Yet another Dave Thorvald Olson project - this one serves up all the leftover bits which don't fit elsewhere - more craft than the art - nuggets perhaps noticed or observed, announcements of fresh paintings, podcast and/or publications, static montage, various snippets of prose, sites of note or ones you might enjoy, messages to future self, relics from past, snapshots i'd like you to see, fleeting reminiscences, future predictions, occasionally lurid predilections and mysterious items uncovered. In short ephemera e-phem-er-a - n
1) A range of collectible items that were originally designed to be short-lived
2) Something that is transitory and without lasting significance
KK and DaveO discuss TNMH while sporting beards and hats
True North Media House is shaping up, pushing forward and making its own path to the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Seeking to form a partnership with the W2 Community Media Arts Centre, TNMH is hosting a pivotal meeting today (Thursday, 6pm, Catalyst Internet office).
The mainstream media is paying attention with coverage by Business in B.C., Business in Vancouver The Vancouver Sun, CBC, BBC and most recently 24 Hours. Indeed the message of inclusiveness, variety, free expression, and creativity is getting out there, beyond the massive coverage on the web o’ world.
In today’s 24 Hours article (featuring myself, Kris Krug and our rocking beards) Kris is quoted: “We’re just a bunch of kids who are doing social media and online media and we just want to cover the Olympics [...] We’re banding together to share sources, resources, photographers, places to work, press briefings.”
And that’s all true, except maybe the kids part ;-).
Here’s a pitch for a panel for SXSW Music Conference remixed from a panel at Northern Voice 2009 Rock n’ Roll Photo w/ Bev Davies + Kris Krug at Northern Voice 09. Like that panel, I’ll moderate a group of experienced band and concerts photographers about a variety of creative and technical and licensing issues.
ROCK 'n ROLL PHOTO. Photo by Uber Lexy
Starting August 10, you’ll have a chance to vote for SXSW Panels and Presentations until Aug. 28th and your vote constitutes a portion of the selection process along with staff and an advisory board.
Madonna's 1st Ever Concert by Bev Davies via Uber Lexy
Blurb:
Photos are an integral part of building a music scene and attracting audience but there’s a chasm between amateur snapshots and pro photos which truly capture the band’s aesthetic. This panel explores how bands and photographers can work together (technically & creativity) to produce images which enhance the artist/fan relationship.
Questions:
What do photographers want from bands when shooting them?
What can bands do to be better subjects for photographers?
What are characteristics of a great band or concert photo?
How can photographers get great shots at shows with low light and fast action?
What are the differences between shooting for love or money? Does it change your shots?
Who are you shooting for? Yourself, the bands, the fans, the future?
Everyone has a camera of some kind – how does this change the reasons/importance of your photos?
What are rights licensing options for photographers?
How can photographers build an audience by sharing and using Creative Commons?
How can photographers build relationships with promoters/bands/labels?
Bios:
Dave O presents at SXSW - Photo By KK
Moderator Dave Thorvald Olson is a writer, podcaster and documentarian who frequently appears in media from High Times to CBC to BBC discussing counter-culture, art, hockey, and public policy.
I’ve seen hundreds of rock shows, published punk rock fanzines, followed the Grateful Dead plus Elvis died on my 7th birthday. I presented this panel at Northern Voice conference in Vancouver BC – recap with video, slides, photos, reviews and live blog.
Also, I gathered up exceptional Panelists:
Bev Davies photographed most every punk rock band in, or through, Vancouver in the 1977-85 from DOA to Dead Kennedys to The Clash plus “emerging” major acts like U2, Motorhead and Madonna. Her intimate and distinctive B&Ws, which appeared regularly in the alternative press together form a compelling chronicle of Vancouver’s music history.
Bev Davies & Kris Krug: Rock 'n Roll Photo @ SXSW. Photo by riacale
Kris Krug regularly shoots bands along with fashion shows, tech conferences, Olympic Games and international travel. Known for his cross-processed style, he shares his shots with Creative Commons licensing, regularly organizes photo walks and contributes to conferences including TedX Shanghai, Gnomedex, PopTech, Petcha Kutcha and Northern Voice.
More about Rock N Roll Photography panel:
Photos are a key component of building a music scene or movement as well as engaging audience for a musical act, but there is a huge difference between some snapshots and photos which capture the band’s aesthetic and essence. Plus, photographers shooting for magazines or freelance don’t always want to share the licensing which allows the band to use the shots for their own promo use.
This panel with noted rock n roll photographers explores how bands and photographers can work together to produce images which thrill the band and inspire the fans. Beyond the technical points of photography, moderator Dave Olson will discuss how the manner of working, point of view, and setting are key contributors to quality results and ask the panelists how they find inspiration, develop a unique style, capture atmosphere, and form working relationships with the artists ~ plus technical tips to get in the pit and make a great rock shot.
While I was spieling, I couldn’t help to recall all the others times I’ve stood before groups – from Rotarians to Mormons to Deadheads to strangers on buses to students in Germany – to tell my stories. When I spoke about my ole dead Gramps from whom I heard I alot of tall tales, I realized that so many of the mundane and amusing talks I’ve busted out at one time or another were all coming together in that room.
Thanks to everyone who listened while the stories were in development and when they were really happening. To everyone who showed up, Thanks. To everyone who came up for a hug and a kind word to to show off their hero/project/metaphor cards – big thanks. I feed off of you to lay it all open. I gotta trust you or I can’t tell it real-style.
DIY Analog Power Point by Unkown - did you take this?
At the risk of waiting any longer to post *everything*, here is an evolving wrap-up of the related content from F@ck Stats Make Art at SXSW 09.
Consider dropping a vote for my pitches for SXSW10:
What’s next? I have a closet full of stories – literally. I plan to tell them. Perhaps a tour, more books, more artifacts – Wanna help spread this message of tolerance, translucency and creativity? Subscribe to Choogle On! podcast.
Photo Slidedeck
I didn’t use this deck in the prezo but it includes most of the photos in the envelopes of Heroes, Metaphors and Projects.
Is there a digital Thoreau? Will we discover a currently neglected philosophy blogger in a hundred years and suddenly realize that we ignored someone whose ideas would come to change the world?
It worked for me because he’s sort of a fellow traveller having done the zine thing. I’m still processing my thoughts but it tied in with some thinking I’ve been doing about what I might end up getting involved with next…
Make your own from the attached .pdf (attribution, non-commercial use only – note: while I took most of the photos, some photos’ origins are unknown or undocumented but presumed to be in public domain-ish).
Building A Scene – Rock & Roll Photography Panel Re-cap
Blurb:
Photography isn’t always clean, in a studio with great lighting, patient models, or beautiful subjects.
Iggy Pop decades apart by Kk and Bev Davies at NV09
In a panel with two noted Vancouver photographers Bev Davies and Kris Krug, host Dave O will explore how they find inspiration, develop a differentiating style, capture atmosphere, and form relationships with the artists, plus technical tips to make a great rock shot.
They’ll also discuss sharing your work to build a common experience and a “scene” for fans to self-identify with and participate in as well as compare and contrast favourite shots.
Using several well-chosen photos of rock ‘n’ roll stars as a backdrop, Dave Olson finds out from noted Vancouver photographers Bev Davies and Kris Krüg how they are permitted access (or not), how they work with the musicians (or not) and what it takes to get that iconic, memorable photo. From Northern Voice 2009.
It takes a minute or two for the video to settle down. Stick with it, it’s worth it!
Excerpt: I first started delving into the works of the legendary Bev Davies only just over a year ago but after discovering what I have (which is simply scratching the surface) I realized what an important person she is to rock and roll history, along with Vancouver history.
Along with Kris Krug, whose rock photography is recent yet not any less inspiring and captivating, Dave Olson will guide these two through a journey of their craft both on and offline.
I also saw a great talk moderated by Dave Olson on rock ‘n roll photography featuring Kris Krug and Bev Davies. Both of Kris and Bev take fantastic pictures (that you should really take a look at) but, in particular, some of Dev Davies’ early pictures (there are some in a Flickr set here) are must see if you’re a fan of early ‘80’s punk and hardcore. Bev was basically the only one taking pictures at these shows in Vancouver in the early ‘80’s and her collection of shots of DOA, The Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, The Adolescents, Gang of Four, Duff McKagan-era Fastbacks (and on and on and on) are amazing. You may have seen her photography in the punk rock calendar that Nardwuar put together a couple years ago—all the photos in the calendar are her work.
Finally, I especially enjoyed watching Dave Olson interview Bev Davies and Kris Krug about taking photographs from Rock and Roll bands and watching all the historic and amazing photos reel on stage.
Speakers:
KK + Bev Davies in Rock N Roll Photo by Penmachine
Moderator Dave Thorvald Olson is a writer, podcaster and documentarian who frequently appears in media from High Times to CBC to BBC discussing counter-culture, art, hockey, and public policy. He’s seen hundreds of rock shows, published punk rock fanzines, followed the Grateful Dead plus Elvis died on his 7th birthday. (DaveO’s Library)
Bev Davies photographed most every punk rock band in, or through, Vancouver in the 1980’s from DOA to The Clash. Her intimate and distinctive B&Ws, which appeared regularly in the alternative press, captured both the sweat of the band and the excitement of the audience and together form a compelling chronicle of Vancouver’s music history. (Bev on Flickr)
Kris Krug shot dozens of bands at the last 3 SXSW Music fests along shooting everything from fashion shows to tech conferences. Known for his x-processed style, at SXSW he captured evocative, gritty shots from well-known artists like REM and Flaming Lips to emerging acts and shares his shots with Creative Commons licensing to help bands and fans enjoy the experience. (KK on Flickr)
Posted here for archival purposes. Grab Print version as needed.
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Countdown: 35 weeks until the opening of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.
VANOC slow to get into new media game
Kris Krug is among a small group of Vancouver new media trailblazers aiming to revolutionize how the Olympic Games are covered in this wild Web 2.0 world.
They have devised the True North Media House, and they say it will also be strong and free.
It’s going to be a Downtown Eastside-based alternative for outlets big and small that don’t qualify to be inside the fence at the main media centre in the Vancouver Convention Centre or in the non-accredited provincial facility at Robson Square.
“With the explosive growth of online journalism, citizen journalism and new forms of journalism, we’re going to have huge demand for the services we’re offering there,” Krug said.
The concept was borne out of meetings last fall among disaffected members of the local new media community. Early on, VANOC was wide-eyed about the new media. Krug and others briefed VANOC executives and staff on a new media day back in 2005. But as the Games approached, things changed.
I remember Krug sitting crestfallen outside the Pan Pacific Hotel last November, ruing the fact that VANOC didn’t let him join in the world press briefing. That week, his Raincity Studios’ colleague Dave Olson extended a hand with his famous “Hello VANOC, we’re nice, local and invite you for a coffee and a talk” open letter.
Any VANOC forays into the virtual world have been on the coattails of telecommunications sponsor Bell. The Cultural Olympiad’s intriguing Canada CODE digital collage is the best example. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are used by many individuals at VANOC, but not VANOC itself.
The reluctance apparently comes from top-down. The IOC has tiptoed around the Internet, not fully embracing the new media. To its credit, it opened its own YouTube channel during the Beijing Games while liberalizing its rules to allow athlete blogs. Krug said the IOC’s top Canadian, Dick Pound, told him that the Internet is the second-biggest threat to the Olympics movement, after performance-enhancing drugs.
“They haven’t figured out how to harness the Internet, so they view it as a cannibalization of their broadcast revenues,” he said. “By not figuring out ways to engage the media, particularly the new media, they’re missing out on a whole generation.”
So Krug is intent on showing the IOC the potential.
“We have lots of people who are stoked abut it. You might have a Swedish ski blogger, and we’ll have the Christians blogging about Christians in the Olympics,” he said. “We’ll have other people who are probably anti-Olympics there, too. It’s like a big house, and everyone’s welcome in. It’s about open access for all these locked out, independent new media.”
Really truly pleased to read all the kind words from folks who rolled by my Northern Voice presentation F*** Stats, Make Art – sorry for messing up your SEO mojo with the inappropriate title ;-). To all who showed up, thanks! Really a treat to see so many friends, heros, colleagues and new friends smiling back – makes doing my “Dave O Show” a blast.
I really dumped my guts into my spiel about making art with the mighty tools at our disposal. With a group of opinionated, smart and savvy folks, I wasn’t sure if my message would be redundant or met with indifference or confusion. The resultant cavalcade of positive remarks suggests I articulated much of what i set out to share.
Hmm … what do I come up with for next year? As per the convo percolating at Nancy White’s post, perhaps a creative arts track of some kind is in order. As for me, I’d very much to learn about the other part of the publishing business which i know very little about – agents, distribution, editors and all that. Remember tis important to know much fu!
Also a lovely treat to riff with my Crazy Canucks colleagues in the Sports Blogging and Podcasting panel. This rag-tag group grew into a team over the past 61 shows and the panel was as easy and intuitive as the podcasts. We know each others strengths and are “giving” to one another in the conversation. The questions in the session were great and show a real understanding of the weird tension we have with the “official”ness of the Canucks and the trade off of objectivity and creative control vs selling out.
Alanah and JJ live outside the Vangorrvy tech industry bubble and run the two most popular Canucks blogs out there. Alanah’s is famous for drunken live blogging which is no surprise why she ranks #1 for drunken canucks fan. JJ is the people’s ambassador to GM Place – walking the concourse with him is a task as he’s stopped more often than Mike Weaver would. And of course my good buddies the Bollwitts – the Vancouver blog and podsafe music podcast darlings.
Mighty Thanks to the kinds people who organized the event. I’ve becomes great friends with some of these diligent inclusive and inspiring peeps and truly enjoy learning more about their many skills and noble dedication to knowledge sharing. I encourage others to step up and help out driving the vision of the event going forward. Special thanks to KK, Boris and Roland who (unbeknownst to them) served as sounding boards for bits and pieces of my presentation in progress. Their reaction, diatribes and riffs helped my schtick for the better.
So if you’ll pardon me, … for the self-indulgence file, here’s an annotated NV08 roundup for personal archeology (in no particular order):
{Note: Last year’s podcast presentation induced the creation of yet another podcast feed which features all my odds and ends which don’t fit elsewhere from marketing lectures to sound seeing strolls. This is now a series i guess.}
After Matt’s talk, I sat in Dave Olson’s session called “F&*% Stats, Make Art. He’s clever and funny. Dave’s big into the podcast side as well. I also spoke to him briefly after he spoke – very gracious.
Dave Olsen rules. He is swearing too. He is swearing so much his talk is called “f— stats, make art”. He stresses that we should put our hearts into our work, otherwise what we are doing is just bullshit. And that we need to start really caring about what we are creating. On and control your transparency; because he doesn’t really want to know all that shit about you. All humor aside it was an inspiring talk, Olsen stressed that we should get back to ourselves “people say that if you want to be an artist you need to go to art school – bullshit – study yourself” states Olsen. Find your craft and take it seriously he states, and there is a big difference between typing and writing. (Dave Olsen)
today i want to tell you about the session that touched me the deepest. it was dave olson’s “f**k stats, make art”. miss 604 has a great synopsis of it, and you can find my notes at the end of this post.
one of the things that became very obvious for me after dave’s presentation was sadness/frustration/disappointment that i had abandoned my practice of doing at least one piece of “artful writing” a day, no matter how short, kitschy or silly. dave may just have just stirred me enough to go back to that.
so i ended up writing two poems and would like to dedicate them both to dave.
thanks to dave olson, no. 1
a concussion of the most
mindful sort
comes over me as i indulge in these
northern voices.
poems must be written,
suns must be risen,
earths must be quaked
in this pyramid of
gentle thoughts
– not just yours,
not just mine –
that shake up this world.
I did one last year on Stats: The Forbidden Love, and given that this year there was a talk on “Fuck Stats: Make Art” maybe it’s time for another one. After all, they are independent principles, not antagonistic. And Oscar Wilde cared passionately about his stats, you just know it.
{Note: This is a sweet piece of prose!}
But I must admit, even as an Egalitarian of long standing, that there is something wrong with a world in which grown men are not ashamed to admit they’re too scared to go into neighborhoods that don’t frighten a woman. They looked me in the eye, one after another (the men, not the eyes; mine are virtually on top of one another, except the ones I keep in the freezer) and told me that the Gallery Gachet wasn’t in Gastown, it was (horror of horrors!) in the Downtown EastSide (although the out-of-towners called it the Lower East Side, presumably thinking it was a wormhole to Manhattan or something). As if Gastown were an idyll of upper-middleclassdom, which it is not and never has been. The people who work in Gastown are convinced it’s a postcard and that the bums and junkies they see on the street each day are “spillover” from the Downtown EastSide, just on the other side of Maple Tree Square. That the junkies, streetwalkers, and bums have been there since 1860 never seems to occur to them and, day in and day out, they remain convinced that it is the down and outs who are the anomaly, not the chino-clad technologists and graphic designers.
After catching yuppie cooties at the Lame-lighter, i led a rag-tag gang (past the endlessly sprouting fancy furniture stores) on a late-night foray to the Gachet where we imbibed and roasted til the last Seabus sailed. Dig what they are brewing up there for sure.
PS My spiel about the fucking of the stats and so on … was more about inspiring folks to step it up and reap validation from producing quality work which evokes passionate responses rather than settling for the saccharine pleasure of statistics. There is some audio of my pontifying somewhere.
Have I mentioned before that our pal Dave Olson is awesome? He’s here to talk about how Art Makes the Future. History may have been forged by popes and generals but the only reason we KNOW about it is because someone took the time to write and paint about it.
{Note: My pal Miss604 took attentive notes which resemble my own scribblings – which i’ll post once i recall where i stashed the bits}
Stephen Rees I had three pages of scribbled notes in my moleskin to transcribe. It seems to me that you got the spirit if his – very impressive – presentation.
Apparently, Dave was on the same stream as our “Writing on Walls” session – tapping into our creativity. I’m glad the session was recorded and blogged. It was interesting to see that there were quite a few sessions that pinged on a central core of creativity.
{my comment:}
Indeed Nancy, i’d hoped to hang out in your arts and crafts funtime and enjoyed seeing lots of creative hi-jinks going on. Not sure if you remember but you made a great “podcasting lunch” sketch for my amigo Cosmo and i at Mindcamp 1.0 in Seattle. I also enjoyed your ’symbolic word poetry remix’ wall.I wish you could’ve stopped by to enjoy my schtick (and i’d have enjoyed your input for sure) but gratefully the recording and remarkable notes will tide you over til next year. With all these common themes emerging … How about a “analog expression” track? I was also displeased being up at the same time as Monique’s preso about books and writing and missing Alan’s tour de force ~ sigh.
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Facebook Wall round-up (used without permission with my pardons):
Keith Bao wrote at 5:19pm
“Know Much Fu”I f*@!k’n dig this!!!!!!
Refreshing and honest, down to the core.
It was an honour to be there listening.
I’m home sick today and have been listening to back episodes of Postcards from GB for the last hour or so…listened to the most recent one twice cause I liked it so much :-)Ditto on the session motivation. Totally inspiring.
I had expected something bordering on more technical, but still had a good [and informative] time listening to all the speakers; including my friend Stephanie’s talk on design, and Dave Olson (aka. uncleweed) and his Fuck Stats Make Art motivator.
There were two more sessions that were seminal. First, Dave Olson producer, writer and visionary gave a great talk about the need to make art, not stats. Truly great rant that put a number of things in perspective for me. We get so caught up in the techno, the art suffers. It shouldn’t. And if Dave has anything to do with it it won’t. When everyone seems bent on promoting wikis, blogs, 3rd Life and all the other accoutrements, Dave was extremely refreshing. I would suggest you follow his work. This guy is truly unique.
After looking at the schedule the first thing I saw was the Sports Blogging and Pod Casting. Which I am very excited about because that is the Industry I want to have a career in. I have heard about the speaker Rebecca Bollwitt from many people and with not a lot of women on the panel, I am quite excited!I think another session with Dave Olson will be interesting F*** Stats,Make Art which seems like my sort of thing and will be a good discussion.
{note: kudos on the fine taste to get the Daveo double-hitter ;-0}
Dave Olson also had an outstanding session about making art instead of worrying about “fucking stats”. Looking forward to hanging more with these guys in Austin real soon.
If you missed it, plan to go next year and book early. Maybe next time they will have decent coffee, enough food for lunch and somewhere to hang your coat up. But these are minor quibbles. Excellent presentations today from Matt Mullenweg, Marc Canter, Dave Olson and Alex Waterhouse Hayward.
I was really looking forward to meeting a lot of bloggers whom I’d only read or heard about, as well as picking up a few tricks of the trade for myself.Hope to catch up with her at the Green Living show for happyfrog’s frogblog – IT’S ALL GREEN, IT’S ALL GOOD
Dave Olson’s podcast features a rousing rendition of the Canadian national anthem, his antics in Amsterdam and an impromptu longboard hockey game at the University of British Columbia’s Chan Centre.
{note: the Canadian anthem referenced is a humorously lackluster rendition from the Canadian Little League championship in Whalley, Surrey BC – fortunately i keep better versions in the feed too ;-))
I’m spoiled because new product demos are a dime a dozen in SF. I’m less interested in the technology available than I am in the way it is used. For this reason, my favorite presenter was a fellow I’d never heard of, Dave Olson.Dave Olson is a bit of hoser. He produces the Canucks Outsider Podcast, published a grade school punk zine featuring D.O.A and publishes Uncle Weed- a marijuana lifestyle blog and podcast. Olson’s lecture, entitled, “Fuck Stats, Make Art” was a welcome change from the widget wankery preached at most conferences. Olson entertained with embarrassing childhood anecdotes while still managing to deliver a great message.
He argues that somewhere in the process of monetizing and analyzing the web, content producers have sacrificed their need to create art and have fun. In essence, they’ve become meta-douches. It seems Dave Olson is putting the passion back into publishing and as long as this hoser keeps giving ‘er, I’m behind him 100%.
Dave Olson commanded a pre-lunch time slot with his rousing, bullet-point-free presentation entitled “F*ck Stats, Make Art” at Northern Voice 2008. “Art makes the future” Dave states. What we know about history is based on art, because someone chose to record it. Technology changes our focus on what art is. Oil paints were a technology revolution that allowed post-impressionist painting. The Internet has lowered the bar immensly for the distribution of art, but the most popular content seems to be the least meaningful, most simpleminded things like “some guy dancing around the world“.
Dave goes through a brief history of things he has created over the years: from a photocopied punk rock fanzine, through paintings, poetry, photography, writings, and now podcasting. He contrasts craft vs. art: you can take pride and enjoyment in your craft, your day job, but the meaningful personal expression comes through in art. Embracing translucency, instead of transparency, is his policy. No one cares to hear minor details of your life, and there should be things you don’t want to share, but you do want to put your whole self in the work. “Declare your story” and talk about what you create; “put the log back in blog”.
A slide with Google’s Larry Page and Sergey Brin pops up, and Dave goes into redefining success. Validation can be found from things other than stats, such as reader/listener mail and feedback. Success is for each person to define for themselves. Hold yourself to high standards and maintain your reputation. Hunter S. Thompson is referenced, in that he could write anything because he was very good at it. Rewards will come, possibly when you’re dead, but good art will have longevity. The presentation concluded with a standing ovation.
Whether they knew it or not, intended it or not, the following people challenged me to think a little harder about creativity and craft. People close to me wonder why I don’t identify as being creative. The following Northern Voice speakers have me wondering too.
Dave Olson challenged me to step it up a notch, and to consider another media form if I’m struggling at the one I think I’m good at (writing). Podcasting, maybe? I don’t like the sound of my own voice, so that strikes video out as well. Photography is the medium I sunk the most into already, so I will try to bring the SLR to more places, make the same mistakes everybody makes when they start out, and document the process better. I’d like to learn how to draw. And sing. Outside of the conference, he remarked that he likes to find a third place, away from work and away from home to be creative. This has me thinking of the ideal place to work somewhere (and on something) not domestic and not commercial, but somewhere in between.
(I know that my desire to learn how to sing directly conflicts with the angst about hearing my voice, so don’t bother pointing that out.)
My favorite presentation of the weekend wasn’t about blogging at all, but rather a homage to making art; a visually stunning and clever rant by my good friend Dave Olson entitled “F*ck Stats, Make Art.” A standing ovation followed his talk, and I think I was first on my feet.
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Who’d I miss? Post a link to join the muster roll. Thanks again to all for the kind words – i look forward to seeing what you brew up! Keep an eye and i’ll post my notes or slides or something, sometime, maybe …
Here are some of your favorite DaveO NV08 photos from other Flickr members.
I'm your Vox Populi tomorrow as 'official' on-site Twitterer from @TedXVan - Tune in for punditry, questions & play by play #tedxvan#yvr RT 5 hours ago
City of Vancouver Media By-law Report
