Creations from Avalon Members

[thepainterdoug]

Anything created by Avalon Members be it inventions, writings , drawings, paintings, songs, or even pending ideas that members have created past and present and future
Can be your childhood drawings as well.

of course as painter doug, Ill get out of the gate with an old drawing study.

Pen on paper study analyzing the key angles of a young girl sitting in the park.

54735

[Bill Ryan]

We also have this beautiful thread, started by Harmony (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/member.php?46687-Harmony) in 2022, in the Express Yourself (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/forumdisplay.php?89-Express-Yourself) section:

Creativity to Inspire and Transform

:heart: (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?118178-Creativity-to-Inspire-and-Transform)

[norman]

Here's something I created in the first month of 2022 (I had no internet for over a month so I used the time to work on it off line). Some parts of it are reworkings of stuff I'd already done.

I didn't post it in Harmony's "Creativity to inspire and transform" thread because I didn't think it really fit the brief in the way I imagine she intended it. It's a long (CD length) audio montage. I burned it on to CDs to give away. I wanted to get it out into the world. It's a long (CD length) audio montage and I posted it on mixcloud where it got only double figure listenings. It didn't get much traction anywhere.

Last year I tried making an MP4 (video) format version of it to put on Rumble where I thought it might get more exposure. Nope, still no change, it broke through into 3 figure listenings after a few months but no sign of sharing or force multipliers. A 'Still' thumbnail and an audio track doesn't seem to hook into the zeitgeist like videos with AI produced dazzling primary coloured thumbnails and young people wearing baseball caps speaking inches away from big fat microphones they got from Amazon.

So, mainly for the historic record, now, here's the Rumble version of that big lump of work that caused a splash only at the bottom of the memory hole well.

S.O.S. WAKEUP - AUDIO MONTAGE

https://rumble.com/v2vvke4-s.o.s.-wakeup-audio-montage-by-norman-davies.html?e9s=src_v1_upp

v2ta54a/?pub=1yatds

[thepainterdoug]

Wow no takers?? Should we just combine it to the CREATIVITY TO INSPIRE AND TRANSFORM thread?

In the meantime, heres a fish on a plate that I caught painted and ate in Belize, years ago.

Fish oil on panel , 11x14

[thepainterdoug]

Hey Norman, thanks for contributing. But thats gonna take some time to listen. A late night will do

pd

[arwen]

My YouTube channel from back in the day. A series of fairly short, themed spiritual videos, set to music I found compelling, with images to match the themes:

Blue Crystal Eagle (https://www.youtube.com/user/bluecrystaleagle/videos)

Samples:

t8J9b9vdQbw

776EwEJFYNE

xJGZj6ValwY

hrjl2ABLCO4

[seehas]

Im not sure if this belongs here but i will tell you about my weird hobby. Sometimes i record videos with my telescope and later create some spaced out tunes on my synthesizer to them.

NCPlgRCT9wk

[Harmony]

Wow no takers?? Should we just combine it to the CREATIVITY TO INSPIRE AND TRANSFORM thread?

In the meantime, heres a fish on a plate that I caught painted and ate in Belize, years ago.

Fish oil on panel , 11x14


This is a wonderful thread Doug, and it is especially good for those members who want to share their work more publicly like Norm in post #3 (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?129479-Creations-from-Avalon-Members&p=1663061&viewfull=1#post1663061).


I love to see what members have personally created. Each creation is wonderful in it's own unique way. Arwen's instantly brought tingles and tears with the beauty portrayed. Others are so masterful and so personal in the way they are produced and convey different aspects of life as we perceive it.:heart:

[thepainterdoug]

seehas/ do you ever capture anomalies, objects or structures?

arwen/ thanks ! love the africa one

[seehas]

seehas/ do you ever capture anomalies, objects or structures?

arwen/ thanks ! love the africa one

Yes I've seen objects hover over the lunar surface before they even casted a shadow so they must have been huge but I did not capture this on video. There are many weird structures on the surface of the moon and when the atmosphere is good I love to observe the moon with more than x400 magnification.

The video is showing some kind of anomaly at 1:12 that weird looking line if you can see it.

https://i.ibb.co/CKk9KfPF/Screenshot-2025-04-04-22-55-03-640.jpg

[Harmony]

I hope this isn't too off topic. Eva2 kindly posted (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?92384-Weird-wild-weather-floods-freak-storms-giant-hail-record-lows-all-over-the-world&p=1663093&viewfull=1#post1663093) the following photo that her friend very recently took. It reminds me of your painting that you are using on your avatar.:stars:



https://scontent.fcxh3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/488769074_10162672683433535_5188708308902652836_n.jpg?_nc_cat=107&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=aa7b47&_nc_ohc=lN5dNLbLZdIQ7kNvwEqpdmO&_nc_oc=AdmwAWkv7Gcs42OZB9FHdXHpjsSBpQAeUu4b7QevNf-jt8EqzMApsnFvWa8mLKtD_uV_tbAzD6Uvls1BXWTwg_7T&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent.fcxh3-1.fna&_nc_gid=_zv2eDKPM-x79Ag7OvhtiA&oh=00_AYF03vetUlZC6gaWF-VTrjDtF-ggH9SRNWCtvLlC197w4A&oe=67F69EA4

[Ratszinger]

For 14 years I professionally made folding knives and sold them off my forum on Bladeforums.com. Before that I made straight knives for nearly 25 years on the side and the sheaths out of leather that I sewed myself before I dared even try my first folder. Once I made a folder things picked up though.
I also invented the fold over or 'Low Rider' pocket clip you see on about all pocket knife models being offered by manufacturers now. I used to sell those to fit any knife off my forum and before that before the internet even existed and it carried over into the internet age where they caught the attention of manufacturer reps at shows because my customers had them mounted on their knives!

I was making more pocket clips than folding knives when I retired. I retired and sold or traded off my shop to other knife makers now. This when I retired but I did create them. Stamped them all with my Runic initials, "STR" only straight lines. Even the pocket clips but they are all stamped on the back side underneath. Anyway the green folder I made has one mounted on it that I did for that model ordered that way by a customer..

Edit: I forgot to even mention that I wrote articles for Knife World, Blade, and Tactical Knives and I also designed a knife models for GEC Great Eastern Cutlery company that has become their most sought after collectible from what I've heard. An electricians knife I designed. Last one sold on ebay for a huge chunk of change after a bidding war. It was fun to watch! :-)

[thepainterdoug]

Harmony, that is certainly strange!!

Ratszinger/ those knife are great. I always a pocket knife clipped to my side when going about. I remember seeing a video of a man and his child walking when a vicious dog attacked the child. If it wasn't for the knife he had on him, the child would have been killed!
I like the top one, clean and simple

Her is another paining i did from my Religion in Uniform series.

I share a lot of art on my F Book incase anyone wants to see?

I invite all to join / https://www.facebook.com/dougauld222

"The Little Priest " oil 20x 24

[Raskolnikov]

Wow, some excellent creations from everyone. Really enjoyed all of it, and your paintings are great Doug. My best friend growing up was a painter. It is truly a special artform and takes great patience and practice, as well as a little talent, so well done.

Here's a passage from a book I wrote a long time ago. Not really sure how to format the paragraphs on this platform so excuse the block-style layout.



The Rising Light over Zurich

After the blizzard-like scenery from the train, I found it hard to believe the bright sunny weather blazing over Zurich. In every direction the view positively sang with life. I couldn’t have imagined a more beautiful city. The impression was that of familiar history, of beautiful historic architecture intimately spaced down charming tree-lined streets giving an overall effect of a small town where the pedestrians might address each other by name in passing. While off in the distance majestic snow-topped mountains protectively guarded the city and smiled down in praise of how the tiny humans had appreciated nature and managed to compliment their towering grandeur. I circled the station gaping in awe while maintaining proximity for fear of missing the connecting train.

After buying a cup of coffee, I found a bench, sat down and unwound. The sun continued its upward climb taking with it the sharp contrast and displaying the city in a more even light. And though the beauty continued to shine I found myself preoccupied and unsettled by the absence of something, something I couldn’t quite pin down or name. The rising light of day was robbing the city of its fresh vibrancy, its magnificent promise, something was slipping away with the shrinking shadows and the fading contrast and being replaced by a diffused and bleeding light, one stripped of any lazy or easy definition and void of all certainty. This impression deeply disturbed me, even causing me to tremble, and left me wondering why even this world’s most beautiful scenery managed to rouse in me a deep sense of melancholy and loss, an overwhelming feeling of desolation, as if I were suddenly in a ghost town and everything around me long dead.

But looking around everything appeared so alive that once again I couldn’t understand this growing sense of dread in the face of such beauty. Something within that beauty, something I couldn’t put into words let alone grasp or even remotely comprehend, was contradicting itself. Beauty was at war with itself, defying and negating itself, and I couldn’t fathom why. Examining the beauty around me, it felt as if it were revealing to me a great secret, a secret learned by so very few, but also a secret that comes at a great price, and survived by even fewer. I contemplated this secret for some long solitary moments, one moment feeling fortunate, the next not so, and wondered if it’s true import were indeed a blessing or a curse. With this terrible, conflicting sensation tearing at my breast, I tore my eyes away from the beauty and entered the station to catch the train.

[Mari]

Okay, my little contribution: the blossom on my Conference pear tree, taken last year, using my (rather old) digital camera. This year's blossom is late to appear, hence last year's photo.


54746

[thepainterdoug]

Mari, there is a divine little skip along of light in your flowers. like a musical rhythm
a beautiful composition

Raskoinikov. thats a stirring piece of writing. Thanks very much, I will copy and paste into my reader and read/ listen again. eerie!! and somehow I feel I have been there with those feelings.


BTW/ Raskolnikov , Ratszinger and Ravenlocke should be a law firm

[thepainterdoug]

a rare watercolor for me

Gallaping Horse

[Dilettante]

Here's an old drawing of a pug I did:

https://i.imgur.com/5EWk4Pd.jpeg

[EDIT] and A macro photo of ants attacking a worm:

https://i.imgur.com/YM2bvyp.jpeg

I don't do much art anymore. I don't write much, draw much, photograph much, or journal much anymore. I think too much. Sometimes it's upsetting to realize how much time has passed, but then I can't make sense of whether it matters or not.

[Satori]

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/9kfxdrdwxtapa327losxw/ANKjNf9W0JNXYRTKGmqOxnw?dl=0&e=1&preview=Little+Rock%27s+Run.mp4&rlkey=hg4ai4xvxbp584q85hkim4i84&st=l8c4cufx


If I did this right, the link above is to a documentary that I co-produced with USC film school graduate James Lujan in 1998 /1999. The title is: "Little Rock's Run". I am a co-creator with Little Rock (Deceased) and James Lujan. (I'm also depicted in the documentary; much more than I expected.) Little Rock died in about 2000, not long after he became a free man. That, too, is another story in and of itself.

It is a fascinating story about a former client of mine, Timothy "Little Rock" Reed. The documentary dates to 1998-99.

I was just able to have the video converted to digital. The reason that came about is a story in its own right. Little Rock's son, Jasper, who is depicted prominently in the documentary when he was a baby is now in federal prison in Oklahoma. Sentenced to prison for robbery, but now facing charges while in prison related to the death of another prisoner. In connection with Jasper's legal woes, I was recently contacted by the Oklahoma Federal Public Defenders Office. They were looking for information about Jasper's background and life history. That effort resulted in me giving them some audio and video tapes of Little Rock. One of the things I gave them was this documentary.

The documentary debut at the Taos, New Mexico, Talking Pictures Festival in 1999. It was very well received. We were going to submit it to Sundance, but at that time Sundance only accepted 35mm film, not video. We did not have the $35,000 to convert the video to film.

I have not watched the documentary in 20 years at least. I watched it again recently and realized that it is every bit as important and topical today as it was back then—if not more so.

My apologies for not just lodging the video here so that you do not have to go to the link. But I'm computer challenged.


I hope you enjoy. It's about 90 minutes. It starts off a bit slow as we introduce Little Rock. Then it picks up pretty good.

[Nasu]

Love this thread. Love all the creations you have all made, I hope you all continue in your own unique ways. Just wanted to ad a side note that not all of us create in the formal yet beautiful way as you do, but every member, in their own small way co creates this forum every day and in every post, some are akin to street graffiti or modern art, some just finger painting like myself and others are true masters in a renaissance style.

I commend all the creators on this wonderful forum no mater their choice of subject, form or expression…….x…… N

[Bill Ryan]

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/9kfxdrdwxtapa327losxw/ANKjNf9W0JNXYRTKGmqOxnw?dl=0&e=1&preview=Little+Rock%27s+Run.mp4&rlkey=hg4ai4xvxbp584q85hkim4i84&st=l8c4cufx


If I did this right, the link above is to a documentary that I co-produced with USC film school graduate James Lujan in 1998 /1999. The title is: "Little Rock's Run". I am a co-creator with Little Rock (Deceased) and James Lujan. (I'm also depicted in the documentary; much more than I expected.) Little Rock died in about 2000, not long after he became a free man. That, too, is another story in and of itself.

It is a fascinating story about a former client of mine, Timothy "Little Rock" Reed. The documentary dates to 1998-99.

I was just able to have the video converted to digital. The reason that came about is a story in its own right. Little Rock's son, Jasper, who is depicted prominently in the documentary when he was a baby is now in federal prison in Oklahoma. Sentenced to prison for robbery, but now facing charges while in prison related to the death of another prisoner. In connection with Jasper's legal woes, I was recently contacted by the Oklahoma Federal Public Defenders Office. They were looking for information about Jasper's background and life history. That effort resulted in me giving them some audio and video tapes of Little Rock. One of the things I gave them was this documentary.

The documentary debut at the Taos, New Mexico, Talking Pictures Festival in 1999. It was very well received. We were going to submit it to Sundance, but at that time Sundance only accepted 35mm film, not video. We did not have the $35,000 to convert the video to film.

I have not watched the documentary in 20 years at least. I watched it again recently and realized that it is every bit as important and topical today as it was back then—if not more so.

My apologies for not just lodging the video here so that you do not have to go to the link. But I'm computer challenged.


I hope you enjoy. It's about 90 minutes. It starts off a bit slow as we introduce Little Rock. Then it picks up pretty good.Here it is. :thumbsup:

(The original is a huge HD file. I had to downsize it quite a lot to post it — apologies! — so a little quality may have been lost.)

https://avalonlibrary.net/Bill/Little_Rock's_Run.mp4
https://avalonlibrary.net/Bill/Little_Rock's_Run.mp4

[rgray222]

Here are a few of my woodworking creations. I do projects for family and friends when there is a need or they ask. So much time and effort is put into these pieces that they are tough to part with, but it is a wonderful feeling when they get into homes and become everyday furniture. That is my partner in crime and my trusted companion Lily in the second photo.

The two nightstands I made for my son and his girlfriend when they moved in together. When they parted ways she kept the night tables. C'est la vie.

https://i.imgur.com/o2a1qRW.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/lWgzVrf.jpeg

I made this coffee table for my daughter and her husband. They had an odd-length L-shaped sofa so it was an unusual size. The wood is 100-year-old reclaimed lumber from a local barn that was being taken down.

https://i.imgur.com/RJgHlsg.jpg

This dining room table seats 6 and, in a pinch, 8. This is also made out of reclaimed local barn wood. I made this table for my daughter and her husband, but they recently moved to Wales, so it has returned home and will be moving to my son and his wife's new home.

https://i.imgur.com/B4sugSx.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/zoVYlqh.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/SWqbzEe.jpeg

[thepainterdoug]

rgray 222

great works. bravo!! and that people can use ,live with and enjoy them

[Mike Gorman]

I like your Fishy - this is somehow a very comforting painting, it captures the essential qualities enough for the 'photo realism' school but also has a specifically personal quality that speaks to me.

[thepainterdoug]

Dilettent, your Pug has a good Pug feel to it. and the closeup of the ant attack has good focus and depth of field.

BTW, great quote below, as I feel the same.



I don't do much art anymore. I don't write much, draw much, photograph much, or journal much anymore. I think too much. Sometimes it's upsetting to realize how much time has passed, but then I can't make sense of whether it matters or not.

[thepainterdoug]

Mike, thanks, I feel exactly that about it. it simple, relatable, uncluttered and clear. There are many levels of realism, or representational work

Here is a papaya painting from that Belize trip maybe 25 years ago.

papaya, oil 11x14

[Ratszinger]

Lovin' this thread! Love that six seater table and the other furniiture too RGray! Great stuff there. Great stuff everywhere! Thanks guys

[arwen]

Lovin' this thread! Love that six seater table and the other furniiture too RGray! Great stuff there. Great stuff everywhere! Thanks guys

Me too! Doug has a genius for starting really meaningful, HUMAN threads. I do not want to clutter up the thread with my constant admiration for ALL the creations posted here so far, but I am really blissing out on the wide range of incredible talent of each and every person who has posted here so far. (I am half way through satori's documentary now and WOW!). In AWE.

[wondering]

I have quilted for many years, and I am going to ask RunningDear if she will post a couple for me if I send them to her.

[thepainterdoug]

Arwen

it takes a moron to be a genius these days! its time to give it all up, without judgement , self ridicule and feeling competitive.

Time to be free/


Homesick Bee, oil and wax on paper. Made long ago, cant remember what kicked the idea off

[wondering]

There is something so touching about the Homesick Bee, Doug. I can really relate to her, lol.

[RunningDeer]

Wonderful works of art. Thanks all for sharing. https://i.imgur.com/viVu4qa.gif

I have quilted for many years, and I am going to ask RunningDear if she will post a couple for me if I send them to her.

Diane..so gorgeous! I’ll split them in two posts.


https://i.imgur.com/HW4NZs3.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/yW7RtAB.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/udBnrHo.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/jBVjWyM.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/kdXFZYH.jpg

[RunningDeer]

Quilt Art by Diane/wondering


https://i.imgur.com/gFobWiE.jpg


https://i.imgur.com/9Y9GXw4.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/sKMTo8u.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/5AKWcBU.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/9lcGzzd.jpg

[RunningDeer]

Digital art:


https://i.imgur.com/0SVVd8S.png

https://i.imgur.com/VPv9ejG.png




Photos of Sycamore trees where I live turned into digital art.


https://i.imgur.com/fgNdUw8.jpg




Medley of nature photos in one.


https://i.imgur.com/vLBjkHI.jpg






Photography: shots of where I walk.


https://i.imgur.com/50ZRpvN.png




A different kind of art.


https://i.imgur.com/FLiRHAW.jpg

[thepainterdoug]

DIANE/WANDERING AND RUNNING DEER. JUST AMAZING !! NO WAY!!! AMAZING, BEAUTIFUL !!!

Im sensing a PROJECT AVALON ART AND COLLECTABLES SHOP!! ONLY MEMBERS ART AND A % TO GO TO BILL AT AVALON.

AND WONDERING. Thanks! and yes to the sad homesick bee

[Raskolnikov]

Love this thread. Love all the creations you have all made, I hope you all continue in your own unique ways. Just wanted to ad a side note that not all of us create in the formal yet beautiful way as you do, but every member, in their own small way co creates this forum every day and in every post, some are akin to street graffiti or modern art, some just finger painting like myself and others are true masters in a renaissance style.

I commend all the creators on this wonderful forum no mater their choice of subject, form or expression…….x…… N

I wrote a whole page thanking everyone and complimenting some finer details of everyone's contributions but it started to sound like an Oscar speech, "Cue the music!!!" It says a lot about people who are more artistically inclined, whether it's handmade craftsmanship or other fine arts, I'm blown away by all of it, but it really says a lot about a community like this. Rather than become completely desensitized you've had the pleasure and honor of becoming more sensitized to this Rocky Horror Twilight Zone.

https://images3.memedroid.com/images/UPLOADED66/66c81b6b99968.webp

https://images7.memedroid.com/images/UPLOADED903/67ea280f6e1f8.webp

And let's not ever forget the reason we're all here, the eye-opening works from Bill. So thanks all, a real treat, keep em coming.


BTW/Raskolnikov, Ratszinger and Ravenlocke should be a law firm

Sounds like a WWII supergroup with members from all sides, we could call it “Allies on their Axis.” And the Homesick Bee. That's how I feel. “How much more ground do I have to cover to get home again?!” Very nice. It's been a long flight and it hasn't always been easy but glad to meet some likeminded individuals.

A rough night in Barcelona. I don't still hold the view that it's all vanity and suffering, though I've had my fair share...



Empathy in an Unforgiving Moment


Draining the last of the beer in a spiteful gulp, I set the empty glass upon the bar and watched as a couple of girls entered from the open doorway. One of the girls, a beautiful, tall, slender creature with thick black tresses and sculpted features, was clearly distraught crying fitfully and yelling passionately as the other, a shorter girl with short black hair, tried desperately to calm her putting her hands on her shoulders only to have them quickly knocked off again. As they continued up the room, the girl abruptly stopped two stools away, threw head down on folded arms atop the bar and let out an anguished cry. Her friend, instantly on her in an attempt to soothe and console, tried desperately to reason with her but to no avail. Clearly caught in the throes of passion, passion translated to suffering in its purest form, she was beyond any attempts at consolation. I sat weathering the storm as I waited for the man to see my empty glass. Then just as abruptly, with great agonizing moans, she pulled herself up and stormed off to the back of the room.

The man caught my eye and I motioned for another. As I watched the girls continue under the big screen TV, he placed a fresh beer before me. I set down another twenty and he snatched it up. ‘Well,’ I thought, determined not to get upset about the money, ‘at least I’m not outside on the streets.’ Strangely enough, the scene I’d just witnessed had had a calming affect on me, as if maybe I wasn’t the only one suffering tonight, as if maybe the whole big millennium buildup was just a ruse and deep down everyone was suffering. Then taking another drink I was struck by the absurdity of that notion and knew it was way off. Mulling it over, I realized I’m one of the unfortunate few who instinctively understands this world holds nothing palpable, nothing beyond vanity and suffering, and that both are a means and an end intertwined. The girl at the back of the room continued to argue and sob, her love, her vanity, insulted, unable to get past the moment of horrible realization, a moment no one is ready or willing to face, and staring into the glass of beer before me I realized I too was facing that same horrible and unforgiving moment.

[RunningDeer]

June 4, 2024

Minutes into my walk, a deer crossed the road and high tailed into the woods when she saw me. She doubled back and gracefully leaped the tall grasses and electric fence into the field and darted off towards the protected wetlands.

Kismet happened a moment later when I had a flash in my mind of She-deer in the marshes. I saw what looked like a rotted out tree. That is until she saw I was looking back at her. One last leap through the grassy clumps and mucky waters and She-deer disappeared.

:heart:

[Strat]

-----knife post------

Very cool! Quick question: How should I clean a blade? I have an old knife that I use for plants and over the years the blade has become stained. The stains are stubborn, I can't get any of it off. I hesitate taking the wire wheel to it. Thoughts?



This dining room table seats 6 and, in a pinch, 8. This is also made out of reclaimed local barn wood. I made this table for my daughter and her husband, but they recently moved to Wales, so it has returned home and will be moving to my son and his wife's new home.


I love it! One of my hobbies is building things with pallets. I made an entertainment center, my main workbench for working on cars and little knickknacks like storage boxes for tools and my prepper food.

[Satori]

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/9kfxdrdwxtapa327losxw/ANKjNf9W0JNXYRTKGmqOxnw?dl=0&e=1&preview=Little+Rock%27s+Run.mp4&rlkey=hg4ai4xvxbp584q85hkim4i84&st=l8c4cufx


If I did this right, the link above is to a documentary that I co-produced with USC film school graduate James Lujan in 1998 /1999. The title is: "Little Rock's Run". I am a co-creator with Little Rock (Deceased) and James Lujan. (I'm also depicted in the documentary; much more than I expected.) Little Rock died in about 2000, not long after he became a free man. That, too, is another story in and of itself.

It is a fascinating story about a former client of mine, Timothy "Little Rock" Reed. The documentary dates to 1998-99.

I was just able to have the video converted to digital. The reason that came about is a story in its own right. Little Rock's son, Jasper, who is depicted prominently in the documentary when he was a baby is now in federal prison in Oklahoma. Sentenced to prison for robbery, but now facing charges while in prison related to the death of another prisoner. In connection with Jasper's legal woes, I was recently contacted by the Oklahoma Federal Public Defenders Office. They were looking for information about Jasper's background and life history. That effort resulted in me giving them some audio and video tapes of Little Rock. One of the things I gave them was this documentary.

The documentary debut at the Taos, New Mexico, Talking Pictures Festival in 1999. It was very well received. We were going to submit it to Sundance, but at that time Sundance only accepted 35mm film, not video. We did not have the $35,000 to convert the video to film.

I have not watched the documentary in 20 years at least. I watched it again recently and realized that it is every bit as important and topical today as it was back then—if not more so.

My apologies for not just lodging the video here so that you do not have to go to the link. But I'm computer challenged.


I hope you enjoy. It's about 90 minutes. It starts off a bit slow as we introduce Little Rock. Then it picks up pretty good.

The link I posted to the documentary “Little Rock’s Run” no longer works.

Please go to post 21 on this thread to watch the documentary. Thanks to Bill who graciously worked his magic.

Was Little Rock a “fugitive from justice” or a “refugee from injustice.”

You decide.

[Ratszinger]

-----knife post------

Very cool! Quick question: How should I clean a blade? I have an old knife that I use for plants and over the years the blade has become stained. The stains are stubborn, I can't get any of it off. I hesitate taking the wire wheel to it. Thoughts?



This dining room table seats 6 and, in a pinch, 8. This is also made out of reclaimed local barn wood. I made this table for my daughter and her husband, but they recently moved to Wales, so it has returned home and will be moving to my son and his wife's new home.


I love it! One of my hobbies is building things with pallets. I made an entertainment center, my main workbench for working on cars and little knickknacks like storage boxes for tools and my prepper food.

Try a inexpensive rust eraser from Smokey Mountain Knife works. Those work wonderfully for cleaning up carbon blades. You will always see the patina but this knocks off any surface yuk

[thepainterdoug]

Portrait of actor James Dean oil on canvas 50x60

JAMES DEAN/ POND LIFE/ from my dimorphic realism series

[RunningDeer]

Art in Motion...

Tai Chi snippet, June, 2012 (1:24 min)

The vid is in real time.

sI3OGq0pGAY

[Strat]

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/9kfxdrdwxtapa327losxw/ANKjNf9W0JNXYRTKGmqOxnw?dl=0&e=1&preview=Little+Rock%27s+Run.mp4&rlkey=hg4ai4xvxbp584q85hkim4i84&st=l8c4cufx


If I did this right, the link above is to a documentary that I co-produced with USC film school graduate James Lujan in 1998 /1999. The title is: "Little Rock's Run". I am a co-creator with Little Rock (Deceased) and James Lujan. (I'm also depicted in the documentary; much more than I expected.) Little Rock died in about 2000, not long after he became a free man. That, too, is another story in and of itself.

It is a fascinating story about a former client of mine, Timothy "Little Rock" Reed. The documentary dates to 1998-99.

I was just able to have the video converted to digital. The reason that came about is a story in its own right. Little Rock's son, Jasper, who is depicted prominently in the documentary when he was a baby is now in federal prison in Oklahoma. Sentenced to prison for robbery, but now facing charges while in prison related to the death of another prisoner. In connection with Jasper's legal woes, I was recently contacted by the Oklahoma Federal Public Defenders Office. They were looking for information about Jasper's background and life history. That effort resulted in me giving them some audio and video tapes of Little Rock. One of the things I gave them was this documentary.

The documentary debut at the Taos, New Mexico, Talking Pictures Festival in 1999. It was very well received. We were going to submit it to Sundance, but at that time Sundance only accepted 35mm film, not video. We did not have the $35,000 to convert the video to film.

I have not watched the documentary in 20 years at least. I watched it again recently and realized that it is every bit as important and topical today as it was back then—if not more so.

My apologies for not just lodging the video here so that you do not have to go to the link. But I'm computer challenged.


I hope you enjoy. It's about 90 minutes. It starts off a bit slow as we introduce Little Rock. Then it picks up pretty good.

The link I posted to the documentary “Little Rock’s Run” no longer works.

Please go to post 21 on this thread to watch the documentary. Thanks to Bill who graciously worked his magic.

Was Little Rock a “fugitive from justice” or a “refugee from injustice.”

You decide.

Your link worked for me, I even downloaded the video. FWIW you can upload this for free to google drive, they give you 15 gigs free.

I've watched about a quarter of it, I'll finish it tonight. Calling the Lucasville riot a 'riot' is an understatement. For those that don't know, it's not like a bunch of rival gangs took over the yard, fought each other and raised hell. They took over the entire prison for a long time. IIRC the prison was surrounded by local police, almost like Jonestown. The prisoners got control of the cell doors, opened the cells and took guards as prisoners. It's interesting Little Rock predicted this happening. Netflix did an amazing documentary on the Lucasville Riot.

Satori are you familiar with Michael Thompson? And if so did you ever speak with him? He said the same thing (maybe even to this day) about discrimination he faced in the prison system as a Native American. He is a very interesting person and can tell quite the tale.

Here he is talking about it in an excerpt of one of his interviews:
EP5ktrh_EHg

[wondering]

RunningDeer, Very beautiful Tai Chi snippet...is this you, by chance?

[RunningDeer]

RunningDeer, Very beautiful Tai Chi snippet...is this you, by chance?




Yes. Thank you, Diane. https://i.imgur.com/gXR1YbU.gif

[thepainterdoug]

How bout Peaches? oil on canvas 11x14

[thepainterdoug]

i thought I would share how I go about a portrait.

1 get rid of all white on the canvas..

2 rough in shapes with an earth tone and squint to see the person im creating.

3 .once i can see a good likeness , I proceed to the finish. If the rough squint does not look like it, no more work on the painting will help until i correct that

Wilhelm Reich oil, 9x 12

[Jaak]

Your paintings are amazing doug ! Thats some serious talent or skill. Did you learn it in some art school or it came to you naturally ?
I have zero talent when it comes to drawing or painting but 2 years ago when i was homeless for a month i spent my time by warming myself in sunshine while learning sacred geometry by drawing it .
This one i made on my skateboard in less than 2 hours. A lot of imperfections in it because surface wasnt flat but concaved . I have one sketchbook full of geometry scribblings but nothing original in there , just following the patterns of sacred geometry. Skill we learn in this life will become a talent in next one ...
https://i.ibb.co/HLxnwGKS/IMG-20231227-142519.jpg (https://ibb.co/hxZDQ2g6)

[thepainterdoug]

Jaak amazing !! , while homeless you got into that? well thats a skill i certainly do not have

thanks for the compliment on my paintings, Im both self taught and some continuing ed

[Raskolnikov]

Agreed, great paintings Doug. Those peaches are amazing. One of the most beautiful acts ever bestowed upon me. It's ironic how the highest and lowest moments in your life can happen in the same night.

[Jaak]

I had too much free time so i had to fill it somehow. I read books from Drunvalo Melchizedek years before (The ancient secret of flower of life part 1 and 2) so i went through them again and just tried to replicate all the sacred geometry drawings in it and tried to understand things in his books and it certainly helped. Only way to understand sacred geometry is by drawing it . And its easier than one might expect.
First it was hard but now i understand the relationship of square and circle and everything that comes from it. Still plenty to learn but at least i know the basics.
To do paintings like you do is for me impossible and whole different level . Even rocket science seems way easier than to figure out how to paint like you do . Much respect .
As you sayd you didnt learn the skill so you have talent . I always sucked at drawing and painting things so i never really enjoyed doing it or havent had an urge to do it but i have lived together with all kinds of musicians and artists over the years so i understand its an natural outlet for many . As i sayd , skill we learn in this life will become talent in next one so lets learn more skills so we can be even better in next life !
I havent created/let out of me anything in a while and this topic reminds me that i should. Before i was skateboarding for 20 years and that was my main outlet of creativity , its like a mix of acrobatics and dancing. Now im getting a bit old for this but still will try when weather gets good .
Having an outlet of creativity certainly brings joy to the soul . I forgot it for quite some time , this topic reminded me it !
Keep on painting, keep on creating , keep expressing your inner world to outside world !!

[RunningDeer]

Diane (wondering) is kindness and heart in action. :heart:
She'll be along shortly to explain this photo. https://i.imgur.com/PA8kf4P.gif

https://i.imgur.com/R8yNYOW.jpg

[wondering]

There are animal shelters that request mats for the bottoms of kitty cages because the grate or bars are uncomfortable on their little paws and bottoms. They request 18" x 12" which fit most cages. the one pictured in post #52 is a little smaller than that. I have lots of leftover fabric from quilts that I am happy to use. The most recent request was from a shelter in Arkansas following their recent tornadoes. I just started doing this.

[Dilettante]

Some random digital art creations.

https://i.imgur.com/bPwRUgZ.png

https://i.imgur.com/YVFlnbm.jpeg

https://i.imgur.com/aPIxJLn.png

https://i.imgur.com/SOChvDQ.jpeg

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/shanedrabing/polyfoto/refs/heads/main/docs/bna_science_mosaic.jpg

[RunningDeer]

Random graphics I’ve posted on the forum.

https://i.imgur.com/zYeeSFC.png Many know Avalon member, LionHawk from his thread called, “Put Another Log On The Fire”. I used his avatar to make this for his thread:


https://i.imgur.com/3doD2Tq.jpg

For Shadowself/Brook (RIP), a coffee aficionado.


https://i.imgur.com/QRTnySS.jpg


Many know this about themselves.


https://i.imgur.com/J3jMBhs.jpg

Diane/wondering, we’re multi-dimensional neighbors.


https://i.imgur.com/jAfXkFc.jpg


Dave is an avid Big Foot guy. He always ends his post with: Dave, from Toronto


https://i.imgur.com/il1fCpB.jpg

Thank you notes:


https://i.imgur.com/89McUVr.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/dFj4Nmc.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/4QrnU7E.gif

[RunningDeer]

Graphics for when threads hit milestones:


https://i.imgur.com/DqshtTK.gif

https://i.imgur.com/aCN9lI9.gif


Paula/RunningDeer


https://i.imgur.com/BF1NKxf.jpg

This’s and that’s:


https://i.imgur.com/he9k3XZ.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/vihEd5i.gif

https://i.imgur.com/0OtwKIs.gif

https://i.imgur.com/vG0LMsy.jpg

[Satori]

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/9kfxdrdwxtapa327losxw/ANKjNf9W0JNXYRTKGmqOxnw?dl=0&e=1&preview=Little+Rock%27s+Run.mp4&rlkey=hg4ai4xvxbp584q85hkim4i84&st=l8c4cufx


If I did this right, the link above is to a documentary that I co-produced with USC film school graduate James Lujan in 1998 /1999. The title is: "Little Rock's Run". I am a co-creator with Little Rock (Deceased) and James Lujan. (I'm also depicted in the documentary; much more than I expected.) Little Rock died in about 2000, not long after he became a free man. That, too, is another story in and of itself.

It is a fascinating story about a former client of mine, Timothy "Little Rock" Reed. The documentary dates to 1998-99.

I was just able to have the video converted to digital. The reason that came about is a story in its own right. Little Rock's son, Jasper, who is depicted prominently in the documentary when he was a baby is now in federal prison in Oklahoma. Sentenced to prison for robbery, but now facing charges while in prison related to the death of another prisoner. In connection with Jasper's legal woes, I was recently contacted by the Oklahoma Federal Public Defenders Office. They were looking for information about Jasper's background and life history. That effort resulted in me giving them some audio and video tapes of Little Rock. One of the things I gave them was this documentary.

The documentary debut at the Taos, New Mexico, Talking Pictures Festival in 1999. It was very well received. We were going to submit it to Sundance, but at that time Sundance only accepted 35mm film, not video. We did not have the $35,000 to convert the video to film.

I have not watched the documentary in 20 years at least. I watched it again recently and realized that it is every bit as important and topical today as it was back then—if not more so.

My apologies for not just lodging the video here so that you do not have to go to the link. But I'm computer challenged.


I hope you enjoy. It's about 90 minutes. It starts off a bit slow as we introduce Little Rock. Then it picks up pretty good.

The link I posted to the documentary “Little Rock’s Run” no longer works.

Please go to post 21 on this thread to watch the documentary. Thanks to Bill who graciously worked his magic.

Was Little Rock a “fugitive from justice” or a “refugee from injustice.”

You decide.

Your link worked for me, I even downloaded the video. FWIW you can upload this for free to google drive, they give you 15 gigs free.

I've watched about a quarter of it, I'll finish it tonight. Calling the Lucasville riot a 'riot' is an understatement. For those that don't know, it's not like a bunch of rival gangs took over the yard, fought each other and raised hell. They took over the entire prison for a long time. IIRC the prison was surrounded by local police, almost like Jonestown. The prisoners got control of the cell doors, opened the cells and took guards as prisoners. It's interesting Little Rock predicted this happening. Netflix did an amazing documentary on the Lucasville Riot.

Satori are you familiar with Michael Thompson? And if so did you ever speak with him? He said the same thing (maybe even to this day) about discrimination he faced in the prison system as a Native American. He is a very interesting person and can tell quite the tale.

Here he is talking about it in an excerpt of one of his interviews:
EP5ktrh_EHg

Strat, I am not familiar with Michael Thompson. But from the short clip you provided it sounds like he ran into the same issues as did Little Rock concerning barriers to Native American religious expression in prison. I hope you were able to watch the remainder of the documentary and enjoyed it.

[Raskolnikov]

Here's something I created in the first month of 2022 (I had no internet for over a month so I used the time to work on it off line). Some parts of it are reworkings of stuff I'd already done.

I didn't post it in Harmony's "Creativity to inspire and transform" thread because I didn't think it really fit the brief in the way I imagine she intended it. It's a long (CD length) audio montage. I burned it on to CDs to give away. I wanted to get it out into the world. It's a long (CD length) audio montage and I posted it on mixcloud where it got only double figure listenings. It didn't get much traction anywhere.

Last year I tried making an MP4 (video) format version of it to put on Rumble where I thought it might get more exposure. Nope, still no change, it broke through into 3 figure listenings after a few months but no sign of sharing or force multipliers. A 'Still' thumbnail and an audio track doesn't seem to hook into the zeitgeist like videos with AI produced dazzling primary coloured thumbnails and young people wearing baseball caps speaking inches away from big fat microphones they got from Amazon.

So, mainly for the historic record, now, here's the Rumble version of that big lump of work that caused a splash only at the bottom of the memory hole well.

S.O.S. WAKEUP - AUDIO MONTAGE

https://rumble.com/v2vvke4-s.o.s.-wakeup-audio-montage-by-norman-davies.html?e9s=src_v1_upp

v2ta54a/?pub=1yatds

Wanted to cirlce back to the beginning. Norman, that passage from Fitts about patenting humans through vaccination has always haunted me. Reminds me of Monsanto's gmo patent infringement lawsuits against farmers. But contamination through vaccines takes it to a whole new level of patent infringement - ownership of the populace? Human 2.0 - "Brought to you by Pfizer." Wtf?

Some great clips. If you put that to a moving picture or spliced in clips from movies or vids or some interesting computer art, I bet it would take off. Don't ask me how, I'm computer illiterate, but most people nowadays tend to prefer moving images to the "still life with windmills." I personally love that image, but it doesn't bring out the urgency of your S.O.S.


https://projectavalon.net/forum4/attachment.php?attachmentid=54735&d=1743776456

And the young girl sitting in the park, Doug, is excellent. You can almost count the number of strokes you used and yet she really comes to life. I sit here wondering what she's thinking. Good stuff. Reminds me of an etching, I always loved the contrast they displayed.

[thepainterdoug]

Raskolnikov

thank you , regarding the pen drawing .

funny about art, how I appreciate that little drawing now, more than when I did it. i think art takes time to settle, to ferment perhaps like wine before you can get a look at what its long lasting qualities are.

heres another one I scratched out on the same day when in the park years ago .

d

[Raskolnikov]

Raskolnikov

thank you , regarding the pen drawing .

funny about art, how I appreciate that little drawing now, more than when I did it. i think art takes time to settle, to ferment perhaps like wine before you can get a look at what its long lasting qualities are.

heres another one I scratched out on the same day when in the park years ago .

d

https://projectavalon.net/forum4/attachment.php?attachmentid=54910&stc=1&d=1744642746

Damn it, Doug, now you brought in Tartaria, that's a whole other thread. Really nice. It gives the old world a warm feel somehow. Love the wine analogy, that's so good. It truly is like a wine getting better with time. The early stuff takes on a whole new meaning later in life, not so much from nostalgia as much as insight, and a new appreciation for both what you created and the experiences which inspired it. I could go on but I won't.

[Raskolnikov]

I hope you meant this thread as a way of sharing our creations and exchanging ideas about the thought and physical processes which brought them about Doug, because everything shared so far is worth a rehash.

Dilettante, I love the fractal fire. I want that on my wall! it's like opening a portal to another world, I think I visited that one back in my mushroom days, lol. Curious as to how you make such an image. Is it more a program or an intimate knowledge of the computer itself?


Some random digital art creations.

https://i.imgur.com/SOChvDQ.jpeg

And rgray222, I love the coffee and dining room tables. That reclaimed wood looks so rich and I especially like the way you balanced the inside planks of the coffee table, the way the grain/grooves curve in opposite directions like a yin yang. Is that the grain of the wood or the sander that did that? Because the results are quite nice. It's the little things and the attention to detail that is so sorely lacking in our big box stores and mass production today. You've got a real talent there. It's old world modern, lol.


I made this coffee table for my daughter and her husband. They had an odd-length L-shaped sofa so it was an unusual size. The wood is 100-year-old reclaimed lumber from a local barn that was being taken down.

https://i.imgur.com/RJgHlsg.jpg

This dining room table seats 6 and, in a pinch, 8. This is also made out of reclaimed local barn wood. I made this table for my daughter and her husband, but they recently moved to Wales, so it has returned home and will be moving to my son and his wife's new home.

https://i.imgur.com/B4sugSx.jpeg

[rgray222]

I hope you meant this thread as a way of sharing our creations and exchanging ideas about the thought and physical processes which brought them about Doug, because everything shared so far is worth a rehash.

And rgray222, I love the coffee and dining room tables. That reclaimed wood looks so rich and I especially like the way you balanced the inside planks of the coffee table, the way the grain/grooves curve in opposite directions like a yin yang. Is that the grain of the wood or the sander that did that? Because the results are quite nice. It's the little things and the attention to detail that is so sorely lacking in our big box stores and mass production today. You've got a real talent there. It's old world modern, lol.


I made this coffee table for my daughter and her husband. They had an odd-length L-shaped sofa so it was an unusual size. The wood is 100-year-old reclaimed lumber from a local barn that was being taken down.

https://i.imgur.com/RJgHlsg.jpg

This dining room table seats 6 and, in a pinch, 8. This is also made out of reclaimed local barn wood. I made this table for my daughter and her husband, but they recently moved to Wales, so it has returned home and will be moving to my son and his wife's new home.

https://i.imgur.com/B4sugSx.jpeg

I believe what you are referring to in the wood are the original saw cuts. The wood was all hand-hewn about 150 years ago. I did sand the wood, but I wanted to make sure that many of the saw marks could be seen and that the wood retained its rustic and authentic appearance. I put several coats of clear poly to level out some of the imperfections and to make it scratch and water-resistant. So, what you are looking at is the actual colour of the wood as it aged over the years. Oddly, the saw marks you're referring to are more prominent in the photo than in real life. It is an absolute treat to work with this lumber and to give it a second (hopefully) long life.
Thanks

[Raskolnikov]

I believe what you are referring to in the wood are the original saw cuts. The wood was all hand-hewn about 150 years ago. I did sand the wood, but I wanted to make sure that many of the saw marks could be seen and that the wood retained its rustic and authentic appearance. I put several coats of clear poly to level out some of the imperfections and to make it scratch and water-resistant. So, what you are looking at is the actual colour of the wood as it aged over the years. Oddly, the saw marks you're referring to are more prominent in the photo than in real life. It is an absolute treat to work with this lumber and to give it a second (hopefully) long life.
Thanks

Yeah, some of that old wood looks really nice after it's aged. Many ruin a good piece of wood with too much stain or color. And I was wrong on both counts - it wasn't the grain or the sander but old saw cuts from the mill. There's a mill not far from here. They stay pretty busy but prices have gone insane. Anyway, nice work.

And nice quilts wondering. I could sleep soundly in something like this:


https://i.imgur.com/udBnrHo.jpg

And RunningDeer, I really like some of that digital art in your first post:





Digital art:


https://i.imgur.com/0SVVd8S.png

https://i.imgur.com/VPv9ejG.png




Photos of Sycamore trees where I live turned into digital art.


https://i.imgur.com/fgNdUw8.jpg

Just what ethereal plane are you living on? The mirror image effect turns everything otherworldly. And where you walk (see post https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?129479-Creations-from-Avalon-Members&p=1663270&viewfull=1#post1663270) looks very peaceful.

It appears you truly are a "Forest Dweller."

[RunningDeer]

Just what ethereal plane are you living on? The mirror image effect turns everything otherworldly. And where you walk (see post https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?129479-Creations-from-Avalon-Members&p=1663270&viewfull=1#post1663270) looks very peaceful.

It appears you truly are a "Forest Dweller."



Thank you, Raskolnikov. https://i.imgur.com/1zXOufk.gif

Alas, time has changed the landscapes. Many of my favorite trees are gone. Photos and memories of our conversations are treasures for a lifetime. Yes, I’m a 100% forest dweller. I’ve lived most of my life surrounded by nature. It’s a place that nurtures me to my core.

I’ve posted elsewhere, how in my youth, I’d play in what we called, “FairyLand”. It was a marshy, stream filled area that was loaded with rotting logs of paper birch, violets, skunk cabbage, grasses, thorns, peeper frogs and such. Back then I could see the wee-ones.

In another special place on the property there were high grasses and sumac bushes/trees. I’d hide from my younger siblings and ‘float’ on all fours with the help of my wee friends. I’d get that tickle in the belly and off I went tumbling, floating and giggling. What a rush! Back then, I didn’t know it was not possible.

This is a graphic I made after one of my walks some years ago. I call it ”Tree Talk”.
:heart:


https://i.imgur.com/F7uhpao.jpg

[Dilettante]

Thanks for the kind words.


Dilettante, I love the fractal fire. I want that on my wall! it's like opening a portal to another world, I think I visited that one back in my mushroom days, lol. Curious as to how you make such an image. Is it more a program or an intimate knowledge of the computer itself?


Some random digital art creations.

https://i.imgur.com/SOChvDQ.jpeg

It's a C program! I had to go back and look at my old programming directory to find it, but here's the relevant portion of the code for the Mandelbrot renders.


#include <stdio.h>
#include <time.h>

#include "mandelbrot.h"
#include "drawing.h"


// FUNCTIONS


BITS mandelbrot(METAIMGPTR img, double complex* c) {
double complex z = (*c);
BITS i = 0;
while ((z == z) && i < img->depth) {
z = (z * z) + (*c);
i++;
}
return i * (z != z);
}


// SCRIPT


void mandelbrot_script(METAIMGPTR img) {
float w, h, x, y, i, propx, propy, halfx, halfy;
float k, ok, limk, propkx, propky;
double x0, x1, y0, y1;
double complex cmplx;
BITS length, distance;
int randmod = 100;

// mode
bool binary_mode = false;

w = img->width;
h = img->height;

// viewport
x0 = -1.75;
x1 = 0.75;
y0 = -1.25;
y1 = 1.25;

y0 = -0.75;
y1 = -0.50;
x0 = -0.675;
x1 = -0.425;

y0 = -0.585;
y1 = -0.535;
x0 = -0.595;
x1 = -0.545;

limk = 8.0;
for (y = 0; y < h; y++) {
propy = y / h;
halfy = 2.0 * fabs(propy - 0.5);
printf("%f\r", propy);
for (x = 0; x < w; x++) {
propx = x / h;
halfx = 2.0 * fabs(propx - 0.5);

i = 0.0;
for (k = 0; k < limk; k++) {
propkx = propx + (float)(rand() % randmod) / (1000.0 * randmod);
propky = propy + (float)(rand() % randmod) / (1000.0 * randmod);
cmplx = (x0 * (1 - propkx) + x1 * propkx) + (y0 * (1 - propky) + y1 * propky) * I;
distance = mandelbrot(img, &cmplx);
k += powf(distance / img->depth, 0.5) * (2.0); // * ((distance == img->depth - 1) ? 0.0 : 1.0);
// printf("%f\t", k);
if (distance == distance) {
i++;
if (binary_mode) {
// printf("fmod(distance, 2.0) = %f\n", fmod(distance, 2.0));
length += (double)fmod(clamp(distance, 0.0, img->depth), 2.0);
} else {
length += distance;
}
}
// printf("%f ", k);
}
// printf("\n");

if (binary_mode) {
// printf("%f ", limk);
length = clamp(length / i, 0, 1);
set_grayscale(length);
} else {
length = clamp(length / i, 0.0, img->depth) / img->depth;
// length = expf(length) - 1.0;
// set_grayscale(powf(3.33 * length, 1.33));
double z = length > 0.01 ? length : 0.0;
// set_hsv_alpha(-15.0 + 360.0 * length, z, z, z * powf(length, 0.15));
set_grayscale(z);
}

draw_pixel(img, y, x);
}
}
printf("\n");
}

Being as I wrote this code 4 years ago, I've lost all intuitive "feel" for the program, which is a huge part of being able to think within the constraints. I am pretty sure I remember taking the render from grayscale, sometimes black and white (modulo), and false coloring it with a gradient in Photoshop, pretty much the same way they do astronomical "photos" (most often collages of sensor readings).

In many ways, my code is my art, which is why I have such an aesthetic sense of it. If it is poetic, functional, and works with an interesting idea -- all the more beautiful!

[Dilettante]

Here's an example of a smooth grayscale Mandelbrot

https://i.imgur.com/yafViUp.jpeg

And one with modulo applied, so it reverses black or white every time you "step down" into the function

https://i.imgur.com/WuKtuU8.jpeg

[RunningDeer]

Avalon members and loved ones:



https://i.imgur.com/GPV356w.png

https://i.imgur.com/7d0Xi1k.png

https://i.imgur.com/8BsPuT4.png

https://i.imgur.com/CHe8iZH.png

[RunningDeer]

Animation:



https://i.imgur.com/zt5TSHC.gif




https://i.imgur.com/waKUmRo.gif


Debra/Zebra/Lady Z



https://i.imgur.com/UTJ2kAm.gif

https://i.imgur.com/JM3DhGO.gif

https://i.imgur.com/KAM2V00.gif


Greetings on the Here and Now thread



https://i.imgur.com/luiUyKQ.gif

[Harmony]

Paula your so gifted :heart:


https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSQwTpeBmrJ99zFLoNBb2C6CyT1b305zlNZUw&s

[Michel Leclerc]

Love your Zurich text, Raskolnikov – all its dimensions.

Is it the original or an English translation?

[Michel Leclerc]

Jaak, I love your skateboard, and that you ride on it. The most ethereal spirituality is at our feet.

[Michel Leclerc]

Love your Homesick bee Doug. It has a Blakean feel to it.

Also the papaya and the fish staring at me.

[Michel Leclerc]

Dilettante, don’t do the "don’t anymore" anymore.

Nostratically speaking, "think" and "do" may share their origin.

[Michel Leclerc]

I shall not be confined (https://michelleclerc.wordpress.com/2020/04/15/20200415-i-shall-not-be-confined/)

[RunningDeer]

The first graphic was a thanks to the person who donated funds for Ivermectin pills at a time when it was near impossible for many of us to get.

* And a special thanks to the one who packaged and mailed them.https://i.imgur.com/nXE8XIj.gif


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Sierra (RIP), former Avalon Administrator

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[thepainterdoug]

Thanks everyone. glad to see this is still going!! Mandelbrots are out there. Memes are great as well. Thanks for the link Michel

Heres another aspect of realism, a bit more brush and gesture evident. this is why I dont really care for computer art. Art is very much about the human hand interpreting thoughts and perception.
Not necessarily exactness

coffee maker / oil on board

[Raskolnikov]

Love your Zurich text, Raskolnikov – all its dimensions.

Is it the original or an English translation?

Original, with some fine tuning. A few years ago, I reread an old book I wrote some 25 years ago. While doing so some old passages jumped out at me and I thought, "Wow, that's pretty nice." I recently felt inspired to fine tune a few and was pleasantly surprised by that one. It really captures my conflicted nature at the time. I enjoyed your story as well. Leave it to the Europeans to spice things up a bit. And RunningDeer, that's some fun stuff too. So remembering the talk about how early works can age like a fine wine and appreciating them more later in life, this was one of my very first short stories that I've found myself growing more fond of as the years go by. Now please understand that I have the utmost respect for women and this was written more with a playful intent than an objectifying or demeaning one. I was in my mid-twenties and Bukowski was an influence. But it all just harkens back to a time when things seemed simpler. Don't get me wrong, at the time things seemed tough, difficult, impossible even, but viewing it from our new perspective nowadays, those days were gold. Yes, I use some language, but it's all meant in the most endearing way. And yes, you women really had me chasing my tail for a while there and I wouldn't have it any other way.

P.s. Absolutely love the coffee maker Doug.

[Raskolnikov]

Well don't let me kill the thread. I didn't think the short story was that bad. Just sharing some creations, as per the thread title. Maybe this will be more to liking of some out there...

[Delight]

I wrote a story a few years ago. It has been an amazing mythology for me. I remember aspects of it, characters, stories, jokes and it evolves even now. There were some bits that are my deepest knowings. In the story humanity is experiencing what we are having now.

People begin to glow with their own light which just must have a creative outlet. People call themselves Art-is-Its. As an art-is-It, the only action is to make your story to be shared. It is so easy for me to imagine a world where we are individuals, each with our light and with Source energy expressing, learning, helping JUST BECAUSE you are full of the joy of aliveness.

The ethos of my story is that this belief system where we are poor, feeble, sinful and worthless arose in a deep "startling" that shook the being so much we could only just perceive what we had already perceived and WE made Ego because EGO can loop endlessly over the same material. No longer able to invision what has not ever been (until now) from our own wonderful human imagination, we worked on EGO all the time. EGO as a filter is now real and sees in shadow.

A few lines....

Once upon a time there was a race of beings named the Story Eyed Ones. Much like we tell tales, The SEO (seeo) created shared experiences with their glances. In a way that we can't quite yet understand again, they took in vibration and swirled various bits and pieces together to form an original pattern. Then when they "looked out", the new combination was broad cast onto the shared world. In Their "world" as in their "stories", there was no end to the possibility of how layers, shades and vibrations might be combined and observed. Each time a SEO looked at anything, something new was there and the cooperation of all in these lines of the fabric of the whole story was the very reason for being of all.

One day, everyone was startled to hear a loud and penetrating sound and when they all looked together in that one single direction, something that had never happened, happened...Their glances locked all together into a stare. Suddenly they could not turn their eyes away from the one "scene" that they were cooperatively visioning. As to why this loud and penetrating sound had appeared or why the vision of all became locked, No One Knows.

The fixation of the SEO vision in that pointedly static direction crystalized the story into just one pattern. Over and over as the same pattern played, the SEO stared harder and harder and then the pattern increasingly firmed and the whole process became a loop. Everything in the world became only more of what it had been as the SEO could only see more of the same.

These beings lost all Joy. These beings Sagged and Slumped. The whole world became more and more Sad and then Mad and then Bad. These beings began to literally lose their Story Eyes like a fish on earth loses it's eyes in the dark of an underground lake. The way they "saw" the world was reduced to just the passive impression of the fixity. In return for losing one function, these being began picking up some others that we might call Especially Sensitive PIcking up of everything that was "there". Unfortunately this just fine tuned the problem. The capacity for original visioning of anything new and then broadcasting THAT just was not working at all anymore.Then one day, a child was born to the SEO with that latent vision intact. Her parents were told by a Soft Whisper that She was a Magical Child and would change the world.

Her name was Megan

She would not stare at one fixed point but look all around at everything.
She would take in all that she could see and swirl it a bit and then somehow, "send it out" out and others would begin to see something not quite what it had been.
It was impossible to deny that something "happened" when she was present.
Her life became a Touch Stone for the Possibility that the SEO were no longer caught fixedly in Static SAD MAD BAD Sameness.

Over the course of many many years, many lifetimes of years, more magical children were born and each time, the Picture shifted a bit. Then one Time, so many children were born with their Story Eyes "working" that all of a sudden,Everything began to "CHANGE".

And Megan was there with Margaret, Sam, the stairsteps and a crowd of others at the swimming beach that also was NOTlike the lake beach and as she looked around, she did not recognize WHERE she was. But everyone was with her so she was peaceful in the unknown.... AND THAT IS HOW IT SHOULD BE for the Story Eyed Ones in a True Reality.

[Raskolnikov]

Wow. Love the Storey Eyed Ones, what a great name. Sounds like you're writing more from memory and experience than from a purely creative standpoint. Felt like I was reading our true history rather than all the garbage we've been fed over the years. Just wanted to say thanks for sharing, really enjoyed that, a true Delight, sorry, couldn't resist.

[Raskolnikov]

Thanks everyone. glad to see this is still going!! Mandelbrots are out there. Memes are great as well. Thanks for the link Michel

Heres another aspect of realism, a bit more brush and gesture evident. this is why I dont really care for computer art. Art is very much about the human hand interpreting thoughts and perception.
Not necessarily exactness

coffee maker / oil on board

https://projectavalon.net/forum4/attachment.php?attachmentid=54958&stc=1&d=1744910894

Meant it when I said I love your coffee maker Doug. It's really rich and warm, and love some of those confident stokes with the brush, a little fine tuning, and beautiful. It's relaxing and yet really jumps out at you at the same time. And oil of board. I did some of that back in the days of my stories. I painted a full piece of plywood in thick black acrylic and then brushed over the points and curves in red acrylic, then outlined it with barbed wire to make a really devilish wall piece. Had a bit of a bout with depression, but it's ok, I finally beat him. Oh the ways we learn.

And thanks Dilettante for the detailed response. I don't know how you guys do that. It is truly a foreign language made by robots. I feel like I'm back in my Calculus class and failing miserably. But really like the results of your code of art -
If it is poetic, functional, and works with an interesting idea -- all the more beautiful!

Great thread Doug. Love all the creations.

[Delight]

Wow. Love the Storey Eyed Ones, what a great name. Sounds like you're writing more from memory and experience than from a purely creative standpoint. Felt like I was reading our true history rather than all the garbage we've been fed over the years. Just wanted to say thanks for sharing, really enjoyed that, a true Delight, sorry, couldn't resist.

Thanks so much and my feeling is that it is real (somewhere, somehow). Thanks for your sharings too. Thanks for Doug starting the thread.

[Victoria]

Doug, this is a wonderful thread and your artwork is beautiful:stars: It is so much fun to see everyone's amazing creations- experiencing the music and images that speak from everyone's heart:heart:

This is not exactly art- but it was maybe more artful placement of fanciful creatures; when I was little, I had a wonderful penpal during the years while she was in college and clerking for Thurgood Marshall, named Becky Brown. She would pen letters to me just as writing to my family and would create brilliant drawings and tiny doodles, often of miniscule characters playing tennis or hiding in between the text with words to take notice of. I was always so excited to find mail from her with her perfect illustrations and to practice reading what she wrote. :sun:

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I loved her imaginations so very much and all these years later, try to carry something similar forward whenever corresponding with people - whether online via photos or through decorating with itty collages and doodling sketches planted between paragraphs... just hoping to transmit the same smiles and happiness in cards and notes as Becky sent. :) All joy in the little things!

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[Bill Ryan]

This is not exactly art- but it was maybe more artful placement of fanciful creatures; when I was little, I had a wonderful penpal during the years while she was in college and clerking for Thurgood Marshall, named Becky Brown. She would pen letters to me just as writing to my family and would create brilliant drawings and tiny doodles, often of miniscule characters playing tennis or hiding in between the text with words to take notice of. I was always so excited to find mail from her with her perfect illustrations and to practice reading what she wrote. :sun:

I think what you've perfectly expressed and encapsulated here is how much has been lost with the advent of almost all written communications of any kind being done with a keyboard.

Writing with a pen, in contrast to typing with one's fingers on a keyboard, embodies and activates entirely different neural pathways, ones which I suspect are far more ancient and hard-wired in the very long history of the whole human condition.

I find myself doubting if the greatest poets, playwrights and authors that we know of, in any language in any pre-20th-century era, would have produced the same masterful work on an iPad — or even a typewriter.

(A serious comment, something which I've thought about a lot over the years. I'd love to know if this has ever been discussed elsewhere.)

:heart:

[Raskolnikov]

This is not exactly art- but it was maybe more artful placement of fanciful creatures; when I was little, I had a wonderful penpal during the years while she was in college and clerking for Thurgood Marshall, named Becky Brown. She would pen letters to me just as writing to my family and would create brilliant drawings and tiny doodles, often of miniscule characters playing tennis or hiding in between the text with words to take notice of. I was always so excited to find mail from her with her perfect illustrations and to practice reading what she wrote. :sun:

I think what you've perfectly expressed and encapsulated here is how much has been lost with the advent of almost all written communications of any kind being done with a keyboard.

Writing with a pen, in contrast to typing with one's fingers on a keyboard, embodies and activates entirely different neural pathways, ones which I suspect are far more ancient and hard-wired in the very long history of the whole human condition.

I find myself doubting if the greatest poets, playwrights and authors that we know of, in any language in any pre-20th-century era, would have produced the same masterful work on an iPad — or even a typewriter.

(A serious comment, something which I've thought about a lot over the years. I'd love to know if this has ever been discussed elsewhere.)

:heart:

I remember coming across such suggestions in college, and especially after, when the real education begins. There's definitely an intimacy lost when tapping the cold keys of the keyboard. I agree, it makes you wonder how much is lost with each subtle transition or change society makes. And then there's the Cursive argument, of casting spells with language when writing in cursive.

I began writing with the pen, then moved on to the typewriter. God, what a noisy awful instrument! Was living in weekly hotels in San Francisco during the dot com explosion like some kind of Bukowski, but unlike him, I always felt awful for the noise it made and did most of my writing during the day. I was grateful when the quiet computer keyboard arrived because I preferred writing at night.

I also had a friend who used to draw great little pictures when she wrote letters. There was something very intimate about it, like a secret between friends. I always smiled when I read her letters thinking it especially sweet and thoughtful of her to take the extra time to personalize it.


I find myself doubting if the greatest poets, playwrights and authors that we know of, in any language in any pre-20th-century era, would have produced the same masterful work on an iPad — or even a typewriter.

It would probably be different wouldn't it? Makes me think of all the old scrolls written in masterful and ornate handwriting that have been lost over time or intentionally burned in great libraries like Alexandria. Our records only go back so far. Did even earlier poets have access to tech beyond what we have now? Wasn't Atlantis destroyed by such tech? But I'm getting off topic.

I'd be interested to know if the topic has been discussed elsewhere too. Sometimes I think those old poets, playwrights, and authors, especially the ancient masters like Homer, Plato, or even Virgil, lived on the tail end of an enlightened civilization, or at least heard the tales passed down from such an enlightened civilization, before a great dumbing down took place, like what appears to be taking place today throughout half the world's population.

It's nice to be able to capture a moment in time on a page, and each writer imbues their own experience and style into that moment. I, for one, stumbled greatly with a pen and find my fingers keep up with my mind much better on the keyboard. Two hands are better than one I guess. But there's a shade of intimacy lost with the disappearance of the ol' phallic pen.

[Harmony]

What I think is most wonderful is the power of the heart behind what ever instrument is used to somehow illustrate or leave a trace behind of that inner energy shared as a conscious creation.


A word or a song, a painting or a message using light sent forth from a screen are representations trying to communicate transformation of consciousness that comes through our heart. Sometimes telepathically, in a quantum way, instantly this happens forever leaving a trace we never forget. :heart::heart2::star:

[Raskolnikov]

You have an uncanny way of getting straight to the heart of the matter Harmony. Beautifully stated and have to agree...

[Michel Leclerc]

Thank you Bill. You are entirely right.

The key element is the possibility of beauty. The great poets of the 19th century had all learnt calligraphy.
This is the “Homburg Folio“ (https://homburgfolio.wlb-stuttgart.de/handschrift/307-91), the notebook in which Friedrich Hölderlin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedrich_Hölderlin), to me the greatest, wrote his Odes in the beginning of the 1800s.

Each letter of our alphabets is a dimension of beauty. Not less than the great achievements of Arabic-Persian, Chinese-Japanese calligraphy. And they could write in different alphabets: Hölderlin in the Latin alphabet (German was different), in Greek and in Hebrew.

We have “intentionally stupidly” wanted to forget beauty. Utility, the only dimension. Hence the typewriter – but worse, mind you.

I remember how around the end of the 80s I started to notice how Board Members or Executives only wrote (only could write) in capital letters. Young kids nowadays can only write keying the letters, and only with their thumbs.

Instead of Hölderlin‘s orchestra of sculpted instruments, a pair of fists hammering on a face.

[Raskolnikov]

I don’t know the etiquette here. Not trying to take over the thread by any means, just enjoying the focus on creation, the one thing that makes us human, to live in the moment, to connect with the source from which we all stem. Lately I’ve been playing music and I feel that source pouring through me, as if I’m turning off and It’s turning on, a feeling of letting go, of letting go of all fear and allowing that greater power to flow through without judgment or worry, of simply watching the muscle memory take over from a distance, as if I’m the instrument and the one being played. That connection, that surrender, that absolutely beautiful and transcendent feeling beyond logic, beyond reason, beyond even comprehension, when time stands still and the self disappears, that's the moment, the moment of CREATION, when you transcend yourself and feel truly alive.

So with respect for the thread you’ve created Doug, I’d like to give it a little jumpstart with a fun paragraph from the way back machine…

Mark closed the book and replaced it on the shelf. riding the escalator down, he scanned the room for Sarah but didn’t see her anywhere. thinking she must be outside, he exited the store but didn’t find her there either. in an effort to avoid the strong undertow of the sidewalk traffic, he stepped out to the curb next to the newspaper stands to have a cigarette and wait it out. he watched the busy people passing by and felt happy he didn’t have to work. looking out over union square where the sun succeeded in finding a safe haven amongst the towering buildings, racing cars, and scrambling shoppers, he thought he would never cease to be amazed by the sheer number of beautiful women he continually encountered in san francisco. they weren’t the fake, superficial, plastic kind he’d grown accustomed to seeing in l.a. with their surgically enlarged breasts, tightly tucked faces, and bleached blonde hair who coldly, yet triumphantly, strutted around with their husband’s gold cards bulging out of armani purses. no, these were not even remotely related to that reptilian race. these were the natural beauties, women of polished complexions and stream-lined figures like souped-up dragsters and thoroughbred racing horses which, upon viewing, Mark couldn’t help but think how marvelous it would be to take each one out for a test run. ‘oh women!’ he marveled, ‘where’s Sarah, I need a drink!’