The Art of Obsession

!!Con Keynote

Transcript

1. Saturday, May 17, 14 - The first time I saw Harry Smith was in this photograph - My friend Stinky had a copy of an Allen Ginsberg photography book, we were teenagers - He was totally precocious and had tons of shit we didn't understand - The caption is great - “Harry Smith, painter, architect, anthropologist, filmmaker & hermetic alchemist, his last week at Breslin Hotel Manhattan January 12 1985, transforming milk into milk" - I had to know - who the hell was this guy?
2. Saturday, May 17, 14 - Here’s a picture of Smith when he was younger - It was pretty hard for me to find stuff out about him at that point, but I did eventually - He was all of the things Ginsberg wrote and more - a trained anthropologist, a linguist, a translator, a painter, and perhaps most of all, a collector - An obsessive collector
3. “Harry Smith liked to look for keys to the universal patterns that shape our cultures and the hidden realms of the human unconscious.” Saturday, May 17, 14 - This quote and many of the images in this presentation come from the work of the Getty Research Institute, a part of the Getty Museum in Los Angeles
4. “He compared patterns in native American music with the eccentric rhythms of jazz; the patterns in Seminole patchwork with those on Ukrainian Easter eggs; the intricate diagrams of master occultists with the ambient rhythms of the sounds of New York street life...” Saturday, May 17, 14
5. “...and somehow assembled from these a harmonic web of cosmographic ideas, employing all the investigative rigor of his early anthropological training” Saturday, May 17, 14
6. A Collector Saturday, May 17, 14 - As I said, Smith was a collector - Here are some of the things that he collected
7. Sounds Saturday, May 17, 14 - He is perhaps most famous for his collection of sounds - He was an seasoned Ethnomusicologist - Also an avid recorder of every day life - the sounds from Ginsberg’s window
8. Saturday, May 17, 14 - 1952, The Anthology of American Folk Music - Smith collected 84 songs from the mid 20s to the early 30s - Inspired a lot of people, a generation of folk singers and beyond
9. Saturday, May 17, 14 - Joan Baez
10. Saturday, May 17, 14 - This guy, Bob Dylan
11. Saturday, May 17, 14 - And a lesser known but equally brilliant artist named John Fahey - He also released some other work with the Smithsonian
12. “In 1964, Harry Smith was held for a week in the Anadarko, Oklahoma, jail on suspicion of stealing guns, and there he met several Kiowa Indians who introduced him to peyote rituals and songs of the Native American Church.” Saturday, May 17, 14 - From the notes of another major release I’d like to point out - Just to show what an amazing life Smith had
13. “In 1973, Smith returned to Anadarko to record. He decided to set up his equipment in singers’ homes or his hotel room, rather than at an actual ceremony, because the Kiowa often sang the songs in casual settings; he also would be able to record commentary.” Saturday, May 17, 14
14. Saturday, May 17, 14 - Kiowa Peyote Meeting - A collection of recordings made in Oklahoma of the Peyote rituals of the Kiowa tribe - Shows the range of his interests
15. Egg Shells On Toilet Paper Rols Saturday, May 17, 14 - He also collected more...esoteric things - Like egg shells on toilet paper rolls
16. Saturday, May 17, 14
17. Gourds Saturday, May 17, 14 - And Gourds
18. Saturday, May 17, 14
19. Tarot Decks Saturday, May 17, 14 - Tarot decks
20. Saturday, May 17, 14 - All of these photos are from the Getty Institute’s collection of Smith’s belongings
21. Paper Airplanes Saturday, May 17, 14 - Paper airplanes were one of Smith’s many obsessions - He had a huge collection of found Paper Airplanes - Each was annotated with the location and time he found it - The collection was donated to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum - They hold fascinating cultural meaning
22. Saturday, May 17, 14 Paper airplane made from “Many Smokes and Spring Seasonings” by artist Martin Carey, published by the Spring Mobilization to End the War in Vietnam, 1967. Harry Smith papers. The Getty Research Institute, 2013.M.4, box 286
23. Saturday, May 17, 14 Paper airplane made from from a flyer for “The Event from the Cafe Au Go-Go” published by Verve Folkways and the Infinite Poster, Inc., 1967. Harry Smith papers. The Getty Research Institute, 2013.M.4, box 286
24. Saturday, May 17, 14 Paper airplane made from “Demonstrate Against the War,” published by the Vietnam Peace Parade Committee, 1967. Harry Smith papers. The Getty Research Institute, 2013.M.4, box 286
25. Saturday, May 17, 14 Paper airplane made from an Empire State Building informational sheet, 1968. Harry Smith papers. The Getty Research Institute, 2013.M.4, box 286
26. Saturday, May 17, 14 Paper airplane made from a menu inscribed “X-celsior” from Max’s Kansas City, about 1978. Harry Smith papers. The Getty Research Institute, 2013.M.4, box 286
27. Saturday, May 17, 14 Paper airplane made from a connect-the-dots page titled “Oh! How I Wish I Could Fly,” unknown publisher, about 1982. Harry Smith papers. The Getty Research Institute, 2013.M.4, box 286
28. String Figures Saturday, May 17, 14 - Smith was also deeply interested with string games and string figures
29. Saturday, May 17, 14 - Here’s a photo of Harry with a String figure - Photo Jon Palmer, Harry Smith Archives.
30. Saturday, May 17, 14 - A page from Smith’s unpublished manuscript on string figures
31. Saturday, May 17, 14 - More string figures from Smith’s book
32. Saturday, May 17, 14 - Cabinet gallery exhibition in Brooklyn, 2012
33. Images Saturday, May 17, 14 - An extraordinary filmmaker - “Collected” images, in a way, to produce his films
34. Saturday, May 17, 14 Still from Film #18, Mahagonny Harry Smith (American, 1923–1991) 1970–80 (restored 2002) 35mm, color, sound, 141 min. The Getty Research Institute
35. Saturday, May 17, 14 Still from Film #18, Mahagonny Harry Smith (American, 1923–1991) 1970–80 (restored 2002) 35mm, color, sound, 141 min. The Getty Research Institute
36. Saturday, May 17, 14 Still from Film #18, Mahagonny Harry Smith (American, 1923–1991) 1970–80 (restored 2002) 35mm, color, sound, 141 min. The Getty Research Institute
37. & etc... Saturday, May 17, 14 - He also collected many more things. Here are a few...
38. Books Saturday, May 17, 14
39. Pop-up Books Saturday, May 17, 14
40. Beaded costumes Saturday, May 17, 14
41. Things shaped like other things Saturday, May 17, 14
42. (spoons shaped like ducks, banks shaped like apples, anything shaped like a hamburger) Saturday, May 17, 14 - For example - So in other words
43. Harry Everett Smith was a master of obsession Saturday, May 17, 14 - Which is why I jumped right in to telling you his story - Maybe a little bit too much so
44. This talk is called “The Art of Obsession” Saturday, May 17, 14
45. The Art of Obsession Michael R. Bernstein !!Con, New York City 18 May, 2014 Saturday, May 17, 14 - Here’s the requisite proper title slide - Thanks for having me, it’s an honor - It’s my first Keynote talk... - Anyway, back to the subject
46. Why? Saturday, May 17, 14 - Why did I tell you about Smith? - Because I’m interested in the following questions, and I wanted an excuse to ask them to you
47. What can we learn from Harry Smith’s techniques? Saturday, May 17, 14 - He found satisfaction in knowledge in the intersection between his interests - Artifacts were a means to an end - Paper airplanes were interesting because of the stories they told as a whole, their shapes formed a language - Paintings, songs, things that looked like other things - they all could communicate ideas
48. How can we master “The Art of Obsession?” Saturday, May 17, 14 - And why do we want to? - To me it’s summed up by this quote that we saw
49. “Harry Smith liked to look for keys to the universal patterns that shape our cultures and the hidden realms of the human unconscious.” Saturday, May 17, 14
50. Keys to Universal Patterns Saturday, May 17, 14 - The term that I liked the best from that description - We can master the art of obsession by “looking for keys to the universal patterns” - Universal patterns are composed of connections - And I have a connection I’d like to share
51. Saturday, May 17, 14 - String figures and knots were some of Smith’s favorite things - He believed they held some secrets to universal human understanding - Knot tying could be found in many cultures but not others - Smith believed they worked similarly to how the human brain understood written letters and numbers
52. Saturday, May 17, 14 - Computer scientists and mathematicians are also interested in knots - This is a figure from a book about term rewriting - This complex un-knotting operation, composed of various prescribed “moves” has parallels to program execution and term rewriting - Imagine a complex term that can be normalized to a value - This connection is deep and interesting - They make me think that..
53. Knots are Programs Saturday, May 17, 14 - And they signal at what is interesting about computation - Computation is more than “how computers work” - Influences how we understand nature - Influences how we live and communicate - One of the deepest human achievements - Which leads me to believe that
54. Harry Smith would have loved Computer Science Saturday, May 17, 14 - It has universal application - Gets to the heart of many human problems - Codes, languages, esoteric
55. Get Obsessed Saturday, May 17, 14 - And if he would give us advice, he would tell us to
56. Obsession is crucial to Interdisciplinary thinking Saturday, May 17, 14 - Because
57. Interdisciplinary thinking is crucial to advancement Saturday, May 17, 14
58. So many possibilities when it comes to computers and computer science Saturday, May 17, 14 - So many starting points for exploration
59. Compilers Saturday, May 17, 14 - My favorite type of program recently - So many different things going on
60. Type Systems Saturday, May 17, 14 - Getting to the heart of how we express programs
61. Static Analysis Saturday, May 17, 14 - Programs that analyze other programs!
62. Logic Programming Saturday, May 17, 14 - Solve problems you didn’t know you have! - Shatter narrow paradigm worldviews!
63. Distributed Systems Saturday, May 17, 14 - We’re already distributed, it’s time to catch up
64. PL Theory Saturday, May 17, 14 - Languages are our interface to computation
65. How? Saturday, May 17, 14 - But how do we get and stay obsessed? - How do we understand these subjects in a way that will lead us to find these types of connections? - Here’s a little advice on my take
66. mrb’s impractical guide to “The Art of Obsession” Saturday, May 17, 14
67. Follow the Links Saturday, May 17, 14 - Look for influences and connections between resources and disciplines
68. Open Your Eyes Saturday, May 17, 14 - Be open to connections to your interests in unlikely places
69. Pursue Discomfort Saturday, May 17, 14 - Regularly consult texts and concepts that are challenging for you
70. And Squash It Saturday, May 17, 14 - And over time, watch them become understandable as you work hard to learn
71. Trust Yourself Saturday, May 17, 14 - Because you’re awesome!
72. Contact Your Heroes Saturday, May 17, 14 - Because they want to teach and learn (typically)
73. Forget What Is Practical Saturday, May 17, 14 - It’s important to pursue concepts past the point of simple applicability
74. And Then Remember It Saturday, May 17, 14 - But it’s also awesome to ship. So do it!
75. Be (at least a little) More Like Harry Saturday, May 17, 14 - In other words
76. Thank You michaelrbernste.in @mrb_bk Saturday, May 17, 14 - Thanks to the Getty Institute for their amazing support of Harry Smith’s legacy
77. Works Cited • Bender, Jan “Treasures from the Vault” http://blogs.getty.edu/iris/treasures-from-the-vault- harry-smith-and-patterns-in-the-wind/ • Getty Archives “Collections” http://archives2.getty.edu:8082/xtf/view?docId=ead/2013.M. 4/2013.M.4.xml;chunk.id=ref8;brand=default • Andrew Perchuk, Rani Singh, editors “Harry Smith: The Avant-garde in the American Vernacular” • Perloff, Nancy “Harry Smith’s Archives and Collections Now at the Getty Research Institute” http://blogs.getty.edu/iris/harry-smiths-archives-and-collections-now-at-the-getty-research- institute/ • Notes for the Kiowa Peyote Ritual Release, Smithsonian Folkways http:// www.folkways.si.edu/kiowa-peyote-meeting/american-indian/music/album/smithsonian • Exhibition Press Release for “Harry Smith: String Figures” http://cabinetmagazine.org/events/ smith_string_figures.php • Terese, "Terese Lite," Excerpts from the book TERM REWRITING SYSTEMS. From the Course Term Rewriting Systems at the Vrije Universiteit, fall 2006. Saturday, May 17, 14