Saturday, April 27, 2024

POTD: A Picasso Museum in the City of his Birth

"In Málaga, Spain,
Picasso's legacy lives
in tapestry's weaves."

—h/t ChatGPT

From 2023 09 12 Costa del Sol

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Picasso Museum in Málaga, Spain, the city of Picasso's birth. The museum is only 200 meters from where Picasso was born. It now houses 285 works donated by members of Picasso's family.

In a surprise to me, the work photographed here is not a Picasso painting, but a wool tapestry by Jacqueline Dürrbach made in 1958 after an original Picasso painting, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, from 1907. That painting is housed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Picasso has been reported to have described the tapestry as better than his original painting.

Thursday, April 25, 2024

3 Body Problem (TV 2024)

Rotten Tomatoes

Rotten Tomatoes

3 Body Problem (TV 2024): Astrophysics, quantum physics, nanotechnology, SETI, along with a novel twist on the classic threat to humanity that sci-fi stories usually pose. Science is front and center, but character development isn't neglected. The whole overcomes a lot of plot flaws. It all leaves me impatient for season 2. A-

Netflix

Wednesday, April 24, 2024

Density versus Sprawl

Source: Jim Schutze, Dallas Observer
Jim Schutze, Dallas Observer.

If the population of north Texas continues to grow, where we will house all the new people? There are only two options: either greater density or more sprawl. Lately, Jim Schutze has been writing on Facebook against so-called "gentle densification" efforts in Dallas. His arguments seem, to me, to lack logical rigor. It's not that he's not smart. He is. It might just be the nature of social media. Anyway, let's examine one of his responses to my own comment in which I suggested that sprawl is worse than density from a cost viewpoint. I said, "Sprawl creates the need for additional future maintenance. Density uses existing infrastructure."

Tuesday, April 23, 2024

The Wheel's Voters Guide (May, 2024)

Early voting for the 2024 local elections in Texas is underway. Election Day is May 4, 2024. On the ballot for Richardson voters (at least on my ballot) will be two races. Use Vote411.org to see your personalized ballot. Read on to learn how to vote.

Monday, April 22, 2024

Dune: Part Two (2024)

Rotten Tomatoes

Rotten Tomatoes

Dune Part Two (2024): Epic. Outstanding world-building. Spellbinding cinematography. The stakes grow. The allegories get biblical. Paul is a prophesied messiah who drinks from a chalice, falls into a deathlike state, and is revived. Some plot points are still silly (e.g, with "atomics" in use, why is most fighting with swords?). A-

In theaters