On a recent visit to the local aquarium I encountered this young octopus that exhibited what I can only describe as curiosity and a desire to interact that reinforces their fabled intelligence. I’ve only ever encountered these creatures as being shy and reclusive. Maybe it is because this one is so young that it has not developed a fear of people yet. Watching it is mesmerizing. What is going on behind those eyes?
Blog
Photo Accepted
My photograph of the Spiral Jetty was accepted into the Springville Museum of Art 33rd annual Spiritual and Religious Art of Utah, Oct 17 - Jan 16.
Seen and Noted
Just participated in the gallery stroll at the Poor Yorick Studios and was taken by the work of Brian Blackham. His still lifes are beautiful and from a distance seem finely wrought, but up close they have a rawness and power that is pleasantly surprising. This is due to the fact that they are executed with the palette knife. His lighting and color palette are exquisite, as is his use of lost edges. Lovely.
His studio is located in the Guthrie Building on 2nd South in SLC.
Hold the door!
For a long time it has bothered me that the "open" and "close" buttons on elevators are so counter intuitive. I will invariably push the wrong button when someone yells "hold the elevator", so when I examined the symbols more closely it became apparent why: they have it wrong.
I sketched out the elements, rearranged them and viola! As they now exist the symbols only address the desired action; the change I propose addresses both the action and the desired result, making them much more intuitive.
I find it hard to believe that I am the only person that this has bothered, but then again people do say that I'm a little weird. I recognize the resistance to change by an entire industry, but isn't that what graphic design is all about: finding the best way to communicate? It is our civic duty; how many more people have to miss the elevator before we do something?! A better world is within our grasp; spread the word!
Bruja Negra
Had a visitor last Fall that I had never seen before. This is a Black Witch (Bruja Negra) moth. They are apparently common in the Southwest. Sorry I didn't get a good color photo; the subtle shades of browns, grays and black are accented by iridescent spots of color. Quite large, striking and beautiful.