Month: August 2015

Yelawolf, “Johnny Cash”

Yelawolf, “Johnny Cash”

Michael Wayne Atha, better known as Yelawolf, part Cherokee, is an American hip hop recording artist from Gadsden, Alabama. He is currently signed to Shady Records and Interscope Records. Yelawolf released his independent debut studio album titled Creekwater in 2005. From 2005 to 2010 he also released an extended play and four mixtapes. The last of the four, titled Trunk Muzik, amassed a strong following for the rapper, eventually landing him a deal with Interscope Records, which re-released the mixtape as Trunk Muzik 0-60 later that year.

In January 2011, Yelawolf signed with Eminem’s record label, Shady Records, and released his album, Radioactive on November 21, 2011. The album debuted at number 27 on the Billboard 200. Yelawolf released a sequel to his breakthrough mixtape Trunk Muzik, titled Trunk Muzik Returns on March 14, 2013. His second album, Love Story, was released on April 21, 2015.

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

The Batman of Baltimore

Artists Unknown, Images of Batman in Memory of Baltimore’s Batman

Lenny Robinson was often referred to as “Baltimore Batman,” for his act of dressing up as Batman, driving around in a blacked-out Lamborghini Gallardo “Batmobile” and visiting terminally ill children in hospitals.After selling his cleaning business, the Maryland native decided he wanted to help his community by putting smiles on children’s faces when they had little to smile about.

After seeing how donning a Batman suit cheered up his own ill son, Robinson decided that the best way to fulfill kids’ hero fantasies was to become Batman, offering rides in his Batmobile and putting on a show at local hospitals which he did for the last twelve years. Robinson visited sick children in hospitals, handing out Batman paraphernalia to them, signing every book, hat, t-shirt and backpack with the name “Batman”.

On August 16, 2015, robinson was returning from a weekend festival in West Virginian when his Batmobile broke down on Interstate 70 near the community of Big Pool, Maryland. As he was checking the engine, a Toyota Camry struck his custom Batmobile from behind. The Batmobile struck Robinson, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

A great man who gave his all for terminally ill children. Super Hero.

Scott Facon

Paintings by Visionary Artist Scott Facon

What is displayed here is the work of visionary artist Scott Façon. In his art, Scott portrays psychedelic landscapes of intricacy and bewilderment that stimulate the mind’s eye.

The AVAM, American Visionary Arts Museum, is located in Baltimore, Maryland. AVAM’s all new exhibition champions the radiant and transformative power of hope and features work by 25 visionary artists, among them many “super survivors” of enormous personal traumas. Opens October 3, 2015.

Derek Weidman

Wood Sculptures by Derek Weidman

Derek Weidman was born in 1982, and has dedicated the last seven years to exploring lathe-based sculpture.  His approach involves multi-axis turning as the foundation of his work.  By using the unique shaping processes of turning, Derek has created a descriptive visual language that only the lathe can speak.  This carving process creates novel representations of a wide range of subjects, from those based on human anatomy to various animal forms.  Even with the most rigorous naturalism, an honest abstraction takes place. So from human heads to rhinos, mandrills to birds, each idea is being captured in a way it has not been expressed before.

Derek Weidman works in rural Southeastern Pennsylvania. From very early childhood Derek has drawn constantly.  He has a deep connection to nature, and his appreciation for wildlife has had a significant impact on his work. He also draws inspiration from astronomy, cosmology, ancient religions, as well as modern myths.

The Musician Sleeps

Photographer Unknown, (The Musician Sleeps)

“If you didn’t know what sleep was, and you had only seen it in a science fiction movie, you would think it was weird and tell all your friends about the movie you’d seen.

They had these people, you know? And they would walk around all day and be OK? And then, once a day, usually after dark, they would lie down on these special platforms and become unconscious. They would stop functioning almost completely, except deep in their minds they would have adventures and experiences that were completely impossible in real life. As they lay there, completely vulnerable to their enemies, their only movements were to occasionally shift from one position to another; or, if one of the ‘mind adventures’ got too real, they would sit up and scream and be glad they weren’t unconscious anymore. Then they would drink a lot of coffee.

So, next time you see someone sleeping, make believe you’re in a science fiction movie. And whisper, ‘The creature is regenerating itself.”
― George Carlin, Brain Droppings

Akira: Gif Set Two

Akira: Gif Set Two

Akira: directed by Ruairi Robinson and Katsuhiro Otomo, 2001

One of the best-known examples of contemporary Japanese animation, this cyberpunk adventure takes place in the post-apocalyptic city of Neo-Tokyo. A teen-age boy is exposed to a mysterious energy source and develops telekinetic powers that place him at the center of a conflict that may destroy the world.

A landmark anime feature that paved the way for the medium’s growing popularity outside of Japan and remains a significant influence in the sci-fi genre (this and “Ghost in the Shell” were key influences to the super-popular Matrix trilogy). At times it can be over-shadowed by it’s excessive graphic violence and an exhaustingly drawn-out third act, but this adaptation of director Katsuhiro Otomo’s 2000-page manga keeps up a kinetically-energetic pace that simply has you holding on for dear life throughout. Plus, the hand-drawn cell animation remains a wonder to behold even 14 years later and still holds a candle to even modern contemporary anime efforts.