Robots ready to take over the home

"About 1.3 million "personal or domestic service robots" were in use at the end of 2003 and their number is set to expand by 6.7 million until 2007, the UN's Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) said in a survey released on October 22."

W: http://smh.com.au/articles/2004/10/28/1098667898044.html

The Asian aesthetic

This article by Mark Cousins talks about the emerging influence of Asian cinema in the West.

"As the art form most swayed by money and market, cinema would appear to be too busy to bother with questions of philosophy. Other Asian nations are proving that this is not the case. Just as deep ideas about individual freedom have led to the bracingly driven aspirational cinema of Hollywood, so Buddhism and Taoism explain the distinctiveness of Asian cinema at its best. In Venice in 1951 and Cannes in 2004, audiences left the cinemas with heads full of dazzling images. But the greatness of Rashomon, Ugetsu, 2046 or House of Flying Daggers is, in the end, not to do with imagery at all. Yes, they are pictorially distinctive, but it is their different sense of what a person is, and what space and action are, which makes them new to western eyes."

W: http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/ArticleView.asp?P_Article=12875

Houses of the Future - until Sunday 31st Oct

Clay House. Architect: Tone Wheeler of Environa Studios


Concrete House. Architect: Peter Poulet of the NSW Government Architects Office

Went to see the Houses of the Future exhibition yesterday. It was great! They had fact sheets to collect and the names of the products used were on display. You could walk through the houses. I liked the 'green roof' with the plants on top of the concrete house, and the artwork on the concrete walls by Peter Poulet was really cool. I liked the flexible, movable units in a couple of the houses too. They included kitchen benches, wardrobes, and beds, that were on wheels and made of steel and bold laminate colours. They were produced by Interspace. Go and see the exhibition if you have time!

Blurb from City of Sydney website: "An exhibition of six cutting-edge homes built to celebrate the Year of the Built Environment. Constructed in steel, timber, clay, concrete, cardboard, and glass, the houses show new developments in affordable, sustainable and prefabricated housing and are large enough for visitors to walk through."

Location: Sydney Opera House Forecourt
Dates: 15 - 31 October
Time: 9.30am - 5.45pm

W: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/artandabout/Housesforthefuture.html

sydney open epilogue - 7 November

harry seidler; richard francis-jones; richard johnson; philip vivian; ellen woolley; bob nation; lawrence nield; barry mcgregor; tim greer; neil durbach

The Epilogue will make an entertaining conclusion to Sydney Open with a cast of some of Sydney’s most talented architects each giving a seven minute presentation based on, but not necessarily restricted to, a building open during the day. An insightful and witty end to a day of architecture.

sunday 7 november at 5.30 pm at the sydney opera house.
tickets are $25 plus gst. bookings can be made through
the opera house box office on 9250 7777

W: http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/sections/whats_on/boxoffice/event_details.asp?EventID=1294&sm=1&ss=1

nothing flash - UNSW student photographic exhibition

a diverse exploration of student photographic work. Official opening night: Friday 29 October, 5:30 - 7.30pm

When: 25 October - 4 November 2004
Where: foyer space, Red Centre West Wing
W: http://www.fbe.unsw.edu.au/news/

Slidenight - Remo Giuffré - Nov 2

Remo Giuffré, lawyer, branding guru, thinker is the founder of the iconic (and now exclusively online) REMO [http://www.remogeneralstore.com/], and cofounder of the General Thinking Network [http://www.generalthinking.com/]. Although not formally trained as a designer, Remo has been dreaming, designing & doodling for much of his life.
Where: The Spanish Club, Level 2, 88 Liverpool St, Sydney, 6.30pm.

W: http://www.sydneyarchitecture.org/slidepages/opening.html

Art After Hours - Richard Johnson - Wed 17 Nov

Richard Johnson, Architect of the new Asian wing at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, will discuss the influence of Japanese architecture on architectural projects he's been involved with, including the Gallery's Asian wing and the Australian Embassy in Tokyo. 6.30pm.

W: http://www.artafterhours.com.au/programme/17_November

Sydney Food & Wine Fair - Saturday 30 October 2004

Come face to face with Sydney’s hottest talent at this year’s Sydney Food & Wine Fair, Saturday 30 October from 12 Noon in Hyde Park North.

Now in its 14th year, this annual flagship fundraising event for the AIDS Trust of Australia, presented in association with major sponsors Sydney Morning Herald Qantas Good Food Month and City of Sydney, celebrates with over 110 stallholders from Sydney’s leading restaurants, cafes, baristas and winemakers, all in the name of charity.

Be early on the day, food and wine stallholders operate promptly between 12noon to 2.00pm and entertainment including celebrity chef demonstrations feature throughout the afternoon till 6.00pm. Entry to the park is FREE. Food & wine vouchers can be purchased on the day, with all proceeds to the AIDS Trust of Australia.

W: http://www.aidstrust.com.au/www/Site/Food_And_Wine_Fairs/Sydney/index.cfm

destination - Graduate Exhibition for Enmore Design Centre, Sydney

destination is the Graduate Exhibition for the Third Year Graphic Design students at Enmore Design Centre.

The theme destination is all about the diverse places we have come from, where we are now and where we want to be. The theme also reflects certain areas in design we gravitate towards, such as print, web and multimedia.

The exhibition is a display of all the work from the graduating students, showing their individual journeys through skills, strengths and goals they have learnt and attained while studying the course.

Exhibition runs from Thurs 25 Nov to Sun 28 Nov
Opening night: Wed 24 Nov
Opening hours: 10am to 6pm
Venue: The Muse Building C South Wing TAFE Sydney Institute, Corner Harris St and MaryAnn St Ultimo, NSW

W: http://www.agda.com.au/eventsnews/nsw/events/2004/Destin.html

Evermore - NZ band tour dates and store appearances

I first heard Evermore whilst walking past Hum records on King St, Newtown on a recent Sunday afternoon. I heard this really cool music and looked saw the band playing live inside the store. They're a great band playing great music!

Here are their upcoming tour dates:

Wednesday November 10 - Karova Lounge, Ballarat, VIC
Thursday November 11 - Barwon Club, Geelong, VIC
Friday November 12 - Ding Dong Lounge, Melbourne, VIC
Saturday November 13 - Enigma Bar, Adelaide, SA
Wednesday November 17 - Hoey Moey, Coffs Harbour, NSW
Thursday November 18 - Beach Hotel, Byron Bay, NSW
Saturday November 20 - Metropole Hotel, Toowoomba, QLD
Sunday November 21 - Troccadero, Surfers Paradise, QLD
Wednesday November 24 - Back Door, Penrith, NSW
Thursday November 25 - ANU Bar, Canberra, ACT
Sunday November 28 - Brass Monkey, Cronulla, NSW

and instore appearances:

Saturday October 23 - Leading Edge Musicscene, Indooroopilly Mall, QLD at 11am
Sunday October 24 - HMV, Queen St, Brisbane, QLD at 12:30pm
Tuesday October 26 - Prosound, Narrabri (does anyone know where Narrabri is? Is it even real? Are they making this up to confuse me?) at 4pm
Wednesday October 27 - Virgin Megastore, George St, Sydney at 1pm
Thursday October 28 - Soundworld, Newcastle, NSW at 12:30pm
Sunday October 31 - HMV, Erina Fair, Central Coast, NSW at 1pm
Sunday November 7 - Trax Music, Whitfords Shopping Centre (come on, they're just adding these in so we're all impressed with how many instores they're doing) at 1pm
Friday November 12 - HMV, Bourke St, Melbourne, VIC at 4pm

W: http://www.evermoreband.com

Amazing Race 5 & The Apprentice 2

Enjoying watching these two shows at the moment. I can't help myself. I find myself reading the spoilers on the respective websites. But the shows are still fun to watch. If you want to find out who won the Amazing Race 5, it's on the website.

Amazing Race website: http://www.cbs.com/primetime/amazing_race5/
The Apprentice website: http://www.nbc.com/nbc/The_Apprentice_2/index.shtml

Anne Landa Exhibition and Award - 2 December to 13 February 2005

Six young and innovative artists have been selected for the inaugural Anne Landa Exhibition and Award - the first award exhibition in Australia for moving image and new media work.

The award has been established in honour of Anne Landa, a Trustee of the Art Gallery of New South Wales who died in 2002. This is the first in a biennial series of exhibitions, each with an acquisitive award of $25,000.

A panel comprising Juliana Engberg, Director of the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, Edmund Capon and Wayne Tunnicliffe, Curator of Contemporary Australian Art at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, selected the six artists whose work is represented in this exhibition. "We chose some of Australia's most innovative younger artists working with moving images for this first exhibition. The exhibition includes videos, DVDs, animations, and digital media. While the art ranges from the low-tech to the high-tech in approach, all of it reflects on the vital role of screen culture in shaping our lives."

Van Sowerwine's engaging animated girl invites us to play with her at a tea-party. As you interact with her screen image she responds to your suggestions, but playtime unfortunately becomes sinister as each decision you make on the doll's behalf has consequences. David Rosetzky's confessional videos consider how we represent our lives to ourselves and how our experience of self is affected by relationships with others. In Untouchable we look into three rooms whose inhabitants speak about an emotionally charged experience that is preoccupying them.

A subtle politics infuses Peter Hennessey's digital animation of the Voyager space probe and soundtrack of messages recorded for anyone in outer space who may encounter the voyager, greetings from earth to aliens. Guy Benfield constructs room environments and in a mock-ironic reprise of 70s performance art, he pours, splashes and rolls around in paint to make visceral, humourous, sexually charged art works recorded on video and played back in the final gallery installation.

Craig Walsh's projections of surprising images onto the Gallery's architecture confuse what the mind knows and what the eyes sees. A poetic beauty haunts Shaun Gladwell's low-fi videos of skateboarders, bike riders and break dancers as they take ownership of urban spaces, even momentarily, suggesting alternate ways in which we can we can live in a highly regulated physical environment.

"The exciting thing about the Anne Landa Award is that it will bring new faces, new work and new possibility into the Art Gallery of New South Wales. I can't think of a more true and fitting tribute to my mother. She was such a vibrant and passionate supporter of the arts and just loved encouraging new ideas. I know that she would think this award was pretty fabulous," said Sophie Landa.

The inaugural Anne Landa Award will be presented on Tuesday 18 January 2005 at 11am at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

W: http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/media/coming/anne_landa_announcement

Good Food Month - October 2004

SMH's Qantas Good Food Month is on till the end of October. Some of the top restaurants around Sydney offer a main course and a glass of wine for $30. There are also outdoor events like the Night Noodle Markets, the desserts for $15 from 9-11pm at some of the top hotels and more.

http://gfm.smh.com.au

Found Magazine

"we collect FOUND stuff: love letters, birthday cards, kids' homework, to-do lists, ticket stubs, poetry on napkins, telephone bills, doodles- anything that gives a glimpse into someone else's life. anything goes..."

The website is pretty cool. You can look at photos, notes and more that have been found.

W: http://www.foundmagazine.com

The Sydney Morning Herald & The Age Small Business Shows

Dates: Sydney 19-21 October, Melbourne: 27-29 October. There are also seminars at the show including presentations by Michael Gerber and Kate Veale, Google, Search Advertising.

W: http://www.businessconnect.com.au

Philippe Starck's optical mouse

Microsoft have released a Philippe Starck designed optical mouse. It retails for $59.95.

W: http://www.microsoft.com/australia/presspass/news/pressreleases/notstark.aspx and
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/10/15/1097784039858.html

Karaoke

A national karaoke competition will screen on SBS starting Sat 16th Oct at 7pm.
W: http://www.sbs.com.au/karaoke/

Karaoke in Australia is a website listing venues where you can practice karaoke and enter competitions. There are over 750 venues listed.
W: http://www.where2sing.com

My Architect - film on Louis Kahn

"When the great architect Louis Kahn died of a heart attack in 1974, bankrupt and alone in a men's room in New York City, he left behind a shadowy private life and luminous buildings of lasting beauty. His mourners included not only his wife and daughter but the two children he had by women in long-term, clandestine relationships.

Kahn's only son, Nathaniel, was then 11 years old; some 25 years later, as a filmmaker, he set out to discover the man he glimpsed only fleetingly in childhood. The result is this remarkable film, an inspired homage to his father's work, and a bracing, bittersweet testament of filial love mixed with pain and compassion."

A number of architects have commented that this is a must see film.

Showing at the Dendy. W: http://www.dendy.com.au

Art News Blog

"Art News Blog is a selection of visual art news, art reviews and art related stories online. We search the web for some of the more interesting art news stories published each day."

It is published by Australian painter Dion Archibald: http://www.dionarchibald.com/

W: http://www.artnewsblog.com
First sighted on Blogger's 'Blog of Note' page.

Motorised inline skates

Motosk8® is a motorised inline skate that can go 25mph. The high performance model can go 35mph. They retail for $US 749.

W: http://www.a2xtreme.com

Adobe Indesign - free seminars in Australia & NZ

Adobe are running free seminars on Adobe Indesign.
Dates: Brisbane: 19 Oct, Sydney: 21st Oct, Auckland 2 Nov, Melbourne 11 Nov.

W: http://www.adobe-events.com/2004seminars/ID_rego.html

Taking graphics to fabrics - Tue 26 Oct in Melbourne

AGDA Melbourne are organising a talk titled: Taking graphics to fabrics.

"As graphic design pervades today's visual style, how do its language, trends and methodologies, its digital tools and techniques, influence fashion and fabric designers? We touch the garment, from initial concept to finished product."

Speakers are: Ivan Gomez of Vicious Threads and Matthew Carmody of Neo Tokyo.

Details: C.U.B. Malthouse Theatre, 113 Sturt Street, Southbank. Tuesday 26 October 2004, 6.30pm for 7.00pm start. Drinks and finger food provided following seminar.
AGDA, IAA, AIMIA & MADC members: $27.50. Non-members: $55.00 Student-members: $16.50, Student non-members $22.00. Above prices include GST.

More details: http://www.agda.com.au/eventsnews/vic/events/2004/Taking.html

Car Sharing in Australia - discussion paper and seminar

The Australian Greenhouse Office has published a discussion paper titled Car Sharing - An Overview at: http://www.greenhouse.gov.au/tdm/publications/pubs/carsharing.pdf.

There will also be a seminar titled: Re-inventing the Private Car: changing personal mobility in the 21st Century for people interested in learning more about ideas and models of car sharing. Dates are Sydney: 16th November, Melbourne: 18th November.

W: http://www.futureffect.com/reinvent/ for more details of the seminars.

Last weekend

Went to another uni friends' wedding on the weekend. It was great to catch up with lots of people I hadn't seen in a while. Many of the uni group are now living all the over the world now, so it's always good to catch up in person.

Wimbledon Movie

Just saw the Wimbledon Movie. It's a great, fun, romantic comedy.
W: http://www.uip.co.uk/wimbledon/wimbledon.html

NSW KM Forum - Thu Oct 7

"Please note we have a different venue tonight only which has been generously offered by PricewaterhouseCoopers at 201 Sussex St (just down the road from the usual venue). Come up to the meeting rooms/reception on level 10

Maureen Henninger from UTS on Competitive Intelligence and KM
The presentation will examine competitive intelligence and the role of CI units as one of the building blocks of an organisation's strategic decision-making. Competitive intelligence gathering and analysis should be the responsibility of the entire organisation, whether that organisation is commerical, non-profit or government. The presentation will give an overview of some of the techniques and strategies for providing knowledge of the environment in which organisations must make decisions.

Larry Langman - how a meaningful KM capability might be built
Larry is a long time forum member, you'll now him as the person always ready with an interetsing question or connection to make. Now, Larry's going to present to us on some of his work at Woolworths. (We have often wondered what he does there!)
The premise of this presentation is that KM professionals need to get engaged in IT projects. Not because of their skill at cutting code....rather because there is a lot happening in that space that cries out for the skills and expertise that a KM professional can bring to the party.
This presentation explores some of what's happening, and ranges across the things Larry's engaged in.

When: Thu 7th Oct. Turn up by 5:30pm, talks start at 6pm. Finish at 7:30pm. Then down the road for drinks and chats.

Where: PricewaterhouseCoopers, 201 Sussex Street (corner of Druitt) level 10
If you get lost call James Digges on 0414 191 009"

W: http://www.nsw-km-forum.org.au/wiki.pl?NextMeeting

2004 Newtown Festival - Sun Nov 14

The Newtown Neighbourhood Centre Celebrating the Community for 25 years with the Newtown Festival. Camperdown Memorial Rest Park, Newtown. Sunday, November 14th, 2004.

W: http://www.newtowncentre.org/festival/

25m computer users find phone talk cheap

From The Age: "First it was KaZaA, used by 300 million mostly teenaged "pirates" to get free music over the internet.

Now, from Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis - the two Scandinavian computer programmers who gave us KaZaA - comes Skype, software that makes phone calls virtually free and unlimited.

Nearly 25 million people around the world, many in Australia, have downloaded the free software from http://www.skype.com - and the number was increasing by 100 a minute yesterday afternoon."

W: http://theage.com.au/articles/2004/09/27/1096137170836.html

Last weekend

Had a busy weekend. Went to the Hunter Valley for a friend's wedding on Saturday. Drove up on Saturday morning. Got back that evening. It was good to catch up with everyone. Lots of digital cameras. Lots of food and drink. Lots of celebration.

Went to the Art Gallery of NSW on Sunday. Had a look at the Celestial Silks exhibition. So much meaning in each gown. The gowns were gorgeous. Wandered through the rest of the gallery as well. Very busy. They had an art poster sale on as well.

Enjoyed a nice, relaxing day on Monday.

50 Coolest Websites - Time Magazine

Time Magazine has compiled a list of the top 50 websites they rate as the coolest, covering: News and Information, Lifestyle and Culture, Communities, Tools and Essentials, and Just for Fun.

W: http://www.time.com/time/techtime/200406/