Pure Imagination
Filter Bubble Friday #5
I’ve realized it’s not practical for me to post these every single week, especially when other projects are gobbling up my creative juices. So moving forward, Filter Bubble Friday’s will be a little more occasional. But hey, if you do get one, at least you’ll know what day it is!
Speaking of creative juices… If you’re like me and could use a refill, perhaps these links will help.
Filter Bubble Friday #5
Don't Hug Me I'm Scared
Video (3 min)
The best puppet show on the internet. Period.
If you trained a songwriting AI on Sesame Street and surreal horror movies, it’d probably spit out something like this. Underneath a sprinkled frosting of absurd characters and off-kilter jingles, there's some acute social commentary to be found. The first of a six-part series, this episode takes a surreal look at educational conventions surrounding creativity. All you need to know is: Green is not a creative color!
Seen it already? Take another look. There are plenty of Easter Eggs to find. You might’ve noticed snippets of this and episode four in the VU JA DE intro video; take a look see if you can spot/hear them!
ART THOUGHTZ: How to Make an Art.
Video (3 min)
Here’s another piece that appeared in the VU JA DE intro video linked above. I love it in the same way I love the puppet show — because it carries surprisingly lucid commentary on creativity and artistic practice, but does so in an unusual style and seemingly without effort.
Who you think you is, innanet?
Maria Popova — Mapping Meaning in a Digital Age
Podcast (50 min)
Maria Popova is the best. She runs a site called Brain Pickings, which was a major influence on my launching VU JA DE. So on the theme of art and creativity, I knew her voice was a must. This conversation radiates a zeal that’s near and dear to my heart: staying curious in a world which often feels designed for the opposite.
'88
Video (11 min)
Beautiful chaos. Or chaotic beauty? Either way, these 11 minutes will penetrate your eardrums and melt your retinas (probably the neurons floating behind them as well). This analogue gem tees up the internet’s go-to question for artists — “what app?” — then blows it to smithereens. It’s jam-packed so tight that you can pause at any moment, stare at the frame, and you’ll still need a moment to take it all in.
‘88 was made for Video Jam x Basquiat, a UK retrospective on the work of Jean-Michel Basquiat; and I have a feeling Basquiat himself would be proud of this one. Here’s a comment from the animator behind this piece, Ruffmercy:
“I feel like a thief that has been given keys to a palace for an evening. Once entering that palace there is only me and the treasures within. I get to wear his crown and to dance in his slippers; what an opportunity, if only for one night.”
Dirty Art Club - Gardens
Album (49 min)
Take the last video, feed it a few brownies, wait an hour, and you’ve got this album. It’s a little like elevator music; only for Willy Wonka’s glass elevator—launching straight through the roof and soaring in all directions.
Whatever you’re doing: walking, working, writing, editing, emailing, cleaning, cooking, dish washing… Toss this on and you’ll float away from the quarantine monotony, en route to—in the words of the late Gene Wilder—a world of pure imagination.
Bandcamp / Spotify / Apple Music
Next time you hear from me, it’ll be with a new video. Until then, stay healthy and send over anything that’s been on your eyes, ears, or mind.
-Billy