint type, but a great mix of colors. There is a helpful table in Mutants of Maize by Nueffer, Cole, and Wessler that describes the main genes that affect kernel color, and the main interactions. Information is also available from MaizeGDB on each of the mutants: aleurone and pericarp. To maintain the mix, these are probably sib mated and selected each generation for the range of colors. Obviously the colors are segregating and so you would have to make sure to maintain as many segregating as possible and not fix any of the alleles. If you wanted you could self out each color and make them homozygous and maintain the population as a synthetic. That way it could be recreated and increased in large quantities with predictable ratio of colors. But sib mating is a lot easier."

Wednesday 7 October 2015

carbon fiber violin wins top honours at German Instrument awards






For the first time a carbon fiber violin wins the top honours at German instrument awards.
For the first time since it was founded in 1991, the Deutschen Musikinstrumentenpreis (German Music Instrument Awards), which annually recognises excellence within contemporary instrument making in Germany, has awarded its top honour to a carbon fiber instrument. The violin made of the space-age 
material impressed judges in blind-tests assessing sound quality and acoustic performance, as well as more detailed examinations of craftsmanship and “price/performance ratio.” The winning instrument was made by Mezzo-Forte Strings, a specialist carbon fiber instrument manufacturers based in Saxony. Judges said the instrument had “a very pleasant sound characteristic” and praised the company for its innovation in construction and design.
The second-prize went to a Guarneri replica by Andeas Haensel, who is a maker specializing in detailed copies of old masters. Haensel is already highly decorated for his violin-making skills, having won both the gold and silver awards at last year’s Violin Making Competition of the Associazione Nazionale Liuteria Artistica Italiana, in Pisogne, Italy.
The use of carbon fiber to make string instruments has been around since the early 2000s, with high-profile advocates of the instruments including Yo-Yo Ma and principal viola of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Mishnaevski. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this landmark win is the accessible price of the carbon-fiber instrument over the substantially higher price tag of its wooden equivalent. Haensel’s instruments can cost in excess of $20,000, where as Mezzo-Forte’s winning carbon-fiber instrument costs the equivalent $2,660.

Monday 5 October 2015

好奇藝術 Kunstkammer 58 : Nuit Blanche Toronto 2015, Hits by Christof Migone

好奇藝術 Kunstkammer 58  :  Nuit Blanche Toronto 2015, "Hit" by Christof Migone

photo by sm chow Swannjie performed as a "Hitter" in Hits by Christof Migone on night of the Nuit Blanche.
Here are some photos by SM Chow, YF C Chow, and Sj 
https://youtu.be/3PUwAyQ8y6w







clip #1

clip #2

video clip by : YF C Chow

















https://youtu.be/9IZ8U-jpt5w


























photo by sm chow









     more reference on performance art:
    Performance art is a performance presented to an audience within a fine art context, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performancemay be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation.

    Performance art - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Performance_art
    The 25 Best Performance Art Pieces of All Time