Wednesday, March 2, 2011

March 2, 1887: Birth of the Master Locksmith


via wired

1887: Harry Soref is born. The inventor will miniaturize the security of a bank vault into the everyday padlock.

Read about him here.

Oliver Sacks: Prosopagnosia

via world science festival
The Story of the Living, Breathing Mirror
Living with the perceptual disorder known as prosopagnosia—the inability to recognize even the faces of people you know—can be difficult. But it can also be awkwardly funny, as the legendary author and neurologist Oliver Sacks recounts from his life experiences of living face blind.



Can I Catch Face Blindness?


Coping with Face Blindness


More on Oliver Sacks’ most recent book, The Mind’s Eye, can be found here. Watch short videos featuring Chuck Close here. I remember first seeing a painting by Close at the Carnegie Museum of Art in the early ’80s. It was fascinating seeing a large painting of his from across a massive room, and being constantly amazed as I walked up to within inches of it.

Becky Blanton: Secrets of Black & White


via colourlovers

“There really is no such thing as color. Color is just the reflection of light, which is why at night things are shades of grey, or black — there is no light to reflect. During the day, or with a flashlight, different substances or objects absorb and reflect different wavelengths of light, making us believe we are seeing color when we’re not.

The power of color then is its ability to alter our consciousness, our thoughts, our emotions, our perceptions. White is the presence of ALL color and the absence of all color. Black is the absence of all color and the presence of all color. If you mix all the primary colors — you get black. Yet you cannot mix any pigments to get white, although through additive and subtractive mixing of light you can. Where does the color go? And where does it come from?”

Read the rest of the post here, go to TRiiiBES’ Color & Form PDF here.



Marko Costanzo: Foley Artist


via wired

“If you want a film to really have visceral impact, the sound maketh the movie—and the foley artist maketh the sound. During a shoot, mic placement is optimized for dialog, and the quality of background sounds can suffer. That’s where the foley artist steps in, re-creating and recording those other noises, from footsteps to crackling fires, as discrete layers that can be edited into the scene. The practice goes back to Jack Foley, part of the team that transformed the 1929 silent movie Show Boat into an ear-tickling musical hit. Some say great foley is the stuff that goes unnoticed: the soft swirl of a waltzing dress. . . ”

Read the rest here.

Wood Type: 5 line De Vinne


via letterpress daily

I love the slight nick in the Open Counter.