culture

we're an hour away from the start of the 080808 UpStage Festival. i've uploaded the last-minute media, done a restart, & checked my email - seems there are no last-minute panics (yet) ... in typical cyberformance fashion we've had numerous interesting technical gremlins in the last days, but everyone has been very patient & persistent, & douglas has worked miracles. i've just about gone insane over the time zones - i'm sure there will be at least one mistake still in the schedule but i've done my best.

A book that has long been on my "wish list" finally arrived recently, and it is every bit as delightful as I had anticipated: She's Such a Geek, edited by Annalee Newitz and Charlie Anders. Reading this book, though, thoroughly identifying with various aspects of many different stories, enjoying a sense of "belonging", somewhere in the back of my mind, odd questions have been unexpectedly intruding themselves.

in response to Aileen's latest post about Speed and Imaginary Futures Last weekend I found this image in the ladies loos at the Solaris cafe in Linz. We were enjoying an excellent evening of conversation which touched on an observation (apposite to all present), that the media arts world is disproportionately composed of people with Catholic upbringings. It seems doubly worth bringing up here because, a couple of weeks ago, whilst chatting with the author of Imaginary Futures (recently awarded the Marshall McLuhan Award for Outstanding Book in the Field of Media Ecology) I discovered that Marshal McLuhan was also a devout Catholic. During this conversation we touched on how many approaches and practices of net art evoked early Christian Mysticism.

As often as I mentioned things I have been thinking about writing when Ruth was here in Linz this past weekend, perhaps it is time to actually write something again and not just think about it. This afternoon I was surprised by an article that randomly showed up in my feed reader about what Silicon Valley start-up executives are using to be able to work twenty hours. That reminded me of one of the many wonderful conversations I had with Ruth.

at first we thought it was large rats, but happily it turns out to be small possums - a young mum and her baby have taken up residence on top of the laundry cupboard, which backs onto a window into my kitchen. Last night they were frolicking playfully, when i left this morning they were curled up and sleeping peacefully. i just hope the snake doesn't return ...

As the city of Linz prepares for the European Capital of Culture year Linz09, controversy and dissatisfaction have been increasingly spreading. The following is a statement from the Freie Szene, the independent art scene of Linz, on the current situation. Maschine brennt / Up in Smoke Statement on the current culture-political situation in Linz from the Freie Szene, the independent art scene of Linz What does culture need?

i'm in sydney this week with my grandmother, and this morning we got up early to watch The Apology broadcast live on TV.

imagine living in a country where there is no advertising. imagine living in a country where it is illegal to have the internet at home. imagine living in a country where there is zero unemployment and everyone is guaranteed a job when they graduate from art school. imagine living in a country where you can have a space for a theatre and salaries - once you have official permission.

Not quite sure yet how this blog will develop. I'll talk about my work and the work of others I find particularly interesting... and the issues that concern me.

Been enjoying Karen Blisset's recent image posts to the Netbehaviour mailing list. Here's a snapshot from today's topical image sequence.