Stream Porn and Picasso Simultaneously

Column: Exhibitionist | Date Published: Tuesday, 10 April 12 | Author: Melissa Wellham | 1 year, 1 month ago

Stream Porn and Picasso Simultaneously

The GOOGLE ART PROJECT, which had its launch in the Southern Hemisphere at the National Gallery of Australia, is a recently expanded initiative that makes art more accessible to people the world over. Or at least, to anyone with an internet connection.

The project was conceived by a group of Google employees – or “Googlers,” as the Australian Managing Director Nick Leeder called them during the media preview at the National Gallery of Australia – using their “20 per cent.” This scheme at Google allows staff to dedicate 20 per cent of their time to pet projects – in this case, finding out how to get art online. Last year the project was attempted on a smaller scale, with London’s Tate Modern becoming the first gallery to provide free access to their collections. Now, however, it is possible to view artworks from over 150 art galleries and cultural institutions from 40 different countries around the world.

So what is the Art Project, exactly? While the name conjures up images of primary school papier-mâché or a high school evaluation of the art deco movement presented on a cardboard poster, the Google product couldn’t be further from these things. It’s slick, it’s stylish and it obviously features more than macaroni art. What makes the project so much more than a Google image search, however, is the quality of the pictures. Each painting has been captured in incredible detail. The artworks have been photographed in gigapixels – something Ron Radford, director of the National Gallery of Australia, was particularly excited about when the project launched, saying, “Gigapixel. I love that word.”

The project works a bit like Google Earth: you can virtually stroll down the hallways of the National Gallery, the Art Gallery of NSW, the National Gallery of Victoria, and the Museum of Contemporary Art among others. And then, if you see a painting that catches your fancy, you can go in for a closer look. A much, much closer look. The aforementioned gigapixel definition means that you can see details in the artworks that wouldn’t be visible to the human eye. On some paintings, you can see the thumbprints of long-deceased master painters. There is a great deal of humanity to the digital project.

The benefits of the project are fairly obvious. From affording academics the ability to study rock art that they would otherwise have only restricted access to at Griffith University’s Rock Art Research Centre in Australia, to giving people who can’t afford to fly to Paris the opportunity to view works in the Musée d'Orsay – it’s making art more available. And, as the very purpose of art is to be looked at and appreciated, in my eyes that can’t be a bad thing.

The Google Art Project is available indefinitely at www.googleartproject.com .

	Wish You Were Here: Basically Like War WISH YOU WERE HERE, a new Australian drama, follows four friends who set off for a carefree holiday in South-East Asia – but only three come home to Australia. The film is a tense thriller featuring performances from Joel Edgerton, Felicity Price, Teresa Palmer and Antony Starr. I sat down with director and co-writer Kieran Darcy-Smith, and co-writer and actor Felicity Price – who are also married to each other – to discuss what inspired them to make the film and the process of filming on seemingly idyllic beaches. One might wonder what inspired the duo to make a psychological thriller set in a popular tourist destination. “A lot of it comes from my particular fascination with that region anyway,” says Kieran. “It was the first place I ever visited overseas. And the thing that attracted me as soon as I got off the aircraft at 25 years of age was that it’s dangerous, it’s hot, it’s full of stories, it’s full of history.” The process of getting the film off the ground actually happened quite quickly. “I know that I started writing on the 7^th of March 2007,” says Felicity, “because I dated the very first treatment. And we had it in the can almost exactly four years later. Then, at the end of five years, we were at Sundance having our opening night in the snow.” Being chosen to open at Sundance was an experience they both call incredible. When I ask them what filming in Cambodia was like, Kieran laughs. “A walk in the park. No, it was a challenge in the extreme, in every way you can imagine. We had a very, very tight schedule. The gear was antiquated, there were breakdowns, our crew largely couldn’t speak English, we had a predominantly Vietnamese or Cambodian-speaking cast, we had to get interpreters, Felicity and I were both incredibly ill…” Here Felicity interrupts. “We took our two small children! It was incredibly challenging, but at the same time very exciting. Because, through the camera, there is something exciting and exotic that you’re looking at.” “Also, we were running off adrenaline,” Kieran says. “It was basically like going into war. We had severe dysentery and I had a crazy oriental flu – we were sick as dogs. I fell into a sewer, on the very first day, up to my neck! But it was exhilarating, and I’d do it all again. We got out alive, and with great material.” Felicity concludes the interview: “We were half dead behind the camera – but what was on-screen looked amazing.” You can take their word for it – Wish You Were Here is visually stunning and well worth it. Even worth dysentery, perhaps. Wish You Were Here opens in cinemas around Australia Thursday April 26. Catch it in Canberra at Dendy Cinema.
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	Exactly What It Sounds Like: Exactly What It Sounds Like Every time someone describes NAKED BOYS SINGING! to me, they use the same five words: exactly what it sounds like. The legendary off-Broadway production is currently touring Australia for the first time, and director Jonathan Worsley is very excited to bring the show to Canberra. “Naked Boys Singing! did have a very short three-week run in Sydney ten years ago – it never went outside Sydney. What's really exciting about the show now is it's the first time anyone outside of Sydney gets to see it in Australia.” While based on the infamous American production, the Australian tour has its own special Aussie flavour. “It's got completely new choreography, [and] you'll see a couple of lyrics that are uniquely Australian as well. But I think the storyline of the show – though there's not too much storyline! – is pretty universal. It's all about the weird situations we find ourselves in when we get naked.” The Aussie tour was not difficult to cast – the huge, ahem, reputation of the American show helped hopefuls overlook the full frontal nudity aspect. “I think the most challenging thing was the fact that when we did the auditions, and [the boys] eventually had to take their clothes off, it was 12 degrees.” Jonathan put the emphasis on the singing part of Naked Boys Singing! “If they couldn't sing, and they couldn't perform, there's no way they'd make it to the stage – even if they did have amazing bodies.” Bringing the show to Australia has come with its fair share of interesting moments. “We had the Sunrise crew come and do the weather from the set, and [presenter] Grant Denyer, um, participated in the show. I think for the first time ever they had to do the weather with half the screen blacked out.” Audiences have also been keen to get involved with the concept. “We were approached by a nudist group who absolutely begged us to have a naked audience night. They didn't laugh at half the jokes – they didn't find being naked that funny!” The all-Australian line-up have had all kinds come through their doors – from bachelorette groups laughing their heads off at every single line to church groups whom Jonathan thinks “might have watched the entire show with their eyes covered. “There's something in it that will appeal to everyone,” says Jonathan. “I want to just encourage people to come and see it. It's not just for girls, it's not just for gay guys; it's for mums, it's for old Aunty Ethel, because she'll enjoy it as well. It's for everyone.” After all: it's got hot naked boys, witty dialogue, and more double entendres than you can poke a euphemism at. What more could you want? Naked Boys Singing! bum-rushes The Playhouse Saturday April 14 at 7.30pm. Tickets are available through Canberra Ticketing for $58/$48.
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