Having a hard time rapping my mind around Metropolis theme.

[Marscrumbs]

Ok, this is the City as Sgt. Friday would say. Every year it's the City. But outside of Superman and Fritz Lange this year's theme just doesn't send up any obvious flares of creativity in my cranium. How about some inspiration anybody?

[ygmir]

Calhouns rat experiment............

[mojo]

Ant farm

[Elorrum]

habitrails

[gyre]

Zhu Zhu rats

[geospyder]

Keys to the city

[ehcsztein]

Ok, this is the City as Sgt. Friday would say. Every year it's the City. But outside of Superman and Fritz Lange this year's theme just doesn't send up any obvious flares of creativity in my cranium. How about some inspiration anybody?

As someone who is currently struggling with having to cancel my installation for this year I would throw out the following ideas...

1) The invisible conflict between those who build/maintain a city and the elite that take it for granted as a playground to pursue decadence (nod to Lang's depiction of class structure.)

2) The illusion that compressing people together into minimal space is healthier than allowing individuals to explore open spaces.

3) Villages change when they become towns, when they become cities, when the grow beyond anything we have conceived/manifest as a species to date.

4) The fabrication of frameworks of appropriate behavior in order support the collective best interests of people that can not understand underlying necessity for such structures.

5) Urban vs. suburban.

6) Where we will be two hundred years for now when one hundred years ago we didn't have street lights. What will be rewired to maintain order?

7) The evolution of intoxication used to cope with with Metropolitan living.

8) The city as moral compass.

10) metropolitan vs rural "fashion" and aesthetic values

11) Technological necessity to enable urban progress

12) Folk art vs. Metropolitan art

Or these are the near drunken ramblings of a sad artist that doubts he will be able to contribute this year... :(

[Victorian]

I almost keep thinking "Industrial Revolution" for some reason.
Industry, steele, steam, smog, skyscrapers, "sin city"-like feel to it...




Just my interpretation....

ANd yes.... Muther Effin BATMAN saving Gotham City




MOD NOTE - I "Unchecked" the boxes that torn off BBC and HTML code from appearing.

[C.f.M.]

It's not a very hard thing to wrap your mind around. It's just a movie. Watch it.

Me, I think a theme is kinda silly, and I never pay it no mind.

[Victorian]

I am paying a little mind being my first year. I'm trying to just incorporate it with whatever art I come up with this summer....

We shall see!

[Ugly Dougly]

Civilization versus.... oh, I don't know....

Barbarism?

[Fire_Moose]

Babarism??

[theCryptofishist]

If you're having trouble rapping your mind around something maybe Dr. Dre or Ice T. can help.

[C.f.M.]

Babarism??

YES. He's a burner.

[Fire_Moose]

I kinda figured that CFM, i mean who the hell else walks around in a green suit and a crown?

[C.f.M.]

And cooks naked around open flames and hot cast iron pans?

[Victorian]

Here's another thought I had.. watching Repo! The Genetic Opera

Look it up, watch, you may not agree--but I feel this would fit the theme, sort of. Anything city-like and futuristic of human cities becoming our haven and hell all at the same time....

Here's a short bit of lyrics from one of the songs in the musical:

Industrialization has crippled the globe
(Enjoy GeneCo's day and nighttime formula of Zydrate)
Nature failed as technology spread
(Ask a gentern if Zydrate is right for you)
And in this wake, a market erected
(Buying Zydrate from an unlicensed source is illegal)
An entire city built on top of the dead
And you can finance your bones and your kidneys
For every market, a sub-market grows.
But best you be punctual with making your payments
Lest it be you on the concrete below.

[Simon of the Playa]

As someone who is currently struggling with having to cancel my installation for this year I would throw out the following ideas...

1) The invisible conflict between those who build/maintain a city and the elite that take it for granted as a playground to pursue decadence (nod to Lang's depiction of class structure.)

2) The illusion that compressing people together into minimal space is healthier than allowing individuals to explore open spaces.

3) Villages change when they become towns, when they become cities, when the grow beyond anything we have conceived/manifest as a species to date.

4) The fabrication of frameworks of appropriate behavior in order support the collective best interests of people that can not understand underlying necessity for such structures.

5) Urban vs. suburban.

6) Where we will be two hundred years for now when one hundred years ago we didn't have street lights. What will be rewired to maintain order?

7) The evolution of intoxication used to cope with with Metropolitan living.

The city as moral compass.

10) metropolitan vs rural "fashion" and aesthetic values

11) Technological necessity to enable urban progress

12) Folk art vs. Metropolitan art

Or these are the near drunken ramblings of a sad artist that doubts he will be able to contribute this year...

you contributed more in your drunken ramblings than some who "participate"...

all excellent questions, and or points, and more importantly, why, oh, why would you not come this year, explain what circumstances would prevent this from occurring.

[Marscrumbs]

Hmmm. Poll results at the moment are a perfect parabola 1:4:9.
I think I can make a metaphorical suspension bridge out of it.

Maybe I'll get out my Babar yoga book to pirate some cool pic for tommorrow.

[Captain Goddammit]

Two words. Steampunk.

[geospyder]

Two words. Steampunk.

Does that mean I have to get new goggles?

[Simon of the Playa]

Captain Goddammit wrote:
Two words. Steampunk.

4 words, Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang.


[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZU4S1G0JCk[/youtube]

[goathead]

I almost keep thinking "Industrial Revolution" for some reason.
Industry, steele, steam, smog, skyscrapers, "sin city"-like feel to it...




Just my interpretation....

ANd yes.... Muther Effin BATMAN saving Gotham City

Just had to see what you posted, you need to uncheck the disable codes.

[Victorian]

Sorry.. my bad... I did uncheck them after about 10 posts, realizing what the problem was.. heh

[Marscrumbs]

Captain Goddammit wrote:

4 words, Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang.


[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZU4S1G0JCk[/youtube]

Stranglely Bond, James Bond.

[Parasitoid]

This is kind of interesting and related:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcology

[Generic Anonymity]

The one thing that keeps popping into my head is a line from The Spirit - "My City Screams"

[webba]

What about a "Safety First" theme?

Our interpretation of sex education

[trystanthegypsy]

Mayan cities in ruins... Downtown skyscrapers overgrown by jungle...

[Simon of the Playa]

Stranglely Bond, James Bond.

ON ACID!