Fruits, Vegetables and Nuts

Just came back from vacation. We are feeling lazy and don’t want to write much.

So here are some fruits, vegetables and nuts!

They were taken in a supermarket in LA.

The display (what display?) is just the opposite of Whole Foods where everything is neatly stacked into perfectly balanced pyramids. In this market, there are just piles of stuff.

It is not a wholesale market.

Haven’t lived in the US for a while, so we don’t know the prices of groceries. It is probably cheaper than your regular supermarket.

The US is truly the land of plenty.

This is Sue’s favorite melons (when they are sweet).

You people probably think that we are crazy – taking all these pictures. Film is cheap nowadays.

POM source

Not from Georgia. Likely from California.

Lassi anyone ?

Alright, gotta go. Ciao.

The Art of Film Title

One of us (Chris) have always liked motion graphics and animation. Film title design is a prime example of this type of art.  They are designed to introduce a movie to the audience, set the tone, and at the same time give credits to the actors, director, producer and the crew. In some movies, there is so much creativity poured into making it that it can be more thrilling to watch than the movie itself.   Like music or music video, it can be enjoyed multiple times. Before youtube and vimeo, it would be difficult to find in one place a collection of opening or closing titles, other than owning all the films in its entirety.

One of the better known and much imitated example is the title sequence designed by Kyle Cooper for the movie “Se7en” (1995, David Fincher directing Bratt Pitt, Morgan Freeman, and Gwyneth Paltrow). Watch it on full screen.

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Then I discovered this web site a few years back – the Art of the Title – that is dedicated to this art form. In the beginning, it only posted the opening title itself – I even donated a clip, don’t think they ever used it.  Now, many of the pieces are posted on their site with “the making of … ” which includes interview with the artist about the design, planning, etc. – just like the bonus materials on a DVD.

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Saul Bass is one of the most celebrated classic movie title designer. To celebrate the release of the long-awaited book Saul Bass: A Life In Film & Design, the folks behind the Art of Title put together a brief visual history of some of Saul Bass’s most celebrated work. Click here or watch below. Don’t forget to switch to HD and full screen.

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Another example which features strong graphic design is the sequence for “Catch me if you can” (2002, Steven Spielberg directing Leo DiCaprio). Love the use of arrows and parallel lines here.

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Nowadays, the production values behind video games rival those of movies, Deux ex: Human Revolution is a game I am currently playing.  It has one of the best looking high-tech title sequence for a video game.

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There are many many more enjoyable pieces of artful designs out there. I will post some of them here from time to time.

Want to see the 2011 Emmy nominations for outstanding main title design (Game of Thrones, Rubicon, Broadwalk Empire and others) ?  Click here.

La Cour Chagall at Fondation Pierre Gianadda, Martigny

After visiting the St. Benrard dog’s home and museum at Martigny, we went to the Fondation Pierre Gianadda – the main reason to go to Martigny.

More will be written about the small but active museum in this corner of Switzerland.

The Fondation has a beautiful sculpture garden and one of the more remarkable pieces is this pavilion and sculptures created by Marc Chagall.

Chagall was commissioned by Madame Ira Kostelitz in 1964 to do three mosaics and two small sculptures (a bird and a fish) for a small courtyard at her Parisian residence.

We have not found a description of the stories or myths behind this work – but it is one of his recurrent themes.

The three mosaic walls and the two sculptures were reconstructed under Chagall’s direction in 2004 on the grounds of the foundation to mark the 25th anniversary of the foundation.

The mosaic titles, even the background tiles are richly colorful, it may not be apparent from a distance until one looks at it more closely. There is a digital feel about mosaic art – tiles and pixels.

Imagine sipping a cold drink on a hot summer day, sitting by a pool or taking a bath in open air, next to this pavilion with the colorful tiles and fountain.

There are many pieces of art that I enjoy viewing but very few pieces that I would want to own – this is one of those pieces that I would like to put in my garden (if I have one).

This piece was even signed in mosaic by the artist.

As you may have noticed, I like mosaic art – check out our recent post about the floral-themed mosaics in the Wynn at Las Vegas.

Porte-couteaux

While I was visiting Quebec city last year, I spotted this rather interesting collection of porte couteau or knife rest. I have used many chopstick rests, but never knife rest before, and probably never would until I saw these.

On an impulse, I bought six of them.

They remind me a bit of the play pieces used in Monopoly, the board game. As kids, we used to fight over who gets to use certain piece (cannot remember which one now).

They are made of pewter and feel solid and heavy. I guess the Dachshund  is the only animal which is represented somewhat realistically.

Now that I am home and regretting not getting more of them. There was also a pig, goat, lynx, wolf, and a fish which stands with its pectoral fins … I vaguely remember.

Well, I just found the maker’s web site – Atelier Bernard Chaudron, and the whole range is available online. Now I wonder if there are fork rests. If you are over here for dinner, remind me to use them (as knife rest or chopstick rest) – and you get to choose first.

Home of the St. Bernard and Museum, Martigny

Martigny, in the canton of Valais, is about an hour’s drive from where we live. It is a junction of roads linking Switzerland with France and Italy – roads over the Great St. Bernard Pass to Aosta (Italy), and the other over the col de la Forclaz to Chamonix (France).

Great St. Bernard Pass is a historic pass lying on the ridge between the two highest summits of the Alps, Mont Blanc and Monte Rosa. The pass is a part of the pilgrim’s route from Canterbury, England to Rome. At the highest point of the road, the Great St Bernard Hospice (hostel) was founded in 1049 to help travelers crossing the Alps. We hope to visit the pass during the summer months.

The hostel became famous for its use of big dogs in rescue operations and gave its name to these dogs. As St. Bernard dogs are not used for rescue anymore, they are no longer kept. A foundation was created to keep breeding the dog in the area.

The Musee et Chiens du Saint Bernard is created in Martigny, and we visited it when we canceled our trip to Milano due to a train strike.

There is a particularly good description of the history of the St. Bernard by the Smithsonian here.

They are rather slow moving and have a rhythm to go about their business of their own.

Their faces are expressive but generally of only a few expressions – bored or worried, not want to be bothered. They do drool a bit.

There is a long hair breed and a short hair breed. The shorter hair is better for rescue mission. Apparently, icicles form on the long hair and weigh the dog down.

This is an adolescent. The face has not quite droop down enough,  so it looks like a different breed of dog.

The kennel has large windows for visitors to observe the dogs. After grooming, the trainer brought the dog out for visitors to touch and socialize. The ones here were very calm, not overly excited about seeing people, but allowed kids to play with its tail and paws without even moving.

Above the kennel is a small museum about the breed, its history, ancient and modern.

St. Bernard has often been seen in media with a cask of brandy around its neck – widely believed to provide some warmth to the lost traveler.  However, the hostel has denied hanging any alcohol around the dog’s neck for rescue purpose. So it is a popular myth, probably created by advertisements (Hennessy, Morand) and movies.

The most famous original St. Bernard is Barry. More recently, it is Beethoven.

In Stephen King’s horror classic – Cujo – the villain is a St. Bernard.

Évian-les-Bains, part 2

Evian-les-bains is a very scenic, historic spa town that catered to the elite of the early 1900’s. Like many of the spa towns in the area, it has “les bains” in its name to indicate the presence of spas, e.g., Aix-les-bains, Thonon-les-bains, and on the swiss side Yverdon-les bains.

After our visit to the source of the Evian brand mineral water (see last post), we took a scroll along the lake front. Two strange trees lean over the path creating a sort of green arch, this is one of them.

On the lake front is a casino which entertains the spa guests between their treatments. It was built in 1911 and probably a very glamorous place back then.

Also on the lake front, next to the casino, is the Palais Lumière (the Evian Baths from 1902 to 1984) which has served as the town’s cultural and convention centre since 2006. It was running an exhibition about Charlie Chaplin when we visited. The palais is named after the Lumière brothers who invented cinematography, made a fortune, and built a villa in Evian (now used as the town hall).

The building is pale yellow and white in color – and according to some, a prestigious example of spa architecture (didn’t know there is such a specialty?). The entrance has big mirrors installed on either side – presumably to make the spa guests more aware of their looks and shape ?

Wall paintings of bathing nudes on both sides of the entrance. The mirror shows the painting from the other side.

Source Bonnevie – the “Good Life” spring in the main entrance hall.  The skylight, the pastel shades of the mosaics on the floor, and the statues make the interior very airy, soft, and comforting. The spas are now operating at the modern lake front Hilton and further up the hill at the Hotel Royal.

We returned around 6pm. This is the boat that would take us back – it was approaching Evian’s pier.

Back to Ouchy, Lausanne – 13 km across the lake.

A very nice day indeed.