noble beast - andrew bird

by Daniel He

Andrew Bird’s quirky lyrics and violin melodies are back in Noble Beast, his new album set to be released on January 20th. in this album, he sings about radiolarians (which, according to Princeton, is a protozoa with amoeba-like bodies and radiating filamentous pseudopods) and, appropriately enough, “perfect diction” (Masterswarm). on the surface, Noble Beast is a combination of 2005’s The Mysterious Production of Eggs and 2007’s Armchair Apocrypha with a mixture of country-like singer songwriter songs that would fit in the movie Cold Mountain and electric guitar-laden indie rock.

musically, however, there’s nothing new here, which is good news for fans of his previous albums. the album hits its high point at “Anonanimal”, where Bird’s symphonic violin melodies intertwine with his vocals and create a perfect harmony with the sparse guitars and drums.

but there’s a haunting beauty to the album unseen in his previous efforts, and are amplified by violin harmonies. it emphasizes one’s peace with themselves amongst the social norms and the hustle and bustle of everyday life. while Noble Beast begins with carefree phrases, it ends with resonating brilliance.

"standard edition cover"

"special edition cover"

"Natural Disaster"

Track list:

1. "Oh No"
2. "Masterswarm"
3. "Fitz and the Dizzy Spells"
4. "Effigy"
5. "Tenuousness"
6. "Nomenclature"
7. "Ouo"
8. "Not a Robot, But a Ghost"
9. "Unfolding Fans"
10. "Anonanimal"
11. "Natural Disaster"
12. "The Privateers"
13. "Souverian"
14. "On Ho!"

*album to be released on January 20th.

*where you can learn more about Andrew Bird and "Noble Beast": http://www.andrewbird.net/

- cup of red

hermaphroditic nurses - FUSE @ Vancouver Art Gallery

"Lucy Fur" - my nurse

*all photos courtesy of Christopher Young

late November marked Vancouver Art Gallery’s FUSE party for it’s WACK! Art of the Feminist Revolution exhibit. art gallery goers eagerly lined up at the entrance to participate in the various art activities of FUSE, such as adult puppet shows, live bands and gallery tour. in the gallery, certain people were seen wearing blue patches with red crosses in the middle, around their necks, heads, arms and legs. what were those patches? and where were they from? Curious souls will soon realize that the patches were from a live art demonstration by Irene Loughlin and collaborators. it was a healing demonstration where cross dressed “nurses” diagnosed your major life problem and prescribed appropriate treatments. as if it were a real clinic, the “nurses” gave each “patient” a folder and a sheet of paper with all the appropriate sections filled in like symptoms, diagnosis and treatment. the “patient” was then asked to indicate which body part the problem was hurting most and the “nurses” would subsequently “bandage” that part with the aforementioned blue patches. the art demonstration was an interesting concept, but what most people noticed were not the bandages, diagnosis procedures nor patients’ folders. rather the nurses’ attire drew the most attention.

"Danny" - the other nurse

Lucy Fur was my nurse – she had on pronounced makeup, spiked eyebrows, hot pink bra and tong covered with a fishnet jumpsuit, skyhigh patent leather boots and a sexy corset purse. but Fox was also a “he” who had a neat black goatee and a deep soothing male voice. yes, my nurse was a hermaphrodite, an understanding one too. after she diagnosed me, i decided it would be a nice change if i interviewed her in turn.

the nurses

Fur described the project as an exploration of self of the “patient” and for her. she used to be a shy person but this demonstration allowed her to gain the confidence of putting herself in fire. as seen by the “nurses” attire, everyone naturally wondered about their sexual orientation. when asked about her sexual orientation, Fur felt that she was neither female nor male, but both at the same time. the hobby guitarist has lived as just a male, and lived as just a female but has blended both personalities together by trial and error. In relation to the art project, Fur ended with a memorable quote that we should keep in mind whether as “patients” to the FUSE “nurses” or those special “nurses” in our lives - “it is not the name, clothes or job that defines us, we’re something far greater.”

*where you can view more of Christopher Young’s work: http://www.chris-young.ca/
*where you can learn more about the Vancouver Art Gallery and FUSE: http://www.vanartgallery.bc.ca/


- cup of red

the kindergarten factory - the weaving place by Meinolf and Althoff

*all photos courtesy of Travis Joseph Mainoff

Travis Joseph Mainoff and Kai Althoff’s “the weaving place” is like a textile factory assembly line set in the wrong room. the white strewn walls with elaborate ceiling mouldings mixed with turquoise upholstery accents dictated notes of childhood playfulness. balls of yarn and woven fabric laid lazily around the room adding to the quirky kindergarten atmosphere. visitors of the art gallery were set sitting in a numbered row holding large wooden looms with spools of yarn weaving their colourful blankets. they were in deep concentration - performing repetitive weaving motions trying to perfect their product.

this whimsical interior was designed by Althoff, a German artist, while the artistic concept of weaving was created by Mainoff of San Francisco. Mainoff invented the large detachable loom called the Laser Loom which he brought around to weave with in public places. he’ll tie one end to a tree for stabilization and the other around himself and starts weaving. it is no wonder that soon he becomes a public spectacle with people vying to try their hands at weaving too. “the weaving place” was the product of the artist’s experiences. he wanted to explore the “potential of the individual in the production of cloth…[because] textiles are central to human culture and so immediately physically experienced in our daily lives.” “the weaving place” is not a factory because there are no machines and it’s certainly not efficient, but there exists a connection between the makers and what is made. every imperfection of the weaved pieces are irreproducible, playing with our sense of value we put in perfect commodities.


in an art discussion tour called “canon”, ideas flew around about what this space represents. for example, someone brought up the point that this was not fine art or depictive art, but rather a community collaborative art. another art-goer noted that the contrasting concepts of the profane factory vs. sacred childhood were merged together in this room. “the weaving place” is definitely open up to many interpretations for discussion, but there is one philanthropic aspect of the project which is unarguable - the pieces of cloth weaved by visitors at the art gallery will be stitched together into a blankets to be donated to the children’s hospital.

*where you can visit the weaving place: Vancouver Art Gallery
http://www.vanartgallery.bc.ca/the_exhibitions/exhibit_kai_althoff.html
*where you can view more of Travis Joseph Meinolf work: http://actionweaver.com/

*where you can view more of Kai Althoff's work: http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/artists/kai_althoff.htm

- cup of red

west coast soul - jill-marie stokes

"Spirit of the West Coast"

"west coast soul" is the true name of Jill-Marie Stokes, a 28-year-old self taught painter. she was mentioned in cup of red's Next Door Style's launch party article last month, as the resident painter of Yaletown's hip Raw Canvas. having grown up on Vancouver Island, lived in Whistler and Vancouver, and travelled around the world to places like Australia, Costa Rica and Uganda, Stokes' art is a creative reminisce of her outdoor experiences. working with acrylics on canvas, her paintings not only revolves around nature but explores it as a being with soul. Stokes' art currently is displayed at the chocolateir, Cocoa Nymph on 10th and Alma. next Saturday, December 13th, marks her opening night for her artwork at Raw Canvas. cup of red had the wonderful pleasure of getting to know the story and person behind Jill Marie's artwork over delicious spicy hot chocolate from Cocoa Nymph.

([cor] is “cup of red”, [jms] is Jill-Marie Stokes)

[cor]: what are your inspirations for your art?
[jms]: my inspirations are from photographs that mostly came from my world travels. i love to paint my photographs that have a big impact and special moment for me.

"Morning Glory" - the painting
"Morning Glory" - the photo inspiration

[cor]: i see that a lot of your art conveys the subject of nature. why you did chose this particular subject matter?
[jms]: it has really come from who i am. i've spent the last 8 years guiding in the outdoors and most of my life exploring it from a young age. i've also watched a lot of environmental themes come through this year in a few pieces after working at Ziptrek Ecotours in Whistler. the owners taught us about global sustainability and how to teach others using the lessons learned from the cycles of life in thousand-year-old rainforests. that's where the "Tree of Life"took form when i was trying to convey the energy that is circulating from the trunk into the soil, up into the clouds and ultimately back to the tree in the form of rain. it shows us the interaction that is taking place with every element and the fragile balance that is held between each other.

"Tree of Life"

fluttua by lago - modern beds series #2

*all photos courtesy of Lago

"suspended design - real price" is the concept of fluttua, a bed that seemingly floats in the air. fluttua is designed by Lago, an Italian furniture design company who's also designed other illusional furniture such as air table and beam bed. fluttua is not limited to four-cornered shapes as it is also offered in a circular design. even though the bed is short of a prominent headboard, it is the crucial attachment piece to the wall. look closely, and you will see that there is an almost unnoticeable support beam underneath the bed's centre. as seen in the photos, fluttua is able to support a substantial amount of weight despite it's delicate appearance. fluttua may be a conspicuous art piece on its own, but careful attention must be given to your bedroom space plan before permanently fixing this optical illusion on your wall.

*where you can learn more about fluttua and Lago: http://www.lago.it/en/design/products/fluttua.html

-cup of red