"Lianes"

For the latest installment of the new Book of the Week,  I’ve chosen a selection that highlights the work of brothers Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec- aptly titled Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec Lianes.  The book displays the Bouroullecs’ work alongside some preliminary sketches and artists’ notes throughout its pages. Yes, it is a picture-book, and as such is light on text (only 6 pages of printed text including the “Biographical Note”) but heavy on immaculate photographs of the artists’ latest creative design endeavor.

Who are these Brothers Bouroullec, you may want to ask? Ronan and Erwan are brothers from Brittany, France, and have been working together as a design team based out of Paris for 10 years. Their work effortlessly blurs the lines between commercial interiors and installation fine art. This team has designed everything from tree-houses to coffee-tables, bathroom furnishings to corporate interiors, and even the occasional architectural project or museum exhibition. The self-defined mission of the collaboration is “to reach balance and fineness.” This fusion of design and art has been impressing patrons, winning several prestigious awards, and earning accolades the world over since 1997.

Some of the brothers more recent and popular designs are the “clouds”, “algues”, “bivouac”, and this latest series  “lianes” – all of which draw on the structure and geometry of nature (plants in particular) with refined, contemporary design. The duo seamlessly integrates the shapes, elements and “ways” of nature in a primeval, yet very elegant fashion.

So, back to the point, why is the book here at the Kaneko Library and should you come downtown to check it out for yourself? First of all, you should because the library is awesome and because the book is way-cool. Put a in a more verbose way, the work (displayed in the book) expresses the flow of archaic time through phytomorphic beauty. The work does not attempt to imitate nature, but rather to “be” nature. “Lianes” (which, incidentally, is the plural form of the word. It means the free-hanging stem of a climbing, woody plant) explores line, shape, and space through installation artwork with poetic practicality. It really is a “must see” book.  These “elegant entanglements,” as some have termed them, are clean, sophisticated, and complex, without being complicated, pompous, or sparse. Now isn’t that worth a look?

But more importantly, this book is an incredible opportunity for all of us to literally see how these two artistic brothers effortlessly merge and morph the world of commercial design with that of fine art. This dynamic fusion of esthetic design and aesthetic art transcends both genres. Through this project the Bouroullec brothers have made discussions of form-following-function vs. function-following-form theories and debates pretty much irrelevant- you can have BOTH!

Again, the book is titled is Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec Lianes. It truly is worth picking up and giving a look. Besides, the book is full of really cool pictures and you just might learn a little something about art and design.

Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec

The book of this week’s post is a personal favorite, or soon to be, of mine- The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and the Great Age of American Innovation by Jon Gertner.  In a clear and engaging manner, Gertner aims to give a biography of the Bell Labs, a subsidiary research and development laboratory of AT&T.   The history of the lab alone is intriguing.  It was founded by none other than Alexander Graham Bell in 1880 and seven Nobel Prizes have been awarded to work stemming from the lab.  And talk about innovation!  The technologies and hardware that were produced by the reserachers in this lab have forever altered the way we live- and I’m quite sure none of us really know just how much!

Created here and the results enjoyed by us: WLAN (wireless Internet), TDMA and CDMA (wireless phone signal systems), C programming language, then the  C++ programming language, the first semiconductors, cross-ocean telephone cables, and so many other techy things that I simply don’t understand.  I am always fascinated by these kinds of laboratories or businesses that allow for and encourage creativity and spontaneity in the work of their employees. Previously, I’ve gobbled up every bit of information about Xerox PARC that I could, amazed to learn that so much of the modern computer structure stemmed from engineers sitting on beanbag chairs and eating pizza.  (That’s the image  they present, at least.)

Curt Schleier, from the Seattle Times, writes about the director of the lab, Mervin Kelly:  ”Kelly did a number of interesting things. Obviously, he hired similarly minded young scientists — many, like William Shockley, future Nobel Prize winners. But then he created interdisciplinary teams, something unheard of at the time, so that physicists worked with chemists who worked with engineers.”  Such a basic concept that is still underdeveloped today.  We have evidence at Bell Labs, Xerox PARC, and Apple/Pixar that integrated teams with different backgrounds and skills can really jump start creativity and innovation.  My personal hope is that this kind of thinking makes the move into classroom soon- just think of the ideas that could stem from an entire university blurring the lines between departments and colleges!

Inventing the transistor

From the dust jacket comes this moving description:

“‘It is possible to invent a single machine which can be used to compute any computable sequence,’ twenty-four-year-old Alan Turing announced in 1936. In Turing’s Cathedral, George Dyson focuses on a small group of men and women, led by John von Neumann at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, who built one of the first computers to realize Alan Turing’s vision of a Universal Machine. Their work would break the distinction between numbers that mean things and numbers that do things—and our universe would never be the same.

 Using five kilobytes of memory (the amount allocated to displaying the cursor on a computer desktop of today), they achieved unprecedented success in both weather prediction and nuclear weapons design, while tackling, in their spare time, problems ranging from the evolution of viruses to the evolution of stars.

Dyson’s account, both historic and prophetic, sheds important new light on how the digital universe exploded in the aftermath of World War II. The proliferation of both codes and machines was paralleled by two historic developments: the decoding of self-replicating sequences in biology and the invention of the hydrogen bomb. It’s no coincidence that the most destructive and the most constructive of human inventions appeared at exactly the same time.”

Now, I will be up front about my mathematical skills- they are basic. I finished calculus in 10th grade and have yet to take another math class.  So it is intriguing, at least to me, that the element of this description that I fixate on is that there are two types of numbers- “ numbers that mean things and numbers that do things.” Nine words.  Nine words and my brain is frantically trying to catch up to this new framework in which to view mathematics.  I now must know what distinguishes one number from another and why.  And how did this distinction come to Turing? And how did it play into the creation of the computers and devices that so dominate our world? What prompted this revolutionary thinking?

Books like this always serve to remind me why a library like this exists- that without creativity, without pushing boundaries, without different viewpoints, our world would be…less? Or is it just different?  Certainly, without creativity, our world would not be what it is today.

This week’s most interesting book was difficult to choose- not because of any subject matter preferences but because there were just so many intriguing books that came in this week!  I’ve had to triple the display space for New Books!  Anyway, this book won the slightly prestigious honor of being book of the week because it interested nearly every person who has walked by it in the last two days. What is so interesting about it, you ask?

The Kitchen as Laboratory presents to the reader a new way to think about and experience food and cooking.  Quite simply, the authors are explaining and exploring the idea of  science-based cooking.  This is cooking based on understandings of a food’s chemical and physcial structure. Flavors and textures of food serve as guides that are paired together not by means of traditional recipes, but through what science says would taste good together. Seem radical?  That’s because it is!

Offering both scientific explanations of the concepts of scientific cooking and recipes to demonstrate the principles, this book is unique.  It’s composed of 33 essays written by scholars, chefs, and scientists from across the globe who are interested in furthering the discourse about the possibilities of a new type of cooking, one that is only just starting to be explored in the hallowed kitchens of the world’s elite cooking schools.

So, in the end, The Kitchen as Laboratory is our book of the week because it so wonderfully addresses a 21st century idea- treat even the everyday with creativity and be amazed.

Eva is a quiet lady- clearly wishing for a nice evening gown...

We have an interesting opportunity for any aspiring designers!  Next week, KANEKO is hosting Omaha Fashion Week and we are so excited we’re getting ready early!  The library has come into possession of some lovely vitage ladies that need some help with their clothing. We have collected silks, lace, ribbon, chiffon, tulle, linen, wool, and more to give these ladies some clothes.  Alas, it turns out librarians are not so great at clothing and fashion design.  Perhaps you are?

Marie is a classy woman in need of an elegant top, don't you agree?

If fashion is your thing, we ask you to help us!  Give these girls some style and sophisitication! I’ll do the sewing if you guys will create some awesome, creative garments.  These mannequins and their dresses will be on display in the KANEKO-UNO Library during Omaha Fashion Week- you never know who might see them!

Meet Sarah- she is imploring you to give her some color! Beige is not her thing.

Come in any time during our normal business hours to work out your creative fashion dreams with three willing models.

We also have a nice collection of books dedicated to fashion available for you to browse through and get inspired by, not to mention new fashion-themed DVDs!

Hal France, Executive Director of KANEKO, talks with the students about the upcoming exhibit.

This last week, we were so excited to host a conversation between UNO students and the photographer, Jim Krantz.  Originally from Omaha, Krantz has spent much of his life behind the camera, capturing the world.  His show, currently up at the KANEKO, is entitled “Homage: Remembering Chernobyl.”  On Friday, he sat down to talk with art students from UNO about his creative process and techniques.

Jim Krantz discusses his techniques for approaching subjects with a camera.

The conversation, directed by the students questions, ranged from how to approach a subject with a camera when you don’t speak the same language to the best f-stops to how to make a career out of photography.  Krantz proved himself to be a insightful thinker who approaches photography from both intellectual and physical levels.  To avoid intimidating a Russian villager, for instance, he would take his photographs with his camera at mid-chest height. This way, the camera does not block his face and eyes, keeping visual communication open between him and his subject.

The art students, along with Professors Bob Carlson and David Helm, listen to Krantz describe his view of photography.

The informal conversation lasted just over an hour- and it would have continued on if the students didn’t have to get back to campus! I think both Krantz and the students could have continued to delve into the intricacies of modern photography for quite some time. Before the students left, they were given a sneak peek of the exhibit, including the mysterious poem that inspired the show.

A student takes a closer look at one of the images in "Homage: Remembering Chermonyl." The show is available the rest of this week at KANEKO.

Want to know what I’m talking about? Come see the show! It will still be up at the KANEKO for the rest of this week and you don’t want to miss this glimpse into another world.

Students consider the poem that inspired Krantz.

All the photographs used here are the work of one of the students!  A big thank you to Jordan Oham!

The latest additions to the KANEKO- UNO Library are….drum roll please…. Apples!  Not the red and delicious kind, obviously.  Think sleek and silver instead.  We now have something from every range of Apple mobile device- a MacBook Pro, a MacBook Air, and an iPad2!  I know some of you have been waiting for this for a long time and we’re excited to see the technology in the library expand.

Even cooler, the new drawing pads that we got last week?  They work with the MacBooks as well!

We hope you’ll come on down to check these products out soon- they’re here for you!

“The Great American Cereal Book” is not only beautifully illustrated with cheerful colors and vintage photographs, it’s also amazingly factual!  The book details the history of cereal in the United States, which, despite what you may think, is quite fascinating. The books begins with an explanation of the origin of cereal as a health food product that bears little resemblance to cereals like Fruit Loops available today.  Instead, the earliest cereal,”granula,” was actually a baked mixture of graham flour and water. To tell you any more would spoil the surprise of discovering the rich history of cereal for yourself.  Suffice it to say, there’s intrigue, religion, and a variety of celebrities to entice you!

The Wacom Bamboo Create 

and

The Wacom Intuos 4

These digital drawing tablets are sure to extend your creative capabilities!

Never used a digital drawing pad before?  Have no fear!  We have introductory tutorials for you to investigate at your lesiure and all of our staff is there to help you get familiar with this innovative way to engage with the digital world.  Many find the pen stylus is a more natural tool than the mouse for not only navigation around the computer, but also in more complex graphic programs such as Adobe CS or Autodesk Sketchbook.  Once you get the feel for it, you’ll be off and going.

Both of these tablets can be used on any computer in the library- on the large screen desktops and on our laptops.  Additionally, they can be used with a patron’s own personal laptop!  Just install the drivers, plug it in and you’re on the road to detailed photo manipulations, seamless digital drawings, and quicker document editing.