I saw this on boingboing and it's pretty fascinating. Advertising photographer Carl Warner makes fantasy landscapes (like the one above) from real food. Full story and pictures on For My Hour .
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Gweek 017 Podcast: David Hahn & another Hokum Scorchers' song
Gweek is Boing Boing's podcast about comic books, science fiction and fantasy, video games, board games, tools, gadgets, apps and other neat stuff.
This week, Mark Frauenfelder interviews David Hahn, creator of of the comic book, All Nighter, published by Image Comics. David has also drawn for Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse.
The episode closes with another song by The Hokum Scorchers, a duo consisting of artist Amy Crehore and guitar maker Lou Reimuller. The song is called “I Got Your Ice Cold NuGrape" from 1926. (P.S. Here's the history of the NuGrape Song from a previous blog post!)
Link to Gweek:
GWEEK 017
Link to Gweek:
GWEEK 017
High Fashion Ukulele Gals
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Chikanobu's Woodblock Prints (1838-1912)
CLICK TO ENLARGE IMAGES
I've been meaning to blog about the artist Yoshu Chikanobu (a.k.a.Toyohara Chikanobu or Hashimoto Naoyoshi or Yoshu Naoyoshi) for some time. I currently have a calendar with his work on my wall from the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston (Pomegranate). During the Meiji Era (1868-1912), Chikanobu depicted the changing fashions of the day with his colorful woodblock prints. He drew beautiful, complex scenes featuring patterned clothing (plaids!) and exquisite color combinations. His work documented changing seasons, times of day, events, family life and fashions (showing western influence) with a clean, elegant, simple line.
Thursday, September 08, 2011
Photo of the Day - Ukulele Girl 1918
(click to enlarge)
This photo reminds me of the imaginary girls that I have painted, but it's the first time that I have ever seen it. The image is of a beautiful nude girl in an arm chair with her ukulele - taken by Albert Arthur Allen taken in 1918.
(Thanks,Vintage Ukulele Bangkok facebook)
Read about this California photographer on Retrorambling
and here's a link to more photos.
Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Bob Dylan's "Opium" Painting
Top photograph (an autochrome) was taken by Leon Busy around 1915 in French Indochina. Bottom image is a painting called "Opium" by Bob Dylan (2010) from the Gagosian Gallery website.
Looks like Bob Dylan used the Leon Busy photo as a reference for his painting.
From Sept. 20, 2011 - Oct. 22, 2011, Bob Dylan will be showing his paintings, "The Asia Series", at Gagosian Gallery's Madison Ave. location.
Bob Dylan had a show of 40 paintings just last year at the National Gallery of Denmark called "The Brazil Series".
You can see more photos like the one above on Steven Martin's Opium Museum website. Steven has a book out called the Art of Opium Antiques. He is also working on a memoir about collecting opium-smoking paraphernalia, to be published in 2012 by Villard, an imprint of Random House. Thanks go to Steven for finding the Leon Busy photo posted above.
Tuesday, September 06, 2011
Gweek 015 features Craig Yoe + another Hokum Scorchers' song
Check out the interview with Craig Yoe, designer and comic historian, on a brand new episode of Boingboing's Gweek podcast (015). Also, my band, The Hokum Scorchers, plays a version of Luke Jordan's 1927 song "Pick Poor Robin Clean" at the end of the podcast. Luke Jordan was a blues guitarist and singer from Lynchburg, VA. We recorded this song in 1990.
Lou Reimuller - National guitar/kazoo/vocals, Amy Crehore- on the washboard/kazoo/vocals.
Our recording of "Pick Poor Robin Clean" is also found here.
Monday, September 05, 2011
Ode to Marihuana 1934
The song, "Sweet Marihuana", was performed in the movie "Murder at the Vanities" by Gertrude Michaels. This was made in Pre-Code Hollywood right before the Hays Code was strictly enforced in 1934. What is pre-code Hollywood? READ HERE . The Hays Code was a set of film industry moral censorship guidelines.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
"Bumber By Number" Art Show, Bumbershoot Festival, Seattle
Bumber by Number is an interactive art exhibit curated by Jo David and Marlo Harris for the 2011 Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle, WA. There will be a preview on Thursday from 3pm -9pm and the exhibit will be open 11 am- 8pm, 9/3/11 - 9/5/11. The theme of this special art show is paint-by-numbers. It will be located in the Seattle Center Pavillion at the Bumbershoot Festival.
For a slide show preview of altered paint-by-numbers by an impressive list of featured artists please follow this link (scroll down):
If you are going to the festival, don't miss this art show! My band,The Hokum Scorchers, played music in Seattle at Bumbershoot and Folklife festival in the past and we always had a ton of fun.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
NEW: Gweek 014 Podcast and The Hokum Scorchers
Gweek is Boing Boing’s cool new podcast about "comic books, science fiction and fantasy, video games, board games, tools, gadgets, apps and other neat stuff". Here’s the lineup for episode 14 .
You can hear my band, The Hokum Scorchers (Amy Crehore and Lou Reimuller), playing a version of "You May Go", a Memphis Jug Band song (more details here) toward the end (56:30) of the new episode of Gweek 014.
Above is a detail of my painting "The Angel at Gossamer Creek". Links to blues, rags and jug band songs performed by The Hokum Scorchers (recorded in the 1990s) can be found here. (boingboing recently blogged ten songs).
Thank you Mark Frauenfelder of BOINGBOING.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Unusual National Triolian Mandolin Paint Job
We bought this 1930s National Triolian resonator mandolin a little while ago. The unusual thing is the paint job: a solid pale yellow with custom pinstriping done by hand and a flower (?) design sprayed on the cover plate. I have never seen one exactly like it before. It's in great shape except for a spot where some of the paint is worn away from heavy playing. Wondering if maybe there was a set of them? Perhaps there was also a National Triolian guitar, plectrum guitar and tenor guitar painted to match. I can picture a hip 1930s band playing matching instruments.
P.S. The big instrument in the photo is a Gibson mandobass and the one on the wall is a Lyon and Healy Camp Uke.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Amazing Display of Botanical Paintings by Marianne North (1830-1890)
Marianne North, photo by Julia Margaret Cameron (in Ceylon around 1878) Wikipedia link
Over 800 of her paintings are in her own special gallery at the Royal Kew Gardens.
Marianne North (1830-1890) began her journey around the world at the age of forty. For 14 years she painted the plants of many different countries and wrote in her diary. When she returned, Marianne oversaw the design and construction of a gallery at the Royal Kew Gardens to house her work. She hung the paintings herself and painted decorative panels around the doors. The gallery opened in 1882. It has recently been renovated. Rocky Mountain Land Library has a nice post about Marianne on their blog, including a video of this amazing gallery at the Royal Kew Gardens and links to two books about this amazing woman. Kew Gardens is 10 miles from central London on the river Thames. My parents used to live near the river Thames and I remember going to visit Kew Gardens a long time ago. Please follow this link to read more and see video:
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Listen to Orson Welles: "The Mercury Theater on the Air"
Last night I watched an old B & W thriller from 1946 called "The Stranger"on PBS. The movie starred the great Orson Welles, Loretta Young and Edward G. Robinson. After the movie, I did an online search on Orson Welles. LINK
I read about his marriages, affairs, films, etc. and I came across a great website of his early work in radio.
"The Mercury Theater on the Air" was a radio show started in 1938 which featured the New York drama company founded by Welles and John Houseman. It was later called Campbell Playhouse when Campbell's Soup began to sponsor it. Many of the shows are classic dramas: Dracula, Treasure Island, A Tale of Two Cities, 39 Steps, The Count of Monte Cristo, Rebecca, Our Town, War of the Worlds, etc. Here is a link to over 60 radio shows:
(Thanks, Kim Scarborough for creating this page).
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Ten Hokum Scorchers Songs
Here's the LINK to ten of our songs that were recorded in the 1990s. We play various instruments on these recordings. This is traditional hokum music: jug band, blues and rags. The Hokum Scorchers is a duo comprised of Lou Reimuller and Amy Crehore. We played at Bumbershoot, Seattle Folklife, Ken Kesey's events and other festivals and venues in the northwest. And, in 2009, we played at my solo art show opening in L.A.
P.S. There are also a couple more songs on my website (scroll down to play): LINK
I may add more in days to come.
Thanks for the mention BOINGBOING!
R Crumb Will Stay Home and Eat Aline's Cake
Screen shot of the negative article in The Telegraph which caused R Crumb's decision to stay home.Image via Dylan Horrocks
The Sydney Morning Herald has published a letter by R Crumb explaining why he won't go to Sydney to appear at Graphic (a festival of illustration arts):"Sorry, folks. I do feel bad, as I hate letting people down. But I decided I’d rather bear the pain of letting people down than subjecting my long-suffering wife to a 10-day period of dread and anxiety for my well-being. She’s been awfully nice to me since I told her I wasn’t going! She baked a chocolate cake even!" READ MORE of R Crumb's letter HERE: LINK
I don't blame R Crumb for cancelling his upcoming gig in Australia. He doesn't need to appear at events that upset his equilibrium. Life is too short for Crumb to be used for other people's political agendas. If Aline's gut says "no", it's a good idea to trust it.
I don't blame R Crumb for cancelling his upcoming gig in Australia. He doesn't need to appear at events that upset his equilibrium. Life is too short for Crumb to be used for other people's political agendas. If Aline's gut says "no", it's a good idea to trust it.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
The Lou Brooks Blog
An illustrator colleague, Lou Brooks, has a new blog.
Have a LOOK.
It's a very enjoyable website by a funny fellow.
Photo of the Day: Duchamp as Mercury
"Duchamp with Shaving Lather for Monte Carlo Bond"
(copyright Man Ray Trust, Loaned from Philadelphia Art Museum)
Soapsuds transformed Duchamp into Mercury. Image by Man Ray from the Inventing Marcel Duchamp exhibit at National Portrait Gallery (2009)
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Amy Crehore's Tickler Ukulele #2
Here are some photos of Tickler Ukulele #2. Click to enlarge.I designed and painted this uke. Luthier Lou Reimuller built it from scratch. It has a lot of cool details and different kinds of wood. For a full written description and a few more photos follow this link:
P.S. I am re-posting this from May 2009 because I don't think that many people saw this ukulele that I designed myself and had built. I'm happy to say that my Tickler Uke # 3 (a new custom concert model that I designed) is getting done. So excited about it!
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
The Wildwood Chronicles Book
Colin Meloy wrote it and Carson Ellis (his wife) illustrated it. Here's the WEBSITE . Kind of cool that they are both in Portland, OR. He's the lead vocalist of the band Decemberists. The book is due out Aug 30, but you can pre-order it from Powells and get a signed copy. It was written for middle school kids, but it looks like a beautiful keepsake book for anyone. They will also have a release party at the Bagdad Theater, Portland on Aug 30, 2011. I'm glad to be living here in Oregon myself. We've been having the best summer weather.
The Art of Amy Crehore
Paintings by Kenne Gregoire
Shown here are just a handful of gorgeous, sleeping nudes by Dutch artist Kenne Gregoire. The compositions, patterns, textures, and naturalness of the figures are wonderful.
What is interesting to me is that he also is an amazing painter of still life (with VERY unique perspectives), horizontal landscapes and imaginative theatrical subjects. To see more art follow this LINK
Pictures of the Day: Bardot and Picasso
Suicide Blonde's tumbler has a series of photos of Picasso and Brigitte Bardo hanging out in his studio in 1956. Here's the link.
Monday, August 08, 2011
Sunday in Fukushima by Sean Bonner
Interesting read: Sean Bonner's fresh account of his trip to Fukushima, Japan on the Safecast blog. He was there recording radiation levels along with Xeni Jardin, Miles O'Brien (who are both in Japan for PBS Newshour), Pieter Franken and others: LINK
Above image is of skinny cat left behind by earthquake and tsunami.
Also, Xeni has a new interview on boingboing with Yoko Ono who was recently honored with the 8th Hiroshima Art Prize. LINK
Road of Hope is Yoko's exhibit.
I have been following Xeni's updates on twitter. She is also travelling to Kyoto, Kobe and Hiroshima for PBS Newshour with Miles O'Brien.
Sunday, August 07, 2011
Crehore art and images
Friday, August 05, 2011
Sister Rosetta Tharpe Performing "Trouble in Mind" in UK Train Station
Old Alexandra Road station, Manchester, England
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
Photo of the Day- How to play two ukuleles at the same time
This guy figured out how to play two ukuleles at the same time. Charles Russell 1939, barbell instructor with his two ukes. Photo credit: NPR link
Ripley's Believe it or Not
Saturday, July 30, 2011
A Taste of Pompeii in NYC
Photos by Toni Dalton
Artist Julian Schnabel’s Palazzo Chupi in the west villiage (NYC) was painted “Pompeii red” when it was built. Here's what it looked like in 2007 (left) and here's what it looks like today. Perfetto! I love it. He has a painter's eye for this stuff, although some in the neighborhood don't like it. LINKFriday, July 29, 2011
Flying Underwear
Distinguished people with Anti-Gravity Underwear looking at art that is hanging high on the
walls of this salon-style art gallery.
And here we have Edison's Anti-Gravity Underwear for kids.
The London Punch makes fun of Edison in 1879 over at
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Talk About Comics at Whitney Museum
Art Spiegelman, Chris Ware and Gary Panter talked about early comics last week at the Whitney Museum. There is currently a Lyonel Feininger retrospective at the museum called "At the Edge of the World". “The Kin-der-Kids” and “Wee Willie Winkie’s World,” the comic strips that Lyonel Feininger debuted in 1906, formed the basis of many of his subsequent paintings!
Here's the audio from their panel discussion at the Whitney:
I am quite interested in the history of comics myself and I even published my own comic book in the early '80s. There were 5 issues of "Boys and Girls Grow Up", one per year. Last Gasp was our distributor. Scroll down to see a couple of the covers that I created:
I still have some copies of my comic books in mint condition. They were quite limited. Maybe I will have to do another give-away on this blog. Stay tuned.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Messing with masterpieces - enough already!
This gorgeous Gauguin painting was attacked in April at the National Gallery in D.C. by a lunatic and....
Two 17th century Poussin paintings got vandalized with red spray paint just last week at the National Gallery in London. Here's a photo of some of the damage. Sunday, July 24, 2011
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Crehore Studio Photos 7/23/11
Detail of my new painting shown above - it's a large version on linen of the little oil sketch I did called "Blue Whale Cove". I am continuing the theme of the cove w/ figures.
Someone was talking about Lucian Freud's paint brushes the other day. Here are mine. I use every size, shape and type of brush to create my paintings. My medium is fine oil paint, usually on linen. I basically work wet-on-wet.The Art of Amy Crehore
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Anthropomorphic Furniture
Anthropomorphic chairs by Dorthea Tanning at
Read about: Anthropomorphism
For paintings, drawings, prints and more by me:
Sunday, July 17, 2011
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