The Indy-fatigable franchise is back!
14th February 2008
Ooh, ooh. The trailer for Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is out today. Whatever your views on such a belated episode of the boys-own saga, I tell you that the moment you hear the theme tune you start to feel like a kid all over again.
The plot revolves around Indy going to the 2008 Olympic Games to bring down China over the Darfur crisis. No, not really. That was just a little bit of politics.
So, what can we glean from this brief glimpse? Well, its classic Spielberg adventure thrills. It has Ray Winstone in it. It has Cate Blanchett in it. There are plenty of big stunts. Harrison Ford sounds like he smokes 50 a day. It has a very long and stupid title. That hot shot kid everyone is talking about is in it. So is John Hurt. So is Karen Allen (best of all Indy’s women). George Lucas has managed to get some Ewoks into it (possibly). It is out on 22nd of May. I can’t wait. I might be disappointed. I don’t care.
#734 | 14/02/08 | Culture | More >
More Nottingham gig artwork - Jay Ryan (Bird Machine)
2nd February 2008
Earlier today I wrote about Chris Summerlin’s brilliant gig posters, and he and I had discussed the work of The Bird Machine - a Chigago-based outfit led by Jay Ryan - responsible for quite a few Nottingham posters.
These beauties are sketchier, more heavily worked than Chris’s posters, but just as covetable. They can be purchased via the Richard Goodall Gallery of Manchester, or by contacting The Bird Machine directly.
#732 | 02/02/08 | Culture Music | More >
Official gig poster art by Chris Summerlin
2nd February 2008
Top Nottingham-based illustrator Chris Summerlin just delivered nine of his incredible gig posters in person. And a fine chap he is too. After ordering my prints, it turned out that Chris lived one street away from me in Sneinton! Small world.
These are all genuine gig posters commissioned by the bands for some of their gigs in Nottingham, so they all mention fine venues such as The Social, Rescue Rooms, Rock City etc - and I even went to some of these gigs. One is even from a gig at Sneinton Hermitage!
As many of you know, I’m a huge music and illustration fan, so when the two combine I get excited. Trawl the web and you’ll find lots of gig poster sites (I’m also a fan of The Small Stakes folio), but there’s so much lame gig poster art out there or artwork not authorised by the bands, or made after the gigs, that to have these wonderful genuine prints is a bit of a coup.
Chris sells his posters as crisp A3 prints for around a fiver each, or he’ll do you a deal for bulk orders. All delivered carefully in strong cardboard tubes. Visit Chris Summerlin’s website to order prints or get in touch with him, or check out his Flickr poster art set. Chris is a freelance artist, and is available for commissions of all kinds. Word on the grapevine is that some commissioned artwork might just appear in my redesign later this year, but keep that to yourselves.
#731 | 02/02/08 | Culture Music | More >
Goodbye Pixelsurgeon
24th November 2007
A friend of seven years is no more. At times it was the best site on the interwebs. More recently it’s contributors were too stretched to keep on top of it. Yet always it was fun, full-on and fucking brilliant.
Sadly now, Pixelsurgeon is dead, and I for one will miss it. Huge respect to our friends Jason Arber and Richard May (now doing great things with Wyld Stallyons) and also Sam Gilbey (who I don’t think I ever met) for making the brave decision to let it burn out rather than fade away.
Regrets, I’ve had a few…
#717 | 24/11/07 | Culture Personal Web stuff | More >
Control
5th October 2007
Control - Anton Corbijn’s biopic about Joy Division’s Ian Curtis - was filmed mostly in Nottingham, because my city is grim and looks like the seventies. Today’s Guardian review calls it the best film of the year. The footage of newcomer Sam Riley losing himself as Curtis on stage is mesmerising and frighteningly accurate. It is shot in the crispest, most vivid monochrome, and for all its grime and desperation it looks like one of those films that reminds any of us brought up in scrappy Northern/Midland English towns that we can be heroes. I love this film, and I haven’t even seen it yet.
Update: I have been to see the film this afternoon, and have reviewed it in the comments below this article.
#714 | 05/10/07 | Culture | More >
Heima
29th September 2007
Quite possibly the most beautiful film trailer I have ever seen, for the forthcoming feature length film about the wonderful Sigur Rós (about whom I have written too many times to mention). Makes me pine for those old Icelandic summer gatherings at Þórsmörk…
Update: The DVD (plus 116 page booklet) is already available for pre-order at Amazon UK (scheduled 5th November release).
#712 | 29/09/07 | Culture Travels | More >
In search of Eiríkur Smith
29th June 2007
In my opinion, this is the greatest painting ever created.
Well, alright. Not the greatest ever, but I fell in love with it when I saw it nine years ago in the foyer of the Hafnarborg Institute of Culture and Fine Art, in the glorious Icelandic town of Hafnarfjörður near where I used to live.
It is called Morning By The Sea and was painted in 1959 by the very un-Icelandic-sounding Eiríkur Smith. I was always aware of Smith’s very unusual house situated high on the hill above the town, and whilst I was lucky enough to meet a few of Iceland’s famous old artists, I never met up with the one I most admired.
Don’t ask why, but rest assured it is very important to me. Yes, I know it echoes the expressionist work of Hans Hoffman, John Hoyland and even my favourite painter ever - the incredible Peter Lanyon - but I don’t care. It just symbolizes the Iceland that I know in a way nothing else can equal.
Anyway, I won’t bore you all with this any longer, except to say that the original painting is owned by the Hafnarborg, and if recent auctions of the artist’s work are any indication it is probably worth a good half-a-million quid, so I am desperate to get hold of a print (as big as possible) of Morning By The Sea. I have trawled the internet often in search of one, but no joy. If anyone can ever help me find one I’d be delighted to know. Likewise, I can’t seem to find much detail about Smith anywhere, so if anyone knows him I’d also like to arrange to meet him on a future visit.
See, I do still care about art.
#702 | 29/06/07 | Culture Travels | More >
Made By Paddy
11th May 2007
My good friend Paddy Hartley (he of Project Facade) is fast becoming a widely recognised visual artist. Indeed, his stuff was recently on show alongside the likes of Damien Hirst, Joseph Beuys and Chuck Close at the Diagnose exhibition in Germany, which is about as good as it gets. Anyway, to cut a long story short, it is now possible to own a little piece of Paddy’s art, in the form of a limited edition, super-sexy, left or right handed wallet, Made By Paddy, and he’ll even create a custom wallet from your own images…
#697 | 11/05/07 | Culture | More >
Hot Fuzz
18th February 2007
I always loved Spaced, so Shaun Of The Dead was a no-brainer for me. With such a great track record, I was worried that the new flick from Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright might not meet my expectations. Surely they couldn’t do it again?
#688 | 18/02/07 | Culture | More >
Notts County officially the worst
5th January 2007
According to a new Littlewoods Pools survey (more about the survey here), my football team are officially the worst team to support. I quote Ian Morgan over at 24dash.com:
It’s largely been “one for sorrow” for the Magpies. The oldest club in the Football League have been through more managers (35) since 1945 than any other team except Wigan Athletic (36). Previous holders of the post include Sam Allardyce, Neil Warnock and Howard Kendall. Through promotion or relegation, the club have switched divisions 29 times - a Football League record. One of their most (in)famous fans was serial killer Harold Shipman. Need we say more.
Big thanks (no, really - thanks a bunch, mate) to Andrew for the information. Sigh…
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This is the personal home of Simon Collison; web designer/developer and author. Simon runs Erskine Design, a web agency based in Nottingham, UK. Read more...
Note: I've stripped down the site for a while whilst I rethink it. I'll give it a fresh lick of paint really soon.
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