Category: Art

Blastoff for Hunter

Acclaimed writer and journalist Hunter S. Thompson was remembered by his friends and loved ones this month with a ceremonial firing of a cannon containing his ashes. The ashes were sent off from a 150ft tower topped by a red fist with two thumbs – the symbol of Thompson’s free-wheeling, first-person gonzo journalism, and were accompanied by explosive fireworks. Hunters wife Anita commented that Thompson always enjoyed explosions. These included many that he himself let off (firing guns at his secluded Colorado ranch, igniting smoke-bombs in the lavatory of his local pubactor, and lets not forget the final explosion which took his life in February).

Johnny Depp, who portrayed Hunter in the film ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’, donated the cannon for the ceremony and friends in attendance were instructed to remember him afterwards with the clink of ice in whiskey.

This is one of the coolest conclusions to a life that I have ever witnessed and certainly puts a positive spin on the end of exsistance for such a literary marvel. Talk about going out with a BANG!!

Pedagogical Idol

TVO has an interesting new twist on the “Idol” format reality show: they’re trying to find the best teacher in the post-secondary education system. Contestants/professors from various Ontario universities will compete by lecturing on their specialty. They will then be judged on their passion, knowledge and ability to teach in an engaging and effective way.

Could a little good actually come from reality TV?

The Way Wants to Show you The Way

A group of recent graduates from York University have written a fun play about modern western civilization’s current obsessions. The writers of the play, The Way are concerned about the lack of social and environmental awareness in North America and warns us that this will come back to haunt us.

Obviously they want to change that; the play sends the message that people must become more aware of their surroundings.

For an in-depth review of the play check out my post on it at blogTO.com. The play is running this week in Toronto more information can be found at the SummerWorks Festival website.

Protest With Style


rtMark has been around for awhile, so long that they are now 10 years old. rtMark specializes in challenging the capitalistic ideal through pranks and creative exploitation of the system already in place, like media hype.

Protesterâ„¢ is one of their latest offerings which provides a place for activists to convene and share their ideas/skills/experinces.

Check out the projects section to easily get involved.

New UK law for art looted by Nazis.

A proposed new law in the United Kingdom seeks to make it easier for art looted by the Nazis before and during World War II to be returned to its rightful owners or their decedents. In the run up to World War II, invading German forces would loot the collections of Jewish art collectors. In the aftermath, more than a few of these pieces found their way into museums, either because of an inability of their rightful owners to track them down, or because their rightful owners had been killed in the Holocaust.

Spurred by the example Jewish-Czech Arthur Feldman, whose collections was sold for pittance to a UK gallery after the Holocaust, Culture Minister David Lammy is trying to speed through the changes, which would make it a simpler process for families to file claims.