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Alexx and I went to Arisia on Saturday and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the new hotel really does solve a lot of the issues I had with way too many people in a too-small space. One of the events which I had come especially to hear was the concert by Sassafrass
http://adapalmer.com/sassafrass/index.html
a female a capella group which specializes in music featuring Norse myths and other geeky subjects. You can
listen to song samples
http://adapalmer.com/sassafrass/samples.html
and I absolutely recommend their Odin-Loki song, "My Brother, My Enemy," along with my personal favorite, "Toys for Big Kids."
I also had the chance to talk to lots of cool people, including Steve Berman (LJ user mroctober) writer and editor of Leithe Press www.lethepressbooks.com and
LJ user vvalkyri, who recently sent me a couple of
links about a fully articulated prosthetic hand
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/10/AR2011011006229.html
developed with a material called Living Skin at Touch Bionics
http://www.touchbionics.com/LIVINGSKIN .
The tactile tour of the art show was wonderful, thanks in large part to Fabrisse, who was our docent again this year, and who always makes a point of doing some research ahead of time so that she can tell us details about the works which we are touching, such as the medium and comments by the artists.
There were many wonderful pieces in the art show, but my favorite works were
the glass made to look like an actual meteorite, created by the artist guest of honor, Josh Simpson http://joshsimpson.com/site/
the book made with a glass eye in the front cover, the long dragon carved from a sinuous tree branch (I love carved objects that use the natural shape of the wood to influence the carved form), and the completely amazing coyote mask by Carol Hanson (who also took time to talk to me about wire). Also, an extra thanks to the artist who made a tactile drawing of the corset she had made--I am awed that she took eight hours to create the tactile drawing itself.
In the Dealers Room I bought a tactile t-shirt with an embossed Celtic design of the tree of life. This is an absolutely amazing t-shirt which uses some sort of mystery material that I am guessing must work similar to puff paint--the Celtic design of the tree, which appears to be made from one long continuous line, was laid down on a sort of stiff buckram-type material which was then laid beneath the t-shirt material, so that when the design material was activated (probably by a heat source such as a hair dryer), the design puffed up behind the t-shirt material on the front of the shirt.
You can find this and other tactile t-shirts and hoodies at the Earth Wisdom Web page, look for t-shirts labeled with the word "embossed"
http://www.earthwisdommusicandclothing.com/t-Shirts.html
and there are also some t-shirts which used embroidered designs.
Sadly, my attempt to find a copy of Diana Wynne Jones _The Merlin Conspiracy_ failed, so I will have to get it from Amazon.
http://adapalmer.com/sassafrass/index.html
a female a capella group which specializes in music featuring Norse myths and other geeky subjects. You can
listen to song samples
http://adapalmer.com/sassafrass/samples.html
and I absolutely recommend their Odin-Loki song, "My Brother, My Enemy," along with my personal favorite, "Toys for Big Kids."
I also had the chance to talk to lots of cool people, including Steve Berman (LJ user mroctober) writer and editor of Leithe Press www.lethepressbooks.com and
LJ user vvalkyri, who recently sent me a couple of
links about a fully articulated prosthetic hand
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/10/AR2011011006229.html
developed with a material called Living Skin at Touch Bionics
http://www.touchbionics.com/LIVINGSKIN .
The tactile tour of the art show was wonderful, thanks in large part to Fabrisse, who was our docent again this year, and who always makes a point of doing some research ahead of time so that she can tell us details about the works which we are touching, such as the medium and comments by the artists.
There were many wonderful pieces in the art show, but my favorite works were
the glass made to look like an actual meteorite, created by the artist guest of honor, Josh Simpson http://joshsimpson.com/site/
the book made with a glass eye in the front cover, the long dragon carved from a sinuous tree branch (I love carved objects that use the natural shape of the wood to influence the carved form), and the completely amazing coyote mask by Carol Hanson (who also took time to talk to me about wire). Also, an extra thanks to the artist who made a tactile drawing of the corset she had made--I am awed that she took eight hours to create the tactile drawing itself.
In the Dealers Room I bought a tactile t-shirt with an embossed Celtic design of the tree of life. This is an absolutely amazing t-shirt which uses some sort of mystery material that I am guessing must work similar to puff paint--the Celtic design of the tree, which appears to be made from one long continuous line, was laid down on a sort of stiff buckram-type material which was then laid beneath the t-shirt material, so that when the design material was activated (probably by a heat source such as a hair dryer), the design puffed up behind the t-shirt material on the front of the shirt.
You can find this and other tactile t-shirts and hoodies at the Earth Wisdom Web page, look for t-shirts labeled with the word "embossed"
http://www.earthwisdommusicandclothing.com/t-Shirts.html
and there are also some t-shirts which used embroidered designs.
Sadly, my attempt to find a copy of Diana Wynne Jones _The Merlin Conspiracy_ failed, so I will have to get it from Amazon.
