Some streets across the river felt as if it were a summer evening in Frankfurt, perhaps, then Offenbach, then… not Germany after all, then the night in Katowice, then… hmm…
Bought a drawing in Chelsea on Saturday and it is a really silly one. The drawing is a bit odd, probably from the late 60’s. A young man holding up his arm to welcome a falcon. The falcon is shown in three flight phases. How could I have possibly paid any money for a piece like this?
I think I liked the slightly imperfect tip of the young man’s nose. Probably also liked the very good technique of the artist. I think what made me actually buy the drawing was the fact that the man is attached to the falcon by some sort of band… yet his hands are bare. Imagine hunting with a falcon without having gloves on. Now we’re talking interesting.
The drawing is currently in its ripening stage, I tucked it away, I am not looking at it. I will come back to it. I might take it out of the house altogether. Some pieces only work in a certain context.
When I used to design records (and later CDs), I would often take the dummies of the product to houses of friends. I would place the designed object somewhere in this familiar to somebody else environment, and often the design would reveal subtle and often not so subtle flaws.
One of the dangers of designing on screen might be the fact that the screen is a very set and in itself designed environment.
This goes beyond browser compatibility issues here. When designing something that will not be used on screen alone, one should always take it out of context.
And even when designing for screen, one should also either take a look at the work at somebody else’s computer, or even print the stuff out and take it to the park… or under the shower, or well, maybe be the shower is not a good idea.
But maybe taking the piece and looking at it at a dunkin’ donuts will reveal different elements than when the piece is looked at at a starbucks..
Hmm… so yes… letting falcons fly, and not wearing gloves… now that’s not very smart. That’s like trying to eat a pretzel while completely drunk, maybe…
Buying a drawing out of some strange impulse might also be one of the not so smart things… perhaps.
Oh, and Saturday was really amazing… I will have to post some of the pictures taken from that roof in Dumbo… but I am really, really too tired now…
and the falcon might come back any minute now… oh, here he comes, like a speedy bullet.