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May 20th 2007: Mountain View Festival

One movie is of a wind sculpture in a courtyard near the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. It's been there for years but I'd never before strolled by at a time when I had my camera with me.

Another movie is of Emerson and the Growiser Band. Although not actually on a stage -they set up the instruments and a table by the side of the road- I stopped and grooved to the Caribbean music more than once. I took the movie at a low resolution because all I wanted was the sound.

The third movie is of the haunting sounds Bob Culbertson makes with his Chapman stick. Although it looks like the fretboard of an guitar played vertically by tapping the strings, it doesn't sound anything like a guitar. Again, the movie's intentionally low resolution.

The final movie is of The Hitmen. They cover songs from the 70s, 80s, and 90s that are good for dancing. Three things impressed me about them. (1) They're good. (2) They've got enough energy to get people dancing in the streets. People don't often do so at festivals. (3) They smoothly transition from one song to another. I particularly remember the seamless transition from covering a Michael Jackson song to the song Disco Inferno. I took this movie at a higher resolution to record the people dancing.

There are movies associated with this collection.


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Art
Oudeman Art Glass sells painstakingly intricate geometric glass mobiles. I'd say, "I wish I could make those," but if I said it here on the first picture, I'd be saying it for almost all the other pictures as well.
Cutting Edge Designs, Inc. sells artistically constructed and shaped rock fountains (left side) and simple rock vases (right side).
LockWasher Design creates fantastic metal sculptures, mostly creatures, from found objects. The R2-D2 made from the Heineken Can attracted a lot of attention. I chatted with the artist for a while. He's very friendly and told me a humorous story about cops in San Jose not letting him sell his sculptures that look like ray guns. He also told me another story about the occasional electronic engineer that sees his work and identifies the decades-old object he used. In one case, it was a microphone from the 1950s about which the engineering waxed nostalgic.
According to my notes, these paintings were done by Frederico Gumohon. I think they're really good, "Matisse meets Monet." (I didn't come up with that quote -I wish I could have-. Rather, I saw it posted somewhere in the booth.) As I can't find anything about the artist on the web, even under simple misspellings due to poor handwriting, I'm sure I wrote down the name incorrectly.
Oudeman Art Glass sells painstakingly intricate geometric glass mobiles.
I'd say, "I wish I could make those," but if I said it here on the first picture, I'd be saying it for almost all the other pictures as well.
Cutting Edge Designs, Inc. sells artistically constructed and shaped rock fountains (left side) and simple rock vases (right side).
LockWasher Design creates fantastic metal sculptures, mostly creatures, from found objects. The R2-D2 made from the Heineken Can attracted a lot of attention.
I chatted with the artist for a while. He's very friendly and told me a humorous story about cops in San Jose not letting him sell his sculptures that look like ray guns. He also told me another story about the occasional electronic engineer that sees his work and identifies the decades-old object he used. In one case, it was a microphone from the 1950s about which the engineering waxed nostalgic.
According to my notes, these paintings were done by Frederico Gumohon. I think they're really good, "Matisse meets Monet." (I didn't come up with that quote -I wish I could have-. Rather, I saw it posted somewhere in the booth.)
As I can't find anything about the artist on the web, even under simple misspellings due to poor handwriting, I'm sure I wrote down the name incorrectly.
If my notes are correct, these paintings were done by Avi Thaw.
Wind chimes made by Sounds in Stones. All natural, plus they look and sound cool.
Gene Lee's photographs of flowers are mounted on black wood, giving them the feel of incredibly detailed paintings. Like all the other photographs I took of artwork from this festival, you must view the full-sized image to appreciate it.
Yui's Bonsai sells small, youthful bonsai plants. Of course, youthful is relative to the usual age of bonsai trees -- I asked and was told most of these are three to six years old. (Finally I get a picture of bonsai, even if it isn't at the Japantown festival.)
If my notes are correct, these paintings were done by Avi Thaw.
Wind chimes made by Sounds in Stones. All natural, plus they look and sound cool.
Gene Lee's photographs of flowers are mounted on black wood, giving them the feel of incredibly detailed paintings. Like all the other photographs I took of artwork from this festival, you must view the full-sized image to appreciate it.
Yui's Bonsai sells small, youthful bonsai plants. Of course, youthful is relative to the usual age of bonsai trees -- I asked and was told most of these are three to six years old.
(Finally I get a picture of bonsai, even if it isn't at the Japantown festival.)
Greenies grow hair when watered. I love the eyeglasses! Amusingly, one person asked while I was there why they all look male. The designer discussed and negotiated what modifications it would take to make one look female.
Greenies grow hair when watered. I love the eyeglasses! Amusingly, one person asked while I was there why they all look male. The designer discussed and negotiated what modifications it would take to make one look female.
Edible Centerpieces Demonstration
I caught the end of a demonstration on how to make centerpieces out of fruits and vegetables. The demonstration was by Susan Lewnewsky, a woman who teaches the class "Edible Centerpieces Made Easy" at Mission College. I've always been intrigued by these ever since I received an unsolicited advertisement in my mailbox for a company that makes them. Now I got to see one up close.
Another perspective of the same centerpiece. The instructor explained one of the reasons she likes making these is because she hates having anything go to waste. This way, she gets a centerpiece and can eat it later too.
I caught the end of a demonstration on how to make centerpieces out of fruits and vegetables. The demonstration was by Susan Lewnewsky, a woman who teaches the class "Edible Centerpieces Made Easy" at Mission College.
I've always been intrigued by these ever since I received an unsolicited advertisement in my mailbox for a company that makes them. Now I got to see one up close.
Another perspective of the same centerpiece.
The instructor explained one of the reasons she likes making these is because she hates having anything go to waste. This way, she gets a centerpiece and can eat it later too.
Food
Sophie's Island BBQ, the booth from which I bought my lunch.
Lunch: a bbq rib, two chicken drumsticks, some orange (!) sushi rice, some red rice, some potato salad, and some pickled daikon.
Grilled corn on the cob, a later snack of mine. The flecks at the end are where I tried different seasonings.
Sophie's Island BBQ, the booth from which I bought my lunch.
Lunch: a bbq rib, two chicken drumsticks, some orange (!) sushi rice, some red rice, some potato salad, and some pickled daikon.
Grilled corn on the cob, a later snack of mine. The flecks at the end are where I tried different seasonings.