Automata are non-electronic moving machines that, in ancient times, were used either as toys, or idols or to demonstrate basic scientific principles. Art and design website Colossal carries images and a video of Dutch artist Levi van Veluw’s newest creation, in wood (originally sourced from Faith Is Torment). There is something fascinating and beautiful about [...]
Archive for the ‘arts’ Category
Wooden wonder – Levi van Veluw’s new automata
Posted in arts, culture, tagged artist, arts, automata, van veluw on January 5, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
From Scooby Doo to the human beat-box and Queen of the Night: the stunning versatility of the human voice
Posted in arts, entertainment, music, tagged arts, music, vocal genius, voice on December 3, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I often spend my Sunday evenings soaked in wine and good conversation, some beautiful opera or song playing as the fire crackles and the chatter fades away to a more melancholic reflection. Such moments reveal the beauty and versatility of the human voice. It’s an instrument you can take anywhere to entertain and enthrall. Whether [...]
Stunning street art illusions
Posted in arts, culture, tagged arts, illusions, public art, street art on November 12, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I’ve mentioned my love of illusions before. One of the things that has captivated me since I first stumbled across it online is that genre of art where artists compose 3D illusions on pavements, usually out of chalk. There is something genuinely fascinating about the way the brain tricks the eye and some of the [...]
Lego lunacy
Posted in arts, entertainment, film, tagged animation, arts, film, lego on November 5, 2011 | 1 Comment »
A friend’s Facebook update reminded me how much I used to love Lego® as a kid. Lego was kept in a special box (and, latterly, when I needed additional storage, an old Quality Street tin). It was a green-coloured wooden box that Granddad had made specially, with brass hinges and brass hooks, and numerous internal [...]
Logs, spandex and the geo-politics of Rocky IV
Posted in arts, culture, film, international, politics, popular culture, tagged film, popular culture, rocky iv, stallone on November 5, 2011 | 1 Comment »
We had a delivery of logs this morning and, singledom introducing a whole new desire to shape up and get fit, I stuck my headphones on – Whitesnake, Alice Cooper and Biffy Clyro - and threw myself into the log heap. As I worked up a sweat, stacking them against the side of the house, [...]
Music by wine glass – the haunting “glass harp” of Robert Tiso
Posted in arts, culture, music, tagged arts, glass harp, music, skoda, tiso on November 5, 2011 | 1 Comment »
There are some strange instruments in this world – and one of them is a staple component of Sunday dinner (at Hillcroft at least): the wine glass. I can recall numerous evenings where we have, after too many bottles of Pinot Noir, attempted to play a few notes between however many happen to be perched [...]
Animals, boats, magic, adventures – and lashings of ginger beer
Posted in arts, books, culture, personal, tagged arts, blyton, books, enid blyton, me on November 4, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I always wanted to be Barney. Or Jack. Or even Rory. I think I was probably Julian. At best Philip. And sometimes I may have been just a bit of a Dick. Growing up in the countryside, with my imagination and a ready-made gang of four (brother and two cousins), I was never far from [...]
Guerilla train singing
Posted in arts, music, travel, tagged arts, music, singing, trains, travel on November 3, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Commuting is a strange activity. The journey in has become an opportunity to catch up with friends around the world, using the wonders of modern technology (I am still trying get my head around that – sitting on a train to Fenchurch Street and chatting away to a friend thousands of miles away as if [...]
The Good, The Bad And The Ugly – A tribute to Ennio Morricone
Posted in arts, film, music, tagged arts, film, music, westerns on October 31, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
One of my favourite films, The Good, The Bad And The Ugly is one of those timeless Westerns I can watch again and again. The third in the Dollar Trilogy, it’s currently rated fourth on the Internet Movie Database in its poll of users’ top 250 films. I can’t believe that doesn’t have at least [...]
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About Me (Ben Williams)
With far too many interests, I've never been known to be short of an opinion - to the infuriation of friends and family alike. As a result, over the years I've come to recognise that "contradictory" and "contrary" are not unfair descriptions of me.My Lib Dem politics, my doubt-stricken Christianity, my love of revolution, my fear of change, literature, art, music, writing, my fascination with new tech, gaming and MMOs, diabetes, my passion for poker, my disdain for gambling, Cornwall, Bavaria, the places that inspire and depress me, my relief in lonely countryside and my attraction to the cruel crush of the city: at some point it will all end up here.
This is my space to share those reflections on all the things that provoke me and just perhaps I'll capture some of those fleeting fragmented thoughts that otherwise are lost in the ether of busy days.
Ben
N.B. For the time being I am taking a little break from the political commentary. History, art, social observation, culture, technology, weather, people, places, faith, religion, entertainment, the arts... But no politics. ;-)
Where am I coming from?
My Political Views
I am a center-left moderate social libertarian
Left: 1.64, Libertarian: 3.29
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- The trouble with words http://t.co/zUnCmKwD 1 month ago
- Wooden wonder - Levi van Veluw's new automata http://t.co/Tp1aw8LR 1 month ago
- Kodak: harking back to a golden - or rather silvered - era http://t.co/BF0kvOIM 1 month ago
- From Scooby Doo to the human beat-box and Queen of the Night: the stunning versatility of the human voice http://t.co/OYOMlOyF 2 months ago
- Iconic 'taches - inspiration for mid-Movember growers #movember http://t.co/2HjuC3s2 3 months ago
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