What's the Deal with Steve?

I feel normal. Why do you ask?

Actually, that's my cat, Bucky. I need something to get the .38 Special thing lower on the page. And, I kind of like that picture.

But I have been getting that question a lot lately. For those of you who may not know it, I've been spending a lot more time at my other blog, West and Clear. I've actually been quite busy. Drop by and check it out.

But that leads in to my thoughts for today. Over the past several months since the beginning of West and Clear, my blogging has been a little schizophrenic. Do I post something on the Caravan? On West and Clear? On both? And that doesn't get into my other other blog.

In short, I have three blogs, and given the demands of my life, it seems that any one of them can be good at any one moment. I'm trying to change that, but you can only spend so many hours a day behind a keyboard.

And to call West and Clear "my" blog is not the whole truth. I am a proud papa, but West and Clear has four other fathers. Bernie, Kevin, PeteG and PeteW joined our mighty blogging powers because we wished to be the kings of all media in Fort Worth and crush all those who sought steal that mantle from us.

Actually, I kid.

We came together as a bunch of blogging SuperFriends because we love Fort Worth and want to tell its stories. So far, it's working. Together, I believe we are better bloggers collectively than we are individually. We feed off off the group energy. We like each other. We enjoy our work.

And the readers of Fort Worth have responded. Many of you are already West and Clear readers and some of you even take the time to leave your comments. Thank you. We've met you out in the community and you've encouraged us to keep writing. One frequent comment we hear goes like this: "I finally feel like I know what's going on in Fort Worth."

Again, thank you. I'm flattered, but I haven't drank that much of the KoolAid yet. However, I do believe that West and Clear fills a need.

So, you may be wondering, what does that have to do with The Caravan of Dreams?

A lot.

I'm tired of double-posting or trying to figure out what goes where. And, I believe some of my readers are confused, too. So I am adopting a new policy.

Effective immediately, those of you who are looking for my musings on urban gas drilling, local politics, local media, local music, local arts coverage or any other Fort Worth topic, head over to West and Clear. It's all there. However, those of you who are looking for the occasional musings on God, Godzilla, books and any other cosmic questions that are rattling around in my attic, you'll find that nonsense right here.

I know most of my readers are interested in the Fort Worth topics, and I enjoy writing about them. But The Caravan of Dreams is still pretty special to me and I hope y'all will continue reading here, too. I started blogging a few years ago as a way to make sense of my life after my father died. I don't know what I was expecting to find, if I was trying to write my way to some sort of answer of what life is about. If that was what I was looking for, I didn't find it. I'm just as clueless as before.

But I did find that writing stories helps. It's therapeutic. I grew up avidly listening to stories and I always hoped that I would be able to one day tell stories of my own. Honestly, I don't think I'm very good at it, but I enjoy the hell out of it. I enjoy the hell out of my life and living in Fort Worth. And, above all, I am not short of observations. So this blog will continue to be the old shoebox filled with the trading cards, paperclips, wheat pennies and bottlecaps of imagination.

So, read me at West and Clear, but read me here, too. I promise interesting reading at both sites. And two out of three ain't bad.

Fort Worth's Newest Blog: West and Clear

I am proud to announce the birth of a new Fort Worth blog -- West and Clear.

What is West and Clear? It's the voice of the new Fort Worth.

Fort Worth is changing. We are not so much of a cow town anymore. We are wired. We are interested in how this city is changing. That why we came up with this new blog.

And who is this "we"? Those guys would be The Bastard Sons of Amon Carter, also known as:

Kevin Buchanan from Fort Worthology

Pete Wann from Cowtown Chronicles

Bernie Scheffler from Vote Bernie! and the Panther City Bikes blog.

Pete Geniella from 1/3 Stop Vignette

Me, Steve. You know me and where I blog.

And what about that name?

In 1849, the United States Army set up a strategic camp near the confluence of the West and Clear forks of the Trinity River. This location proved unwise; sitting as it was between the two forks, the camp was soon wiped out by a flood. Out of respect for the occasional violence of the river, the camp was subsequently moved up to the bluff overlooking the Trinity forks and fortified. This bluff became the present-day north end of downtown Fort Worth.

Today, the Trinity River runs through the heart of this great city. The great Texas writer John Graves once wrote that a whole river is too much to comprehend, but you can understand a piece of a river. A piece of a river has meaning. This piece of the Trinity–€“where the West and the Clear forks become one–has meaning to us.

So pull up a chair and crack open a cold Rahr beer. Stay and surf awhile. We love Fort Worth, and want to tell you why. Join us as we seek to understand our piece of the river.

S-T Takes The Edge Off LTE

Bud Kennedy ... are you editing the Letters To The Editor now? Local blogger Texas Sharon in Wise County doesn't support gas drilling, but you'd never know that from her Letter to the Editor that was published in the Startlegram. The Wizards at 400 West 7th botched the editing of her letter pretty badly. Reader, beware.

Internet Timewaster Alert

I did this Real Age thing yesterday and it looks like I'm about halfway to my expiration date. A couple of interesting things: driving is one of my biggest risk factors. No word on whether bug eating is a plus or minus. FWIW.

Fort Worth News Items

Check out the Stash Dauber for the schedule of event before the Wreck Room rides off into history. Someone needs to get a camera crew together. There's a documentary in this a la Last Night at the Alamo

Ken also reminds us that Fred's is now open on Sunday and closed on Monday and Tuesday. So adjust your schedule accordingly.

A couple of things from the Panther City Boys: 1) A Labor Day Bike Ride is on the board so air up your tires. 2) There is a community meeting scheduled for Sept. 6 to discuss the impact of Barnett Shale drilling on the Trinity Trail. City staff and Chesapeake Energy reps will be there. And so should you.

Kevin reminds us that Lili's is still delicious.

The Fort Worthian points out that Texadelphia by TCU is no more. And Cafe Express is also no more.

Tammy Gomez got blurbed in the D(a)MN.

The Startlegram lists the contenders for Anna Mowery's old state house seat.

Architecture: A Dissent

I like architecture. I write about architecture sometimes. It interests me.

Annie Choi doesn't like architecture. In fact, she wrote an entire article about it. Not that I agree with all of it, but it's funny. My favorite part:

"Architects love to discuss how much sleep they have gotten. One will say how he was at the studio until five in the morning, only to return again two hours later. Then another will say, oh that is nothing. I haven’t slept in a week. And then another will say, guess what, I have never slept ever. My dear architects, the measure of how hard you’ve worked and how much you’ve accomplished is not related to the number of hours you have not slept. Have you heard of Rem Koolhaas? [Yes, I have, Annie. He's designing the new Opera House in Dallas. - Steve] He is a famous architect. I know this because you tell me he is a famous architect. I hear that Rem Koolhaas is always sleeping. He is, I presume, sleeping right now. And I hear he gets shit done. And I also hear that in a stunning move, he is making a building that looks not like a glass cock, but like a concrete vagina [Wow, it does. It'll be GREAT in Dallas]. When you sleep more, you get vagina. You can all take a lesson from Rem Koolhaas."

Or maybe not.

Happy (Belated) Birthday to Ken

I missed the 50th Birthday Party for my man Ken the Stash Dauber at The Wreck this past Saturday. But that doesn't mean I don't care. Has anyone ever made 50 look so young? Check out Ken and his Stoogeaphilia mates playing "I Wanna Be Your Dog." Ken's rocking the wife beater. Peace out!

Interview with Kenney Mencher

I’ve been a fan of Kenney Mencher since I first saw his work on the Hang Art Gallery Web site. While some of the work at Hang is the type you would expect to see at a gallery catering to the San Francisco loft-dweller demographic – placid landscapes and color fields – Kenney’s work was different. A sexy-looking gal cavorting in the bedroom with Scooby Doo, scenes from hard-boiled detective stories and lots of small moments and stolen glances. He’s a storyteller with a strain of darkness and a wicked sense of humor. What’s not to love?

If you drop in at his Web site every few weeks as I have over the past few years, you'll see the work of an artist who is contemporary and classical at the same time. His work is very much of the 21st Century but his themes and technique are timeless.

If you live in the Dallas / Fort Worth area or can get here between June 7 and July 1, Kenney’s work will be showing at the Dahlia Woods Fine Arts at 600 Cantegral Street in Dallas. He also has a solo show scheduled at the gallery for September. Kenney was kind enough to swap e-mails with me ahead of his Dallas shows. Please take a few minutes to learn more about him. I think you’ll be glad you did.

The Caravan of Dreams: Some your work involves nudity and sexual themes such as voyeurism and power. I suppose it shouldn't surprise that your work has been controversial. However, I live in Texas so I sort of expect that thing. How does your work get called too "wry and perverted" in San Francisco?

Kenney Mencher: One reason might be political. Some other artists who started showing at Hang showed some work that was similar to mine. These artists dealt with difficult themes, especially dealing with female and male sexual dynamics, however, since these artists were female painters I think the staff at Hang felt that these female’s artists’ work were feminist statements. I’m a man so I think that there was the perception that my work, even though it called attention to negative stereotypes, still was not really “feminist” in content. (Ed note: Click to see a larger version of "Apocrypha" from above. For other Not Safe For Work Images, click here, here and here.

Other reasons may be that I pushed the themes a bit too far and was too edgy for Hang as a venue. Hang was interested in representing emerging artists they were not a “cutting edge” gallery. Hang was not really interested in cultivating the counter culture or avante garde art scene or its collectors. Hang’s business model was to cater to educated upscale thirty something professionals who were interested in decorating an apartment. Decorative artwork sells much better than artwork that is designed to provoke thought or challenge the viewer. You would be amazed at how conservative this segment of the population in California and San Francisco is in general.

At the other end of the raunchy spectrum, there are some edgier galleries [ed warning: the links are NSFW] (The Shooting Gallery, Varnish, and 111 Minna to mention a few) who do show edgy provocative “outsider” and “visionary” work that is purposefully meant to provoke and titillate. My work is not considered edgy, cool, or really dirty enough in content to get me into one of those galleries. I also think that my style of rendering is too conservative for these venues. I’m a little stuck between two worlds.

TCoD: Do you intend your work to be provocative?
KM: Yes. I want it to be thought provoking but not necessarily titillating in an overtly erotic way.

TCoD: Do you ever get tired of answering questions about the Scooby Doo painting?
KM: I never actually answer those questions directly. I’m more interested in finding out what people think is going on in that painting. What do you think is going on in that painting?

TCoD: Another word I see in a lot of your reviews is ambiguous? Do you intend your themes to be ambiguous? Or do you have a theme or message you want to convey?
KM: The only thing I’m clearly trying to get my audience to do is laugh or be amused. Second on my agenda is to be deliberately ambiguous in that I don’t have a definite or clear story as to who the characters are or what they are doing in the painting.

TCoD: What are the themes that interest you as an artist?
KM: If I was to give myself a shopping list of themes or motifs each painting should address they are: interpersonal communication, sexual dynamics and roles, and story telling.

TCoD: Does your work get compared to John Currin?
KM: My friends do but the people who have reviewed my work in the newspapers don’t even seem to know who he is. I think he’s good but very different from me. He doesn’t seem to tell as much of a story as I do. He is doing some similar things in terms of the themes and motifs that I discussed before but he also varies a lot more in terms of formal things in his paintings. He purposefully awkwardly drafts the human figure. He also changes the way he applies paint from show to show. I actually think I have more in common with Eric Fischl.

TCoD: In your earlier work, your brushwork was much more impressionistic, but now it is much cleaner, smoother and more refined? Was this just part of your evolution as a painter? Or was this more of a deliberate shift on your part?
KM: I’ve actually refined my style quite a lot especially in the larger more ambitious paintings in which the narrative is more specific. I still do some smaller paintings in that quick oil sketch or 1940’s pulp illustration style.

TCoD: Much of your earlier work drew heavily on film noir themes for characters and composition. Your current series of Sequential Narratives (such as "Little Did He Know" at the right) seems to draw on more contemporary film and TV shows. How do you believe film and TV has influenced you as a painter? Does David Lynch fit in there anywhere? Is your film noir period over?
KM: I think that film and TV are my primary influences. Even more than traditional art historical sources. The way television and film tell the story, how they frame the images and compositions, and even the lighting are really important to me and I think about them all the time.

David Lynch. Hmmm. . . I’ve seen all of Lynch’s films and I like David Lynch in theory, but, he tries way too hard to be weird. I think he tries to shock whereas I actually like to be more predictable in my scenarios. I think I would still be making the paintings I do even had I not ever seen one of Lynch’s films.

TCoD: What's with the waterglass paintings? (See "Pollyana" at left)
KM: There’s a feature about that particular series in “The Artist” magazine this month. You can tell a lot about a person just by asking them, “Is the glass is half empty or is it half full?” I like painting portraits and still life and this was a perfect excuse do just that but with a thesis or theme in which to explore. I guess they are the visual equivalent to a haiku. They are limited in form but within the formula, a half glass of water and a character, you can say and explore a lot of ideas.

TCoD: To me, one of your most interesting paintings is Los Angeles. It reminds me very much of the painting "Second Story Sunlight" by Edward Hopper. But the figures also have this Thomas Hart Benton feel to them. Is this a meditation on aging and fleeting youth? Is this a metaphor about Los Angeles? Is there a homoerotic subtext? What's going on here?
KM: Yes, you are completely correct! (That’s what I say to anyone who interprets one of my paintings.)

TCoD: Your more recent paintings seem to involve quality of light more and more. Your earlier work seemed to deal more with cinematic lighting, but now you seem to be dealing more with natural light (such as "In Martini Veritas" at right). Am I just making this up or is there something to it?
KM: Yes, it has to do more with my abilities as a photographer and a painter. I’m getting better reference material. I’ve also learned a lot more about observing and painting light and color in the last year.

TCoD: Your wife, friends and students dress up and play characters in your paintings. Do people volunteer for this or do you choose your subjects?
KM: It’s a combination or a negotiation. I do keep a sketchbook of written out scenarios. I go to thrift stores and get the clothing I need and then I throw a party or visit a party at a sympathetic friend's house. It helps if everyone is drunk. I also ask my students to pose sometimes. You would be surprised how many people are hams.

TCoD: How long does a typical painting take? How much revision is involved and is that a process you enjoy?
KM: Size counts but let’s say one of the glass of water paintings as a midsize one 36”x48” would take about 40 to 60 actual hours to make. This is spread out over several weeks and I usually have two to three paintings going on at the same time.

It starts with writing out the scenario. The photo shoot is usually around two hours (setting up props lights and actually shooting.)

Next is three to five hours of Photoshop on the computer composing, moving things, analyzing light and color and modifying different versions of the batch of reference photos.

Laying out the drawing takes around two to three hours.

The acrylic underpainting takes about eight hours. Often I redraw and reblock in areas of the painting while in this phase. My wife actually tells me when things are off or look bad.

The last layer of oil paint usually takes two to three eight-hour days. This phase runs about twenty-four hours. During this phase I go back the next day and fix the problems that I had not noticed the day before.

TCoD: You explain on your Web site how you use photography to assist you with your composition. Because you make such extensive use of photography, is it a challenge to keep your work painterly and not photorealistic?
KM: It’s not a challenge at all for me. I paint as if I was painting from life and the forms are not abstract for me. When I paint a hand I think of the muscles and skeleton under it so I still lay the forms down by blocking them in a wet into wet 19th century style. I actually think I have more in common with Sargent, N.C. Wyeth and pulp illustrators than I do with photorealists like Bechtle or Estes.

TCoD: Now that you mention it, I can definitely see the influences of Sargent, N.C. Wyeth and pulp illustrators. But I also can see classical influences (see "The Calling of Marc" at right) in some of your work that I just can't place. Can you help a brother out here?
KM: Oh yeah. . . Don’t get me started. I think that one of the greatest painters that ever lived was Velasquez and tracing back from there Caravaggio. I sometimes flatter myself into thinking that I’m a modern caravaggisti (Italian for follower of Caravaggio). I love both those artists for their use of everyday items and things and for their very theatrical shifts of light and shadow. I’m an art historian so I look at old masters’ works all the time. I’m constantly stealing from art historical sources such as Artemisia Gentileschi, Michael Sweerts, Vermeer, and Rembrandt.

Still, in the words of Chauncey Gardner, “I like to watch.” Even more to the point I love to look at all art. One of my all time favorite artists is David Tomb. Recently artists like Lucien Freud (NSFW), Bo Bartlett, and Odd Nerdrum are some of my favorite views but I also love graphic novelists and artists like Frank Miller and Alex Ross. I also really dig some vernacular photo web sites such as http://www.bighappyfunhouse.com.

TCoD: I saw you used to teach at Texas A&M in Laredo? That seems like, um, an odd fit. How did that go?
KM: Not so well. They liked me because I was a far out import. The political, economic, and moral climate of Laredo seemed toxic. I found the town and the people of Laredo to be very much in line with the film “A Touch of Evil.” I actually took a $10,000 pay cut to move back to the San Francisco area. I would have stayed if my job were in any other Texas city. I really like Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio. My wife and I would flee Laredo once or twice a month and spend weekends and holidays in these cities.

TCoD: I see your going to be showing in Dallas again at the Dahlia Woods Gallery. You've shown in the past at Craighead Green. How did it go the first time and why are you coming back?
KM: Ineffable stuff happens sometimes and you just lose a gallery for random reasons. Craighead Green broke up with me I think because they just stopped selling my work. I’m not sure how or why I had a great run of sales with them initially but then they stopped being able to sell the work after the first two years. Dahlia actually bought some of my work while on a trip to San Francisco. A year or so after Craighead Green stopped returning my calls Dahlia opened a gallery. I contacted her and now we are working together. It’s funny, she and I went to the High School of Art and Design in New York although at different times. At least she likes my work enough to literally put her money where her mouth is. Go figure!

TCoD: I love your Web site, and one of the most interesting things about it is the blog where you show step-by-step the process of creating a painting. I know that lots of bands and musicians are using the Web and blogs to break down the walls between them and their audiences, but I haven't seen as much of that between an artist and his audience. Does your Web presence help you communicate with your audience/customers or is it something more for the benefit of your students or is it a little of both? I'm wondering why I don't see more artists doing this kind of thing. Is it I just don't get out much?
KM: My Web site is one of the best outreach tools I have. I love to correspond with people about art and yes, the website does tend to break down barriers and add to communication.

I primarily began it as a tool for my students to use and have access to all of the lessons and images that I use in both my art history and studio courses. It has developed organically as a public relations tool, mainly because I wanted to share what I know about painting.

I’m also interested in what my audience has to say about the work. The blog takes an enormous amount of work and I am actually backlogged on it right now. I have a ton of digital images that I haven’t edited or posted yet as step by step examples of how I work.

TCoD: Thanks, Kenney! Drop us a line when you're in town.

Thoughts on "Decline of News"

There’s a thought-provoking column by Neil Henry in the San Francisco Chronicle called “The decline of news” that calls out Google and Yahoo for generating handsome profits at the expense of the newspaper business:

It is no longer acceptable for Google corporate executives to say that they don't practice journalism, they only work to provide links to "content providers." Journalism is not just a matter of jobs, and dollars and cents lost. It is a public trust vital to a free society. It stands to reason that Google and corporations like it, who indirectly benefit so enormously from the expensive labor of journalists, should begin to take on greater civic responsibility for journalism's plight. Is it possible for Google to somehow engage and support the traditional news industry and important local newspapers more fully, for example, to become a vital part of possible solutions to this crisis instead of a part of the problem?

While I agree with the assertion that the news business is suffering right now and a healthy media is a key ingredient in a healthy democracy, Henry is glossing over a few key points:

The news business is still enormously profitable. The news is not a non-profit industry – in fact, it is still quite lucrative with margins near 20 percent (or better) expected by shareholders. Compare that with, say, the grocery industry, where profit margins are in the 2-3 percent range. Part of the problem is with news orgs themselves -- they are large, publicly-traded companies that must beat The Street quarter after quarter. They would probably fare better if they went smaller and private. But you can't say that at the shareholders' meeting.

There’s not so much news in the news: When journalism is done right, it is time and labor-intensive and valuable part of living in a community. News orgs have the deep pockets to pay someone to spend weeks or months digging, researching and interviewing before ever publishing a word. The public benefits from this work. Henry’s right: newspapers have it all over most blogs (but certainly not all) in terms of hard news. But hard-hitting exposes don’t exactly fill the paper or generate readers these days. As newspapers scramble to stop circulation declines, more and more of what fills a paper is soft news that is barely discernable from marketing or advertorial. This is better than the blogosphere how? The key demographic seems to be 25- to 45-year-old women who seem to be reading the newspaper for lifestyle pieces rather than hard news content anyway. There’s a reason it only takes me a couple of minutes to get through the paper each day – there’s just not much in there I want to read. I spend a lot more time checking out the work of those links to your right.

This is Google’s problem? No, it is the newspaper industry’s problem. Google isn't in business to help you make money. Don’t want Google or Yahoo linking to your site? Have your lawyers craft cease and desist orders. The music and the film industry have fought vigorously to protect their intellectual property and you are free to do the same. But you know that would be a stupid, stupid thing to do. It’s a new world. Learn how to live in it.

I’m very sorry these people are losing their jobs. Some of them are my friends. But if you want to get mad at someone, get mad at the suits running your newspapers into the ground – yeah, I’m talking to you Tony Ridder. It’s their lack of vision that got you into this mess.

BTW, thanks to Romenesko for the tip!

UPDATE: More on this topic in Romenesko''s letters.

Three Old Favorites

My new blog friend Walnuts (who I imagine looking like the Sopranos guy) tasked me with the following endeavor: The Little-Known Favorites. Rules: List and describe three of your favorite books that other people might not be familiar with. Then tag five people. I've been tagged. So here I go.

Schoolboy Johnson by John R. Tunis. I read this 1958 book when I was a kid back in the 1970s, which probably had something to do with the beginnings of my love of all-things Mid-Century. Schoolboy is a pitcher for the Dodgers who overcomes his travails and masters the change-up under the wise and steady influence of the old veteran Speedy. And as the bookjacket says, "But it took even more than the change-up Speedy taught him, to turn the Schoolboy into a winning pitcher, and a man." Uh, OK. I know how that sounds, but I swear to God it doesn't end up like The History Boys. Anyway, flash forward from fourth grade to college. One of my great professors at Texas, Bill Stott said in passing that the works of John R. Tunis would make a great master's thesis for someone. I decided to be that person, then promptly forgot about it. Sorry, Bill. But, years later, I found this copy of the book at the flea market in Canton, helping me formulate my estate saling thesis that sometimes you find things and sometimes things find you.

Cowtown Moderne by Judith Singer Cohen. This book is a love letter to Fort Worth if there ever was one. My city is blessed with a rich architectural heritage (which you can find out more about here) and some of my favorite buildings are from the 1920s and 1930s -- the Art Deco or Moderne period. Open these pages, and you can find out the detailed history of some of Fort Worth's Art Deco gems like the Kress Building and the Sinclair Building. I first learned about this book during my UT days thanks to Jeff Meikle in the American Studies Department. I loved it and made it my mission to procure my own copy, which wasn't easy because it seems only about five were printed. I found my copy at the old Barber's Books in downtown Fort Worth. Barber's was an old Art Deco-style bookstore that was bought out by Larry McMurtry in the mid- to late-nineties. Larry moved all of the books to his book-o-plex in Archer City, but he didn't get this one. It cost me $75 in 1991, which was about 40 percent of my weekly paycheck, so you know I wanted this book REALLY bad. And I've never regretted buying it. It's a priceless resource.

Slightly Out of Focus by Robert Capa. This is an amazing book by one of the great photographers of the 20th Century. Capa, a Hungarian Jew who fled the rise of Fascism in Europe. Capa tells us about his World War II with a light tone, always displaying humor and humility. It's quite a stunning achievement for someone who was not a native English speaker. Did he have help? A ghost writer? I don't want to know. The narrative flows so easily that I imagine it being told in Capa's heavily accented English. For me, there is another, more personal reason for loving this book. My old family friend, Marcus O. Stevenson, pops up from time to time in the story -- in North Africa, in Sicily, in Normandy. Stevenson lived most of his postwar life in Dallas selling construction equipment. But during the war, he was aide-de-camp to Teddy Roosevelt Jr. and was by his side when the General won the Medal of Honor on Utah Beach on June 6, 1944. Later had the distinction of being Ernest Hemingway's chaperon during the liberation of Paris. On page 166, you find Hemingway, Capa and Stevenson tear-assing around Normandy in captured Mercedes-Benz with full ration of scotch and enough weapons to arm a full platoon. They soon found themselves caught in the middle of a German ambush that very nearly moved Papa's expiration date forward by 17 years. You want adventure? You want name-dropping? This book is full of great stories like that.

But Slightly Out of Focus is more than a gripping narrative, it's a collection of photos that capture the moments, big and small, of a war. You are there when the Americans storm Omaha Beach, but you also see a little boy sitting on top of a tank during the celebration accompanying the liberation of Paris. The full range of human emotions are there but mostly you find images of life at its most raw. Joy, happiness and exultation. Hate, fear and malice. It's all there.

Thanks for letting me play, Walnuts. Now to tag other people.

UPDATE: The Stash Dauber picks up the gantlet! Good on ya!

This Is George's Show ...

For those of you who remember Dallas / Fort Worth in the 1980s, to say mainstream radio was a musical wasteland is to be kind. To put it bluntly, it sucked. We didn't have no iPods and Interwebs, we had nothin' but Night Ranger on the Q102.

But we did have George Gimarc and the Rock and Roll Alternative on the late, great KZEW. And that, along with KNON (Saturday nights with Shaggy and Where's Your ID on Saturday afternoons) was our oasis of cool in a desert of musical suckitude. I heard a lot of bands for the first time on George's show: XTC, Bauhaus, Siouxsie, The Smiths and the list could go on. It was a crucial part of my musical education. Let me say "Thanks, George!"

Anyway, the amazing Cindy at the Fine Line has a reposting of her George Gimarc audio interview. Get over there and check that out.

Cowtown Moderne

I love this picture! It's the Kress Building and the Sinclair Building downtown, two of Cowtown's finest examples of art deco architecture. This Fort Worth Art Deco Moment is brought to you by Kevin at FortWorthology. Swing by his site for a bigger version of this pic and check out his site redesign. If you have even a passing interest in Fort Worth architecture, you'll find you can learn a few things there.

Live from The Living Room

Do you wanna download audio of some guy playing guitar in somebody’s Illinois living room? Naw, me neither. But, what if the guy was Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy? Now you’re on to something. Check out The Owl & the Bear for more cool live downloads, including some of my faves Alejandro Escovedo, Tom Waits, Elliott Smith, The Shins, Lucinda Williams, Peter Bjorn & John and Cat Power. Goodness!

Whilst blogging Jeff Tweedy, here's an interview with him on The Onion AV Club.

UPDATE: I have actually downloaded the Tom Waits & the Nighthawks concert from December 14, 1976. In a word --unbelieveable! If you are a fan, you must check this out like now.

Dallas / Fort Worth Mid-Century Modern

Because one blog just wasn't enough, I've started a second blog with my wife -- Dallas / Fort Worth Mid-Century Modern. It's devoted to everything Mid-Century Modern in the greater MetroMess area -- furniture, appliances, design, real estate, architecture and culture.

I know MCM is kind of the hip thing right now, but I'm not sure how much appreciation there is it around here. However, this area REALLY IS a hotbed of MCM cool. But it's vanishing. In North Dallas, they are tearing down ranch houses faster than you can say "McMansion." And I can't tell you how many times I've heard people say, "THOSE aren't antiques," about a funky lamp or cool 1950s lounge chair. What I worry is that by the time most people around here realize how cool this stuff is, most of it will be gone.

Also, I want Mid-Century aficionados on the left and right coasts to realize there is something between Long Beach and Levittown -- it's called the rest of America. I just want the Lone Star State to get its props. We aren't afraid to expand our horizons outside the area and the state, but we are trying to keep it mostly local, but always MCM cool.

OK, I admit, I am more than a bit of a nerd about this, but I love it. Check it out and let me know what you think. Some of my favorite posts so far: a Julie London appreciation, a screed against Plano, a plea to save a kick-ass Richardson Ranch House, and a look-see at one of my all-time favorite goofy estate sale album purchases. Enjoy, and don't be afraid to leave a comment.

Photography As Commodity

My friend Phil and I have this conversation all the time. Phil is an old school photographer, back from the days – and I say this without irony – when photographers used film. He laments how stock archives and digital photography have destroyed his craft.

As someone who appreciates photography as art, I’m inclined to agree with him. However, as an avid weekend photographer, I love my digital camera. And as a graphic designer, I love sites like iStockphoto that offer me low-cost stock photos a few clicks away. There’s the conundrum, I love the sausage but I hate how it’s made.

In this morning’s New York Times, this article shed a little bit of light on how we got here and where we are going with photography:

In some sense, the iconic photograph of Rosa Parks recreating her quiet act of rebellion on a bus in Montgomery, Ala., belongs to every American. But as a practical matter, it belongs to Bill Gates.

Anyone wanting to use that image in a book or on a Web site must first license it from Corbis, a corporation founded and owned by Mr. Gates, who is better known for starting Microsoft. The photo is among the 11 million prints and negatives in the legendary Bettmann archive, which Corbis bought in 1995.

Since that first purchase, Corbis has spent tens of millions of dollars acquiring image collections and other companies, hired more than 1,000 people and set up two dozen offices worldwide. Although Corbis says it brings in some $250 million a year in sales, it has yet to turn a profit.

Not making money? How is that possible?

What Corbis did not foresee was the rise of so-called microstock agencies like Fotolia and iStockPhoto. These sites take advantage of the phenomenon known as crowdsourcing, or turning to the online masses for free or low-cost submissions.

Turns out that Bill Gates can’t make money because of me, my digital camera and voracious appetite for $2 stock photos. And if Bill Gates can’t make money at it, does that mean professional photographers and their craft are doomed?

Probably not. Just like newspapers, they will need to find a new business model, undoubtedly online. But will the fact that anyone can be a photographer or a writer or a publisher and dump it all on a blog destroy the art and expertise that go into these endeavors?

Certainly something will be lost, but this is just evolution: adapt or perish. There will be those who figure it out and thrive. And with any luck, some of those will include people who wouldn’t have found their way without all of this democratizing technology. Crowdsourcing won't kill photography (and blogging won't kill newspapers or other "old" media), but it will make surviving in the future much more challenging.

And don’t look so smug all you graphic designers – your work is next.

Check Out CultureFeast

I discovered a cool blog called Culture Feast today. I knew I would like it because it called out Dale Hansen for pretty much being Dale Hansen. OK, so maybe Dale ain't father of the year material, but he did get fired for throwing Clarice Tinsley in a swimming pool, and that's got to be worth some points, right?[Nope, that was Kevin McCarthy who threw Clarice in the pool. Guess that makes Dale pretty much irredeemable.]

Tea Bagging

Sam Machkovech at Big D little d calls out the DMN's Thor Christiansen for his recent Gypsy Tea Room column and his general suckitude. Funny Thor story: once when he was interviewing Liam Gallagher from Oasis, Liam asked him, "What kind of name is Thor? That's a stupid name." Not sure how Thor responded to that, but it made me like that prick Liam a little better.

Darkness on the Edge of Town

If you want to know what's going on in this picture, visit The Haven of Contentment, also known as the Moose Lodge. It's kind of like what the Andy Griffith Show would be like if directed by David Lynch. Courtesy of Swapatorium.

Thank You, Stash Dauber

Mucho thanks for the kind words from The Stash Dauber, a fellow lover of Fort Worth and Stooges fan numero uno.