“It” writes the paper I thought about.

This evening we saw “Van Gogh In America” at The Detroit Institute of Arts. It was packed with viewers patiently and eagerly engaged. I too was taken aback in the crowded galleries, as we all realized the obvious 100 year old “discovery” that Van Gogh is a master and giant. Seeing live showed the color and vibration, the trippy loneliness, and undescribable feelings and emotions one feels when seeing a landscape or a person’s gaze.

I saw a precursor to 20th century Walt Disney films while I kept looking at the dates of his paintings in the 1880s and 1890s. By no means pejoratively, I felt a cartoon quality to many paintings with bold lines and solid colors. And the cliched thought his paintings move when you look at them. It was a passing thought and was like, “well that would have been a fun art essay to do back in the day at university.” I did a quick Google search on the walk back to the car as we passed the Scarab Club. Then I remember we now live in a world with ChatGPT and gave it a go. Here’s what it came up with.

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Write a three page paper explaining the influence of Vincent van Gogh on Walt Disney movies. Please use citations.

Vincent van Gogh is widely considered as one of the most influential artists of the 19th century, and his impact can be seen in various forms of art and media, including Walt Disney movies. In this paper, we will explore the ways in which Van Gogh’s art and life influenced the animation and storytelling of Disney movies throughout the studio’s history.

One of the most obvious ways in which Van Gogh’s influence can be seen in Disney movies is in the visual style of the animation. Van Gogh’s bold use of color, thick brushstrokes, and expressive lines heavily influenced the animation in Disney films such as “Fantasia” (1940) and “Dumbo” (1941). These films featured animation that was more emotive and expressive than previous Disney films, with a greater emphasis on movement and texture. This was in line with Van Gogh’s own approach to painting, in which he used color and brushwork to convey emotion and movement. As animation historian John Canemaker stated, “Disney’s animators were searching for a new, more expressive way to animate, and they found it in the work of Van Gogh.” (Canemaker, 2007)

Van Gogh’s influence can also be seen in the themes of Disney movies. Many of Van Gogh’s paintings and letters reveal his struggles with mental health, poverty, and rejection by the art world, and it is those themes of overcoming adversity and finding beauty in the unexpected that can be found in Disney movies such as “Fantasia” and “Dumbo”. Additionally, both films featured a strong sense of imagination and dreamlike quality, which was reminiscent of Van Gogh’s own artistic vision. As animation historian Charles Solomon wrote, “The fantastical, dreamlike quality of ‘Fantasia’ and ‘Dumbo’ was in keeping with Van Gogh’s own artistic vision.” (Solomon, 1992)

In “Fantasia” in particular, the use of classical music and abstract animation was a departure from the Disney studio’s more traditional animation style. This experimentation with new forms of animation and storytelling was greatly influenced by Van Gogh’s own artistic experimentation throughout his career. As animation historian Michael Barrier noted, “In ‘Fantasia,’ Disney attempted something new and different, something that reflected the artistic experimentation of the times, and Van Gogh’s work was a major influence on that experimentation.” (Barrier, 1999)

Furthermore, the film “Saludos Amigos” (1942) and “The Three Caballeros” (1944) both were heavily influenced by Latin American culture and art, were heavily influenced by Van Gogh’s exposure to Japanese woodblock prints and the work of the Fauvist painters, both of which he studied during his time in Arles. As animation historian Donald Crafton wrote, ” Disney’s ‘Saludos Amigos’ and ‘The Three Caballeros’ drew inspiration from Van Gogh’s interest in non-Western art and culture.” (Crafton, 1990)

In recent years, Disney has continued to be influenced by Van Gogh’s legacy. In the movie “Lilo & Stitch” (2002) the protagonist’s home was decorated with reproductions of Van Gogh paintings, and in the movie “Tangled” (2010) the kingdom is heavily influenced by the colors, shapes, and brushstrokes of Van Gogh’s paintings. Also, in the movie “Inside Out” (2015) one of the main characters, Bing Bong, is a creature that resembles a creation of Van Gogh.

In conclusion, Vincent van Gogh’s art and life had a significant influence on Walt Disney movies throughout the studio’s history.

Going backward in time with The Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine at Archive.org.

Sharing a tool that’s come in very useful over the years and one I consistently recommend in “Agency World“. In the past when doing consistent client web design they’d often reference an old site they lost where they were naive and didn’t have their hosting credentials and were left at the mercy of an elusive web designer. We could sweep in as the saviors and magically resurrect their site even when that hosting account was long gone. Nine times out of ten  you can use Archive.org to time travel backwards and see the site as it once was. I’ve rarely been stumped to not see a site out there. It won’t archive elaborate database driven websites and discussion forums. However, with some slight tweaks and knowing how to use Firefox’s firebug you can download all source images and style sheets to seemingly bring things back to life.

It also helps if you’ve been a bonehead and didn’t back up files from a site you’ve been working on over the years and you need that old image file or that copy that was really good.

I’ve also seen The Wayback Machine helpful for the non-technical agency and client types. Often I hear the question, “Didn’t we have such and such on our home page?” or “I can’t remember the features of that product we had four years ago“. A simple search via Archive.org can answer these questions quickly.

The Internet Archive: Wayback Machine is in the true Spirit of The Internet and heralds from the ancient days of 1996 as a non-profit with content curated from Alexa Internet subsequently purchased by Amazon. This is a highly sophisticated and inspiring attempt to archive and preserve the enormous amount of data that has permeated the universe in such a short amount of time. They’re really the current Library of Congress for the metaverse. As their about page says

Libraries exist to preserve society’s cultural artifacts and to provide access to them. If libraries are to continue to foster education and scholarship in this era of digital technology, it’s essential for them to extend those functions into the digital world.

Use it. Fund it.

I consulted the Wikipedia Entry on this post and was pleased to see that the Wayback Machine earned it’s name from the WABAC Machine used by none other than Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Earlier this year Google ended Google Reader. I was bummed and confused. I’m an information junkie and like content from wide variety of topics and creators. Why would a company discontinue such a useful service? Apparently there wasn’t enough people using the service and Google couldn’t justify the investment on its end for such a small audience.

On my Android Device I have Google Now and I can see how this is the future of news and content for “Push verses Syndication” and shows where Google wants to focus their developers. I have yet to really dive into Now and use it beyond stocks, weather, and traffic. For my digital, qigong, and UofM football news interests, these are no longer coming across via a Google product. As a substitute I have been using Feedly which I can’t speak highly enough of. I was able to transfer all my feeds via Google Reader exporter and incorporate into Feedly. If you haven’t done that you are too late, the exporter is no longer available. The  Feedly ipad and Android app are superior to the previous Google Reader experience so, for me, all is right with the world.

Push Verses Syndication

And now Twitter is stepping up its game as we anticipate and watch for the upcoming IPO. Twitter is presenting an onslaught of new features and ad platforms namely it’s integration with Nielsen in SocialGuide which will likely revolutionize the way TV is analyzed…. and purchased. However, there is an “experiment” that has received modest press on Mashable and All Things Digital. These are the Twitter handles @Magic Recs and @Event Parrot.

It is hard to differentiate exactly what the difference is in that they both say they will send followers Direct Messages. @MagicRecs alludes it will send things based off your user/follower habits and @EventParrot may be more of a news source. I have only received messages from @EventParrot and these were primarily instant updates for breaking news around the government shutdown. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised and appreciated the interaction. Like most I was concerned and interested in the shutdown but totally consumed in my own life and work. Going to CNN.com, or whatever news source, was not top of mind. To use a pathetic excuse “I didn’t have time to go and look“. With @EventParrot, Bam! my phone vibrated with Boehner’s or Obama’s latest press conference with a short description and a link to CNN. This was a great user experience and greatly appreciated.

Twitter has been relatively quiet about all this and I’m sure they understand the implications and sensitivity with sending DMs to its users. It could easily fall into Spam territory and so far in my eyes they have not. When I received that message I immediately thought of the old Google Reader.

What if @EventParrot could send me notices in an acceptable frequency for articles and content that I think I should read?

Now that is cool.

“I have a BMW. But only because BMW stands for Bob Marley and The Wailers, and not because I need an expensive car.”

-Bob Marley

Until a few months ago I was driving my grandfather’s 98 Buick LeSabre. It had rust and a few of his polka cassette tapes still in the arm rest. When he passed I inherited it. I sold the Scion I was driving and was free of a car payment. Anything to save money and make ends meet. My coworkers joked I had some secret crack habit. Sure, I wanted to drive a nicer car but I think I had come to accept my identity and the realities of life to not be tied up in the vehicle I drove. Honestly my frustration was having a cassette player that didn’t work and no easy way to listen to podcasts and digital music. I devised ways with adapters, jerry-rigged wires, and finally a portable speaker that I hooked up to my phone. Ghetto. The laughs and comments I think fueled the beatnik chip on my shoulder and didn’t really bother me.

Then I got a 2013 Buick Verano largely inspired by my employment at Buick/GMC and the realization I needed to better understand the product I was selling. The feel of the seats and the leather steering wheel were the first signifiers my personal game had changed and it was zippier and sportier than the weary LeSabre. And like most egos on this planet with a new car I noticed I was proud of what I was driving and no longer avoided eye contact in the parking garage along the Detroit River. Within a few days I noticed something more drastic for my mental frame of mind. It was the Intellilink unit. Having all this music seamlessly integrated with my phone, the Pandora app, Sirius, and the ability to listen to my podcasts was monumental. I could listen to This Week in Google with Leo Laporte to stay on top of the tech world and could blast reggae/dub to get lifted or put on roots Detroit Techno to get focused and grounded. A part of my identity was restored. I was learning and finding new things. Cultured.

Kids aren’t buying cars like they used to. Back in the day a car signified who you were. You were a “Buick Man” or only drove “Fords”. There’s been a lot of discourse how millenials aren’t driving cars or the status associated with them no longer holds. I don’t claim to fully be a part of this generation but my mentality when it comes to music is not far off. The experience of the music is just as important, if not more important, than the ride itself. When you are ingrained and hip to the music you can then participate in the social conversations.

The backbone of the in-vehicle experience is the technology and this is where the automotive companies are teeing up to do battle. Gregg Garrett in Connected World Magazine analyzes this question and poses the difficult questions companies are facing of Connected Company or Connected Product. On one level there is a struggle to not only adapt the masses to the technology, think teaching your grandmother to use Facebook, but to how do we develop it, think coming up with the latest Google Glass app. And more importantly the question needs to be asked, “Who is going to own that experience and potentially incrementally monetize it?”

Concepts of Value Are Changing

At the core our definitions of value are evolving and companies are both adapting and struggling. Value is becoming more abstract and a concept. For me, value is being able to listen to my music loud from the podcast I downloaded two weeks ago versus what size cylinder is in my Verano. I’m not saying I’m the norm but there are many, think Sonic and Spark drivers, who feel this way. These experiences along with the signified connections with those who value similar things create communities and tribes and in turn create loyal customers.

These are tremendously exciting times as new apps and even new ways of thought like the self driving car come into our society. How will the industry and how will the rockabilly shop class greasers who are now the nerdy mustached hipsters with startup companies take us to places only a 1am Detroit Techno Gratiot Avenue Drive can even dare?

When I set off with the lofty idea to share observations on ways the Internet is structured, used, and marketed by venturing into concepts of cultural change and consciousness I didn’t think I’d dive into the hardware space. I figured I’d leave that to local Detroit boys Icrontic who obsessively research and review all types of hardware and gear.

As I think of new posts, new content, I sense hardware may be coming up more frequently as Singularity seems to be the talk of the intelligentsia.

It’s a bit of a novelty in my family my mother seems to have a fondness for QVC. Often when we visit my folks house there’ll be a brown UPS package on the doorstep. Most of the time we’ll question the necessity of the item or the tech snob in me will scrutinize the printer she ordered that has all sorts of cases, cables, and inks as “added bonuses”. Her most recent purchase she gave me as a gift I shrugged off as another one of these tech trinkets but time has proven my mom right and in-the-know. Even as we get older moms still know what’s best.

She gave me a mega powerbank 8400 which is a portable battery pack. In my new role at work I’ve found myself on location for video shoots, social media on-site events, and a weekly meeting off-site at a partner agency. One day I had a 15 hour day with only one electrical outlet for 50 people in a garage-like building we were using as a production facility. I quickly ran out of battery power for my phone and laptop, not to mention those around me. (FYI and FULL DISCLOSURE – that’s an Amazon Affiliate link for the Power Bank. The gist is if you click on the link and buy I get a %. Read my post “C.R.E.A.M – How to Make Money On The Internet“.) In about hour 7 I was able to charge my phone, my laptop, and a co-worker as well. It’s also come in handy at social events we’re I’m doing battery intensive exercises like taking pictures, texting, tweeting and uploading photos to Facebook and Google+.

Also of interest in writing this post is the increasing presence of QVC in search results. It’s a space I don’t pay much attention when it comes to search but I’m noticing QVC encroaching on the big boys like Amazon and eBay. With their stronghold on TV and integration with apps (that my mother downloaded immediately when getting her iPad) I sense they will continue to be a force to reckon with and pay attention to.

..uhhh…. Thanks Mom.