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The Captivating Imagery Of America's Oldest Secret Societies

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"The Templars and the Freemasons believed that the treasure was too great for any one man to have, not even a king," FBI special agent Sadusky proclaims in the film "National Treasure." "That's why they went to such lengths to keep it hidden."


Those of us not so familiar with the lived experience of fraternal organizations often learn about secret societies like the Freemasons from Hollywood blockbusters starring Harvey Keitel and Nicolas Cage. The reality, of course, isn't quite so packed with burning torches, leather jackets and century-old conspiracies.


But such societies are steeped in a rich and bewitching tradition that to most of us remains unknown. Collectors Kendra and Allan Daniel have long been on the hunt for paraphernalia associated with fraternal organizations, accumulating objects from thrift stores, antique fairs and other places that too often go unnoticed.


"Very often you’ll pass a booth that has an evocative display of hands or a staff or skull and crossbones," Stacy C. Hollander, Deputy Director for Curatorial Affairs and Chief Curator at the American Folk Art Museum explained to The Huffington Post. "The average person won’t understand what the implications of those symbols are."



The Daniels recently donated a massive reserve of customary items, including architectural elements, ritual and ceremonial objects, personal items and lodge furnishings to the American Folk Art Museum, where they will be officially exhibited as art objects for the very first time. An exhibition titled "Mystery and Benevolence" will feature items from the 18th to 20th centuries belonging to the Odd Fellows, Freemasons, Shriners, Junior Order Of United American Mechanics, and Knights Templar.


Hollander curated the show along with Aimee E. Newell, Ph.D., Director of Collections at the Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library. "I'm fascinated by how integrated fraternal organizations were in American history for such a long time," Newell told HuffPost. "As a historian, even working in museums, rarely does that ever come through. They were a really important facet of American life. It’s a shame that they’re so understudied."


Newell, a historian by training, has spent the last 10 years working at a Masonic museum, and is about as close to a Nicolas Cage treasure hunter as you can get. Newell was brought in as a guest curator to help identify and provide context for many of the lesser known symbols in the Daniels' collection. Because of her job, Newell receives a steady stream of emails asking whether or not a certain symbol has a concealed history. 



The oldest and most well-known fraternal society in American history is the Freemasons, which has been in existence since the 1720s. Originally an organization for those in the stonemason profession, the collective group opened doors and provided camaraderie and hospitality for its members. Traveling stonemasons who knew the secret rites and rituals of the organization would be welcomed with warmth and amenability wherever they went. 


"It was very closely allied with the philosophy and the ideals of the enlightenment," Hollander said. "Many of their values came to resonate very closely with those of the Founding Fathers." In fact, as the group expanded to include more than stonemasons, national figures including George Washington, Paul Revere and Benjamin Franklin reportedly became Freemasons. 


Societies like the Freemasons are founded upon a complex and often secret network of beliefs and practices, many of which are communicated through cryptic symbols. You'd probably recognize many of them: the heart in clasped hands, arrows, stars, the all-seeing eye. According to Hollander, immersing oneself in a fraternal organization is a many layered undertaking. Images carry with them various levels of understanding, all of which grow deeper the higher you ascend within your society's hierarchy. 



For Freemasons, the most iconic symbols are the square and compass. "Much of the imagery comes from descriptions from the Old Testament, based on the building of Solomon’s temple," Hollander explained. "Many are steeped in architectural references."


As for the Odd Fellows, who got their start in Baltimore in 1819, their most renowned symbol is a linked chain with the letters "F," "L" and "T," which stand for friendship, love and truth. Unlike the Freemasons, there was no particular occupation associated with the Odd Fellows, perhaps contributing to the clan's title. The main motivation for joining the Odd Fellows was the benefits such a society provided. In a time before things like life insurance and public education, secret societies provided its members burials for the dead, aid for the sick, and education for the orphaned.


In their early iterations, these societies were solely available to men, but the first all-women's organization, the Daughters of Rebecca, was founded by the Odd Fellows in 1851. Prior to the Civil War, other fraternal organizations turned to artisans from the outside world to create their costumes, decorate their lodges, and render their symbol-adorned supplies. And while women were not permitted to be in the groups themselves, they were often involved in the associated folk art practice.


"Women were definitely conversant with the symbolic vocabulary," Hollander said. "There are numerous quilts made by women containing symbols, as well as painted aprons and embroidered banners to be worn by the men in parades." 


For a while, those responsible for the enchanting images embellishing the covert lodges and ritual robes were created by the self-taught artists and designers producing in workshops throughout the country. However, the late 19th century was accompanied by the rise of factories, which soon consumed the smaller workshops, mass producing symbolic objects and costumes with no knowledge of their meanings or purposes. 



Today, although not nearly as ubiquitous, fraternal organizations still exist. Newell estimates there are some 350,000 Freemasons in the United States today. The presence of the Odd Fellows, however, has waned significantly. Their symbols still materialize in present day, often removed from their fraternal origins, on various vaguely occult accessories like Tarot Cards or talismans. Their power is tangible, though their meanings are often lost. 


"Mystery and Benevolence" features a wide array of historical relics -- from daguerrotypes and quilts to robes and staffs. The work is organized according to theme, drawing off the humanist ideals of the organizations including charity, passage, meaning, time, wisdom, fellowship, and labor. For the majority of us whose primary source of exposure to fraternal organizations are Dan Brown novels, the exhibition will provide a rare opportunity to brush up on your secret history through the lens of a rarely seen trove of American folk art. 


"There is definitely a sense of mystery about secret societies," Hollander said, when explaining the ongoing fascination with this pocket of history. "We're all engaged in secrets. Most children had secret societies with their friends growing up."



"There is something romantic to an outsider who isn’t privy to the understanding," Hollander continued. "The symbols might seem a little macabre to us but one of the basic principals of the Freemasons and the Odd Fellows is a contemplation of mortality, which goes back to the Middle Ages. Living a good life so you can have a good death."


The covert nature of these fraternal organizations is especially alluring today, when virtually nothing can remain undisclosed for very long. As Hollander put it: "We’re so attracted to the idea of secret societies. But what’s really secret today? From a Google search you can learn a lot about the symbols on a certain level, but these meanings go far deeper than one can discover on one’s own."


Newell agreed. "It’s interesting to me that, despite all the information, the idea of secrecy has held on for centuries."



"Mystery and Benevolence: Masonic and Odd Fellows Folk Art from the Kendra and Allan Daniel Collection" runs from January 21 until May 8, 2016 at the American Folk Art Museum in New York. For more folk art, don't miss the Outsider Art Fair, from Jan. 21-24, 2016, at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York City. 



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David Bowie’s Idea Of Perfect Happiness Was Reading

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On Monday, the world mourned the loss of bright star David Bowie, the quintessential outsider, whose music, style and endless personas championed the power of metamorphosis.


Years before his death -- in August of 1998, to be exact -- Bowie was published in Vanity Fair responding to the famous Proust Questionnaire, a personality test that dates back to the 1880s. Author Marcel Proust first filled out the questionnaire after it was given to him by his friend Antoinette. His answers were discovered shortly after his death, and the questionnaire became a literary institution of sorts, appearing in issues of Vanity Fair, accompanied by answers from celebrities and public figures, since 1993.


VIP subjects like Joan Didion, Allen Ginsberg and Julia Child were also questioned, though Bowie's perhaps sparkles the brightest. 


The all-too-brief glimpse into Bowie's psyche is as wonderfully weird as we'd hoped. Who knew that Ziggy had a thing for ladies who can burp on command? Or that he just can't stop bringing the word "miasma" into conversations? Keep reading to celebrate the brilliant brain of Bowie. He may think originality is overrated, but he certainly had a lot of it. Below are some highlights from his answers.




What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Reading.


What historical figure do you most identify with?
Santa Claus.


Which word or phrases do you most overuse?
"Chthonic,” “miasma.”


What is your favorite occupation?
Squishing paint on a senseless canvas.


What is the quality you most like in a man?
The ability to return books.


What is the quality you most like in a woman?
The ability to burp on command.


What is your motto?
“What” is my motto.



For the full questionnaire, head to Brain Pickings.


 


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These Photos Show Why David Bowie Is And Always Will Be A Fashion Icon

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As we mourn the loss of David Bowie, we can't help but reminisce about the British rock star's legacy as a fashion icon.  





Bowie's sartorial prowess stemmed from his fearless artistic spirit and effortless ability to change with the times without losing his edge. He blurred gender lines with ultra-glam, over-the-top androgynous looks in his "Ziggy Stardust" days and later adopted a sharp, buttoned-up persona that was anything but stuffy. The '80s were filled with vibrant colored suits, printed overcoats, and flashy accessories. And let's not forget his ever-changing hair. One word: magical. Even with the release of his most recent album "Blackstar," just four days ago, the legend was still serving style supremacy


We'd be remiss if we didn't point out that Bowie was married to two of the most stylish women to walk the planet -- first to American model Angie Bowie, and then to legendary supermodel Iman for the last 23 years. But while we're sure these ladies had a significant influence on Bowie's attire, it was ultimately the "Space Oddity" singer's inspiring personal style that solidified his spot as a fashion icon.


Bowie allowed his music to organically guide his style. You can't listen to his songs without also imagining him decked out in a sparkly, technicolored, one-legged jumpsuit or shiny tailored suit with the tie draped unknotted around his neck. And the effortless way he wore these awe-inspiring getups was void of the type of self-consciousness and contrivance we often see today. Rather, Bowie's flare for fashion felt wholeheartedly authentic -- so much so that his costumes for the 1986 movie "The Labyrinth" looked as if they came straight from his closet. 






In remembrance of Bowie's enduring, badass style that was often imitated but never duplicated, we've pulled together a collection of images that prove he is and will always be a fashion icon. 



 


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Travel Through Time With These Mesmerizing Portraits Of Turkey's Grand Bazaar

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Beautiful stores offering a glimpse of the past can't be found just anywhere.


But you might just find some in Istanbul. Earlier this month, Sydney-based Getty Images photographer Chris McGrath took some mesmerizing portraits of the ​packed stalls in the city's Grand Bazaar​.


First built by Mehmed the Conquerer in the 15th century, the Turkish bazaar now spans 65 streets and boasts over 3,000 shops. It has survived earthquakes and fires over the centuries. Today, it attracts 250,000 to 400,000 visitors every day, according to the market's website.


From handmade chessboards to rugs to Turkish delight, the stalls at the Grand Bazaar are a perfect mixture of old and new, east and west -- just like their home city. Take a look at what the Grand Bazaar offers in the photos below.


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15 Duets That Prove David Bowie Was A Genre-Bending Mad Genius

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David Bowie, who died late Sunday night, leaves behind one of the most impressive catalogues in music history.


But perhaps his defining musical legacy will be his fearlessness. Throughout his career, Bowie was famous for his desire to experiment with new sounds and collaborate with great artists, whatever their genre of choice.


That desire to find something new was always prevalent in Bowie's life. It was there when he sang with Bing Crosby, just as it was there when he played with Nine Inch Nails, just as it was there in his final years, when he and "Blackstar" producer Tony Visconti listened to Kendrick Lamar as inspiration for his final album. 


Here's to Bowie, who should serve as a reminder to never fear trying something different. After all, that's where all the good stuff is.



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This Video Of Kourtney Kardashian Eating A Kit Kat Bar Is Celeb Culture Run Amok

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We all have our limits and we just found ours when it comes to the inanity of the Kardashians. 


Here at HuffPost Entertainment we freely admit to covering the Kardashian family's every move, but this video of Kourtney Kardashian eating a Kit Kat bar in six steps is just too much. It's perhaps even the embodiment of everything currently wrong with pop culture and the fetishization of fame and celebrities. 


After such a statement, you are probably wondering why we are bothering to highlight such ridiculousness. Well, basically it's so we could express our exasperation in GIFs: 



























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Artists Around The World Reflect On The Magic Of David Bowie

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David Bowie was not just a musician.


The man -- known at various points in time as Davy Jones, Major Tom, Ziggy Stardust, Thomas Jerome Newton, the Thin White Duke, Aladdin Sane and Jareth the Goblin King -- turned his entire life into an ongoing work of performance. He changed personas as quickly as he changed hairstyles, adapting new ways of talking, moving, looking and feeling that impacted far more than his music.


An artist in almost every capacity, Bowie once proclaimed that "squishing paint on a senseless canvas" was his favorite occupation.


In the wake of Bowie's death this week, fellow artists, writers, composers and actors have taken to social media to express their love for the late David Robert Jones. While the music community has been quick to pay tribute to its lost icon -- everyone from Kanye West to Madonna has posted homages on social media -- the art world has stood at attention too, reminding the world that Bowie's influence stretches far and wide. 



DAVID BOWIEJohn and David respected each other. They were well matched in intellect and talent. As John and I had very...

Posted by Yoko Ono on Monday, January 11, 2016












Artists of all stripes certainly drew inspiration from Bowie's knack for shapeshifting and flexing the constricts of gender. "He was a megastar," English artist Grayson Perry wrote for The Guardian shortly after Bowie's death was announced. "But his power came from the fact he was the champion of the outcast in the bedroom. The loner, the misfit." 


On stage, in front of a camera, and out-and-about in his daily life, Bowie split the concept of identity into an infinitely sided prism. Maturing amid the bohemian scene of London's Soho area, his background in mime culture (yes, Bowie mimed) never faded. His ability to not only appear in different personas with chameleon-like skill, but to holistically experiment with various ways of performing his "self," inspired the amateurs and professionals operating on the fringes of mainstream.





Cindy Sherman's self-portraits (shown above), which gained attention in the late 1970s, particularly mirrored Bowie's ability to adopt, if only briefly, a new self-identity. Sherman would reinvent herself before the camera, taking on the role of the femme fatale, the girl next door, the housewife, and everything in between. "Although most of the characters are invented, we sense right away that we already know them," the Museum of Modern Art wrote of Sherman's "The Complete Untitled Film Stills." 


Sherman became famous for shapeshifting, like Bowie, all the while maintaining a cohesive body of work. "That twinge of instant recognition is what makes the series tick, and it arises from Cindy Sherman's uncanny poise," MoMA continued. "There is no wink at the viewer, no open irony, no camp." 


Following Sherman's ascent in the art world, contemporary starlets like Wu TsangRyan Trecartin and Juliana Huxtable have garnered well-deserved attention for their own shifting of shapes. Often operating between genres and media, these young makers based their practice on the idea that artists don't necessarily need canvases. Their bodies, their selves and their identities can operate as the tools for art. 





"David Bowie Is," a past exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, explored Bowie's role as a defier of labels. The show included costumes, storyboards for stage shows, music videos and a slew of contextual media like World War II news clippings, the famous 1972 “Blue Marble” photograph of Earth from space, and posters from the film “A Clockwork Orange,” all of which were said to have inspired Bowie’s creative process.


"The show is so much about process ... It’s about how you make things,” MCA Chief Curator Michael Darling explained in a press statement. “You can consistently see how [Bowie] was reinventing himself over and over.”


Bowie, who wrote songs about Andy Warhol (and actually played the silver-haired printmaker in a movie about Jean-Michel Basquiat), may have been an icon of outsiders, but he was never on the outside of art. The outpouring of love this week, coming from all corners of the art world, is further proof that Bowie was hardly just a musician. His songs will live on, but so will his legacy for pushing the limits of pop culture in a much bigger way.


"His death was no different from his life -- a work of Art," longtime collaborator and producer Tony Visconti wrote on Facebook. R.I.P. David Bowie, the artist.


 


So long David Bowie...

A photo posted by @jean_jullien on





R.I.P. @davidbowie ⚡️ ✨ ⭐️ #illustration #davidbowie #meninheels #fantasyfanatic #zhangliang #zhangliangray

A photo posted by Zhang Liang (Ray) (@zhangliangray) on









#davidbowie

A video posted by Omar Momani (@omarmomani) on





David Bowie, ★ #Blackstar #DavidBowie

A video posted by Helen Green (@helengreeen) on





David Bowie ❤️ #davidbowie #bowie #cardboardtoy

A photo posted by Celipe Perroloco (@fragilefreaks) on











We can be heroes ⚡️Just for one day #ripdavidbowie #ripbowie #ziggystardust #bowie

A photo posted by floriografia (@floriografia) on




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Portraits Of Ebola Survivors Bring Their Stories To Life

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In the middle of the devastating Ebola outbreak last year, one photographer set out to Sierra Leone and Liberia to help the disease's survivors tell their stories.


New York-based photographer and human rights researcher Daniel Jack Lyons traveled to the villages of Gbolakai-Ta, Liberia, and Rosanda, Sierra Leone, in the summer of 2015 on commission for the International Medical Corps. His goal was to document the impact of the virus in those two communities.


In addition to taking his own photographs, Lyon gave villagers cameras so they, too, could share their stories about fighting Ebola.


The World Health Organization officially declared Liberia Ebola-free in September and Sierra Leone Ebola-free in November. The outbreak, which began in March 2014, killed at least 11,300 people, the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention reported.


The WorldPost spoke with Lyons about his experience photographing and researching in the two communities.



Why is it so important for Ebola survivors to take their own photographs to tell their story?


I work as a qualitative human rights researcher as well as a photographer. Any time there's a public health disparity or human rights abuse, I get sent somewhere to collect anecdotal data through interviews and focus groups. In the last few years, I've been specializing in a methodology called photovoice, a research method that entails giving people cameras to answer questions. I begin the process by holding discussions with subjects, in which they come up with framing questions that they go out and answer by taking photos. 


Photovoice works well for me as a photographer. Whenever I'm in an area, like a small community, gaining trust and access is usually any photographer's biggest struggle. For me, to do a portrait of somebody, it's important to establish a very intimate connection with them before I take out my camera. Conducting this methodology has been a really great way of getting accepted into a community, gaining access for my own photographic desires as well.



It's about creating agency for communities who previously didn't have very much agency to tell their own story.



Wherever I am, it's really important that the people experiencing an issue -- like Ebola in this case -- are the ones telling their own story, and not somebody else who comes and observes and leaves. In a way, it's about creating agency for communities who previously didn't have very much agency to tell their own story.



What were some of the questions that photovoice participants asked?


Ebola looked very different in Liberia than it did in Sierra Leone, and consequently the questions that they came up with in Sierra Leone were very different from questions that they came up with in Liberia. 


When I was in Sierra Leone, there were still new positive Ebola cases coming up. The survivors' main focus was to get their story out to other communities, so that they could help spread the message of prevention. It was especially important because a lot of communities were very distrusting of the Western doctors that were there and setting up Ebola treatment centers. A lot of people didn't go to the center, and that's how whole communities were completely devastated.


So, the first question that the survivors in Sierra Leone asked themselves was, "How did I survive Ebola?" 


Then I went to Liberia, where the disease was much more under control than it was in Sierra Leone. But the emergency response rate in Liberia was much slower, and there were communities that were almost quarantined, with nobody coming in and out. People didn't know who to trust and didn't know what to do. Many took it upon themselves to come up with their own methods of preventing, which often entailed giving someone a bucket of homemade medicine, sending them out into the bush, and telling them not to come back until they were better. A lot of people walked out to the bush and never came back. Liberians' questions were about what it means to be a survivor.



What was the experience like for the Ebola survivors involved in the project?


It was definitely a positive experience, and different in Sierra Leone than it was in Liberia. In Sierra Leone, people appreciated being included in the prevention process. Up until that point, international organizations would come into these small communities and say, "Listen, you have this thing called Ebola, here's how to prevent it," and put up posters and do outreach. But people didn't really feel included in part of the process. They were just being told, "You need to wash your hands, you have to do this and that."


Incorporating survivors into the process of creating prevention messaging, they were really grateful for it. It was empowering to survivors, many of whom were young teenagers. It gave them a sense of a new role in their communities. It gave them an empowered sense of responsibility in their community to show their photos and talk about their photos in a way that spreads Ebola prevention messaging. 



In Liberia, they kept thanking me, saying, "Nobody's ever asked us our stories." I think that was a huge component in Liberia because they were advocating to be considered survivors in the same way that people who went to treatment centers are considered survivors. Nobody has really ever stopped and asked, "What happened in your community? Do tell me." To have an opportunity to tell their story was something that was really important to them.


The response rate, in both countries, whenever you have any kind of international emergency response, people cycle in and cycle out. There's a lot of people that come in, they're on a one-month contract or sometimes even shorter than that, and a lot of them are volunteers. It's hard for people who are living there to just see a lot of people coming and going. Very often nobody takes the time and asks somebody what their experience was like.



They kept thanking me, saying, "Nobody's ever asked us our stories."



What were some striking moments during the project? 


I was constantly reminded and astounded by the resilience of people in both places. There's so much social innovation in those communities, as well as a sense of community. Nobody abandoned one another. Even in dire situations, people were helping their neighbors the best way they could, helping each other even when the protocol said "don't touch anyone." I heard so many stories that just demonstrated a level of resilience that I had never considered or experienced before. It was something that struck me multiple times.



Are there any particular photos that hold special significance to you?


There's a picture of a girl with white paint on her face and she's standing in a painted room in Gbolakai-Ta, Liberia. This little girl walked up to me and said, "We're tearing down our house today. Would you take my photo inside my house before we leave the home?"


Her brothers, sisters and parents lived in this one-bedroom house. She said she had gotten Ebola and was sent out into the bush. Her brother and her sister didn't make it, but she did. She came back from the bush, was reunited with her mom and dad, and they were moving to a much bigger house where somebody else had died.


She said: "This was the room I was born into. When I left it, I never thought I would ever see this room again. This was the room I almost died in. This is very significant for me to be photographed here before we move."


When I look at that photo, I always remember that moment.



There's one other photo too that I really like. During Ebola, part of the protocol for any community that had a bunch of cases was to quarantine the community. The protocol did not allow anyone who was a non-resident to come into the community. For many little villages in the middle of a jungle, people could enter from multiple pathways -- it's not like there are walls around a city.


There's this one picture of these two women from Sierra Leone, and they're standing at one of the entrances to their village. You wouldn't even know it was a footpath -- it was in the jungle, banana trees everywhere -- and they're just standing there. It's just such a surreal thing to see these women who were so powerful. Nobody would mess with them.


What do you think gets missed when the media talks about Ebola survivors?


I think in a lot of the reports that I've read, the narrative is about victimhood and it's really about people who are victims of Ebola. Part of what I like to highlight in my own photography, whether I'm doing it with Ebola survivors or Fukushima survivors, is to focus on a sense of empowerment. When I photograph people, I like to bring that out as well. In fact, a lot of my work, being that it's human-rights related, focuses on survivors.



For every sad story, there could be an equally empowering story of someone who went to great lengths to protect their family, themselves or their community.



The flipped meaning of survivor could be victim, but I think the media that I saw lacked the perseverance and the resilience of people that were overcoming a huge, huge obstacle -- a deadly virus. For every sad story, there could be an equally empowering story of someone who went to great lengths to protect their family, themselves or their community.


This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.


 


See more photos of Ebola survivors and their stories below.



More on the Ebola crisis:


- Sierra Leone Conquered Ebola And Celebrated The Best Way Possible
- Why We Never Got Ebola
- Life After Ebola in Sierra Leone
- 'What Ebola Taught Us About The Power Of Stories'

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Some Kind Of Force Is Definitely Strong With This Kid Jedi-In-Training

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It's no secret kids and adults alike can be very fervent in their "Star Wars" fandom. As this funny video shows, one little Jedi-in-training was not messing around when it came time to face his galactic enemies. 


The video shows a little boy engaged in a lightsaber battle at the Jedi Training Academy at Disneyland. As he viciously takes out Darth Vader and a couple of stormtroopers, he makes it clear there's nothing he won't do in the pursuit of cosmic justice.


The video is from October 2014, but it's having a viral moment now in the midst of the "Star Wars" mania surrounding the release of the latest film.


The Force (or at least, some kind of force) is certainly strong with this kid.


H/T Viral Viral Videos


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David Bowie's Response To First US Fan Mail Shows How Truly Humble He Was

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After the death of legendary rock star David Bowie on Sunday following a battle with cancer, an old letter from the iconic artist to a teenage fan made the rounds on the Internet -- and it says a lot about the star's character. 


Bowie's response to then-14-year-old Sandra Dodd's fan letter -- his "very first" from the U.S. -- from September 1967 has resurfaced. In it, the artist excitedly thanked Dodd, who'd written to Bowie from New Mexico, for her correspondence. 






"When I called in this, my manager's office, a few moments ago I was handed my very first American fan letter -- and it was from you. I was so pleased that I had to sit down and type an immediate reply," he wrote in his response. "Thank you for being so kind as to write to me and do please write again and let me know some more about yourself."


On her website, Dodd, who wrote that her last name was "Adams" at the time, recalled telling Bowie in her fan letter that she found his music to be as good as that of The Beatles. She also mentioned that she offered to start a fan club. 


In addition to thanking her for her kind words, Bowie told the 14-year-old in his reply that he'd been waiting for some feedback from American listeners, and that while he'd received reviews from Billboard and Cash Box, their critiques "rarely reflect the opinions of the public." He also wrote that a fan club for him already existed in England, and it was probably too early to create one in the U.S. However, he did write candidly about how he hoped "one day to get to America."


The letter proves that Ziggy Stardust could also be very down-to-earth. 


Read the letter's full text below. 



25th., September 1967

Dear Sandra,

When I called in this, my manager's office, a few moments ago I was handed my very first American fan letter - and it was from you. I was so pleased that I had to sit down and type an immediate reply, even though Ken is shouting at me to get on with a script he badly needs. That can wiat (wi-at? That's a new English word which means wait).

I've been waiting for some reaction to the album from American listeners. There were reviews in Billboard and Cash Box, but they were by professional critics and they rarely reflect the opinions of the public. The critics were very flattering however. They even liked the single "Love You Till Tuesday". I've got a copy of the American album and they've printed the picture a little yellow. I'm really not that blond. I think the picture on the back is more 'me'. Hope you like those enclosed.

In answer to your questions, my real name is David Jones and I don't have to tell you why I changed it. "Nobody's going to make a monkey out of you" said my manager. My birthday is January 8th and I guess I'm 5'10". There is a Fan Club here in England, but if things go well in the States then we'll have one there I suppose. It's a little early to even think about it.

I hope one day to get to America. My manager tells me lots about it as he has been there many times with other acts he manages. I was watching an old film on TV the other night called "No Down Payment" a great film, but rather depressing if it is a true reflection of The American Way Of Life. However, shortly after that they showed a documentary about Robert Frost the American poet, filmed mainly at his home in Vermont, and that evened the score. I am sure that that is nearer the real America. I made my first movie last week. Just a fifteen minutes short, but it gave me some good experience for a full length deal I have starting in January.

Thankyou for being so kind as to write to me and do please write again and let me know some more about yourself.

Yours sincerely,


David Bowie



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Ancient Babylonian Cellphone Isn't Ancient, Babylonian Nor A Nokia

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Everybody loves that Steven Spielberg movie when a cute, child-friendly ET phones home.


That movie, of course, is pure fiction, but so are news reports claiming that an 800-year-old cellphone, used by extraterrestrials, has been found in Austria. 


Images of that curiously shaped object are indeed remarkable. Nevertheless, even if they were genuine, they do raise an interesting point: Why would spacelings, advanced enough for interplanetary travel, not use iPhones or Androids or something even more advanced.


Instead, these ETs would "phone home" with something that looks exactly like an outdated Nokia -- the sort that were popular more than a decade ago.


The truth behind this intergalactic controversy: German sculptor Karl Weingärtner created these clay objects in 2012, with lettering designed to look like they were from ancient Sumeria.


Weingärtner, who was selling the items online, posted a photo of his sculpture on Facebook where someone called it "BabyloNokia." He has no idea why some websites got the story so wrong. And he's angry about it.


"The photo was used without my knowledge and without my consent,” he told HuffPost. “It's not what I wanted. I do not believe in UFOs and I do not believe in aliens."





The story first appeared Dec. 21 on the Conspiracy Club website under the headline "800-Year-Old Mobile Phone Found In Austria? Check This Out."


"The strange and wonderful mobile phone was found in Austria. This strange thing was discovered in an excavation in Austria," the story claims. "It has many similarities with the wireless devices today [sic]."


The Express website used Weingärtner's photo without attribution and followed the initial report with more detail:



"The tablet was dated to around the 13th century BCE. By that time, the Sumerian writing style -- usually known as cuneiform -- had already been around for a few thousand years."  



The Express also cites the Paranormal Crucible YouTube channel, which asks, "Is it evidence of an advanced civilization or time travel?” 


In none of the reports do the writers identify who supposedly found what would be, if verified, perhaps the most extraordinary archeological discovery ever.


Two days after Conspiracy Club posted its story, MysteriousUniverse.org posted a piece suggesting the clay cellphone supports Sumerian scholar Zecharia Sitchin's controversial theory that extraterrestrials created modern-day humans through genetic engineering.



"The tablet looks surprisingly like a modern phone, with the 12 keys, a display and a ‘talk’ button. Could these extraterrestrials have tried to introduce the Sumerians to a phone-like communications device, only to find they weren’t ready for it and dialed them back to a stylus and clay tablets?"



The author of that piece, Paul Seaburn, told HuffPost he saw the Conspiracy Club article but didn't link to it.


Seaburn said he thought it was strange that the article didn't name the researchers or link to a source. He also wondered how the 800-year timeline was determined.


"I think I did the best I could under the circumstances while still trying to get the story up in a timely manner," he said. 


Since then, the alien theory has been bandied about in various blogs as well as the Daily Mail, which describes the cellphone story as "absurd."


 



Snopes.com connected the dots between Weingärtner and his cellphone last week, declaring, "There are several indications that this post was simply a joke." 


When HuffPost showed the Snopes piece to Seaburn, he conceded it was a more likely explanation than any alien theory.


However, Seaburn has not updated his own story.


"Someone posted the Snopes article on the comments. I think that's enough," he said. "Hey, we work in weird news. We're not Bob Woodward."


 


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This Too-Real Baby Shower Card Is Diabolical

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A hilarious baby shower card gives parents-to-be a very real preview of what to expect when they bring home their little bundle of joy.


This prank card from Joker Greeting plays the sound of a newborn crying ... for over three hours. Listen to a preview in the video below. 





The outside of the seemingly saccharine card reads, "A Baby is God's Sweetest Gift." The inside adds, "A gift that keeps on giving" and includes a button to press, presumably for music. But, instead of a song, the card plays the crying sounds and apparently continues for over three hours 


To make the prank even more annoying, pressing the button again does not turn the crying noise off. Instead, it just makes it louder! Closing the card also does not make the crying stop.


Welcome to parenthood!


H/T Scary Mommy


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Kendrick Lamar And Barack Obama Shared A Powerful Moment At The White House

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When President Barack Obama and rap superstar Kendrick Lamar met last week in the White House, they shared a moment of amazement.


"Can you believe that we're both sitting in this Oval Office?" the president told Lamar, according to senior adviser Valerie Jarrett.


Jarrett described the encounter in an appearance on the BuzzFeed podcast "Another Round":



ANOTHER ROUND: Who is your favorite rapper?
JARRETT: Oh my gosh—
ANOTHER ROUND: It’s OK if you don’t listen to rap, but if you do, I do need to know.
JARRETT: I like Jay Z, I like Jay Z.
ANOTHER ROUND: Got a favorite song?
JARRETT: Not really, but you know what, Kendrick Lamar was just here, too. You know what, I was really impressed with him—
ANOTHER ROUND: He was here?
JARRETT: He was at the White House. He came and he visited the president, and you know what the president said to him? [Because] he was a little nervous — bless his heart, he’s really a very nice young man, and the president said, “Can you believe that we’re both sitting in this Oval Office?”



Jarrett didn’t share Lamar’s response, but one could assume the first black president and America’s most prominent rapper were pondering the power of their positions.


To understand the significance of the moment, look no further than Lamar’s critically acclaimed sophomore album, "To Pimp A Butterfly." Immediately notable is the subversive cover art:



The cover features the Compton, California, rapper in front of the White House, surrounded by a bloc of young black men, pulsating a jubilant, defiant and unapologetically black energy. The group crowds around a dead white judge with a gavel in his hand, symbolizing the systemic racism in the criminal justice system.


Obama has spoken out about this issue before, including the need to address disparate treatment of black people in America. Most recently, he discussed it in the context of the Black Lives Matter movement.


“I think the reason the organizers used the phrase ‘black lives matter’ was not because they were suggesting that nobody else’s lives matter,” the president said. “Rather, what they were suggesting was that there is a specific problem that is happening in the African-American community that is not happening in other communities. And that is a legitimate issue that we’ve got to address.”


Obama's embrace of Lamar also matters because the government has not always welcomed rappers or the influence of rap. Lamar hails from the same Compton that produced N.W.A., the rap group the FBI attempted to censor over the group's objections to police brutality. And prosecutors around the country have increasingly relied on rap lyrics in criminal trials as evidence of intent or knowledge of crimes.


Some of this may have come up at the White House -- or Lamar and the president simply may have discussed Obama's favorite song of 2015, Lamar's "How Much A Dollar Cost."


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This Record Label Is Donating David Bowie Album Sales To Cancer Research

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The independent British record label Rough Trade announced that it would donate all profits from David Bowie album sales this month to Cancer Research UK.


The label made the announcement following the news that the legendary singer died Sunday after 18 months battling cancer. The response from fans was so massive that it crashed the website.






The label followed up with a Tweet saying, "If you find our website is down (#Bowie), pls be patient, try again in a few mins. Take solace: our website down = lots of @CR_UK donations!" 


Rough Trade, which represents bands including Arcade Fire and The Strokes, has several physical stores -- three in the U.K. and one in Brooklyn, New York. All four locations will donate this month's Bowie album profits to Cancer Research UK, which funds doctors, scientists, and nurses, and makes policy recommendations to the UK government.


Bowie released his 25th album, "Blackstar," just days ago, coinciding with his 69th birthday on January 8.


George Flanagan, the co-store manager of Rough Trade Brooklyn, told HuffPost that it they actually sold out of the record on Sunday afternoon, before news of his death even broke. "This album is going to go down as an important record, musically." Rough Trade had a release party on Friday when the album came out that he said was packed with fans.


"We felt it was important to honor the artist and his legacy, and sometimes when you're selling an album after someone's passing it can feel a little questionable or exploitative," he said. "But the decision was made to donate the proceeds towards something positive, and we thought, let's just have a clear conscience about it."


He told HuffPost the mood in the store had been melancholy, but filled with fond reminiscences and conversations with fans. "I've worked in record stores all my life, and nothing has been comparable to today."


 


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No One Wants To Buy The House From 'The Silence Of The Lambs'

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PERRYOPOLIS, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania couple is struggling to sell a house used as the home of psychotic killer Buffalo Bill in the 1991 film "The Silence of the Lambs."


Scott and Barbara Lloyd listed the house last summer, but they've dropped the asking price from $300,000 to $250,000.


The three-story Victorian in Layton was the second-most clicked home on Realtor.com last year, but Scott Lloyd told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that the publicity has attracted curiosity seekers, but no serious buyers.



"We're finally starting to see a little bit of motion," Lloyd said.


The home's location in a tiny village about an hour's drive southeast of Pittsburgh works against it. So does the fact that it has only one bathroom to go with its four bedrooms.


"Even though it's got notoriety, location still is a big deal," said Erik Gunther, a senior editor and expert on unique homes for Realtor.com.



The foyer and dining room were depicted in the film, but no, there's no dungeon pit in the basement where the killer played by Ted Levine kept his victims before killing and skinning them. Those grisly scenes were filmed on a soundstage.


A film crew spent three days shooting in the home near Perryopolis. The Lloyds are selling the house, where they raised their son, because they're downsizing into a ranch-style home they're building a few miles away.



A couple months after buying the home, the Lloyds were married Feb. 13, 1977, in the foyer where Levine's character first meets the FBI agent portrayed by Jodie Foster.


Anthony Hopkins won an Academy Award for playing Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a crazed, cannibalistic psychiatrist whose macabre clues help rookie Agent Clarice Starling track down and kill Buffalo Bill in his home. Foster also won an Oscar.



"The fact that a home gets a ton of publicity doesn't necessarily add up to a quick sale," Gunther said. "Just because I want to gawk at something doesn't mean I want to buy it."


 


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Artist Makes Apologizing Cool Again With Fluffy Pompoms

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Apologizing isn't very in right now. 


Saying "I'm sorry" can seem like an unnecessary admission of shame. People want to be "unapologetic" about their choices; they want to refuse to say "sorry" for who they are.


Compulsive apologizing has often been attributed to harried, ground-down women, who feel compelled to gasp "sorry!" after a man steps on her foot. A new plug-in for Chrome has even been designed to encourage women to stop apologizing and consider how apologetic language undermines their authority.


Australian textile artist Rachel Burke has a more positive view of apologies, and her new project, "Apomogy," aims to make us see them in a more appreciative light. 



Since September, Burke has been urging people to send her handmade pompoms attached to apologies for the project she calls "Apomogy." Participants can also send in apologies online, which she will write out and attach to one of her own pompoms for the collection. "I’d say around 20 percent of the current apomogy project consists of pompoms made by 'Apomogy' contributors," Burke told The Huffington Post via email.


Apomogy superficially resembles another submission-based concept project: PostSecret. The apologies aren't sent to the true recipients, but to Burke, for anonymous publication. Still, some apologies can't be contained. "I have since seen on social media that people are publicly giving apomogies they have made to people who they feel deserve them," admits Burke, "so it has taken on a life of its own in that respect."


Burke shared what "Apomogy" has taught her about saying sorry, the courage of being apologetic, and, of course, many adorable photos of woolly pompoms:



Would you like to see "Apomogy" spread into general use, or do you think the value is purely conceptual, as an art project?


I think the apomogy project has shown that it has both conceptual value and the potential for wider social resonance. From an artistic perspective, the project is mainly conceptual. I am exploring what it means to apologize, seeking insight into what people are sorry for, and hoping to provoke thought, reflection and discussion. However, it can’t be denied that some participants in this project want to take their apomogies outside of the confines of the art project and actually use them as a catalyst for a verbal, or at least sincere, apology to take place. I think there is real value in people communicating honestly and being true to how they feel, with or without a pompom to help them.



I know you’re a fabric artist, and the pompoms are one form of that, but there’s also a strong feminine association with both soft, cuddly yarn balls and with the submissiveness of apologizing. Do you have any thoughts on the gender associations at play here?


As the pompoms are made of wool, they are inherently soft and colorful, but I don’t think that this makes their connotations strictly feminine. Anyone can make a pompom, just like anyone can make an apology, regardless of their gender. Apologizing is a universal experience and it is almost unavoidable to become vulnerable when making one, irrespective of whether you’re male or female. While it seems that society at times associates the act of apologizing with female submissiveness, weakness or a general lack of backbone, I feel that apologizing actually requires strength and courage.



In one article I read about your project, the writer actually mentioned the current cultural push to get women to apologize less, including a new app that notifies women if they're using words such as "sorry" too much in emails. What do you think about these anti-apology messages toward women?


This new app, and cultural push to stop people (particularly women) from saying sorry, is really interesting to me, but also bothers me at the same time. I can see the sentiment behind Tami Reiss’ app and appreciate her desire to empower women, particularly in the workplace, but I don’t think that these issues are going to be solved by training women to speak in a certain way so that they are not perceived as weak. Instead, I can’t help but wonder if the broader issue is that language used by women is perceived in a certain way, and whether we ought to tackle those biases (conscious and unconscious) rather than have them write in a more "masculine" or socially acceptable way. On some level, I feel that the app shifts the focus from the real issues at hand, but I also applaud the fact that it has us all talking about this issue as a whole.   


In short, I feel that all people should be encouraged to express themselves in a way that comes naturally to them, and not be considered unworthy for doing so ... even if it does mean they might apologize too much in the process.



How has this project affected you as you've worked on it? Have any of the apologies you've received weighed on you emotionally or influenced your thinking about the project?


The apomogies I receive each day never fail to astound me. The diversity in the subject matter is vast, and they have made me laugh and cry in equal measure.  I began this project after making some big apologies of my own last year; however, I’ve since also been the direct recipient of an apomogy which has touched me deeply.  


A few weeks ago I opened the apomogy inbox and found an email from a high school friend who I haven’t seen or spoken to after a falling out almost seven years ago. The apomogy simply read: "I’m sorry we’re not friends anymore," and was accompanied by a detailed letter from my friend outlining her feelings and saying that she had never known how or when to get in touch with me, but that something about this project inspired her to find the words.


I never expected that something like this would happen when I began the project, and it has definitely made me think more about the power of a sincere apology. The process has also made me think about the depth of feeling that may actually sit behind seemingly simple apologies and the weight that making one can take off our shoulders. While some may say that only thoughtful and considerate people would ever make an apomogy, I’ve learned to give greater thought to the fact that we so often do not know what is going on in other people’s lives and the thoughts, feelings and regrets that they may be carrying around with them.











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Church Bells Ring Out 'Space Oddity' In Spine-Tingling David Bowie Tribute

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David Bowie's death has rightfully sparked a multitude of tributes, but this could be the most spine-tingling of them all.


Bells at a 634-year-old church tower in the Netherlands rang out the tune of his 1969 classic "Space Oddity" on Monday.


Marchal Molenaar filmed the wonderful rendition emanating from the Dom Tower in Utrecht and posted it to Facebook, where it's going viral.



Wat een mooi eerbetoon 󾌹Space Oddity van David Bowie Krijg je gewoon kippenvel van!

Posted by Marchal Molenaar on Monday, January 11, 2016


"What a beautiful tribute," he wrote. "You just get goose bumps."


Bowie died on Sunday, at age 69, following an 18-month battle with cancer. Multiple music artists and celebrities have tweeted about their sadness upon hearing the news.





Thousands of fans also held an impromptu, unofficial party to celebrate his life near his birthplace in Brixton, London, on Monday night. 


The Gothic-style Dom Tower is the Netherlands' tallest church tower, standing at 368 feet. It was built between 1321 and 1382, according to Holland.com, and its 13 bells weigh 800 to 18,000 pounds.


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Japanese Artist With Autism Communicates Solely Through Drawings Of Women

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Bijin-ga is a Japanese term for artistic depictions of beautiful women.


Traditionally, it refers to the ukiyo-e woodblock prints of the 17th and 18th centuries, featuring sleek flat renderings of courtesans and geishas in the floating world. The idealized women were pictured in the latest fashion and beauty trends, even if they were simply doing their daily chores. 


Contemporary outsider artist Yasuyuki Ueno was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1973. He has autism and does not speak at all. Since 2005, Ueno has produced a series of his own bijin-ga, updated for the 21st century lady. His colored pencil-on-paper drawings depict present day babes, powerful and pretty, their high heels and tiny purses like the most glam of weapons.  


According to Atelier Corners, an arts workshop for adults with autism, Ueno's favorite color is pink and his favorite character is Betty Boop. His pink-centric drawings, inspired by the pages of Vogue, remind me of the eager tweenage doodles of young girls, hungry to grow up fast and classy.


My own journals were teeming with exalting images of idealized femininity, with boobs drawn like a quickly sketched bird, as if the more images I made the more I could control the femininity awaiting me. Atelier Corners writes that Ueno "strongly wishes to be a beautiful woman so he projects himself as an alluring woman in his paintings to actualize his dream."



Ueno is one of the artists on view at Yukiko Koide Presents' booth at the Outsider Art Fair in New York, bringing a taste of Japanese art brut to the United States. I spoke with Koide about her experiences with outsider art at home and abroad. 


Koide started her career in the arts working as a curator of a corporate gallery in Tokyo in the 1980s, when the art market was booming for the first time after World War II. "Local governments built museum buildings without content," Koide explained HuffPost. "Corporations and individuals bought works by famous artists from the West. It was crazy and sad that art was heavily tainted by bubble money."


It was in 1990 when Koide and her husband relocated to Chicago, where she encountered so-called outsider artists like Bill Traylor, Martin Ramirez, Eugene Von Bruenchenhein, and Henry Darger. "I was fascinated instantly," she recalled. "These artists showed me a totally different approach to art making. So fresh. I thought it was my task to introduce this type of art to Japan, something amazing produced far away from the art scenes."


Between 1991 and 2001, Koide organized 10 art brut exhibitions in Tokyo. However, because of the structure of the mainstream art world there -- or lack thereof -- the distinction of "outsider" art doesn't quite apply. "In Japan, there is no 'inside' established," she explained. "There is no contemporary art market. It is coming, but still very feeble. People don’t buy art, but they love to look at art."



Many self-taught artists in contemporary Japan produce in workshops like Atelier Corners, which caters to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The artists "need supportive environments where they are able to face their own desire to express and gradually and steadily develop their practice," Koide said. "It takes more than a decade." 


"Interestingly, the good workshops, in my opinion, were started as the last pan for those who are severely disabled and [find it] difficult to engage in any social or vocational programs," she continued.


As curator Randall Morris explained in an earlier interview, these workshops represent a sea change for a culture that typically "values privacy and not rocking the boat as a major concept." This sense of privacy and propriety also leads to a somewhat disjointed conversation regarding art brut, in which the practice in general is praised, though criticism regarding the quality of specific works are limited, out of consideration for the vulnerability of the artists. 


The cultural differences between Japan and the United States potentially impacts the ethos of the artwork created there. Although outsider art in the U.S. is often regarded as the result of pure, unadulterated creation, unattached to a particular time or place, certain cultural characteristics manage to bleed into the work produced, no matter how isolated the artist. 


"I feel a difference in the motivations of art making," Koide explained. "When you see the works by Henry Darger or Martin Ramirez, you can feel burning sensation of strong ego, confused or tormented. This is rare to find in Japanese outsider art. May be just not yet discovered. In Japanese outsider art, the makers seem to let go of their ego through art making."



Koide also pointed out the exhaustive and delicate use of materials in Japanese outsider art, another factor differentiating its style from that of the West. "They work intimately with materials they choose -- clay, textile, embroidery etc., developing their one-of-a-kind technique. It may have something to do with our ethnic liking or respect for craftsmanship." 


One of such artists showing with Koide at the Outsider Art Fair is Momoka Imura, a young female artist from south-central Japan who creates mysterious and strangely lovable bundles adorned with multicolored buttons. As Cara Zimmerman, Specialist of Folk and Outsider Art at Christie's wrote on Instagram, "Imura forces a reinterpretation of traditional sewing materials. So tactile and exciting." 


Along with Imura and Ueno, Koide will bring Japanese artists Kazumi Kamae and Eiichi Shibata to the fair. Her booth will also include the work of American artist Eugene von Bruenchenhein; specifically, the fantastical pin-up style photographs he captured of his wife Marie. Together, the mix of materials, influences and states of mind will communicate, beyond all else, diversity, Koide hopes.


"Diversity of art making, both in cause and realization," she said. "They give us amazing insights why human beings make art."


Visit Yukiko Koide Presents' booth at the Outsider Art Fair, from Jan. 21-24, 2016, at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York City.




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Vlad The Inhaler Will Make You Laugh Until You Wheeze

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In the 15th century, Vlad III, the Prince of Wallachia, was commonly known as “Vlad the Impaler.” His rap sheet included stabbing hundreds of guests at a banquet, decapitation, and inspiring Bram Stoker’s Dracula.


In the 21st century, he is inspiring something completely different -- a gloriously geeky pun.


Thanks to Sean Gallagher, an animation designer with Telegael Studios in  Ireland, the man known as “Vlad the Impaler” is now “Vlad the Inhaler:” The image, posted on social media, has gone viral.



“I'm still in a state of shock,” Gallagher told The Huffington Post. The artist was on his lunch break on Jan. 5 when he stumbled upon a portrait of Vlad the Imapaler in his newsfeed.


“And the pun just popped into my head, so I did the image up over lunch,” he said. He then posted the joke daddy-style to his Facebook page and the Internet went bonkers. Though, he was completely unaware at first.



Another visual pun: 'Vlad the Inhaler'

Posted by Seán Tomás Ó Gallchobhair on Tuesday, January 5, 2016


“It got about 20 likes,” he said. “Then a friend shared it. Then about a dozen of his friends shared it and I thought that was the end of it.”


Five days later, he noticed comedian David Schneider, had shared it in on his Facebook page.


“And it had gotten around 2,000 likes.”


A friend of Gallagher’s did a reverse Google search on his image, and they discovered that his visual pun had also made it to Twitter and the popular content-sharing site, Imgur. That yielded hundreds of comments that were puns on his pun -- giving way to pure pun-demonium.


“This post is a breath of fresh air,” said one commenter. “Count Bronchula,” said another.


This is not Gallagher’s first visual pun, either. He’s also whipped up George Squashington:



And David Bovine, a nod to the late singer that he drew in 2013.



“I did up the Bovine image just after 'The Next Day' came out, but where the inspiration came from I'm not entirely sure,” he said.


“In the Irish language the word for cow is Bó (as in Bowie) I think that was the biggest influence in that pun.”


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The Fabulously Freckled Get Their Close-Up In Photo Project

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You rock, freckle faces.


London photographer Brock Elbank has captured the fabulousness of freckles in a massive portrait project. Elbank hopes to have 150 photos by the time he exhibits his project in 2017. He has already shot some amazing ones.



"I’ve always loved freckles," he told The Huffington Post. "I’ve none myself, mind you. My wife and eldest daughter are freckly, though my youngest daughter doesn’t have a single one. They’ve always fascinated me, as they’re so diverse from person to person, and this is what I’m trying to document in this current series."



"Human beings really are the most amazing subject matter," Elbank said. "We’re all so diverse and I’m really loving seeing the range of people that are applying for the series from all over the world. No two people’s freckles are the same and that’s what draws me in, really."



Many of his subjects told Elbank they had been bullied for their appearance in the past. Yet, the artist noted that "there are also several heavily freckled subjects that have never minded their freckles, or suffered any teasing of any kind."



"The feedback from people has been very positive and humbling, too," Elbank said. "Each week, I get emails or messages on Instagram [from people] saying how they’re embracing the work and appreciating a positive project of something most have loved to hate in their youth."



Those interested in posing for Elbank in London for the project can submit a color photo to studio@mrelbank.com.



For more photos, check out Elbank's Instagram.


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