Month: July 2016

Steampunk Bowling Alley

Steampunk Bowling Alley, 5621 North Figueroa Street, Los Angeles

Billed as Los Angeles’ oldest bowling alley, the Highland Park Bowl opened in 1927 as a multi-use facility that also included doctors’ offices on the second floor. During Prohibition era, customers would visit the doctor to receive a prescription for medicinal whiskey. After filling their prescription at the pharmacy located downstairs, they could also go bowling.

Joseph (Mister T) Teresa, an Italian immigrant who owned a nearby liquor store, bought the property in 1966. The bowling alley renovated with paint, wall coverings, and drop ceilings. Later, the bowling lanes were hidden behind a curtain and the space transitioned into an iconic live music venue called “Mr. T’s”, which was frequented by students from the nearby universities.

 The 1933 Group, an restoration organization which renovates drinking establishments with a vintage flair, took the property over in 2015. They removed the mid-1900s elements, esposed the existing bow-truss architecture, and repurposed old bowling machines as bar shelves. The newly revitalized Highland park Bowl now transports its patrons into a different era with a steampunk flair.

Straps and Mohawk

Photographer Unknown, (Straps and Mohawk)

The mohawk (also referred to as a mohican) is a hairstyle in which, in the most common variety, both sides of the head are shaven, leaving a strip of noticeably longer hair in the center. The mohawk is also sometimes referred to as an “iro” in reference to the Iroquois, from whom the hairstyle is derived – though historically the hair was plucked out rather than shaved.

Additionally, hairstyles bearing these names more closely resemble those worn by the Pawnee, rather than the Mohawk, Mohican/Mahican, Mohegan, or other phonetically similar tribes. The red-haired Clonycavan man bog body found in Ireland is notable for having a well-preserved Mohawk hairstyle, dated to between 392 BCE and 201 BCE.

Among the Pawnee people, who historically lived in present-day Nebraska and in northern Kansas, a “mohawk” hair style was common. When going to war, 16th-century Ukrainian Cossacks would shave their heads, leaving a long central strip. This haircut was known as a khokhol or chupryna and was often braided or tied in a topknot. During World War II, many American GIs, notably paratroopers from the 101st Airborne Division wore mohawks to intimidate their enemies.

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, “O” Children”

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, “O” Children”

This song was featured on the Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds album “Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus”, released in 2004. It made its appearance in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1”, an anachronism, since the dancing scene is set in 1997 according to the canonical timeline.

In an interview, Matt Biffa, the music supervisor for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, explained that he chose the song because he identified with its lyrics on a personal level, as he was separating from his wife at the time and worried how it would effect their two young sons. According to Biffa, obtaining permission to use the song in the film was not difficult, and Nick Cave was happy that it was a lesser-known Bad Seeds song that had been selected.

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

Hiroaki Samura

Hiroaki Samura, “Blade of the Immortal”

“Blade of the Immortal” is a Japanese manga series by Hiroaki Samura. The series is set in Japan during the mid-Tokugawa Shogunate period and follows the cursed samurai Manji, who has to kill 1000 evil men in order to regain his mortality.

The manga was originally published in Afternoon from June 25, 1993, to December 25, 2012. A 2008 anime adaption was produced Bee Train and Production I.G. Also in 2008, the novel “Blade of the Immortal: Legend of the Sword Demon” was released in Japan by Kodansha, and two years later in the United States by Dark Horse Comics. A live action film adaptation is scheduled for release in 2017.

Han Meilin

Han Meilin, “General Guan Yu”, Jingzhou, China

A colossal statue standing 58 meters (190 ft) tall and weighing over 1,320 tonnes has been unveiled in Jingzhou, China. The incredible statue depicts Guan Yu, a prominent historical figure in Chinese history that was a famous general during the Three Kingdoms period. The general was later deified in Chinese culture and is reverently referred to as Guan Gong or Guan Di and has come to symbolize brotherhood, integrity, loyalty and righteousness.

The statue was designed by Han Meilin who is known for his designs of the 2008 Beijing Olympics mascots. The legendary figure (48 m tall) stands atop a 10-meter tall pedestal that has been designed to look like an ancient warship. Inside the statue, visitors can explore an 8,000 sq m museum.

In his right hand, Guan Yu is seen holding his famous “Green Dragon Crescent Blade”, an axe-like weapon that weighs over 136 tonnes. Over 4,000 strips of bronze have been glued to the sculpture, which serves as the centrepiece for Jinghzhou’s Guan Yu Park.

Temples of Tarxien

Temples of Tarxien, Island of Malta

The Temples of Tarxien, date back from 3, 600 B. C. to 2, 800 B. C. These temples are renowned for the detail of their carvings, which include domestic animals carved in relief, altars, and screens decorated with spiral designs and other patterns.

The temples where excavated by the father of archaeology of Malta , Sir Temi Zammit in the beginning of the 20th century and are considered as being the first to be excavated in a scientific method. Most of the original artifacts excavated from the site, today are at The National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta.

Excavation of the site reveals that it was used extensively for rituals, which probably involved animal sacrifice. Especially interesting is that Tarxien provides rare insight into how the megaliths were constructed: stone rollers were left outside the South temple. Additionally, evidence of cremation has been found at the center of the South temple, which is an indicator that the site was reused as a Bronze Age cremation cemetery.

Henry J. Soulen

Henry J. Soulen, “Chan Chi-tan Saw the Flames Jump Up”, Oil on Canvas, 1938, 32 x 36 Inches, Weisman Museum of Art

Henry J Soulen was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He attended the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and later studied with Howard Pyle. For many years, his work appeared regularly in most of the quality magazines, and usually in color – even when the use of color was restricted – because of the brilliance of his pallet.

His work is richly colored and strongly patterned. Each of his pictures is treated in a manner appropriate to the lack of pictorial depth of mural painting, and equally, to a magazine cover. He was given a Peabody Award for his magazine cover designs. During World War II, he gave free art lessons at the Valley Forge Military Hospital, a rehabilitation center for veterans.

The painting “Chan Chi-tan Saw the Flames Jump Up” was on page 19  of the Saturday Evening Post, Volume 210, Number 52 on June 25, 1938.

Daniel Borreto

Daniel Borreto, Unttled, ( Creatures in the Basement ), Photographic Gif Loops

Daniel Borreto is an accomplished photographer and artist. He often uses his art and combines much of his personal art with photography to create some stunning images (photography and illustration). Daniel also creates fascinating Motion Graphics through simple Giff loops. Borreto uses a Canon EOS REBEL T2i for many of his photos. He will typically take the photo and then using Photoshop, create Giff images making a fascinating,visual loop.