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About the Flaneur
I walk through my blindness the way I wander down streets in Paris: unfettered and alive, alert to the raw material of the senses. I am a flaneur. Come along with me. Just don’t try to take my arm, unless I ask. What’s a flaneur? Read the first post, Return of the Flaneur to Galerie Vivienne. After that, try Foot Rage and the Blind Flaneur. Then stay tuned.Kiki: Man Ray’s Dada Muse
The legendary Kiki of Montparnasse posed for Man Ray’s Le violin de Ingres (1924). See more from Imaging Paris.Lee Miller: Surrealist Muse
Lee Miller traced a meteoric trajectory from flapper fashionista to surrealist muse. She played the Statue in Jean Cocteau's first movie. Picasso painted her portrait. She apprenticed with Man Ray and later became a noted war photographer for British Vogue. Read more.Miss Tic: Paris Street Art
Poet and street artist Miss Tic isn't exactly a kid in a hoodie with a can of spray paint. Maybe she can still run like hell when the police show up, but can she sprint in high heels? Well-known in international avant-garde circles, her work is exhibited now at the Venice Biennale as well as the alleys of Paris. Read more. See Ethics of Love for a video montage of Miss Tic's provacative poetry. More Paris Street Art.
The Lake and the River
I’ve canoed on Lake Superior for almost as many years as I’ve been losing eyesight. I return year after year like a migrating loon to learn the other side of a slow, uncertain process that we could call “going blind.” After 35 years with the lake as my teacher, I know what lies on the other side. I call it letting go of sight. Read Big Water. See more about the Great Lakes.What is a village? A small place, yes, as wide as the world, layered with histories and stories, where you can walk wherever you want to go. My vision of that place is Yellow Springs 2.0.
Not This Pig
If there is an emerging genetic underclass, I could run for class president or class clown. Read more in Not This Pig (2003).Re-Imagining Accessibility
Re-imagining accessibility through the transformations of culture -- particularly the transformative promise of accessible technology for people with disabilities -- is the work of the Fair Use Lab. What does Shepard Fairey’s Hope poster have to do with accessibility? Read more: Shape-Shifters in the Fair Use Lab [MiT6 2009]Blind Photographers
In the moment when Paul Strand photographed her surreptitiously on the street in New York, the social engineers who created a system for licensing beggars never imagined that a blind woman had culture or could make culture. She herself may not have imagined it. Paul Strand probably didn’t give her much credit for making culture, either. Read more: Curiosity & The Blind Photographer [MiT5 2007] See more on blind photographers.BottomFeeder U.S.A.
BottomFeeder U.S.A.
- Attention Economy – October 14, 2023
- Attention Economy – September 30, 2023
- Attention Economy – September 26, 2023
- Attention Economy – September 23, 2023
- The Rhetoric of ‘Class Warfare’?
Linking Out
- AFB Blog
- Amy’s Anomalies
- Ânkoras & Asas
- augmented illusions
- Buzz Machine
- Cold Holler
- David Morley
- Gabriela Anaya Valdepeña
- Henry Jenkins
- Jafabrit's Art
- Kaitlin Foley
- l’azile
- Planet of the Blind
- Reading in the Dark
- Rebekka Guðleifsdóttir
- Richard Florida
- Spoken Word in Paris
- Tim O'Brien
- Visual Culture Blog
- Yellow Springs Arts
Category Archives: blind photographers
“Dark Light: The Art of Blind Photographers”
Dark Light: The Art of Blind Photographers is a documentary short featuring Henry Butler, Pete Eckert and Bruce Hall. It was directed by Neil Leifer and produced by Corinne Marrinan and Neil Leifer. HBO broadcast the documentary last week, which may explain the uptick in web traffic to my essay, Curiosity and the Blind Photographer (presented at M.I.T. in 2007), which features this photo by Henry Butler. Continue reading
Imaging Paris: From Mouffe to the Marais
Rue des Rosiers. [Photo by lodrorigdzin; all rights reserved] I didn’t realize Friday night that when Alex said he dropped by Café Mouffe, he wasn’t simply humoring my imaginary conceit. He was there, in Paris, and the photos of Café … Continue reading
Imaging Paris: Café Delmas
Delmas-mouffetard. [Photo by lodrorigdzin; all rights reserved] Here are two more of Alex’s photos shot yesterday at Café Delmas, the inspiration for Café Mouffe. Of the shot above he writes: “at last, at last, I have a coffee cup shot … Continue reading
Where the Mouffe Begins: Delmas
Alex dropped by Café Mouffe tonight with this photo of the Mouffe’s inspiration, Café Delmas on Place de la Contrascarppe. Many thanks!
Imaging Paris: Bouquinistes
[Photos by lodrorigdzin; all rights reserved] Alex was in Paris last week, and he kindly asked if he could photograph anything in particular for me. He knew I’d love these images of the book stalls on the Seine. The offer … Continue reading
Hiatus: Stop and Smell the Roses
Mary Rose (above) vied with the climbing Colette as the first rose of the season. I’ve tried a variety of David Austin’s line of English roses over the years, and this is one of the few to thrive in my … Continue reading
In the Company of Irises
Two companions have led me astray this week as I swore off blogging so I could work on restoring my gardens. One is this startling white iris, which I’ve waited three years to bring again to bloom. The other is … Continue reading
In the Glen: Solomon’s Seal, True or False?
Updated 030210: False Solomon’s Seal (Smilacina racemosa) blooms in the Glen beginning in mid-May. [Photo by a blind flaneur] As a kid I learned to distinguish two flowers called Solomon’s seal, one identified as “True” and the other “False.” The … Continue reading
Augmented Illusions: Tapping
Alex de Jong recommends headphones for the full effect of tapping. The video is accompanied by this text: Natural behaviour of blind people is all too often seen as deviant. Many who are are blind are told not to click, … Continue reading