Dale Chihuly Glass

By Janet Dodrill

Colored glass has always appealed to me. Glassmaking and glassblowing began to amaze me when I was introduced to the work and glass studio artist, Dale Chihuly.

In 1998, my late mother and I went to see ‘Chihuly: The George R. Stroemple Collection‘ at the Akron Art Museum in Akron, Ohio. There, we walked in under a Chihuly Chandelier, and were directed first to see a film on the artist’s background, his drawing and glassmaking process, and worldwide installations – after which we were free to roam the museum’s gallery. It was a spectacular exhibit which included a cross-section of his work, including Drawings, Irish Cylinders, Macchia, Venetians, Laguna Murano, and Seaform sculptures.

A couple years ago visited a local BOSE store and on their big screen TV was a film on Chihuly. It was a great way to showcase the manufacturer’s technology by showing an interesting glass blowing demo so vibrant with color.

Recently, I have been enjoying the glass art sculpture images posted regularly from the Chihuly Facebook page.

To fully appreciate his work I suggest viewing some of the many videos available online. (Some online links are below.)

Better yet, if you get the opportunity to see his work up close, I would strongly encourage it!

Ahuja Azure, Citron and Amber Persian Wall, 2010, commissioned glass sculpture by Dale Chihuly, at University Hospital’s Ahuja Medical Center cafeteria, Beachwood, Ohio.

Chihuly Website:
http://www.chihuly.com

Chihuly Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/chihuly

Dale Chihuly YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/user/chihulystudio

Chihuly Workshop YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq4z5XFpGwB8EMXucfNcByg

Chihuly Studio Vimeo Channel:
https://vimeo.com/user25444452

The George R. Stroemple Collection
http://www.stroemplecollection.com

Akron Art Museum
https://akronartmuseum.org

(Text and photo copyright Janet Dodrill. Not to be used without prior permission.)

(Chihuly Facebook page screen.)

(Chihuly Facebook page screen.)

(Chihuly Facebook page screen.)

 

The National Gallery Online Art Collection

By Janet Dodrill

The National Gallery (@NationalGallery) tweeted on July 16, 2015 that now images can be downloaded from their collection for personal use! That got me interested in exploring their website www.nationalgallery.org.uk. Here are a few links to good resources, I discovered there, for the art enthusiast!

Online Collection:
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings

Explore the paintings:
Collection overview, 30 ‘must-see’ paintings, paintings room by room, a virtual tour of over 300 paintings, the picture of the month, the latest loans and acquisitions, and more.
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/view-the-collection

This month, the picture of the month is Peter Paul Rubens, A Roman Triumph, about 1630, with free downloadable wallpaper:
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/upload/img/wallpaper-rubens-a-roman-triumph-ng278.jpg

Download the iPhone app:
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/learn-about-art

The National Gallery Channel:
Watch video and learn about hidden symbolism in paintings, techniques of the old masters, contemporary artists, impressionism, and more.
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/channel

The National Gallery Podcasts:
Listen to information on Cézanne, Manet, Rembrandt, Bruegel, Monet, Millet, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and more.
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/podcasts

Caring for the paintings:
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/caring-for-the-paintings

 

Peter Paul Rubens, A Roman Triumph, about 1630, wallpaper download from the National Gallery website.

Jack Dorsey Was Here

By Janet Dodrill

Jack Dorsey at Cleveland Clinic’s Ideas for Tomorrow Speaker Series.

Last week I was honored to hear Jack Dorsey speak in an interview with Toby Cosgrove, M.D., president and chief executive officer of Cleveland Clinic, at the Clinic’s Ideas for Tomorrow Speaker Series. Jack is creator, co-founder, and executive chairman of Twitter, Inc. social networking feed and the co-founder and CEO of Square, Inc., a device which enables mobile credit card payments via iPhone or iPad.

The one-hour informal talk gave us insight on Jack’s ideas that lead to Twitter, like an interest in mass transit and developing a means for emergency workers, taxis and couriers to communicate in real time. Jack’s early creativity included some formal training in art and design. He initially sketched ideas for Twitter’s process and Square’s user interface, and currently works at both companies, Twitter headquartered in San Francisco, and Square in New York City.

The Twitter name went through some early word-smithing, starting as Jitter and then Twitch. Did you know that Twitter is still banned in Syria, Iran and China? I believe in the usefulness of Twitter and have been tweeting nearly five years now!

According to Jack, only 8 million small businesses today can accept credit cards, and 26 million small businesses can’t. Square charges a flat 2.75% fee, which is less than most online merchant banks charge, and has created a huge opportunities for small businesses to use this product for their customers to make payments. I was at a holiday art bazaar a couple months ago and one vendor was using the Square on an iPad for customers purchasing their lama socks and hats.

Square currently holds a lot of potential for money-less and hands-free purchasing, and he gave an example, using Square Wallet app linked to a credit card and GPS, of walking into a Starbucks and our face and favorite coffee comes up on the register and is ordered before we have even reached the counter! A push feature could ask us about a tip. We could just give the cashier our name, and leave our mobile phone in our pocket or our purse.

He is active in community organizations, has about 1000 followers including his mom and her dog, as well as some authors, and tweets his breakfast most days to show his mom that he’s eating (she checks this)! I was inspired by Jack Dorsey and his brilliance. He was asked if he was more artist or entrepreneur, and he hesitantly answered, “Artist, but you can never really call yourself one, people have to look at your work!”

Jack Dorsey: Ideas for Tomorrow Speaker Series (Full Program) video

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Recent tweets by Jack Dorsey about a Cleveland Clinic video he was touched by:

@jack RT @ClevelandClinic: “Could a greater miracle take place than for us to look through each other’s eyes for an instant?” – Thoreau | http://t.co/b8Sudtcqsv
Mar 4

@jack A brilliant video from @ClevelandClinic about empathy and putting the patient (or customer) first. https://t.co/T0C9jIYvs0
Mar 1

Vine App, Brings 6-Second Video to Twitter

By Janet Dodrill

Three days ago Vine was launched, a six-second video creator social media app, acquired by Twitter.

The Vine App’s Twitter Page.

This will open up creative ways for Twitter users to tell a short story visually, in addition to the brief 140-character micro-logging allotment they currently have.

Currently only available for iPhone and iPod Touch, Vine (@vineapp) hopes to have an Android version, in addition to bug fixes and enhancements shortly. It is currently available free at the App Store.

Jack Dorsey (@jack), Twitter creator and Square founder recently endorsed Vine by posting tweets utilizing Vine videos and stated on January 24, 2013 about Vine, “…This one’s going to be big.”

Jack’s tweet on January 24, 2013.

The user-generated looping videos are anticipated to only improve in time, after the initial novelty has worn off and learning curve overcome.

Below are some recent articles and links of interest, which review the app and explain how to use it, with several showing examples of the videos created with Vine.

Introducing Vine (Vine Blog)

Vine: A new way to share (Twitter Blog)

Seconds of pleasure: A few cool Vine videos (CNN Tech)

Twitter’s Vine App: How to Use It (PC Magazine)

6 ways Vine’s six seconds may change Twitter (CNN Tech)

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Recent Vine News, April 2013:

Vine Is the Top Free iPhone App (Mashable)

‘Vine Resume’ Woman Gets a Job (Mashable)