visiting Seville

On October 9, 2015September 20, 2018 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, travelLeave a comment

Seville is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville, Spain. …

municipal population of about 703,000 …

Its Old Town, the third largest in Europe with an area of 4 square kilometres (2 sq mi), contains three UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the Alcázar palace complex, the Cathedral and the General Archive of the Indies. …

Seville is approximately 2,200 years old. …

Following the 1492 Christopher Columbus expedition to the New World … all goods imported from the New World had to pass through the Casa de Contratacion before being distributed throughout the rest of Spain. …

Click PLAY or watch highlights on YouTube.

Very popular in southern Spain are free (by donation) walking tours. Here’s my excellent guide – Honey Bee.

The modern (2011) Metropol Parasol project impressed me too. It’s the the world’s largest wooden structure.

The Plaza de España is gorgeous.

visiting Mike Sissons in Madrid

On October 6, 2015October 4, 2015 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, friends, travelLeave a comment

I spent a few days catching up with my long time friend. Staying with his family.

Mike and I hadn’t seen each other in over 20 years.

Having lived and taught in many nations, Mike has settled down. An artist, they live not far from the Prado.

This kid – Mike’s newphew – has been thrashing me at various games over the weekend. 🙂

From Madrid I’ll travel southern Spain for a couple of weeks before flying out to Scotland October 18th.

Parksville Sand Sculpture 2015

On July 14, 2015July 14, 2015 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, McCharles familyLeave a comment

From 60 applications this year organizers selected 15 soloists and 7 doubles teams. The winner in each category in Parksville is sent on to the World Championship of Sand Sculpting the following year in Atlantic City.

The theme this time is ‘heroes and villains’.

I probably should have voted for Batman and the Joker.

Instead I voted for a more complex sculpture featuring a monster who wanted to be a hero. But who couldn’t. The artists were there explaining the concept. Respect.

Last year, more than 91,000 people passed through the gates to see the sand sculptures. Since 2000, the society has donated more than $350,000 back to community groups from the money it raised during the exhibition.

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Parksville hopes to host the World sand sculpting championships sometime soon.

more photos

official website

Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Mural

On October 28, 2014October 26, 2014 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, travelLeave a comment

October 2010 officially marked 1000 years since the establishment of the city. The Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Mural is a 4 km ceramic mosaic mural created to mark the occasion. …

wikipedia

Impressive. Billions of tiles.

high resolution photos

Steve Jobs and Pixar

On August 2, 2014July 28, 2014 By Rick McIn Apple, Art and beauty, movies, product endorsementsLeave a comment

Steve Jobs was a complete jerk. But he done good with Pixar. 🙂

… Pixar began in 1979 as the Graphics Group, part of the computer division of Lucasfilm before its spin-out as a corporation in 1986 with funding by Apple Inc. co-founder Steve Jobs, who became its majority shareholder.

The Walt Disney Company bought Pixar in 2006 at a valuation of $7.4 billion, a transaction which made Jobs Disney’s largest shareholder. …

Inadequate sales of Pixar’s computers threatened to put the company out of business as financial losses grew. Jobs invested more and more money in exchange for an increasing portion of the company, reducing the fraction of ownership by the management and employees until after several years he owned essentially all the company …

stevejobs_pixar

Steve admired and respected John Lasseter as an artist. He could not say NO to the guy.

SteveJobsPixar

Mike in Valpo, Chile

On June 20, 2014June 18, 2014 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, travelLeave a comment

Valparaiso: Grit, Grime and more Street Art

World Cup begins

On June 12, 2014June 11, 2014 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, ethics, government, sport - proLeave a comment

Mashable – Brazil’s Issues With the World Cup in One Painting

muralism in Santiago, Chile

On June 9, 2014June 6, 2014 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, cycling, photos, travelLeave a comment

Mike is cycling South America. He’s reached the big city in Chile. Great for photojournalism.

Inspired by the indigenous inhabitants of southern Patagonia; the Mapuche. Many of the murals highlight the struggle and plight of the Mapuche. Historically stripped of land and resources by European settlers they struggle to find a footing in modern day Chile. …

read more …

20 Of The Best Cities To See Street Art

On May 23, 2014May 19, 2014 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, photos, travelLeave a comment

For example, London.

Paris.

Rio.

See the rest – 20 Of The Best Cities To See Street Art

Jane’s fantastic Swopper Stool

On December 8, 2013December 8, 2013 By Rick McIn Art and beauty, health & fitness, product endorsementsLeave a comment

Everybody LOVES this alternative to an office chair. It’s far better than an exercise ball.

… truly one of a kind. With over a dozen patents on it worldwide there is nothing else like it on the market today. The Swopper is designed to provide the user with three dimensions of movement; horizontal, vertical, and lateral.

… engages the core muscles that normally go unused in a normal office chair. …

Amazon $699.00